Disclaimer: I work for a bookstore all thoughts and opinions are my own and not affiliated with the company.

Thank you to Netgally for providing me with an early access copy to the Audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

The book:
To get straight to the point- I enjoyed this book. Book one left me unsure and it felt like it was missing something. I didn’t connect to the romance, the plot felt like it had been done before with other dystopian novels. I enjoyed it nonetheless. HOWEVER- book 2 turned this all around for me. This one captured my attention. I could see the romance blooming between the main characters. The story added more to the discussion. Instead of it just being two sides in a war, we got to see some of the behind the scenes into how it got to that point.
I do believe some parts did not work, for example the ending (~last 20%). I won’t go into detail here due to spoilers but this was my only fault in this book. I am glad that the character chose not to agree to do that final decision.
I do love the many references to LGBTQ+ characters that were mentioned. It felt very natural and it was nice to read a world where the characters were allowed to be and there was no repercussions for that. It was a very nice surprise to stumble upon.

Audio:
This audiobook was an incredible example of how to have two different voice actors that compliment each other's characters. Talins voice actor was steady and calm which allowed her to keep her characters composure. While Red’s character was more lively and had more emotion to his actions and words. With the audiobook you could really tell that these two characters were distinct from each other while working to the advantage of the story. As per usual I listed to it at 1.5%-2% speed increase, and found all levels comfortable. The pacing works well slowed or sped up. Overall I believe the audiobook played a massive part in my enjoyment of this book.

Final thoughts-
Would I recommend this book?
Yes, I definitely will be. Both physical and audio versions will be recommended to my followers on social media and customers in store.

I 100% downloaded this ALC from NetGalley because Natalie Natalus (sp?) is the voice actor, and I love her audiobooks. I also enjoyed the first one, but I read so much these days it's hard for me to remember what happened in the first one. Unfortunately, that kinda conditioned me to not pay as much attention to this second installment as I should have. Additionally, I think I'm finally growing out of these "teen takes charge in the rebellion and solves it all herself" stories because they just seem so unrealistic. It makes me sad that I'm no longer the reader for these books.

All that said, lots of action, some good romance, a fast-paced, some trickery and double-crossing, and lots of heart-- this will surely be a winner for teen readers!

Check out my thoughts on the first book, Skyhunter, here >> https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3441304911?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Steelstriker picks up several months after the end of Skyhunter. Mara has fallen to the Federation and Talin is in the clutches of the Premier, Constantine, and has been remade into a full fledged Skyhunter. Even now as a powerful Skyhunter, Talin remains powerless against the Premier as he threatens the safety of Talin’s mother. If Talin stays obedient, her mother stays safe.

Meanwhile, Red — along with Adena, Jeran, and Aramin — try to push forward in the wake of Mara’s fall and Talin’s capture. Red’s link with Talin has been relatively dormant for the last several months with the exception of perceiving her heartbeat and the peace in knowing she’s still alive…but at what cost? Red and the Strikers wrestle with what comes next and new challenges arise — including what Talin’s become. Is she obedient to the Premier in her remade state, or is the same Talin still beneath the metal and steel?

—

I really enjoyed this duology. Marie Lu is an auto-buy author for me and I will read anything of hers. I listened to the audiobook version and the voice actors did a superb job. They were very engaging as they unpacked the story.

Talin and Red are easy protagonists to root for as they face their individual and collective challenges in this dystopian universe. Talin’s arc reminded me a lot of Katniss from The Hunger Games, except I find Talin much more likable. Talin is resilient, intuitive, and a bad-A fighter.

In Steelstriker, we also get a Red POV! Which I think added a lot to the story and to his character. Hearing flashbacks from when he was younger, and stories with him and his sister, were some of my most invested moments as I listened to the audiobook. (Marie Lu, if you ever read this, hear me now: I would love a little novella of Red’s life before becoming a Skyhunter! I need it!) Also, the way Red believes in Talin and fights for her…*chef’s kiss*…it’s so beautiful, I swoon!

As much as I loved this, there was a sub-plot that I wish was fleshed out more or was just edited out completely. It was just incredibly lackluster. The ending also wrapped itself up neatly within the last like 5% of the book, which I sometimes find frustrating. If this was a trilogy instead of a duology, I think maybe more time to fleshing those things out would’ve helped make this series epic.

