The Darkness Outside Us
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- Create Date：2021-05-27 10:53:19
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Eliot Schrefer
- ISBN：0062888285
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Summary
Two boys， alone in space。
After the first settler on Titan trips her distress signal， neither remaining country on Earth can afford to scramble a rescue of its own， and so two sworn enemies are installed in the same spaceship。
Ambrose wakes up on the Coordinated Endeavor， with no memory of a launch。 There’s more that doesn’t add up: Evidence indicates strangers have been on board， the ship’s operating system is voiced by his mother， and his handsome， brooding shipmate has barricaded himself away。 But nothing will stop Ambrose from making his mission succeed—not when he’s rescuing his own sister。
In order to survive the ship’s secrets， Ambrose and Kodiak will need to work together and learn to trust one another… especially once they discover what they are truly up against。 Love might be the only way to survive。
After the first settler on Titan trips her distress signal， neither remaining country on Earth can afford to scramble a rescue of its own， and so two sworn enemies are installed in the same spaceship。
Ambrose wakes up on the Coordinated Endeavor， with no memory of a launch。 There’s more that doesn’t add up: Evidence indicates strangers have been on board， the ship’s operating system is voiced by his mother， and his handsome， brooding shipmate has barricaded himself away。 But nothing will stop Ambrose from making his mission succeed—not when he’s rescuing his own sister。
In order to survive the ship’s secrets， Ambrose and Kodiak will need to work together and learn to trust one another… especially once they discover what they are truly up against。 Love might be the only way to survive。
Reviews
Laura
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This book certainly had me thinking about some interesting questions， as good science fiction should， but I don't know that YA is the right audience for it。 If I were marketing it， I'd put it more new adult than young adult。 The main characters start out at 17， but are mid-late 20s， or maybe even early 30s by the end （sort of， if you've read it， you know what I mean）。 This is also a pretty complex storyline for most of the teenagers I know to 1） be able to follow and 2） have the patience to get This book certainly had me thinking about some interesting questions， as good science fiction should， but I don't know that YA is the right audience for it。 If I were marketing it， I'd put it more new adult than young adult。 The main characters start out at 17， but are mid-late 20s， or maybe even early 30s by the end （sort of， if you've read it， you know what I mean）。 This is also a pretty complex storyline for most of the teenagers I know to 1） be able to follow and 2） have the patience to get into the meat of the story。 At the beginning， I even found myself sometimes struggling to keep reading because it wasn't split up into nice， digestible chapters。 It was split into sections， and at the beginning of the book， the sections could take 45 minutes- an hour to get through。 I don't like stopping mid-chapter， and I didn't like stopping mid-section， especially since that usually meant stopping mid-page， but reading before bed， I sometimes had to。 Most teenagers I know prefer short chapters so that a book is easy to pick up， read a chapter or two， and then put down。 I just can't think of many who would have the attention span to get far enough into the book where the sections are shorter closer to the end of the book。This makes it sound like I didn't like it。 I did like it， I just don't know that it's a good fit for the intended audience。Note: I read this as a free eARC from Netgalley 。。。more
Vee
，
"things are not quite right on a spaceship" is my favourite genre "things are not quite right on a spaceship" is my favourite genre 。。。more
Craftshley
，
Ambrose wakes up from a two week coma， in space with no memory of how he got there。 But he knows his mission: he’s going to Titan to save his sister， Minerva， who was meant to be the first settler of the large moon。 As he gains his footing， he discovers that he’s not on a solo mission as he previously thought。 Kodiak is in the other arm of the ship， separated by a door that can only be opened through mutual agreement。 While he is standoffish at first， Kodiak warms to Ambrose and， together， they Ambrose wakes up from a two week coma， in space with no memory of how he got there。 But he knows his mission: he’s going to Titan to save his sister， Minerva， who was meant to be the first settler of the large moon。 As he gains his footing， he discovers that he’s not on a solo mission as he previously thought。 Kodiak is in the other arm of the ship， separated by a door that can only be opened through mutual agreement。 While he is standoffish at first， Kodiak warms to Ambrose and， together， they discover that not everything is as it seems。 I read this book in all of a day， in a couple different sittings， I was just so engrossed and fascinated by what was going on。 I didn’t have it quite figured out when everything was revealed and was eager to keep going。 Ambrose is very self assured， being basically royalty back on Earth。 Something weird is going on there， too， though the book doesn’t touch on that too much。 He’s a Cusk， one of the greatest families on Earth。 He himself， as well as his sister Minerva， are descended from Alexander the Great， and seems to be some kind of test tube baby？ Again， there’s not much detail here， just references and a couple blunt statements of fact。 It emphasizes just how far Earth technology has come in just a couple hundred years and shows what all is possible。 