It has easily been a decade since I last read a science fiction book, which was why, of the two books Santa brought me this year, I chose to start with Skyward.

Wow!

Apart from The Library Of The Unwritten by A. J. Hackwith, this was only the second book ever to have me hooked after the first chapter. In fact, Brandon Sanderson had me at a 10-page prologue!

This is the story of Spensa Nightshade, aka Spin, aka daughter of a disgraced pilot, who was convinced that her father was not a coward and was determined to prove them all wrong and claim her place amongst the best of the best to don the pilot’s pin and fly her own plane to defend her people against their long-time arch enemy in the sky.

It was a fast-paced adventure filled with the requisite challenges and triumphs, rivalry and camaraderie, twists and turns, secrets, and more secrets.

It was super cool to visualise myself training in one of the fighter pilot’s mockpits and in the air battling the Krell who’s hellbent on the destruction of my people.

I loved the banter and many laugh-out-loud moments with M-Bot, a super loveable, ultra advanced, autonomous robo-spy plane with a sarcastic, witty AF sense of humour and a mushroom obsession.

The many dynamic aerial acrobatics were thoroughly exhilarating and it was absolutely euphoric to rip through the sky with M-Bot.

I generally reserve squealing only to the most special of occasions but the Cytonic hyperdrive coming online was certainly a squeal-worthy moment. In fact, it was so glorious I kicked my legs in delight!

On a personal level, witnessing a determined young woman fighting against all odds, facing the fear of an unknown defect in her brain that could either be a super power or her undoing was very motivating and inspiring for me as I overcome a heavy funk of anxiety (my own defect) to “claim the stars”.

This brilliant book was unputdownable and an obsession for not long enough. I must acquire the rest of the series and consume them with the dedication M-Bot has towards cataloguing mushrooms, stat!

Grab your copy of Skyward here*.