BOOK DETAILS

Title: Every Sky a Grave (The Ascendance Series #1)

Author: Jay Posey

Genre: Sci-Fi, Young Adult

Publisher: Skybound Books

Publication Date: July 9th, 2020

ASIN: B07Z45PDMW

SYNOPSIS

The first novel in an exciting new series, Every Sky a Grave is a thrilling space epic following a powerful woman who can destroy planets with a single word but is suddenly faced with an adversary that threatens the entire known universe.

Far in the future, human beings have seeded themselves amongst the stars. Since decoding the language of the universe 8,000 years ago, they have reached the very edges of their known galaxy and built a near-utopia across thousands of worlds, united and ruled by a powerful organization known as the Ascendance. The peaceful stability of their society relies solely on their use of this Deep Language of the cosmos.

But this knowledge is a valuable secret, and a holy order of monastics known as the First House are tasked with monitoring its use and “correcting” humanity’s further development. Elyth is one such mendicant, trained as a planetary assassin, capable of infiltrating and ultimately destroying worlds that have been corrupted, using nothing more than her words.

To this end, Elyth is sent to the world Qel in response to the appearance of a forbidden strain of the Deep Language that was supposed to have died out with its founder over seven hundred years prior. What she finds on the backwater planetoid will put her abilities to the test and challenge what she knows of the Deep Language, the First House, and the very nature of the universe.

BOOK REVIEW

Every Sky a Grave is the first installment in the epic sci-fi series that not only telling a story of an amazing woman’s fantastic journey that is full of action and danger but also a story about her finding her true self and purpose in the world.

It was the Language that united them. It was the Language that had lifted the human race from the dust and granted them the stars as inheritance. There was power within its words.

The idea of words hold such an unthinkable amount of power is what drew me into this book. As someone who loves learning and knowing something new about languages, that is a plus for me. I rarely read fantasy or sci-fi books which the source of power is the language. I was truly intrigued by the concept and accepted the publisher’s offer right away to read the e-ARC.

Let me tell you, Every Sky a Grave did not disappoint. I love sci-fi but I won’t deny the fact that sometimes the genre scares me because some sci-fi books can be quite heavy for me. Fortunately, that is not the case with this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it from the moment I read the first page. The words were beautifully written, they carved these stunning outer space and foreign planets in my head. I definitely loved the way Jay Posey described the planets and the world growing on them. I know it won’t go well with the story since the FMC was on a secret mission, but I’d like it if Elyth engaged deeper with the people so that I could know more about their culture and life on the planet.

“The Hezra,” she said, holding up her right hand, “and the First House.” She held up her left. “These are the two hands with which the Grand Council rules. Justice, mercy; law, culture; knowledge, wisdom. An eye turned outward to the horizon; another turned inward to the soul. The authority and the power of the Ascendance. Stability rests not in either side of these pairings alone, but rather in the active mediation between them. History instructs us that it is the judgment of the Grand Council, balanced between this House and our siblings within the Hezra, that has brought such peace and prosperity to our vast citizenry.”

Aside from the world-building, this book also has some kind of political issues going on that I didn’t really care about and understand. The story itself didn’t confuse me but the game of power was confusing. I’m about to write what I knew after reading the book, please correct me if I’m wrong. I think the world is called the Ascendance and inside it was the Grand Council and below it was the First House and the Hezra. I gathered there was some tension regarding power and influence over the Grand Council between the First House and the Hezra. The main problem of the story lies heavily in that matter. I don’t want to spoil anything so I’m going to stop there.

It was rather hard for me to grasp my head and fully understand the hierarchy and everything about it in this book. If you’re hesitant to read this book after reading my rant or the quote above, don’t worry, you can still enjoy the story without having to be an expert on the political matters. I do hope there will be more explanation about those stuff in the sequel because it’d feel so much better if I really know what’s going on.

“Why is it,” he began, “that when people of a world go wrong, it is the planet that pays the ultimate penalty?”

What impressed me is that even though this book has that confusing hierarchy, at least for me, this book also has such beautiful quotes and a raw view about the world that contains only truth. I found some of them are relevant in our world, in this lifetime. Elyth, our FMC, saw these details about the world that were amazing yet so natural. I loved how she can connect deeply with the planets she visited. I know it’s part of the job but she still felt everything even after the missions are cleared. You really need to read the book to understand what I’m trying to say because I doubt my words will stir your feelings half as good as the whole story will do to you.

Talking about feelings, Elyth and eth ammuin’s interactions never failed to make me laugh and brought joy into my boring life. IMO, they are the highlight of this book. I loved their chemistry, they were perfect as partners. Sadly, it took me a while to get there because the first half of this book felt very slow. It’s like I’m riding a rollercoaster and the highest point of the road is just in front of my eyes but the ride takes a painfully slow time to go forward and so I’m left with this weird feelings: I know the climax is going to be good but I got bored waiting for it to happen but I don’t want to stop reading because I know something big is going to happen.

“We are radiant beings, you know,” he said quietly. “Truly radiant. The heat from our bodies is visible to millions of forms of life across the galaxy. But, by some cruel twist, we can’t see it. And we live with our heads down and eyes fixed on such inconsequential things. It’s easy to forget that we glow.”

Thankfully, I finally reached that highest point and it was spectacular. That specific moment near the end was mind-blowing, my mind was shooting all these epic and badass images and I could only say wow. Every Sky a Grave ended in an intriguing note that made me craving for more. I’m genuinely curious about what’s going to happen in the sequel. I wish there would be more magic and action!

RATING: 4⭐/5

RECOMMENDATION: Every Sky a Grave is perfect for you who love sci-fi books or TV series, currently looking for a fantastic and epic new release, a fan of Mark Lawrence, Star Wars, Interstellar, Anne Leckie, and The Power.

The quotes in this review were taken from an e-ARC and are subject to change upon publication.

AUTHOR INFORMATION

Jay Posey is a narrative video designer for Ubisoft where he has spent over a decade working on Tom Clancy’s award-winning Ghost Recon and Rainbow Six franchises. He is an expert in world- building and video game writing. He is also the author of Legends of Duskfall trilogy and Outriders series. EVERY SKY A GRAVE is his most mainstream- action packed offering yet.