All in all, Marie Lu knows how to transplant you in the dystopian world and introduce you to characters that will occupy rent-free space in your mind. She continues to fan the flame in my heart that is a love for this genre.

Thanks to NetGalley for the chance to listen to an advanced audiobook copy!

Audiobook Rating: 4 Stars
Skyhunter Rating: 5 Stars
Steelstriker Rating: 4 Stars
Series as a Whole: 4.5 Stars

So many things I’d love to say about Steelstriker but I don’t want to give anything away… I will say that I was both happy AND sad to finally read/ listen to Steelstriker. I’m happy with how the second book in the duology played out; to finally find out what happened next in Talin’s journey but also sad because I was not ready to say goodbye to Talin & the rest of the gang. Steelstriker was different from Skyhunter in the way of dual POV as we got to hear from both Talin and Red. It was great to hear Natalie Naudus return as Talin. I was surprised to hear another narrator as Red. It took me a couple chapters to get used to hearing a Raymond J. Lee only because I had become so accustomed to hearing Natalie voice all of the characters. The alternating POV’s were great and really helped tie scenes together. I really enjoyed the connections between friendships and romantic partners in these books. I was grateful that there was no insta love as that trope tends to be done too much in my opinion. The bond with our villain was pretty creepy and I found myself feeling sorry for him during a couple moments, understanding why he had become the monster that he was, but it wasn’t long lived. What I really loved in this story is that our gang never gave up and stuck by one another. Anyway, I really enjoyed both Skyhunter and Steelstriker. I would love to know if Marie Lu has any deleted scenes from this duology that she’d eventually share. Thank you to Marie Lu for another awesome book!

“May there always be future dawns.”


I received an ARC via Macmillan Audio and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Not only did I listen to the audiobook but I also read my Kindle book preorder & hardcover when they arrived. The Steelstriker hardcover is just as beautiful as Skyhunter- both the naked book and dust jacket. Steelstriker also has the cool fore edge printing of the title just like Skyhunter. Both hardcover books have a matte finish naked book with matte finish dust jacket, glossy lettering & raised embossed title on the cover.

I thought this story was fantastic. The narration was smooth, and the narrators voices were great with the characters. On the other hand, when they voiced other characters from the POV, they were sometimes oddly voiced.

The story itself came to a fantastic conclusion. There were political twists and turns throughout and drew my attention quickly. The character growth and the conflicts (both with self and with others) were interesting and well written. The author did an excellent job of making the characters likeable and interesting.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for providing an audiobook for review.

Marie Lu is incredible at world and character building, and her first book in this duology (Skyhunter) was a solid 5-star read for me. I have found many of her 2nd books to be average- maybe because I loved the first one so much? This definitely wasn't average for me. I loved how Talin learns, develops, and fights in this second book. (I'm being intentionally vague for readers that haven't read the 1st one.) I highly recommend this duology to YA+.

The audiobook is fantastic. If you know the characters well (having read the 1st book), the audiobook will be a great way to read the second book.

Marie Lu does it again this is just an incredible series and book two definitely builds off that! I adore these audiobooks and would highly recommend this series to everyone

Great sequel and great character development. You fell into rhythm of the characters easily. You forum even more attachments to characters from the first book.

OBSESSED! SO glad I got to listen to the audio for this, because once I picked it up, I didn't want to put it down, and the audiobook let me keep listening while I was doing other things. Such a great follow up to Skyhunter, and totally lived up to all of my expectations.

Such a fantastic conclusion. Marie does such an amazing job on discerning and building on family relationships and dynamics. An emotional glimpse into the future and how far we can go but also a glimpse into humanity now and the steps we take in the future can really change our world. A must read and one I will definitely be recommending to my students.

I had to quickly finish the first book for this one, I was definitely super happy to get this book.
Personally, I really enjoyed it. It was action-packed and was just a joy to read.
The characters have grown so much and have become these amazing people and the world-building was definitely great in this one.
Talin is such a fascinating character mainly because of her use of sign language and how that does not hold her back one bit.
Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an audio arc of this book.

I received this as an audio galley to listen to for free in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for giving me access.

**Mildly vague spoiler alert**

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE Marie Lu's writing! Hands down an auto-buy author for me. So when I was given the opportunity to listen to an early audio galley, I snatched that chance up as fast as I could.

