Brightly Burning by Alexa Donne Review
Hello Again!
I was going to review this ARC next week but decided to review it this week instead because of how fast I devoured it! I received a copy of this ARC in the mail last week unexpectedly and was so delighted to be selected to get a chance to read and review this take of Jane Eyre in space. See below to see what I thought! Enjoy!
Synopsis
Seventeen-year-old Stella Ainsley wants just one thing: to go somewhere—anywhere—else. Her home is a floundering spaceship that offers few prospects, having been orbiting an ice-encased Earth for two hundred years. When a private ship hires her as a governess, Stella jumps at the chance. The captain of the Rochester, nineteen-year-old Hugo Fairfax, is notorious throughout the fleet for being a moody recluse and a drunk. But with Stella he’s kind. But the Rochester harbors secrets: Stella is certain someone is trying to kill Hugo, and the more she discovers, the more questions she has about his role in a conspiracy threatening the fleet.
-GoodReads
Review
Before receiving this book, I had heard about it in passing, but had not looked into the plot details. I knew it was highly anticipated however, and was very excited to receive it out of the blue. After reading the plot synopsis, I was beyond thrilled because Jane Eyre is my favorite British classic! I picked it up this week and finished it in one day because I simply couldn't stop reading it.
Jane Eyre is my favorite British classic and it is wonderfully shown as an influence in this sci- fi novel without outright copying it. Sci- fi is not usually a genre that I enjoy reading but I found myself glued to the page. Where it deviated from the Jane Eyre narrative is where it really excelled, choosing to go in an original direction and differentiate itself allowed the story to take on a life of its own. The author doesn't bite off more than she can chew by trying to build an expansive universe to build and instead focuses on the story and the character development.
First and foremost, one of the things that I enjoyed was the strength that Stella, the main character portrays. She is a trained engineer and is not afraid to ger dirty to fix whatever problem needs to be solved. She is also not afraid to speak her mind (something that Jane Eyre and her have in common) which make her a someone to be rekoned with in my opinon. One of the things I really enjoyed was the way they chose to make Stella's love interest, Hugo more similar in age to her than Mr. Rochester is to Jane in the original novel. It gives it a much less creepy vibe and makes it much more relatable.
The only thing that was a little rough around the edges were the letters and emails exchanged between the main character, Stella, and other characters. They didn't feel they were as well written as they could have been and this may have been because they were supposed to be correspondences between characters but the were the only part of the book I didn't enjoy as much as the narrative.
One of the best things the author does is not leaving you with too many unanswered questions at the end of the novel. I get irritated when I end a standalone novel with questions without answers Alexa Donne wraps up this story nicely and it is much appreciated. The author has stated on her GoodReads page that she plans on writing a companion novel which I would definitely be interested in reading as well! This novel releases on May 1, 2018!
Conclusion
Overall, this was a fresh take on a classic and was executed well. There were a few rough edges but overall, it kept me guessing and I couldn't put it down!
Length: At just under 400 pages, this is the perfect length for this novel!
Story Development: Well paced, no dull moments to be found!
Romance: Taking inspiration from Jane Eyre, the romance in this novel is swoon worthy!
Protagonist Strength: Excellent
Re-readable? Absolutely!
I give this book 4.5 out of 5 stars
