Starsight Full Book Reactions

[Govir]

1 hour ago, Snorkel said:

I don't.  They seemed surprised when they had to "change a unit".

They changed units when the jump didn’t work. I hope they aren’t killing the slugs, but the screaming makes me feel like they are

[EddyJ]

Just finished the book! Loved it. Spensa's a GOOlock, and I loved how open the galaxy feels even after just visiting one more "planet."

[cfphelps]

Finished last night. Sad about the cliff hanger and MBot's current state not being resolved further. 

Suspect that based on her nature Vapor survived but couldn't return the radio communications to Spensa with her drone destroyed. 

I'll have to go back and reread the section where Spensa shows the spy video to Cuna to see exactly how the description of changing out the slugs is. I would like to think Spensa would have noticed if the swapped out one was dead, although since they swapped it due to interference, it might not be a good indicator of if the jump normally kills them. I also think that swapping them out is rare based on the paperwork comment, so suspect it doesn't. 

I suspected that the nowhere portal Spensa went into was going to come out where Jerkface was, however unless it can go multiple places based on intent or other factors, then that might be an issue if they didn't find the gorilla alien anywhere on Detrius. Since Spensa had to activate it with her mind, maybe that could control which other portals it connects to, or there's just a central hub. 

Overall great book but since I know the next one is probably not going to be here that soon, I was a little disappointed about the cliffhanger. 

Cool to see that most of us were in the right ballpark about Doomslug though and to see the fungis obsession get wrapped up. 

Edit: I also thought about Stormlight Archive :

Spoiler

When Spensa was trying to get the delver to stop attacking Starsight, I thought it was going to be similar to Shallan fighting the midnight mother, since at the beginning she didn't really understand what she was doing, like Shallan didn't. Turned out Spensa ended up giving it the perspective of her dimension, so that ended up being different. 

 

Edited November 30, 2019 by cfphelps

[Jaywalk]

Despite the lack of much Kimmalyn(my favorite character from Skyward), I loved Starsight.

Seeing all the new aliens was super cool, and made the galaxy seem a ton bigger. I was surprised that we actually got to see a delver in this book; it was similar to many people being surprised at(Oathbringer spoilers): 

Spoiler

Odium showing up in Oathbringer.

Loved all the new characters: Vapor had me the most intrigued, and I can’t wait to meet more figments; Morrimumur had a very interesting conflict, which I was very pleased with; Brade’s been set up to be a very interesting antagonist for Spensa—can’t wait to see more conflict between the two; Hesho was a fun character, it’s a shame he didn’t last longer, even if it was an effective storytelling device.

And that ending. Wow. Why would you do this to me, Sanderson?

[Angsos]

@JaooklaI listen the audiobooks and I think it's awesome that Kimmalyn has a southern US accent despite being centuries and planets removed from Earth..

[fammann]

I loved this book. The only negatives were that all of skyward flight was sidelined after part one and that the book ended on a cliffhanger. Apart from that I was very impressed. 

After the shift to skyward I worried but he made it work great. The new characters were memorable. I especially liked the kitzin. 

My favourite part was when spensa was in the delver. A lovecraft monster turned positive. Realy impressive. And the emotions spensa feels there realy resonated with me. 

Other highlights: Jorgen and Gran Gran. M-Bots interaction with spensa. Morrimer payoff when her split nature became an asset. On a meta level I even liked the fake epilogue thing. 

Edited December 1, 2019 by fammann

[fammann]

On 27.11.2019 at 0:37 PM, Ookla the Dreamer said:

After sleeping a night over the book I have to admit, that I still don't like that the slugs are used to engage a hyperdrive(s). That they scream, and I don't want to start a discussion if they can feel pain or not, but in the end to me it feels like this, and I'm not too happy with that. I mostly feel sorry for them and they would stop using the poor slugs.

Apart from everything, I really, really feel sorry for them and it left a stale aftertaste for me. It's not out of nowwhere with the hints we had regarding how important Doomslug might be, but that they appear to be in pain, I might be too softhearted for that.

I wouldn’t worry about doomslug. Brandon Sanderson is the most optimistic and positive fantasyauthor I know. He likes to build tension but I expect a very positive end for doomslug or even it’s entire species. That even a lovecraftian monster from the void like a delver could get a positive spin showed me that. 

[fammann]

On 28.11.2019 at 11:43 AM, Ammanas said:

They have a really talented, and fitting, lady who narrates these books. I’m probably enjoying this series more than I would by reading it just by the element the narrator brings. I really shouldn’t even be in this thread though. I preordered the audiobook (to support Brandon) but I am currently on another series right now. As soon as I finish it I’ll probably relisten the Skyward before diving into Starsight. I’m looking forward to it though!

I also listened to the audiobook. It’s fantastic. One of the best narrators I know. She brings it to life in an awesome way. 

[dayman]

Just finished the book. Really enjoyed it but ugh ... I do feel like there was very little resolution on almost all fronts at the end it was almost all incomplete book

Now too wait at least 2 years for the next one ... 

