Thank you to NetGalley, Roaring Brook Press, and the author for this ARC chapter sampler. All opinions in this review are my own.
Marie Lu has been on my radar for a while, but this is the first book of hers I've read. And I really enjoyed what I read. The writing is beautiful (without being too overdone), and the characters are wonderful. Even though this is classified as sci-fi, it reads like a fantasy to me, so it should appeal to fans of both genres.
I have to say that reading about the heroine Talin broke my heart. She is unable to speak, giving her a distinct advantage as a Striker (the nation's fighting force that cannot speak while on patrol, as the sound will alert the Ghosts hunting them). But she's also a refugee from another nation that is looked down upon in Mara. So Talin is treated like dirt by the rich elite in the capital (and even her fellow Strikers) and called a rat. She's also treated with distrust in the poor neighborhood of the refugees (because she works with the elite). She fights to keep ALL of them safe & they treat her like crap! I just wanted to give her a hug.
A really satisfying read, and will not be my last from this author.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to review this chapter sampler for Skyhunter by Marie Lu.

Marie Lu is great at sucking you in from the first page. What’s not to love about a rebel who’s part of a team that is all that’s standing between freedom, or takeover? The sampler really gave a great feeling for Lu’s writing, which is always solid and flows nicely. Her main characters are always humanistic and likable, and Talin definitely fits in nicely to this category.

Can’t wait to buy the book and read the rest of it!

Thanks to Netgalley I have the opportunity to read a small extract of this novel, first of all I have to say none of Marie Lu’s books have disappointed me. She takes elements that most of the YA stories have, but she manages to use them in an incredible way.
Here we have a devastated world, Mara is the last free nation and it has to be defended at all cost. Inside Mara there are also complications as social status, discrimination, lack of food etc. Talin is the main character, she is part of a group who is trying to defend what’s left.
In the little I could read, I saw the construction of the world, the jeraquies and as I say, there are common topics I really enjoy how it was done.
At the moment I give three, because I haven’t read it completely. I can’t wait to have it in my hands and finish it.
---------------------------------------------

Gracias a Netgally tuve la oportunidad de leer un pequeño extracto de esta novela, primero que nada he de decir que los libros de Marie Lu no me han decepcionado, toman elementos ya muy comunes en la literatura juvenil, pero se las arregla para hacer algo increíble con esos detalles tan usados.
Aqui tenemos un mundo devastado y la única nación libre llamada Mara tiene que defenderse a toda costa, pero dentro de Mara también hay complicaciones, posiciones sociales, discriminación, poca comida etc. Talin, la protagonista, forma parte de este grupo que está peleando para defender lo único que les queda.
En lo poco que pude leer vi la construcción del mundo y las jerarquías y que como ya dije, son comunes, aún así resultan interesantes.
Por el momento le daré tres estrellas, ya que no lo he terminado, pero no puedo esperar a conseguirlo, porque se quedó en algo muy bueno.

I really enjoyed getting to read this excerpt of Skyhunter. Marie Lu is one of my favorite authors and I cannot wait to read the finished story.

I’ve always had love for Marie Lu’s books, her form of storytelling always seems to pull me in and keep me entertained. Ive only received the extended excerpt but I’m already intrigued about the journey of the characters and the direction of the plot. I can’t wait to see what comes next.

Omg this book is proof why I will always read whatever Marie Lu writes (even though I didn't love Kingdom of Back 😬). This story left me shook and utterly disappointed that I have to wait so long for book two. It had me on the edge of my seat the entire time and that ending was epic. You definitely need read this book!

The premise of Skyhunter by Marie Lu is what first got me. That, and I've been wanting to become more familiar with Lu's writing. This world was what I expected, classic dystopian with a sci-fi twist, Marie Lu style. I love this about her and how her world building doesn't involve an information dump at the beginning.

This ARC consisted of the first three chapters of the book. There were very few things that I didn't particularly care for. Though minor, they made the reading experience slightly less enjoyable. But they also made me add the full book to my wish list. First of all, due to the events of the first few chapters and the point of the story overall, we don't get to see much about Corian and Talin's friendship. I was so excited that there was a female-male friendship featured that didn't seem to be anything more. But then that relationship is cut off, and I deeply miss Corian. I'm hoping that the full book will include snippets of Talin remembering him and their friendship.

I also didn't like the way the initial conflicts were introduced. The obvious internal conflict was what Talin was going to do to survive without the help of her previous partner. The obvious external conflict was helping the community survive. I didn't like how they were introduced one right after another and were also so obviously connected. I'm hoping that the full book introduces another conflict that enhances one of the originals. I think it's slightly annoying how I have to wait until my finished version comes becomes THIS WAS SO COOL.

Overall, I loved the opening scene and how the world was slowly shown to the reader. I found it interesting how Talin had managed to survive, even with Corian's help, within a community that so clearly does not accept her. I am officially hyped for the full book and can't wait to talk about it constantly!!!

Great excerpt, can't wait to read the whole book! Marie Lu knows how to captivate her audience and this excerpt did just that. Skyhunter is another one of her books I look forward to.

Wow. I've only read a couple chapters of this book and I'm already hooked! I can already tell that I'm going to devour this book. This is the writing style and story that made me fall in love with Marie Lu's books. I can't wait to finish this book and look forward to see how this series plays out.

Thank you for allowing me to read this chapter excerpt!

