The Other Side of the Sky by Amie Kaufman, Meagan Spooner Narrator: Johnathan McClain, Caitlin Davies
Series: The Other Side of the Sky #1
Published by HarperAudio on September 8, 2020
Genres: Science Fiction Fantasy, Young Adult
Length: 13 hours, 35 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Purchased
Goodreads
Amazon, Audible, Libro.fm, Barnes & Noble, Apple
rince North’s home is in the sky, in a gleaming city held aloft by intricate engines powered by technology. Nimh is the living goddess of her people on the surface, responsible for providing answers, direction—hope.
Linked by a terrifying prophecy and caught between duty and fate, they must choose between saving their people or succumbing to the bond that is forbidden between them.
Magnetic and gorgeously thematic, New York Times bestselling author duo Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner have crafted a gripping tale of magic and logic, fate and choice, and an impossible decision between an empty future and a deadly love. Perfect for fans of Claudia Gray and Laini Taylor.
This world’s peoples split about a thousand years ago. Some went to live in the sky on city ships as big as islands, while the other people stayed on the land. Much of that is covered by at least a little water with only a few dry and non-swampy parts. North is a Prince of the sky and Nimh is the living Goddess of the land but they are tied together by prophecy and will either be the saviors of their peoples or the destruction in The Other Side of the Sky the first book of The Other Side of the Sky duology.
North is the adventurous Prince of his people. He has been working on a craft to make it to the land and finally has his day to present to the council. When that doesn’t go well, he decides a surprise demonstration will be what is needed to change their mind. But his craft was tampered with and he ends up crashing on the land below completely unprepared for what he finds there. Nimh is searching for the star, foretold in the prophecy that will help her destroy her world so it can be born again. She did not expect ‘the star’ to be a boy from the gods that left the ground to live in the sky. But prophecies are funny things with lives of their own and interpretations that might not make any sense until the moment they are meant to.
I enjoyed this book for the most part. Yes, there is the trope of the chosen one and some big insta-love happening but I surprisingly was not annoyed by it. Maybe it is because they seemed to be fated to be together with the prophecy in some form that I was able to accept it more readily. Nihm is so innocent in a lot of ways. She has been isolated and untouched since becoming the living embodiment of the goddess for her people. She wields some magic but has yet to manifest her true power and it makes her feel like she is less than she should be for her people. North is a spoiled and overconfident Prince of his people who until now has never thought much past the now of his life and most situations. But he knows he likes this girl, even if he hates her interpretation of the prophecy and his part in it.
“I don’t know if I believe prophecies. I don’t know if I believe in her gods or her destiny. I don’t know if I believe in any of this. But I believe in her.”
Inshara, a powerful wieldier of magic believes the prophecy is hers and will stop at nothing to make it to the people in the cities in the skies. She is strong and cruel, destruction is her only goal. North and Nimh must find a way to stop her before she hurts more of the people Nimh loves and is duty bound to protect. Nimh will have to find a way to stop all of Inshara’s plans and find the power within her first if she is even going to have a chance.
I like the world in this book. It is interesting and magical how the people of the land adapted after North’s people left and how those stories were passed down over time and changed. Seeing the world through North’s eyes made it feel all the more wondrous and magical since tech is the language of his people and it has been almost completely lost to the people on land. It is a great blend of Sci-Fi and Fantasy and right up my alley. There are some YA tropes but the writing is good and most of the pitfalls I would normally find with those tropes I was able to completely overlook.
“It’s not magic,” I say. “It’s science. Science means that you can explain it, that you know how each part of it works. Magic is – I mean, it’s science you haven’t figured how to explain yet.”
“I can explain my magic,” Nimh replies. “And you just said you could not explain your engines.”
Narration:
Caitlin Davies I know very well from Penryn and the End of Days series. She has a great voice for a young girl trying to make her way in an unknown world and performs the drama and longing in the story well. Johnathan McClain has also played the voice of some characters in Kauffman’s other series and is well known to me. He was perfect for the confident, in charge Prince lost on a land he doesn’t understand. I was able to listen at my usual 1.5x speed.
Listen to a clip: HERE
About Amie Kaufman
Amie Kaufman is a New York Times and internationally bestselling author of young adult fiction. Her multi-award winning work is slated for publication in over 30 countries, and is in development for film and TV. Raised in Australia and occasionally Ireland, Amie has degrees in history, literature, law and conflict resolution. She lives in Melbourne with her husband, their rescue dog, and an extremely large personal library.
| Rating Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Plot |
|
| Writing |
 |
| Characters |
|
| Dialogue |
|
| Narration (Audio) |
|
| Overall: | |
Friend me at Goodreads.
- 🎧 Bringer of Dust by JM Miro #JMMiro#BenOnwukwe @MacmillanAudio #LoveAudiobooks @SnyderBridge4 - September 16, 2024
- Buried Deep and Other Stories by Naomi Novik @naominovik @DelReyBooks @SnyderBridge4 - September 9, 2024
- Coven of Consequence by SL Prater #SLPrater @booksirens @SnyderBridge4 #KindleUnlimited - September 2, 2024
Thanks for sharing
I like the sound of this one.
I’ve liked the other works she had written with Jay Kristoff. This is the first book I read with Amie Kauffman and someone else.
It does sound like a fun world they live in, with magic and science. And I think I’d like both North and Nimh. Though I haven’t been reading a lot of YA these days.
They were likable people and I’m usually a sucker for the forbidden romance so that was a win for me as well. But I totally understand about not reading much YA lately. Sometimes the tropes are just too much for me and I really don’t like a book because of them. But this one worked for me pretty well.
I have heard great things about this writing pair but I have only read Amie Kaufman’s work so far (and not much of that) but this sounds like something I could see myself enjoying.
Sounds like an exciting new series
This sounds pretty good!
Oh, I loved Amie Kaufman’s previous books so this one has been on my radar for a while. I will have to download it!
LOVING that cover.
This one has been on my TBR for a while. Glad to hear it is a good one!