[GreyPilgrim]

So I haven’t posted on here in forever but just finished the book (release was perfectly timed with Thanksgiving break allowing me to devour it much faster than I usually would) and all I have to say is wow. What a ride. I had mixed feelings on Skyward but Starsight has improved on all fronts. Probably my favorite non-cosmere Sanderson book yet and one of the best mid-series books I’ve read in a good while. 
 

As others have said though, that ending... Only thing that will justify having to wait 2 years for book 3 (in all likelihood) is that we get a Stormlight book in the meantime. 
 

Back to (not even) lurking...

Edited December 1, 2019 by GreyPilgrim

[+Doomstick]

NICE CLIFFHANGER BRANDON

[Iarwainiel I]

I loved Starsight just as much as Skyward, and perhaps even more. I love how Spensa is growing and deepening. I'd say I want books 3 and 4 right now, buuuuuut ... I want Stormlight 4 and Wax & Wayne 4 even more, so Spensa will (hopefully) have to wait. :-)

Re: cytonics in Jorgen's family - This is the "big secret" that I meant in my post a couple months ago (https://www.17thshard.com/forum/topic/86947-skyward-discussion-spoilers/#comment-927354). I remember thinking the first time I read Skyward, "What kind of a last name is 'Weight'?" "Weight" is just too close to "Write," as in Jason Write from Defending Elysium, so I guessed that Jorgen is a Write. We'll see if I'm correct down the line. (I'm usually wrong, LOL - for example, my wild theory on that linked post.)

Re: Gran-Gran - I loved the part where she communicated with Spensa over that vast distance. Maybe Gran-Gran is blind in the same way as Jason Write was in DE - i.e., she can use cytonics to see. I wonder if she was always blind, or if cytonics somehow took her sight?

Re: the doomslugs screaming - Remember, Brade was also screaming into the nowhere, when she was trying to bring the delver, so maybe it's not screams of pain? It's a possibility.

Re: M-Bot - I'm wondering how long it'll take Isaac's daughter to forgive Brandon (https://www.brandonsanderson.com/the-m-bot-sticker-you-never-knew-you-needed-is-here/). Seeing as there were multiple ways Spensa could have saved him, and with how many times he talked about death even back in Skyward (some strong foreshdowing there), his "dying" has to be significant. I have a theory, but if I'm gonna keep it close to the vest - too spoiler-ish if I'm correct, & I for one hate spoilers passionately.

 

A couple more thoughts:

• M-Bot protected Spensa when the Krell tried to overwrite her brain (like happened to her dad). What protection will she have now? (kinda scary)
• What if Jorgen & team find the remains of M-Bot's pilot in that cave? and maybe some old tech or recordings?
• Is Cuna really dead? Hmmmm...

[cfphelps]

53 minutes ago, Lump-wing said:

A couple more thoughts:

• M-Bot protected Spensa when the Krell tried to overwrite her brain (like happened to her dad). What protection will she have now? (kinda scary)
• What if Jorgen & team find the remains of M-Bot's pilot in that cave? and maybe some old tech or recordings?
• Is Cuna really dead? Hmmmm...

My take is that Cuna is alive and it's propaganda that they're dead and Spensa killed them. Cuna has the hologram wristband to look like someone else, so the rest of the Superiority may not know they're alive yet. Also Cuna confirms that a hologram projector that small is more advanced than the Superiority has access to, so no one in the Superiority would expect it and try to look for it. 

[GreyPilgrim]

3 hours ago, cfphelps said:

Cuna confirms that a hologram projector that small is more advanced than the Superiority has access to, so no one in the Superiority would expect it and try to look for it. 

Not necessarily; it seems that Spensa’s deception has been pretty widely revealed so somebody must be aware of the tech she used. That said I think it’s highly probably Cuna did manage to escape somehow.

[cfphelps]

6 hours ago, GreyPilgrim said:

Not necessarily; it seems that Spensa’s deception has been pretty widely revealed so somebody must be aware of the tech she used. That said I think it’s highly probably Cuna did manage to escape somehow.

That's a good point, once Spensa revealed herself we have to assume that the hologram is no longer so unexpected. 

[Tiny]

When you realized that you just stayed up well past two in the morning and end up with a cliffhanger that will remain unresolved for the next year.

[Rask]

OK, so I am way behind the curve, I just finished yesterday and the internet when out so I couldn't post my reactions until now. 

It was in the back on my head that Jorgan might be Cytonic, it was mentioned in Skyward that some of his ancestors had the defect. After all that was the reason why his family was instrumental in keeping the knowledge away from the general public. I think it is absolutely awesome that Jorgan's flavor of Cytonic ability ends up looking very different from the variety we got from the Nightshade family. According to the below Wob all Cytonics share some abilities but they also have specialties, so this makes perfect sense. Plus it's just cool that he apparently has a connection to the Teleporting slugs! Like, maybe he can even communicate with them, thus facilitating cruelty free and safe Cytonic travel.   