Skyhunter and Steelstriker are probably one of the best duologies that I have read in a while. When most duologies leave you wanting more and sometimes empty, Lu wraps everything up with a lovely bow leaving you contend with how things are left. Do I want more? Well naturally because I love the characters but I feel that this ending is perfect the way it is.

Steelstriker is filled with so much emotion, tension, love and action. The inner turmoil that Talin goes through makes my heart ache for her. I honestly didn't know how this would end so I prepared my heart for the worst, thankfully it was left intact and not shattered into a million pieces.

This is definitely a duology worth reading and adding to your shelf.

As revealed in the previous book Talin is now a Skyhunter. I had horrible flashbacks to Prodigy because Talin and Red are separated for a lot of the book. Why does Marie Lu torturous like this!!! Even though this was slight torture I did think this added a whole new drive in the book. We follow Talin as she is the Premier's new skyhunter and she is forced to do what the Premier wants and if she doesn't the outcome will not be favorable. We also followed Red and the other striker force as they try to help Talin and defeat the Federation.

The torture of having Talin separated from the rest is not the only agonizing part of this whole situation. Talin is not only separated but she is forced to turn her back on her friends. Of course, even though she is forced to do bad things we have this battle in ourselves as a reader because we feel her pain but also hate what she is being forced to do. This was clever work on Marie Lu’s part because it get our hearts involved in the story.

You always end up loving one perspective more than the other and even though I did love having Red as a perspective and getting to hear his thoughts I thought that the events around Talin were a lot more engaging and I enjoyed her chapters a lot more. This had to do with her fighting the impulse to fight the premier but being unable to. It was very interesting to get a glimpse into the Federation and also into the Premier's mind because Talin is connected with him just like she is to Red.

My favorite part of this book is the emotional connection you get to Talin and her mother's situation. For me, this was the best development in the book. You realize the struggle Talin has to restrain herself and the torture her mother is enduring.

Even though I enjoyed the characters and the world of the story I did have some problems with it. Some things didn’t add up and seemed implausible. Yes, I know that this is a made-up story and that none of this would ever happen, but even within the world, some things were pushed too far. For example how the connection between Talin and the Premier worked. At some points, there was no way for them to block their feeling from each other and then at other times when it was favorable to the story, she could block her thinking from him. Just little things like this were in the book that created plot wholes.

I also wish that some things would develop further and not be briefly mentioned. One thing is the Skyhunter program. We know that Talin goes through it to gain her abilities and we get brief mentions of others going through it too but this intricate part of the story is rarely mentioned. I felt like it could have had a side story add about this which would have been a nice addition to the.

I also sadly did not like the ending. Let me clarify this by saying I like the very ending when things were wrapped up. It was very fulfilling, and a good ending that clearly showed you the light at the end of the tunnel. My problem was with the climax of the story. In the last grand battle, not very much tension was built up. It felt way too easy for the winning side to win. Even though the losing side did sustain injury I just felt like it moved way too fast and it left very little time for us to be on the edge of our seat waiting to see what would happen. So to me, the ending fell short.

Overall I had very similar feelings about this book as to the previous one. I'm not saying that this wasn't a good book or a well-developed unique world with enticing characters, it just wasn't as jaw-dropping as Marie lu's previous work. I love Marie Lu and she is my favorite author so I will read anything she writes but this is my least favorite series of hers. Those who love Skyhunter well absolutely love Steelstriker. Just for me, it didn't have as much emotional connection to the people and the world as I would have liked. There also weren't very many shocking moments which is what made me love other books of hers. Unlike her other books, this one doesn't take you on a rollercoaster with constant twists and turns. It's more of a slow build where you can see what will happen before it does. Still very well written just not as enticing.

I loved the audiobook. I sped it up like normal but the voices fit the characters very well. It helped me to picture the characters and the events happening. There was nothing overly special about the narration but I liked that voices were not overly exaggerated. In some books, the voices get way too deep or high pitch but the narrators kept a good even tone. It was easy to listen to and comprehend.

**Review will be published Sept. 28th on my blog and Instagram**

Thank you to Macmillian Audio and Netgalley for an ALC.

WHAT I WAS HOPING FOR.

Duologies are a fickle beast. I have been disappointed quite a few times this year. Thank goodness, Steelstriker was not one of those books.