It definitely serves as a reminder that we know nothing about what is possible and to think of all possibilities as being legitimately possible。 No guess about what is happening is too far fetched， which is why it was so hard to figure out what was going on！ Anyway， Ambrose is very popular but he’s intelligent as well， smart enough to be chosen to go to space to rescue his sister。 Despite the fact that he clearly has a somewhat inflated ego， he is very accepting and eager to meet Kodiak。 Kodiak had to fight for his place on the ship， beating out others to prove himself the best man for the job。 He， too， becomes suspicious of OS and her motives。 This is what leads him to Ambrose for the first time， as they worked together to complete the various tasks set to them by the ship。 Kodiak opens up over time and is shown to be quite innocent， though he had a hard childhood of training。 He enjoys such simple things because he was deprived of them and his happiness is so pure。 The OS is definitely worth mentioning as a character， as well。 She （I’m using ‘she’ because the OS is voiced by Ambrose’s mother for most of the book） seems just like a normal AI at first but she shows signs of humor and， later， a lot more agency than perhaps an AI should have。 The romance takes the back burner but when it gets there， it is well worth the wait。 Much of the first two thirds of the book is devoted to the mystery of why they don’t remember the launch。 Sure， Ambrose admires Kodiak’s dark hair and stubble and strong build。 But it’s mostly put aside in favor of laying out the mystery of their existence on the spaceship and the strange signals they keep receiving。 This slower romantic buildup makes me appreciate their relationship even more later。 It also lets the mystery really build to its crescendo， not a dull moment to be had。 I really enjoyed how scientific the writing is without being too pretentious or indecipherable。 The language used is something even a person with a non-science background can understand with little explanation， making it approachable while also showing the skills and intelligence of Ambrose and Kodiak， as well as the level of advancement achieved by future humans （the story starts in the 2400s）。 Some science fiction novels get so bogged down in the terms and just end up being way too elevated for enjoyment。 This is definitely not the case here！ The story also doesn’t get stuck on queer relationships。 Ambrose mentions within the first few pages that he’s been with all kinds of people and that he gets around quite a bit。 Though Kodiak comes from a more conservative background， he is also open to queer relationships。 It’s not even a question and there’s no homophobia， which is refreshing。 The moment of truth feels very much like an info dump。 Despite the various breadcrumbs left all over， nothing points to this exact conclusion and it’s a lot of information all at once， the whole story laid out for us to see。 The formatting of it makes it just a lot of information and very little of the character’s reactions to the information。 The conversations were somewhat stilted but that could be attributed to the fact that Kodiak and Ambrose don’t know each other at all prior to meeting on the ship。 Also， Ambrose is quite aristocratic; the way he speaks is very posh。 Kodiak’s first language isn’t English， so his manner of speech is much more formal， as well。 Once I understood this to be the case， their conversations and Ambrose’s thoughts felt less formal and awkward。 The ending also tripped me up。 It felt like it was in a different tone and pace than the rest of the novel and just didn’t fit with my vision of things。 This book will be great for fans of Illuminae or of the Starbound Trilogy， especially These Broken Stars。 The romance feels similar to me and I am very much for it！ And， of course， there is a sentient AI running the ship， fondly called OS， so fans of Aidan in Illuminae will appreciate that。 With its enemies to allies to lovers storyline， it’s sure to appeal to anyone who loves space gays， emphasis on space。 It’s very much a sci-fi novel with a strong romance， though not overwhelmingly so。 Space gays should be enough to draw someone in， even though the romance is not at all center stage nor super fluffy。 I highly recommend this gripping sci-fi mystery！ 。。。more
Courtney Lavallee
，
First and foremost I would like to thank Harpercollins Canadafor providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review。This book was more than I was expecting。 First thing I would like to say is that there was a section of confusion for me when some information in the story came to light。 This caused me to be pulled out of the story to think about the information given and how it worked。 This was truly my only complaint on this story。The characters in here were unique and each had their ow First and foremost I would like to thank Harpercollins Canadafor providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review。This book was more than I was expecting。 First thing I would like to say is that there was a section of confusion for me when some information in the story came to light。 This caused me to be pulled out of the story to think about the information given and how it worked。 This was truly my only complaint on this story。The characters in here were unique and each had their own voices and personality which I absolutely adored and ate up。 They had their cute moments along with their annoying moments。 They did grow throughout the story though， making me like them even more。This book does have quite a bit of science in it so if that's not your thing I don't recommend this。 It sometimes pulled me out of the story， however， I love when things are explained in detail for me to understand it。 So it didn't take much for me to get back into the story。 All in all this was a cute in space novel that had me on the edge of my seat， feeling all sorts of emotions and not really wanting it to end。 I do highly recommend this novel if science and space are your thing！ 。。。more
