Sky in the Deep

Adrienne Young

Apr 2018 · Sky and Sea Book 1 · Macmillan Young Listeners · Narrated by Khristine Hvam

About this audiobook

"Fearless in its exploration of family, forgiveness, loyalty, and love, Sky in the Deep is fierce, vivid, and violently beautiful. This book will wage a war with your heart as brutal and as bold as the battles inked in its pages." - Stephanie Garber, New York Times Bestselling author of Caraval

In her highly-anticipated debut audiobook, Adrienne Young brings to life a lush, vivid world that will enchant listeners everywhere. Sky in the Deep is mythic in scope and speaks straight to the heart.

Raised to be a warrior, seventeen-year-old Eelyn fights alongside her Aska clansmen in an ancient, rivalry against the Riki clan. Her life is brutal but simple: train to fight and fight to survive. Until the day she sees the impossible on the battlefield—her brother, fighting with the enemy—the brother she watched die five years ago.

Eelyn loses her focus and is captured. Now, she must survive the winter in the mountains with the Riki, in a village where every neighbor is an enemy, every battle scar possibly one she delivered. But when the Riki village is raided by a ruthless clan settling in the valley, Eelyn is even more desperate to get back to her beloved family.

She is given no choice but to trust Fiske, her brother’s friend. They must do the impossible: unite the clans to fight together, or risk being slaughtered one by one. Driven by a love for her clan and her growing love for Fiske, Eelyn must confront her own definition of loyalty and family to find a way to forgive her brother while daring to put her faith in the people she’s spent her life hating.

More praise for Sky in the Deep:

"Young’s often poetic writing forms a stark juxtaposition with her vivid descriptions of battle and bloodshed, creating a clear picture of the brutality of war." — Publishers Weekly

"Young’s staccato prose matches her fierce fighters, but the raw emotions and rapid pacing belie a well-honed voice and taut narrative. A rousing saga and moving coming-of-age tale, perfect for those who appreciate the wild and the wildlings, strong female protagonists, and cinematic battles." — Kirkus

Ratings and reviews

4 stars — Wow. This one was fairly slow to start, and while I was enjoying it, I wasn’t wowed. It had some moments of repetition, and there were some pacing problems where I felt like there could have been some editing down. But then I got sucked right the frick in, and holy cow was that a fun ride to the end!! This was not action-packed from start to finish — even after things started ramping up, it wasn’t just in the sense of action and plot, but also of delving a bit deeper into some complicated issues of how the Riki and Aska clans see each other, and how the way they were raised bred that hate…and what happens when you’re captured and you come to see them as very similar to you, and not necessarily hated monsters…basically what happens when it turns out that things aren’t black and white, but more grey. That’s what Eelyn comes up against, and I thought the nuances were very interesting. Especially given her feelings for her brother, how she views his actions mixed with her own guilt… And then there’s Halvard. Halvard could thaw the iciest heart I believe. His childlike innocence was just exactly that extra needed. Eelyn was a very interesting heroine, because she was SUPER warrior. I appreciated that I could *almost* understand how she came to be the way she was based on the way she was raised, and the tragedies of her past. But it added a very violent aspect to the story that I will admit I wasn’t expecting. Not bad, just…hard to stomach at times. I’m not good with war and shiznit. But it was nice to see women treated equally in both clans. She goes through a HUGE transition throughout the story, and I found it to be very believably paced. I felt like she hung on to enough skepticism and doubt, and really warred with herself enough that it felt realistic. Basically, I BELIEVED everything she was feeling. Even though this story was light on the romance, I loved what it brought to the table. I marked this one enemies to lovers, but there were so many other nuances to the story. I loved the way it developed slowly, almost in the background. I appreciated how Eelyn and Iri’s relationship went through so much in this story as well…and that there were probably always going to be unresolved feelings there. It was complicated, and believable for what they both went through. I understood both of their perspectives for the most part. Obviously Halvard was the unsung star of this story. Without him, this would have been half the story, even if he was only a secondary character. He just brought so much, and he was delightful. I also really appreciated Inge, and to a degree Runa. And even Myra. And Auggie. Yeah, lots of great secondary characters that helped Eelyn in her development. I LOVED listening to this one. As a result, I had no idea how most of the names were spelled, but on the other hand I didn’t have to guess how things were pronounced! I thought the narrator did a wonderful job with this story. Her pacing was fabulous, her voices were always consistent and spot on, and she did a great job portraying emotions. I loved that she gave Eelyn a bit of a harder edge…it just fit with her character. I will admit that I wanted a bit more from the bear stuff. I enjoyed the symbolism, but I felt like I was wanting something bigger as a result, it kind of got lost after the battle. So yeah. A book I probably wouldn’t have even noticed if not for being a book club pick, and I was just thoroughly entertained.

About the author

Adrienne Young is a born and bred Texan turned California girl. She is a foodie with a deep love of history and travel and a shameless addiction to coffee. When she’s not writing, you can find her on her yoga mat, scouring antique fairs for old books, sipping wine over long dinners, or disappearing into her favorite art museums. She lives with her documentary filmmaker husband and their four little wildlings beneath the West Coast sun.

Adrienne is the author of Sky in the Deep.