Review Detail

"A science fantasy "Beauty and the Beast," this action-packed adventure is written in dual point of view and layered with a charming robot, a cuddly three-headed dog, mind-bending twists, and sapphic yearning." I can't have better described this book, than this.

Between Sun and Shadow by Laura Genn is a YA science fantasy novel that gives Gideon the Ninth, with Hades and Persephone coded characters and robots instead of necromancers. Hades and Persephone reimagined on a tidally locked planet, for fans of queer romance, mutant superpowers, eccentric robots, and speculative tech—featuring fun and stylish case art beneath the hardcover dust jacket! Sixteen-year-old Kori struggles to be a dutiful heiress to the Daylands, a post-cataclysmic society reliant on chip implants to retain memory. With a strict routine and an overly cautious mother, Kori has only one friend, Aspect—an industrial robot she’s repurposed. Determined to awaken sentience in her metal companion, Kori crash-lands in enemy territory while hunting for a memory that might do the trick. Ravaged by radiation from a meteorite, the citizens of the Shadowlands have evolved into beast-like creatures with supernatural abilities. Adria, a winged mutant, has wrested control of the Shadowlands from her bloodthirsty parents—but not everyone is so willing to embrace her leadership. What better way to instill confidence in her court than by capturing a foreign princess and demanding ransom? However, what began as a political maneuver transforms into a potent attraction as Kori’s longing for relationship echoes Adria’s own. Granted free rein of Adria’s fortress, Kori stumbles upon a startling revelation that could upend the Daylands entirely. As rebellion grows and Adria’s precarious hold on her throne wavers, Adria and Kori must join forces to avert all-out war. Does a queen of shadows really stand a chance with a princess of sunlight? Or has the chasm between their nations grown too wide? A science fantasy "Beauty and the Beast," this action-packed adventure is written in dual point of view and layered with a charming robot, a cuddly three-headed dog, mind-bending twists, and sapphic yearning.

Between Sun and Shadow is one those books that best read without any initial context. Much like Tamsyn Muir's The Locked Tomb series, which this book reminded quite a lot of. Regardless, I really liked this book as it provided a breath of fresh air in terms of its romance and plot and unique worldbuilding. As I get older, I find most of the YA genre is filled with the same old story and character, rehashed time and time again. But Between Sun and Shadow is one that provides it's audience both a familiar story with it's ties to Hades and Persephone, and a novel one with its colorful cast of characters.

One thing that I didn't quite like about Between Sun and Shadow, is the general chaos that radiates from the plot. In that it was hard to keep up at some points, and at other times make it out to be quite unreliable. But this was not a major fault of the book, but more so mine. As it's quite hard to wrap my mind around novels that present items from different genres, ie. monstrous beasts that resemble Cerberus and robot companions.

Regardless, Between Sun and Shadow is a novel designed to be fun and engaging with twists and turns that most readers won't expect. While also being a familiar narrative and a novel one. I recommend it to anyone looking for something to fill the void of having to wait for Alecto the Ninth's eventual release.