Danielle
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AMAZING premise and plot。。。 the characterization didn’t do it for me。
Raji
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Review to come
Gabriel
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ARC given by Edelweiss+ for Honest ReviewWhere do I begin？This book exceeded all my expectations。 I'm not usually one for sci-fi reads but holy sh*t I was BLOWN AWAY。 The story focuses on Ambrose Cusk and his journey to Titan to save his sister。 His brooding shipmate Kodiak becomes a close ally when they realize what this journey really entails。It will be hard to get into the details about what I love without giving away spoilers but I'll do my best。The book takes a look at the conflicts that mo ARC given by Edelweiss+ for Honest ReviewWhere do I begin？This book exceeded all my expectations。 I'm not usually one for sci-fi reads but holy sh*t I was BLOWN AWAY。 The story focuses on Ambrose Cusk and his journey to Titan to save his sister。 His brooding shipmate Kodiak becomes a close ally when they realize what this journey really entails。It will be hard to get into the details about what I love without giving away spoilers but I'll do my best。The book takes a look at the conflicts that modern day civilizations face and creates a narrative that （I think） makes up think about what we are all truly fighting about。 What's the point of nuclear weapons if we'll all be dead after the smoke clears later。 I'd compare the warring nations of The Federation and Dimokratia to the US and Russia， but to be honest it's just the concept of "us vs。 them" shown that makes it so incredibly easy to understand。In it's entirety， The Darkness Outside Us is a survival drama， a love story， and a story of hope。 It speaks on humanity， on fellowship in the face of turmoil， and on how love is important no matter where you are in the universe。I HIGHLY recommend this title to any sci-fi lovers， and even someone who is skeptical about sci-fi。 This will definitely pull them into the genre。 。。。more
Danni
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DNF
Desi Wolff-Myren
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Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book to review。 The Darkness Outside Us appears to be a young adult novel about two seventeen year olds in space who fall in love。 It’s way more complicated， and sci-fi centric， than that （these are good things）！Ambrose’s mission is to rescue or retrieve his sister from Titan。 He embarks in a ship that contains an unexpected space—fearer。 Things are not adding up and these two boys must work together to figure out what is going on。 Sp Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book to review。 The Darkness Outside Us appears to be a young adult novel about two seventeen year olds in space who fall in love。 It’s way more complicated， and sci-fi centric， than that （these are good things）！Ambrose’s mission is to rescue or retrieve his sister from Titan。 He embarks in a ship that contains an unexpected space—fearer。 Things are not adding up and these two boys must work together to figure out what is going on。 Spoilers below！！！I really liked how it kept you guessing what we going on。 Allusions to the movie “Moon” with the clones， 2001 Space Odyssey with the onboard computer system， and then mashed with a good old young adult love story。 。。。more
Brady
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 - [ ] I wasn’t sure going into this book how I’d feel about it as I’m not really a sci-fi fan。 What drew me to the book is that the main characters were part of the LGBTQ+ community。 I think my problem with sci-fi is that there is generally a lot of stuff discussed in the book that is hard to rap your head around。 I think that Eliot Sc>Starr ❇✌❇ ，
I received an ARC from Edelweiss TW: environmental poisoning， death of a loved one， cancer， suicide4。8When Ambrose wakes up on his mission to save his sister he's not only surprised- and embarrassed- to find he passed out， but surprised that he's not the only person on board。 Kodiak， from his country's rival， is in the other half of the ship。 And as he continues his maintenance of the ship， it starts to look like there may have been more hidden from him too。"Intimacy is the only shield agains I received an ARC from Edelweiss TW: environmental poisoning， death of a loved one， cancer， suicide4。8When Ambrose wakes up on his mission to save his sister he's not only surprised- and embarrassed- to find he passed out， but surprised that he's not the only person on board。 Kodiak， from his country's rival， is in the other half of the ship。 And as he continues his maintenance of the ship， it starts to look like there may have been more hidden from him too。"Intimacy is the only shield against insanity。 Intimacy， not knowledge。 Intimacy， not power。"This book is best read knowing as little as possible about it！ All you need to know is spaceship mystery。 （I mean what else do you even need， right？）It's hard to talk specifics without spoiling anything but， this book is nonstop plot action！ There is never a dull point in this entire story， the premise never falls short but instead gets bigger and better， and the stakes are phenomenal and earned。 You will not breathe。 You will not put down this book。 You will lose a lot of sleep。The romance in this book makes me feel light headed。 It is everything。 If you enjoy reluctant allies to lover romances and forced proximity romances than those are two great reasons to pick up this book as soon as possible， but it's so much more than that too。 This romance is so real， so organically built and beautifully written。 It's genuinely a perfect mix of upfront and important to plot while also never overshadowing the rest of the plot which is fantastic on its own。And an amazing plot and amazing romance would be nothing without good writing- and the writing is good Sc>Rafael Andrade ，