3/5 stars
This was an okay excerpt. The plot did not immediately catch my attention. The characters were pretty well formed, but this excerpt did not live up to my expectations. I do not know if I will be reading the full novel. I was a little disappointed, especially considering how much I loved Warcross and Wildcard.
*Exerpt given by Netgally in echange for a review*

Great world building and complex characters. Fast paced, fun read. The excerpt has me very excited to read more and finish the story. This is my first read by the author and enjoyed it immensely

The thing with YA novels is that many of them are the same just rewritten with new characters, different writing style, and plot changes. Overall, it still felt like a book (or 5) I have read before.

Thanks NetGalley for this excerpt!

Once I downloaded the book, I was pretty bummed it was only an excerpt. I can't remember if that was mentioned on the request page, but I was hoping for the entire book. That said, I'm a bit glad I didn't the whole book because the first three chapters weren't all that captivating. A big event occurs in the first chapter, but I saw it coming a mile away. The other two chapters are character development, and while the main character isn't awful, she's also just not very interesting. She does a lot of feeling sorry for herself. The world-building is good. I've read Marie Lu's books before and know this is something she does well. But she's hit or miss for me. The Legend series and the Warcross duology are excellent. But the Young Elites book (I only read the first) was really lacking in clever plots. As creative as her world's are, Lu has some plot issues. This book provides another creative world, namely one where "Ghosts" (really just zombies) are created by the rival nation (or something like that) and the main character and her partner have to kill the Ghosts to defend their nation. They are known as Strikers. The premise is interesting, for sure. But the characters just didn't grab me in this one.

The beginning of the story actually reminds me of an anime called Attack on Titan. The main protagonist's home is ravaged by beasts with superhuman strength, the only way to fight against them is through a team of skilled warriors with special equipment that allows them to kill the monsters by slicing the backs of their necks.

Not sure is the stories are similar or if the author is an anime fan, but I do like the relationship the main character had with her partner, all of about 5 seconds before he was written off. Honestly I would have preferred if his character had stayed alive long enough to get attached to not only him but also our main protagonist/heroine Talin. The story, however is intense and woven with clear imagery that even when the world is on the edge of ending, and your city is but a small haven against a towering empire, people can still be prejudice and hateful. Talin as a character works for me because she can't speak, the narration is done mainly through her thoughts and observations which is a really nice touch on the author's part. I am looking forward to reading this book and give the chapter sneak peek a 4 out of 5 stars for the dramatic introduction and landing us right in the action of the world bringing it to life. Thanks Netgalley!

It's hard to review this because it's just an excerpt, but it was a really impressive one. The stage is set for what could be an excellent adventure. The writing style is a particular highlight - it was impossible not to be drawn into the main character's world and the fantasy world constructed by the author.

This was only a sample, which was not clear when I originally downloaded it. I am unable to provide a proper without more content. I love Marie Lu's writing and I had plans to pick up this book no matter what. My plans, now that this has been released and I am able to read the book in its entirety, is to read this book in November or December so I can provide a proper review and rating.

This excerpt introduces a really intriguing world of monsters threatening the last free country, hunting by sight and sound (the opening pre-chapter sets up their danger so well). I love that the heroine doesn't speak but signs instead. This promises to be a book with all of Marie Lu's customary deft prose and fast pacing!

I've really loved many books by Marie Lu. I could love this one. I feel like I needed more, so that alone must be good sign. For me, though, it takes a little bit of time to truly get into an alternate world like this. To really get the lingo and feel like I'm enjoying the story and not just trying to figure out what KIND of place this is. For an excerpt, this was intriguing. I hope the rest of the story measures up and gets me past the new reader point to the point of accepting this alternate place. I need to read more to really know.

I didn't know this was an excerpt before I requested it. And since I was anticipating this new release I ended up pre-ordering the audiobook. I'm going to link my review for the entire book.

I was hyped when I heard about this book. I thought I would love it just like I loved The Young Elites series but unfortunately, this book was average for me. It was good but I didn't enjoy it that much, you know? However, take my opinion with a grain of salt since I read some of it while having a migraine...

Anyway, Skyhunter follows Talin, a Striker who doesn't have a voice. She communicates through signs but when she saves a Red from an execution, she will find that they can somehow both communicate without signs (I found that a bit too convenient but oh well, it helped the plot and romance). After the (tragic but predictable) death of her first Shield and friend, she has to find another shield or else she won't be able to be a Striker who fights Ghosts anymore (they're some kind of messed up experiment). There's also the Federation that threatens to invade the city of Mara, who has been able to fight them off so far...

I'm interested in seeing how this is going to go and to see if I'll love the next book more since it will be another day hopefully with no migraine in sight.

Oh my. Marie Lu has effortlessly done it again.

With only the briefest of introductions, she instantly draws you in to Talin's world. She cannot (does not?) speak, but still became a trained soldier, a Striker, in the elite force fighting the brutal Federation. In just the first few paragraphs, you become enamored of Talin's spirit, along with that of her beloved partner, Corian. Their camaraderie is palpable, the affection they have for each other, as warriors, is heartfelt.

When a fight goes terribly wrong, you feel Talin's pain. When the aftermath is even worse, you tense along with her as she accepts the anger of those around her without defending herself.

As Talin awaits her fate, she begins to doubt her ability as a Striker and resigns herself to possibly being kicked out of the force. But the appearance of a prisoner throws all that worry on the back burner. While everyone else sees a defector from the Federation, discouraged and without hope, she sees someone who is not nearly as weak as he seems. She sees someone who wanted to be a captive, and in his eyes, she can see he wants to die.

All I can say is, I can NOT wait to get my hands on the full book.