SHADES OF EARTH BY BETH REVIS

      
All the data
Series:  "Across the Universe" Trilogy
Author: Beth Revis
Release: 2013
Publishing company: Razor Bill
Pages: 440 (paperback)

Synopsis
Amy and Elder have finally left the oppressive walls of the spaceship Godspeed behind. They're ready to start life afresh—to build a home—on Centauri-Earth, the planet that Amy has traveled 25 trillion miles across the universe to experience. But this new Earth isn't the paradise Amy had been hoping for. There are giant pterodactyl-like birds, purple flowers with mind-numbing toxins, and mysterious, unexplained ruins that hold more secrets than their stone walls first let on. The biggest secret of all? Godspeed's former passengers aren't alone on this planet. And if they're going to stay, they'll have to fight. Amy and Elder must race to discover who—or what—else is out there if they are to have any hope of saving their struggling colony and building a future together. They will have to look inward to the very core of what makes them human on this, their most harrowing journey yet. Because if the colony collapses? Then everything they have sacrificed—friends, family, life on Earth—will have been for nothing.

My review
Warning: This review contains spoilers for the previous books in the trilogy, Across the Universe and A Million Suns. If you haven't read Shades of Earth yet, don't worry, this review is spoiler free.
I'm so incredibly sad because another great YA fiction trilogy has come to an end. And, oh man, i'm still not over it. This book was fabulous and now i have this huge desire for another book set in this world (PLEASE, Beth, PLEEEEASE). I'm still not ready to say goodbye to all of these amazing characters Revis created. The author is able to invent well developed characters that you grow to love throughout the trilogy. They feel surprisingly real and i'm relieved that most of their choices are understandable and make sense.
I made up tons and tons of crackpot theories about what might happen in the final installment after finishing A Million Suns. I mean, everything could have happend. Everything. But luckily, i was completely satisfied with how the story ended. Of course I don't want to spoil anything, but I will say that it wasn't unrealistic at all, at least for me. It's actually scary how realistic all of it felt.

Let's talk about the romance. I. LOVED. IT. My ultimate bookish pet peeve is instant love and Amy and Elder's relationship is everthing but instant love. Both of them continue to question their feelings for each other for several reasons and i enjoyed reading about those. I'm a bit jealous of Amy to be honest because i kind of fell in love with him, haha. He's one of the best male protagonists i have ever read of. I especially loved reading about how he learned to be a leader. It would have been incredibly unrealistic if a seventeen-year-old (Is he seventeen? I think so, not sure about that though) guy suddenly hapened to be able to lead a mission like that and control thousands of people that are also older than him.
Amy and Elder compliment each other so well and i just can't help but mention the 'stars' metaphor. If you have read book one and two (which you should have, because i am kind of spoiling those right now) you know what the stars mean to them and my heart melt when i read that they begun to use it as kind of a saying ("Oh, stars, Amy").

Beth Revis is a fantastic writer and I will definitely pick up every single book that she will publish in the future. She chooses her words so wisely and is not afraid to let bad things happen to her characters which i consider a positive thing because it makes the story feel much more real. Her writing style is memorable and makes me love this trilogy even more.

By the way: I CRIED LIKE A BABY.

My rating: 4.5 out of 5