The two rival remaining countries of Earth， Dimokratía and Féderation， unite their forces to send two of their most skillful citizens， Ambrose， and Kodiak， on a mission to rescue Ambrose's sister on the exoplanet Titan。 Upon waking up in the spaceship Coordinated Endeavor， both have no recollections of the launching day。 As they go about their tasks on the spaceship， the boys realize that nothing is what it seems， a body is found in one of the compartments of the ship， a received transmission da The two rival remaining countries of Earth， Dimokratía and Féderation， unite their forces to send two of their most skillful citizens， Ambrose， and Kodiak， on a mission to rescue Ambrose's sister on the exoplanet Titan。 Upon waking up in the spaceship Coordinated Endeavor， both have no recollections of the launching day。 As they go about their tasks on the spaceship， the boys realize that nothing is what it seems， a body is found in one of the compartments of the ship， a received transmission dated more than two thousand years in the future， is captured by the ship's satellite。 The artificial intelligence command， whose voice is Ambrose's mother， is hiding something。 A great sci-fi story with a beautiful love lesson to be learned。 。。。more
Shelf Blame
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Thank you to HarperCollins Children's Books for the arc of this book！When a distress signal comes in from the moon Titan where his sister is on a special mission， Ambrose is chosen to head a rescue mission to find her。 When he wakes on the ship， he has no memory of the launch or how he ended up too weak to properly function。 Ambrose soon discovers that things don't quite add up。 He finds evidence of previous inhabitants of the ship and a brooding shipmate - Kodiak - that's supposed to help him o Thank you to HarperCollins Children's Books for the arc of this book！When a distress signal comes in from the moon Titan where his sister is on a special mission， Ambrose is chosen to head a rescue mission to find her。 When he wakes on the ship， he has no memory of the launch or how he ended up too weak to properly function。 Ambrose soon discovers that things don't quite add up。 He finds evidence of previous inhabitants of the ship and a brooding shipmate - Kodiak - that's supposed to help him on his mission。 Through a host of mysterious happenings， they soon come to realize that the only people they have to trust are each other。I could NOT stop thinking about this book the entire time I was reading it。 I don't even know how to properly give a review here without spoiling because trust me when I say going in with as little knowledge as possible is the way to do it。 The mystery aspect here is one that'll keep you guessing and keep you thinking。 The space jargon was absolutely meaningless to me because I'm not a rocket scientist， but that's okay because I caught the gist， and wow was it gisty。 There are some really great aspects that are small but important。 This takes place in a future society and Ambrose shows us how they're more enlightened in matters of sex and sexuality。 He scoffs when Kodiak uses terms like gay and bisexual， because of how ridiculous to still use labels to identify one's preferences as 'other'。 He also makes a comment on how terms like top and bottom are tied to value and worth， and I thought it was a neat thing for us to be able to ponder。 The romance isn't even the main pull of this story， and I think that counts in this books favor。 It really concentrates on humanity as a whole - what it means to be emotional and human and how important contact with other people is。 The one gripe I think I'd have with this book is that the romance felt out of place in some parts， but I think that's more due to the way the book is written and formatted， and it certainly didn't spoil my enjoyment of the overall story。 Really fantastic read， and I think it's one that I'll read again just to pick up on hints and clues I didn't the first time around！ 。。。more
Catherine
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What an amazing concept and done so amazingly well！ Ambrose is such a fun character， one that I thought might annoy me， but he really didn't， and watching his connection with Kodak grow was so fun。 While this book is quite long， it never read like it！ I couldn't put it down and always wanted to know what was coming next。 The first half moves along well， then you hit a great plot twist about 40% through and I was just hooked！！ I love sci fi and this title did not disappoint at all！ I can't wait t What an amazing concept and done so amazingly well！ Ambrose is such a fun character， one that I thought might annoy me， but he really didn't， and watching his connection with Kodak grow was so fun。 While this book is quite long， it never read like it！ I couldn't put it down and always wanted to know what was coming next。 The first half moves along well， then you hit a great plot twist about 40% through and I was just hooked！！ I love sci fi and this title did not disappoint at all！ I can't wait to read more from this author！ 。。。more
Juliette
