Starswept (Starswept, #1) review

**Thank you to Snowy Wings Publishing and Netgalley for sending me an ARC of this book in return for an honest review. 5 beautiful stars!!! I have no coherent words to describe this book. However, I will say that it surpassed all of my expectations. From the blurb, I really didn't know what to expect besides that it was going to be a sci-fi story with music. But, what I read just left me speechless. I found myself reading chapters into the wee hours of the morning just to know what's going to happen next. That, in itself, says a lot about this novel. Firstly, I just loved the worldbuilding. Mary Fan has such an exquisite writing style. I honestly felt swept away into this alien world resplendent with lush imagery and gorgeous details. The world was so immersive what with the details on how the species look, the language, the history and everything in between. The juxtaposition of this beauty with the desolation of Earth although jarring gave the book much-needed dimension and richness. Secondly, the way the Arts was described was just breathtaking. I could feel the author's passion for music and dance just leap off the pages. As a creative person myself this was just a joy to read. I loved how the book delves into creativity in such a unique way and explores the creative process. The struggles of finding your identity, honing your skills and finding that part of you that needs to be enmeshed into what you love. I could so relate to every aspect of it that I found it very refreshing. Thirdly, the characters were really well done. All of them were fleshed out and were not one-dimensional cut-outs. The MC Iris was engaging and thoughtful. Even though she is an Artist, she's independent, level-headed and very passionate about music. Plus, she's a hopeless romantic. I really liked reading the story from her POV as we get a deep look at her emotions, relationships, and struggles. I found her to be an easily likeable character. Although she's a shy girl, she has such depth of character. She loves fiercely and this can be seen in all her interactions with the other characters. Fourthly, the romance was all feels. It's one of those epic ones which I love. Daimul as a MC was like the perfect book-boyfriend. No, he wasn't broody but he was strong, loving and protective. I just loved Iris and his blooming romance. It was just beautiful and their interactions with one another were swoon-worthy. There does seem a bit of a love triangle going on in some aspects of the book but that's nipped in the book pretty early on. I definitely appreciated that as I dislike when YA books go down that route. Last but not least, the pacing and structure of the book made reading a breeze. The author throws in a lot of plot twists and devices to keep it engaging. The novel is a mix between dystopia and sci-fi as you can see that Earth seems to favour the Elite more and the only talent appreciated is the Arts. by integrating an alien race into the otherwise formulaic plot, the author takes the novel to a newer level. The story also contains a lot of political upheaval, anarchy, betrayal and so on. The later chapters have plenty of action while character development takes on leaps and bounds. For the start of a series, this book is the perfect opener and springboard. Overall, as you can see the book was highly enjoyable and is going to my list of favourites. If you love YA, music, aliens and romance, I would definitely recommend reading this one. You won't be disappointed at all :)

#music #romance #dystopia #scifi #youngadult #MaryFan