Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Under the Never Sky really surprised me--and I mean this in an absolutely positive manner. I loved it so much more than I thought I would and if you've been thinking about picking up a copy, I'm going to give you a helpful nudge towards the bookstore (or the library).

Cast out of Reverie, Aria doesn't expect to last long in the barren world beyond the Pods known as the Death Shop. But it's there that she meets an Outsider named Perry (Peregrine) who will help keep her alive--if she'll help him find his nephew, Talon. Together they'll embark on a journey that will lead them to the answers that they seek... and more.

I'm pretty sure that I've mentioned this by now, but I'm pretty terrible at summarizing things. Maybe I just should've said, "This book is amazing, go forth and read it now!" Because honestly? That's exactly what I think and well, my summary is just not doing Under the Never Sky justice. My absolute favorite part of Under the Never Sky? How Perry and Aria's relationship develops. This is not a case of instant love and by the time they realize their feelings you'll be tossing up your hands yelling, "Finally!"

But wait! There's more! In Under the Never Sky, there's a set of Outsiders with special skills (referred to as the Marked and then by ability). Some can hear you from quite a distance, others have exceptional sight, and others still can tell your mood based on scent. It added a really fascinating angle to the story and I practically ran for my small collection of perfume oils when--in a particular scene--Aria's scent (violets) is mingled with mint (what alertness smells like in Under the Never Sky) as I'm a geek like that and happen to have a perfume that smells like that.

Then there's Roar, who I'm looking forward to (hopefully) seeing more of in the next book as I'm quite taken with him and Cinder--who has an extremely unique skill that you'll learn about in Under the Never Sky. And I can't forget about Marron, the owner of Delphi where Aria, Perry, Roar, and Cinder spend some time during Under the Never Sky. It sounds like quite the place to visit--or live at! *ahem* One of my favorite scenes happens to take place at Delphi during a bit of knife fighting practice between Aria and Perry. Believe me when I say this, you will understand what I'm talking about when you get there.

Under the Never Sky is easily a new favorite of mine and I'm definitely looking forward to the next book. There's nothing that I disliked about it and the ending? Well, the ending was just perfect. I could not imagine it ending other way. I can definitely see why the film rights were optioned by Warner Bros. Entertainment and I really do think that it'd make for an amazing movie (as long as they don't screw it up). In short, if you're looking for a 2012 debut to read, I'd say that Under the Never Sky is definitely a book to consider and I hope that you'll enjoy it as much as I did!

Overall Rating: ★★★★★

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Publisher: Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins.

Release Date: January 3, 2012

Edition: ARC

* Received for review via publisher.