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I received a free e-arc from Netgalley to review。 Two boys are on a spaceship together， assisted by a hyper intelligent AI responding to a distress call from a woman on Titan。 But is that the true purpose of their mission？ This book is not what I thought at all。 It’s thousands of times better。 When deciding to request this， I saw it was about queers in space。 What’s not to love？ But incredibly， this was so much better than that。I can’t say much of the plot because it’ll give it away， but there’s I received a free e-arc from Netgalley to review。 Two boys are on a spaceship together， assisted by a hyper intelligent AI responding to a distress call from a woman on Titan。 But is that the true purpose of their mission？ This book is not what I thought at all。 It’s thousands of times better。 When deciding to request this， I saw it was about queers in space。 What’s not to love？ But incredibly， this was so much better than that。I can’t say much of the plot because it’ll give it away， but there’s an enormous twist around halfway through。 This is way beyond a YA romance， it features deep philosophy in a very genuine way。 It made me analyze the purpose of life in a way I hadn’t before， about the point if it is inevitable if everything decays in the end。 It makes you question the point of work and of present conflicts。 It made me wonder if life is worth living for the sake of itself or not。 It’s also a powerful love story， showing all the ways circumstances can change how a relationship goes， and the things that remain the same。 It’s much more adult than I had thought， and it’s better for it。 This is a truly impressive novel， one I’d like to own， and one of the rare books that makes me tear up。 THIS was a masterpiece。 。。。more
Meghan
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I thought I knew what was most likely going to happen in this book and I was right but also completely wrong！ This book blew my mind and I had no idea how it was going to end。 Ambrose and Kodiak are such amazing characters！ This was thrilling， mysterious， and full of hope and love！
Amanda Greco
，
Thank you， as always， to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC！Listen。 I love sci-fi。 I live for and inhale sci-fi like there is literally no tomorrow。 Sci-fi brings me joy。 The idea that everything written and planned has to be based in technology and ideals we have today or are working towards today in order to be considered sci-fi just lights my brain up。 I know sci-fi。 Sci-fi knows me。 So， when I tell you that The Darkness Outside Us is lightyears beyond everything I've read and love and Thank you， as always， to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC！Listen。 I love sci-fi。 I live for and inhale sci-fi like there is literally no tomorrow。 Sci-fi brings me joy。 The idea that everything written and planned has to be based in technology and ideals we have today or are working towards today in order to be considered sci-fi just lights my brain up。 I know sci-fi。 Sci-fi knows me。 So， when I tell you that The Darkness Outside Us is lightyears beyond everything I've read and love and know， trust that it's a good thing。 I've yet to read a sci-fi book so mind-boggling dark， but accurate， but romantic， but twisted all at the same time。 To see and read all the things Ambrose and Kodiak experience throughout their journey？ It's a lot， at times， but well worth it。 Once you finish the first 40% and you get to the PLOT TWIST， you'll be half tempted to reread it and see if you can catch it earlier this time。 My best friend and I previously tried to read the Big Sci-Fi Book by that Big Dragon Author released last year and were slightly disappointed。 It just felt a little Too Big and a little Too Outside the Box。 If you， too， felt that way about Big Sci-Fi Book， I highly recommend The Darkness Outside Us for you。 It was everything I expected from that other book， but tangible and reasonable。 All words felt as if they were chosen carefully and all character interactions felt intentional。 I devoured this book so fast， reading 150 pages at a time each hour I sat to read it。 I wanted more， I craved more。 I'd gladly read three more books about these characters and their journey and experience。 Despite every horrible thing that happens to them， I just want the boys to be alright。 They DESERVE to be all right。 And， somehow， Eliot Sc>R。J。 Sorrento ，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I have so many mixed emotions on this one。 The ending is breathtaking， and I love the premise of gays in space。 It’s very Space Odyssey meets Moon meets the gay insta love/lust trope。 What I loved: Ambrose as the narrator， the writing style just flowed。 This is a dense book but it never felt like too much to take on。 The world building was beautifully done。 I felt like I was on the ship。 I also loved how truly science fiction this book was。 And SF tends to feel very hetero so I loved how queer t I have so many mixed emotions on this one。 The ending is breathtaking， and I love the premise of gays in space。 It’s very Space Odyssey meets Moon meets the gay insta love/lust trope。 What I loved: Ambrose as the narrator， the writing style just flowed。 This is a dense book but it never felt like too much to take on。 The world building was beautifully done。 I felt like I was on the ship。 I also loved how truly science fiction this book was。 And SF tends to feel very hetero so I loved how queer this was。What didn’t work for me: I wanted more romance， not necessarily sex scenes （there isn’t anything explicit in this book which is fine - it’s YA）， but more about their emotional connection and love。 Most of it was centered on physical attraction through much of the book and that doesn’t equal love。 If the love between Ambrose and Kodak is the heart of the story I wanted to be punched in the chest by it。I also would have loved this book as adult science fiction rather than YA。 Casting them as teenagers didn’t feel necessary。 The book deals with mature themes and gets pretty dark halfway through， and they could have been older adults and be just as effective。Overall I really liked this book。 It’s the gay science fiction novel I’ve wanted for a long time。 I highly recommend it to readers looking for LGBTQ+ rep in space。Thank you NetGalley for the digital ARC。 。。。more