I am looking forward to more Spensa and Jorgan chemistry in the next book, I ship them hard! Like a lot of you I do wish that Skyward flight had gotten a bit more screen time in this book, but I also like the new alien characters. 

 

Spoiler

 

Questioner

Can cytonic people potentially use all the abilities from Defending Elysium?

Brandon Sanderson

Potentially, yes. So mindblades and things like that. Mostly, I'm kind of pushing people into specialties a little bit more, like I've done with something like Mistborn where you're generally better at one thing than another. So you may see some divisions of powers, but they're all capable of it.

Tel Aviv Signing (Oct. 18, 2019)

 

 

 

[dayman]

I like the alien crew better than the original crew. 

[Snorkel]

On 01/12/2019 at 4:51 PM, Angsos said:

@JaooklaI listen the audiobooks and I think it's awesome that Kimmalyn has a southern US accent despite being centuries and planets removed from Earth..

I always imagined her with an Indian accent.

Southern US, that's a real odd choice!

[Angsos]

That's what it sounds like to me.

[cfphelps]

3 hours ago, Snorkel said:

I always imagined her with an Indian accent.

Southern US, that's a real odd choice!

Well bless your stars! 

[RShara]

4 hours ago, Snorkel said:

I always imagined her with an Indian accent.

Southern US, that's a real odd choice!

Probably because, "bless your soul" is a somewhat common thing for people from SE US to say.

[aneonfoxtribute]

That ending. My god. That book was incredible. My least favorite part of the ending is that Moriummer probably won't be a character in future books (unless Diones grow super fast, which they never said)

Edited December 5, 2019 by aneonfoxtribute

[Retsam]

 

Overall, I liked this book a lot.  I don't think it was quite as good as Skyward - but second books rarely are.  It definitely went a different direction than I expected, (though that meant largely leaving behind the secondary cast).

On the positives: I liked that it fleshed out the Superiority's side and motives.  The alien races were all pretty interesting from a world-building perspective; the diones especially.  I actually think Spensa's new flight is more interesting than her DDF one, with each member having their own background, agenda, and motives.  Hesho was a particular favorite - both a classic humor character but still not one-dimensional. I liked Spensa's misreading of both Cuna and Brade.  I actually liked Brade's character, she's an interesting foil for Spensa and certainly her perspective is skewed by her upbringing, but she's not just a brainwashed victim, either. 

The doomslug reveal wasn't particularly surprising - but I also think that a strength of this series is that it isn't so reliant on big worldbuilding twists to move the plot along.  "Chapter 45" was probably the biggest twist of the book, which did make me laugh.  (Though if Sanderson really wanted a "twist ending" he should have ended the series after two books)

For negatives: I think Spensa is a less interesting character in this one.  Her major character arc largely resolved at the end of Skyward - she's no longer an outsider, no longer needs to prove herself to the DDF, no longer insecure about her father.  She has an arc in this one - realizing that the supremacy aren't all villains - but it's not as strong and a bit stereotypical feeling, to me at least.  (Tangentially, I thought the Steelheart sequels suffered from the same problem: David has a really strong character arc in the first book, and much less so in the sequels)

I also think there's less tension in this book, as a whole, compared to Skyward.  There was a constant life-or-death threat in that book, and every time the squadron went up you never knew who would come back down.  Spensa's infiltration is a source of tension, but it's much more passive "background noise" sort of tension, and overall the infiltration goes very smoothly.

[JoyBlu]

So I just finished Starsight and here are a few of  the initial questions I want to know the answers to now!!!! 

1.)  The real Alanik. What will happen to her? she has to live. Will she help Spensa in some way in the future? I see Spensa, Alanik, and Jorgan plus some others forming a cytonic flight together, each with different specializations.  Maybe Alanik does have a colony of humans in her planet like Vapor theorized. I hope we get to see the UrDail planet and more of her people. Perhaps Spensa will resurface there because MBot can send them messages. I wish we would have gotten one more update on her — even if she was still in a coma. 
 

2.) Jorgan sensing the Slugs. I keep wondering how in the stars do the slugs know where to hyper jump to? Someone must communicate their desired destination to them somehow. How are they kept? It sounds like Jorgan is on his way to becoming the Slug Specialist. 
 

3.) Delver’s don’t like AI, and MBot just entered the nowhere. That doesn’t sound like a good mix. I think Spensa will be fine in the nowhere — but will MBot?

4.) Mortimer will likely lay low for book three then come back in book 4 and save the day. I thought their ability to be two people was fascinating. When will Mortimer grow up?

5.) I’m wondering when and where Gul’zah of the burl gorilla will show up?  He and Spensa seem to think alike and they will probably help each other escape the nowhere. I like how Sanderson uses gorilla & Gul’zah together. It helps me remember what character is what. 
 

6.) What is a life span of a slug and how do they reproduce? Does hyper jumping change or influence their lifespan? Can they power any ship? Or do they bond to one ship and can only power the one ship? Again? How do they know where to jump to?