Two ships left a dying Earth to start new colonies, but problems with fertility for which one ship found a solution caused betrayal. Fifteen-year-old Waverly, one of the first generation to be born on the Empyrean had the normal worries of a teen. Kieran, the ship's captain-to- be, wanted to marry her and, while she knew he'd make a good husband, part of her felt drawn to the darkly handsome and brilliant Seth. No one realized that their counterparts aboard the New Horizon planned an attack to kidnap the young girls they needed to procreate.

With most of the adults dead, Waverly has to find a way to escape the New Horizon and Kieran must put his leadership skills to work immediately. While the New Horizon certainly looks like to the Empyrean, it won't ever feel like home to Waverly. To make matters worse, Waverly suspects the motives of the ships leader, Anne Mather. The Empyrean had few religious people on board, where religion and Sunday services seemed the fabric that held the New Horizon together. Waverly and Kieran both feel tremendous pressure to succeed in their tasks, but success may be the only means of survival.

GLOW, the first book in the Sky Chasers series from Amy Kathleen Ryan, is said to be as strong a series as the Hunger Games. It's a good book, but I can't go that far in my praise. It's a fast-paced adventure that switches viewpoints between Waverly and Kieran, giving the reader insight into both situations. The problem is that one story, the girls, is much more interesting than the boys. Without going too much into the characters, I had a hard time with the two main male characters. They seemed very black and white with few gray areas, so it was hard to take either of them seriously. Waverly, the strongest narrator had more depth, giving credibility to the choices she faced and the decisions she made. It's a minor point, but how could the kids pilot the smaller craft so easily with little training except for a simulator?

Ryan includes some very important issues that are great food for thought: is it more important to do what's best for oneself or for the group, where is the line between religion and power and is religion a passion, a crutch or both? It's a good story and the series has potential, and I certainly kept turning the pages. Perhaps, Ryan needs to not try to put so much into book 2. I'll likely check it out to see what's coming next.

Book Summary

What if you were fifteen,  bound for a new world, about to pledge your life to someone you’d been promised to since birth, and one unexpected violent attack made survival – not love – the issue?

Out in the murky nebula lurks an unseen enemy: the New Horizon. On its way to populate a distant planet in the wake of Earth’s collapse, the ship’s crew has been unable to conceive a generation to continue its mission. They need young girls desperately, or their zealous leader’s efforts will fail.

Onboard their sister ship, the Empyrean, the unsuspecting families don’t know an attack is being mounted that could claim the most important among them… Fifteen-year-old Waverly is part of the first generation to be successfully conceived in deep space; she was born on the Empyrean, and the large farming vessel is all she knows. Her concerns are those of any teenager – until Kieran Alden proposes to her. The handsome captain-to- be has everything Waverly could ever want in a husband, and with the pressure to start having children, everyone is sure he’s the best choice. Except for Waverly, who wants more from life than marriage – and is secretly intrigued by the shy, darkly brilliant Seth.

But when the Empyrean faces sudden attack by their assumed allies, they quickly find out that the enemies aren’t all from the outside.

Glow is the most riveting series debut since The Hunger Games, and promises to thrill and challenge readers of all ages.