Arien
，
Gays in space is such a specific trope and yet。 This shit doesn't MISS， DAMN - Gays in space is such a specific trope and yet。 This shit doesn't MISS， DAMN - 。。。more
Dom
，
“I think love and science fiction are perfect companions。”This quote from the ARC foreword sums Eliot Sc>Online Eccentric Librarian ，
More reviews （and no fluff） on the blog http://surrealtalvi。wordpress。com/This was an interesting book in that I didn't actually believe it was a realistic situation， none of the dialogue or plotting felt organic， and yet I did stay hooked until the end。 The protagonist felt like he jumped out of an overidealized YA LGBQT novel （read: cliche chirpy and friendly） while the other character might as well had "Communist Russia" stamped across his forehead。 That said， readers will want to follow More reviews （and no fluff） on the blog http://surrealtalvi。wordpress。com/This was an interesting book in that I didn't actually believe it was a realistic situation， none of the dialogue or plotting felt organic， and yet I did stay hooked until the end。 The protagonist felt like he jumped out of an overidealized YA LGBQT novel （read: cliche chirpy and friendly） while the other character might as well had "Communist Russia" stamped across his forehead。 That said， readers will want to follow it to the end despite the flaws because there are some interesting twists， thoughout。Story: Aristocratic Ambrose was chosen for a rescue mission to save his famous sister on a new planet far away。 But when he wakes up weeks after launch， he's told that he suffered an accident， was in a coma， and that the ship desperately needs repairs。 He also learns that unknown to him， his ship was docked with one from a competing government and that ship also contains a 17 year old astronaut。 As he goes about his duties， he also begins to thaw the very reserved and stoic Kodiak。 Together， they will uncover a mystery that will affect their mission to save Ambrose's sister。For once， this is not a romance so much as a space survival story。 We learn quickly that the AI on the ship has some HAL-esq qualities and that the two teens may not be safe。 And while there is a mutual attraction， most of the emphasis on the book is on figuring out exactly what is going on。 There are quite a few twists you won't see coming and quite a bit of tragedy。I didn't really believe either character was real。 If anything， this 'cold war' aspects of the story made it just a bit too familiar; both characters could have been plucked from Los Angeles and Moscow 2021。 Part of the book is the two cultures coming to respect each other despite a lifetime of being enemies but that aspect was both underexplored and overplayed。 The AI was ridiculously dense and I think my cat could have outsmarted it。As a protagonist and our POV of the story， Ambrose is very useless other than having more of a personality than Kodiak。 Kodiak solves all the mysteries and pretty much does everything needed while Ambrose fumbles around and smiles amiably。 In the end， Ambrose finally becomes useful as a computer programmer - but it is a very unbelievable deus ex machina that felt really silly to anyone with any programming experience。 It's also hard to ascertain why Ambrose was chosen for such an important mission other than that the rescue objective is his sister。Sometimes， a book can carry enough momentum to get past the frustrations with the plot and characterization。 This book did so quite effectively - I finished it in one night just to see how it would end。 The ending was not a disappointment but I can't help but feel I've read it before in books such as Revis' Across the Universe series。In all， it is very addicting but just don't think too deep。 It does have plenty of 'romance' and a nice love story but that isn't really the focus， which is the mystery the two boys have to solve。 Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher。 。。。more
GavShire
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You actually get to follow the whole story。。This is a must read！！！ If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on Novel Star， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
laurel [the suspected bibliophile]
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DNF at 13%Who cares if he's unimpressed with me？ He'll become impressed in time。 They always do。And yet， I did not。I am probably pulling the trigger on this one way too early， and yet from the first few pages I was getting serious Project Hail Mary vibes and that was a book I finished because I was convinced the annoying narrator would improve。 It did not， and this book is not doing it for me。 Spoiled princeling suffering from memory-loss and post-random coma？ Check。Binary futuristic world split DNF at 13%Who cares if he's unimpressed with me？ He'll become impressed in time。 They always do。And yet， I did not。I am probably pulling the trigger on this one way too early， and yet from the first few pages I was getting serious Project Hail Mary vibes and that was a book I finished because I was convinced the annoying narrator would improve。 It did not， and this book is not doing it for me。 Spoiled princeling suffering from memory-loss and post-random coma？ Check。