As I received an ALC I wanted to first mention the audio book. I listened to Skyhunter via audio and Steelstriker had the same narrators. LOVED IT. Seriously fantastic. I was able to listen at 2.5x speed and had no trouble with the narration. They did an incredible job and would highly recommend!

Now the book itself, ohhhhh the ACTION [and the pain]. This book is not light-hearted or for the feint of heart. Full of drama and intrigue as page by page I wasn’t sure who would survive. With that, there were some times I felt the book was slow (most of the middle). Some scenes and portions of the plot didn’t seem to work towards fulfilling the ultimate goal that was set-up in book one. It came noticeable enough to mention, but luckily the rest of the book carried over well.

And I would have desperately loved even more romance. I adore Red and Talin. These incredible brave, tough and scarred souls who found each other amidst everything crumbling around them. Wow I couldn’t get enough of their connection and the handful of moments I got with them on the same page.

Gratefully, those needed taken down are and the world can start grappling with all that has befallen their nations. I’m glad for an epilogue (that was necessary) to tie up some plot points and give a glimpse at the future.

Overall audience notes:
- YA Fantasy
- Language: very little
- Romance: kisses to one implied closed door
- Trigger/Content Warnings: war themes, mutilation and medical experimentation, torture, poisoning, blood and gore depiction, executions

Ok so I didn’t read the first in the duo but I was still able to enjoy Steelstriker as it’s own novel without feeling lost.

The story is fairly familiar as is any ya dystopian novel but the character are likable and the resolution of the story is satisfying.

Marie Lu has done it again; she’s taken that enemies to lovers trope and twisted it in her own unique way. I adored Sky Hunter and Steel Striker did not disappoint me. From heartbreaking losses to beautiful relationships; steelstriker ended in such a wonderful way. I loved the narrators of this story just as well.

I have liked or loved all of the Marie Lu books I have read. I liked Skyhunter so I decided to read the conclusion in Steelstriker. I liked Steelstriker. As I was reading I struggled to remember the events of the previous book. More than usual. The story and its characters just didn't stay with me. Former series by this author didn't really have this same problem. I just didn't connect with this world. It was good and you will like it if you liked the first and want to see how it all ends. For me, it was OK. It seemed almost familiar. Like I had read this basic story before.

I have been anticipating this read all year and was not disappointed. Marie Lu continues to write characters with depth. The excitement, the scheming, the action and the relationships built in this world continue to grow in this sequel.

While Talin, a coloured, mute female lead grapples with the changes made to her body, she battles with finding a way to keep the ones she loves safe. Now the Premier’s new war machine, her mother in captivity, her friend’s lives in an uncertain limbo, she strives to find her way back to Red.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this audiobook!

I really enjoyed Skyhunter and was very curious how this story would end.

Unfortunately this book felt...long and slow. I felt like nothing was happening the first have of the book.

If all it took was to kill the Premium why did it take them the whole book of doing nothing to figure out how? You have two people Premium trust who work with the Rebels but no one honestly could have figured out where Talin’s mother was or how to hide her?

I was happy that Red and Talin survived and found peace but I was kind of hoping then maybe after all the years of peace Talin would actually try to talk again and that would be a finally step in her healing.

Also, how was it that right after Empire fell apart they suddenly had people in charge without fighting over who's going to do what? That’s just unrealistic

Overall this book wasn’t as good as book 1 and fell a little boring

But I do think narrators did a great job

I received this book as an eARC audiobook from Netgalley. All opinions are my own!

Mara has fallen and Talin has found herself on the side of the battle she never thought she'd be on. With her and Red separated by the Federation, what will it take for them to find their way to one another again? And will the Federation finally be brought down in the process? Or will it bring everyone else down with it?

I think I devoured this book in about 24 hours, even with normal life events, because I simply could not put it down! The world that is built in this duology is unlike any other I've ever seen, and I loved every second of it. There is something about these characters and their stories that truly tugs at the heart and creates a book full of every emotion that's humanly possible.

I also adored the narrators for this book! They were so skillful in being able to showcase the characters' emotions and really bring them to life. There were times where I was brought to tears just by the emotion in their voices and the way that they were telling the stories.

If you're looking for a unique story with heartbreakingly human characters, these are the books for you!