#Audiobook #Review: 5 out of 5 stars for Shades of Earth by Beth Revis @bethrevis @LLAudiobooks

TITLE: Shades of Earth

SERIES: Across the Universe, Book 3
AUTHOR: Beth Revis 

NARRATOR: Tara Carrozza
PUBLISHER: Listening Library

PUBLICATION DATE: January 15, 2013

AUDIO: 11 hrs, 8 mins

GENRE: Young Adult, Science Fiction/Dystopia

ISBN: 9781467651011

The final book in the trilogy by New York Times best-selling author Beth Revis!

Amy and Elder have finally left the oppressive walls of the spaceship Godspeed behind. They're ready to start life afresh - to build a home - on Centauri-Earth, the planet that Amy has traveled 25 trillion miles across the universe to experience. But this new Earth isn't the paradise that Amy had been hoping for. Amy and Elder must race to uncover who - or what - else is out there if they are to have any hope of saving their struggling colony and building a future together. But as each new discovery brings more danger, Amy and Elder will have to look inward to the very fabric of what makes them human on this, their most harrowing journey yet. Because if the colony collapses? Then everything they have sacrificed - friends, family, life on Earth - will have been meaningless.

MY REVIEW:

Revis carries the momentum from the second book of the series, A Million Suns, into the third book of the trilogy. I was riveted from start to finish!

I listened to A Million Suns back in 2012, and I bought Shades of Earth from Audible when it was released in 2013. However, I’ve been putting it off for so long. One of the reasons for that is because I absolutely loved A Million Suns, and I was worried that Revis wouldn’t deliver and that there was no way that the third book could be as good as the second. Well, I was wrong!! It was thrilling ride from start to finish. Finally, we find out what Orion was trying to warn Amy and Elder about with all those clues and the secrets about Centauri-Earth and its inhabitants.

Elder really shined in this installment. He embodies the qualities of a true leader, sacrificing himself for the sake of his people time and again. When the military personnel are brought out of their cryogenically frozen state, Amy’s father tries to take over as leader and he soon finds out that he is not in control of the shipbornes. Elder doesn’t let Amy’s father push him around, which creates a bit of tension. When the newcomers are attacked, Amy’s father and Elder realize that they must work together if they have any hope of survival. However, it appears that Colonel Martin is keeping secrets from even his own daughter which makes Elder even more wary.

Amy is so adaptable, almost TOO adaptable! She was able to make Godspeed her home relatively quickly and identify with the shipbornes, and then is able to think of Centauri-Earth as her new home almost immediately. I suppose that is a good quality to have, when you have to give up the life that you knew on Sol-Earth. When she said this, it all fell into place for me: “Sometimes home is a person.” Now I know why she was able to do that! 

Here is another memorable quote:

“I learned that life is so, so fragile. I learned that you can know someone for just days and never forget the impression he left on you. I learned that art can be beautiful and sad at the same time. I learned that if someone loves you, he'll wait for you to love him back. I learned that how much you want something doesn't determine whether you get it or not, that "no" might not be enough, that life isn't fair, that my parents can't save me, that maybe no one can.”

I love dystopian novels, but I have to admit that books involving “space” don’t typically interest me. I am so glad that I gave this series a try, because I absolutely loved it!!

Tara Carrozza and Lucas Salvagno continued as dual narrators, and I love how Revis told the story from different points of view. I thought both narrators did a great job. Lucas’ vocalization of Amy made her slightly whiney. I don’t know if that was intentional or not, but it made me cringe slightly.

MY RATING:

5 stars!!  It was superb! I loved it and will likely re-read it in the future. You should definitely put it on your TBR list if you enjoy dystopia!

This book qualifies as: 

#45 for my 2016 You Read How Many Books? Challenge

#45 for my 2016 Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge

#21 for my Mount TBR Reading Challenge 2016

#21 for my 2016 TBR Pile Reading Challenge

#39 for my 2016 Women Challenge
#3 for my 2016 Series Enders Reading Challenge

#34 for my 2016 Prequel & Sequel Reading Challenge

#42 for my Backlist Books Reading Challenge

#35 for my 2016 Audiobook Challenge
#7 for my 2016 Dystopia Reading Challenge

#13 for my 2016 YA Reading Challenge

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