Binary futuristic world split between communist and capitalist countries （there are only two countries）？ Check。AI who speaks to princeling in his mother's voice for ~reasons~？ Check。Mysterious rescue plotline adding to mystery because of memory loss？ Check。Lots of weird repetition of facts and events and details that aren't moving the plot forward？ Check。20-something uses of the word polycarbonate in the first 13%？ Check。Make the protagonists 17 to make this YA when it probably should have been adult fic？ Check。It's got pretty damn good reviews， but this honker clocks in at something over 400 pages and I just don't have time for that。 I'm not feeling it， and I'm not feeling Ambrose's voice or his fascination with finding sexiness in voices。The fact that it's reminding me of one of my least favorite reads of the year has nothing to do with this book and everything to go with me。 I'm not feeling it， but it might be the book for you！ There are a lot of people who have loved it。。。my curmudgeonly self is just not one of them。 Again， me problem！I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review 。。。more
Jadon Mann
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There is SO MUCH about this book I could scream about for DAYS， but let me try and cram all of my love into a reasonable-length review。A sentient spaceship AI。 A dumb himbo that falls in love with an even dumber himbo。 Cold War tension meets sexual tension。There's a lot about THE DARKNESS OUTSIDE US that NAILS the most fun part about reading near-future science fiction: all the 'what ifs'。 The main character， Ambrose Cusk， very obviously gets his last name from a thinly-veiled reference to Elon There is SO MUCH about this book I could scream about for DAYS， but let me try and cram all of my love into a reasonable-length review。A sentient spaceship AI。 A dumb himbo that falls in love with an even dumber himbo。 Cold War tension meets sexual tension。There's a lot about THE DARKNESS OUTSIDE US that NAILS the most fun part about reading near-future science fiction: all the 'what ifs'。 The main character， Ambrose Cusk， very obviously gets his last name from a thinly-veiled reference to Elon Musk， which was a fascinating inclusion and really made me take a step back and think about what might happen in a few generations after the super rich people in control of space travel right now are cemented in history as something more-than-human。 The fact that Ambrose's father is technically Alexander the Great is a fantastic way of showing the reader what kind of technology humanity has at the start of the book， and all the little details about the ship Ambrose and Kodiak share gives the setting of the novel this incredibly lived-in， realistic feel that is so difficult to pull off。Ambrose and Kodiak have a relationship that is built， in so many ways， on shared trauma。 The story is told from Ambrose's perspective， but you can very clearly feel Kodiak's development over the course of the book through Ambrose's eyes， even if Ambrose himself isn't quite so good at noticing the changes。 Kodiak is a character you just want to hug and read a bedtime story to。 He's trying so， so hard to be someone he isn't， and Ambrose gives him the permission to be himself a little bit more。 Ambrose learns through Kodiak that love at first sight isn't necessary to love someone just as much as they deserve， and also learns that loving himself is just as important。 It's just such a cozy， quietly romantic relationship and it's so clear throughout the entirety of the book how much they love each other。I think my favorite part of THE DARKNESS OUTSIDE US， though， is all the unreliable narration。 I can't say much without risk of spoiling everything， but this is one of those stories that lends itself incredibly well to multiple reads。 I finished reading this book in one sitting and had to physically stop myself from turning my Kindle back to the beginning and starting it all over again。 Every little detail in this book serves double duty。 A simple observation that Ambrose makes in the first chapter makes sense when you read it the first time because it ties directly into something that happens in the second chapter， but then you get to the end of the book and realize that detail tied directly into something that happens in the last chapter， too。 It's expertly-crafted storytelling。I'm so， so glad I got a chance to read this book。 It's absolutely going to be one of my favorites this year， and I can't wait to read it again！（Special thanks to both Rover and HarperCollins for the NetGalley ARC！） 。。。more
Chaitanya Srivastava
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This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2021 and I can safely say - THIS BOOK GAVE ME A HELL OF A RIDE。 I AM STILL SHOOK！！ Please note that as much as I want to talk about some very specific things about the STORY， I will refrain myself for now and keep this review NON-SPOILERY。 Too many things happened in this book！ Too many！ So， I'll try to keep this as coherent as possible！ But I apologise anyway！TW: Violence， Blood， Anxiety and Panic， partial loss of memory， suicide and suicidal thought This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2021 and I can safely say - THIS BOOK GAVE ME A HELL OF A RIDE。 I AM STILL SHOOK！！ Please note that as much as I want to talk about some very specific things about the STORY， I will refrain myself for now and keep this review NON-SPOILERY。 Too many things happened in this book！ Too many！ So， I'll try to keep this as coherent as possible！ But I apologise anyway！TW: Violence， Blood， Anxiety and Panic， partial loss of memory， suicide and suicidal thoughts among others。 The premise of this book is simple - two boys who are sworn enemies are sent on a rescue mission in space。 