ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Synopsis: Waverly and Kieran are finally reunited on the Empyrean. Kieran has led the boys safely up to this point, and now that the girls are back, their mission seems slightly less impossible: to chase down the New Horizon, and save their parents from the enemy ship. But nothing is truly as it seems…Kieran’s leadership methods have raised Seth’s hackles— and Waverly’s suspicions. Is this really her fiancé? The handsome, loving boy she was torn from just a short time before? More and more, she finds her thoughts aligned with Seth’s. But if Seth is Kieran’s Enemy No. 1, what does that make her?

In one night, a strange explosion rocks the Empyrean—shooting them off course and delaying their pursuit of the New Horizon—and Seth is mysteriously released from the brig. Seth is the most obvious suspect for the explosion, and Waverly the most obvious suspect for releasing him. As the tension reaches a boiling point, will Seth be able to find the true culprit before Kieran locks them both away—or worse? Will Waverly follow her heart, even if it puts lives at risk? With the balance of power precarious and the clock ticking, every decision counts… every step brings them closer to a new beginning, or a sudden end… -Goodreads

Review: There are dark times aboard the Empyrean in this fantastic sequel to one of my favorite reads of last year. The first book was exactly what I wanted in a space opera type novel (I love the genre on TV but can never find what I’m looking for in a book) and while Spark was definitely a bit different from the first book it still gave me what I was looking for. Spaceship- check! Awesome plot- check! Believable characters- check!

All of the relationships in this second installment were complex and interwoven. If you’d asked me where I thought Kieran, Waverly & Seth were headed while I was reading the last book I never would have been able to predict any of what happened here. Sometimes that can indicate an author who is just jumping around of the sake of a wild ride but here I felt as though each major twist was a natural progression.

I feel like I’m reading a lot of books with political aspects to them (or I am just over analyzing that part of pretty much everything I read) and Spark is no different. I loved watching the power struggle between most of the older kids on the Empyrean and how loyalties shifted over the course of the book. One action could have a big effect on public opinion which in turn had an effect on all of the major players.

The only thing that stopped me from giving this book five stars is that for some reason it took me a few days to really get into it. Once I was hooked I devoured the rest of the book in a day but something was missing for me at first. Maybe it was just the usual growing pains of getting back into a series you’d been away from for awhile, but really it had only been six months or so, so I’m really not sure. Either way, once I was really in there was no turning back so I wont hold it against the series in the long run.

Minor spoiler, but near the end there is a big change that will mix things up a bit for the next book and I’m curious to see how everything will play out. The power struggle is sure to be hardcore and the characters are going to be outmatched and have a lot going against them. Pretty much, a recipe for awesome. Can’t wait for book three!

I feel like there is so much more I want to talk about but can’t get into without getting pretty spoiler-tastic, so if you have read Spark already please check back on Thursday for a discussion post.

Second Opinions:
@Books Live Forever
@Hope, Faith, Books
@The Teen Bookworm