Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Title: Across the Universe
Author: Beth Revis
Rating: 3.5 (This is a very hard book to rate.)
Cover rating: 5

Description: Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone--one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship--tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.
Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.
 
Frex. I wanted to enjoy this book more than I did. Honestly, I feel disappointed. I have read nothing but glowing reviews for this novel, but I have to admit, I don't feel the same. So, if you're looking for another glowing 5 star review, I'd recommend not reading on. Before I delve into my review I'd like to say I actually wanted to give the cover rating a 2. I gave it a 5 because it is undeniably beautiful, but I wanted to give it a two because I find it misleading. The characters on the cover are so drawn into each other, so wanting of each other. I did not find that in this book.
 
I know so many people are going to disagree with just about everything I am going to say in this review, but to each their own right? I have been waiting for this book to come out. I squealed when I saw it on the shelves on Barnes and Noble. I bought it right away and I just knew that it was going to come home with me and sit on my "favorites" shelf. It's not though.
 
I did enjoy the story, a lot. The writing is beautiful. Revis did a splendid job with the story telling, plot, and overall description. I think my main problem with the novel is that it is so plot driven. Don't get me wrong, I love plot. I love substance, which this story has. Yes, the characters are realistic, but I felt that there could have been more development. More emotion. When Amy is reanimated without her parents? Is she upset? Yeah, she is, but if that were me, or really any real human being. They would be going crazy. The emotions would be flickering all over the place. She'd want them to stay frozen, she'd want to wake them up. I didn't get that. She was upset, she was sad, she grieved, and then moved on.
 
I wanted more out the love story. I wanted to know more about Jason. I wanted more in general. I felt as if the entire novel is this huge build up and then it just....ends. For me it was a long, drawn out mystery. The mystery was intriguing. I read this novel in one sitting. I'm writing this review at 4:30 AM when I have to wake up early tomorrow. But, we have this mystery that drags us through the novel and then within 10 pages, it's just...over. Done.
 
Once again, I wanted more out of the love story. And, once again, huge build up to just kind of fall. Now, I do respect and understand Amy. The last sentence she thought about them. I think it was perfect, it works for the time. But, their first kiss? It happened too fast to be followed by nothing.
 
I will read the two remaining books. Hell, I'm even going to buy the two remaining books. I think Revis has set up a great story. I feel that there is potential. I know down to my bones that it's going to be great, but this first installment fell flat for me.