The book is told in the first person and is divided into 6 parts。 There are no chapters per se but you do have 'Tasks Remaining" to tell you how many tasks our boys are left to do and that sort of is supposed to act like chapters？ I am not sure。 But yeah。So， much like most readers， I am a sucker for the enemies-to-lovers trope and then when you tell me that it's actually M/M， then I am all over the place！The spaceship has an OS which is voiced by Ambrose's （one of the two boys， the other is Kodiak） mother and there is evidence that there were other people on the spaceship as well！ But something is not adding up！ And Ambrose （and later Kodiak） are hell-bent on finding out what it is。 We are some 400/500 （？） years into the future and both our boys are very determined to find about Minverva （Ambrose's elder sister） who they are going to rescue。For the first 170 pages or so， everything goes pretty well。 You see the progression of the story， the characters interact and there's a lot of animosity， angst and yet some pretty adorable moments。 The OS is extremely witty and sarcastic！ In fact， it reminded me a lot of JARVIS from Marvel。 But then you reach a point， precisely PART 2 of the book and that is when I lost my shit。 Eliot dropped this massive ass bomb right before this part as well but I did not figure it out or predict anything until I reached PART 2 and I was totally caught off the guard！ And from there on everything about this book started to just sort of go in a way where I did not even think it would go。 It was full of surprises and weird mind-bending twists and for the most part， I was totally 101% invested in the story。 I wanted to desperately figure out what the fuck was going on because 1。 everything that I thought I knew was now a lie， 2。 I had no clue what was real and what was not and 3。 there was this sense of urgency that made me not process anything but just keep reading because well。。。And don't take me wrong， this wasn't the I-AM-LOST-AND-I-CANNOT-UNDERSTAND-ANYTHING in a way that makes you want to DNF the book， but it actually made the whole thing so much more unputdownable！ I have to say that by the time I reached the ending， I was thoroughly overloaded with a bunch of twists and turns and with everything kinda moving in circles - it did hurt my mind。 But， again， I did not really mind my mind hurting because I REALLY WAS BLOWN AWAY by the storytelling the way this book has been set up and laid out。 Eliot's writing is very unique and unlike other Space-based （Bonds of Brass by Emily Skrutskie） books that I have read， this one by far was the easiest to follow in terms of world-building and complexity。 There's a lot happening in here but I like the way that author chooses to withhold certain information and chooses the right time to drop it in like a fucking bomb！ From the gorgeous cover and the premise， it might feel like a cute steamy romance between two guys set against the backdrop of space， but it actually is a lot more about everything else than the romance。 This can be a major issue for some readers but oddly enough this was not the case for me。 I liked how the romance was the crux of this story but it was not the only thing that Eliot focused on。 I liked that it was a slow burn and how each time we got into the next section， it had to develop all over again。 I enjoyed the enemies to lovers even though it felt that the enemy factor was only one-sided and there was also an instant， almost like Insta-Love trope coming into the picture。 The love is what keeps these two going throughout the book and eventually get where they reach in the end。 It's sort of empowering in its own way and teaches us that love can do wonders despite all that we have to do to keep the love going！ And sure enough， nobody apart from these two boys would know better about it。This book is about survival and what it means when humanity might end one day and you （and or some others） are the only people left。 Over the course of the book， you travel very far in time and quite away from Earth。 Not sure if this is a trope or not but they were true - ALONE and surrounded by the said DARKNESS！ There's a lot of cool stuff related to how crazy science and technology has become/will eventually get and how it would be able to create a bunch of stuff that much like all things today with tech - can be a boon as well as bane！ This was easily one of the most mind-bending， surprising and adventurous books that I have ever read。 And even though I have a bunch of questions， that I will leave in the GoodReads Ask the Community section for this page， but besides a couple of flaws here and there， this was pretty much A-M-A-Z-I-N-G！！If you like Sci-Fi， then this is for you。 If you like LGBTQIA reps， then this is for you。 More broadly speaking， if you like a story that's not only all about the angsty romance but also filled with a bunch of crazy stuff that you cannot predict， then this for you too！I would like to thank Eliot not only for writing this CRAZY book but also for sending across a copy to me！ Much thanks and completely in awe！ 。。。more
Cressa
，
I love the world of this story and the twist， but the love story just fell a little flat for me。 I got more we're in lust then the love of a lifetime。 ARC from Netgalley。 I love the world of this story and the twist， but the love story just fell a little flat for me。 I got more we're in lust then the love of a lifetime。 ARC from Netgalley。 。。。more
Markevia Jackson
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The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Sc>Aya ，
THIS WASN'T LIKE ANYTHING I'VE EVER READ BEFORE？？ THIS WASN'T LIKE ANYTHING I'VE EVER READ BEFORE？？ 。。。more
Ashley
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