Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars: A Space Opera Like No Other

Christopher Paolini, famous for his Inheritance Cycle series (Eragon), is returning. Only this time, he’s decided to approach the world of science fiction. To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is his latest novel, a heavy novel full of speculative science fiction and space opera elements.

There was a time when Kira Navarez was content with her job. But all of that was before she came into contact with an alien artifact, a moment that would forever change the course of human history. Now, she’s at the forefront of a war, desperately trying to find a way to bring it to an end – before the human race pays the price.

It is fascinating that Paolini switched genres for his latest foray into the literary world. Having read all of the Inheritance Cycle and now To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, I can honestly tell you it was the right call.

Paolini’s writing style is perfectly suited to the world of science fiction. That goes doubly so for space operas. It’s like he was born to write the epics while portraying the best and worst that humanity – and aliens – have to offer.

Writing

Wow. Can I just start by saying that? I went into To Sleep in a Sea of Stars with high expectations, yet I was still blown away by what I found here. Kira’s journey is intense and expansive, bringing an entire universe to life alongside her.

It isn’t just Kira that brings the story to life, though. There are about a dozen secondary characters, and honestly, they’re just as well thought out and charming as Kira is. At times, it even feels like they carry the story for her.

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is a true science fiction epic. I don’t just mean that it is grand in scale (though there is that). It’s also a massive book. It clocks in at eight hundred and eighty pages, and it makes the best use of each and every one of those pages.

This is a book that is lush with details. That probably isn’t too shocking, given Paolini’s writing style. The amount of detail is much better suited to science fiction, as Paolini uses it to describe a world full of technology, aliens, and other mysterious elements.

It’s broken up into several parts (with the first available to preview on BookishFirst), and honestly? Each part almost feels like its own cohesive story. It could have been two or more novels, but we got one massive beast instead. I’m not going to complain about getting more for my money.

Development

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is a novel with ups and downs. Both in terms of pacing and terms of emotional levels. Obviously, a lot goes on within these pages, and it wouldn’t have made sense if it was all action.

Paolini wrote in time for characters and readers to ingest what has been happening. He also takes plenty of time to set the scene in casual and action-packed settings. It’s an interesting balance, but it’s well-suited for this novel.

Every passing chapter seemed to increase the scale and scope of this story. To be clear, that isn’t even remotely a bad thing. However, it is surprising how…expansive everything got towards the end. Just one more surprise in a series of intriguing twists.

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is a cohesive and fascinating novel. Every little detail enriches the world and makes it more plausible and real. All while discreetly setting the stakes.

Conclusion

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is nothing like the novel I expected it to be. It was better. This space opera is like no other and will sit on the top of my favorite space operas for years to come. I highly recommend it to anybody looking to dive into that particular genre. Or even just those fans of Paolini’s who want to follow him on his latest adventure.

Normally, a massively marketed book like this feels a bit of a letdown. It never stood a chance of living up to all the hype generated by the public. I don’t feel like that was the case here. I’m tempted to say that the opposite is true, but I don’t want to go about accidentally encouraging over-hyping for obvious reasons.

One other note before I end my review. To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is one of those novels with many memorable quotes. Funny comments, shocking revelations, and even lines that truly hit home. Those are the moments that will stick out, even years from now.

This review was originally written for Word of the Nerd, but has been ported over to Quirky Cat’s Fat Stacks now that the site has shut down.

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