Mirror in the Sky

by Aditi Khorana

For Tara Krishnan, navigating Brierly, the academically rigorous prep school she attends on scholarship, feels overwhelming and impossible. Her junior year begins in the wake of a startling discovery: A message from an alternate Earth, light years away, is intercepted by NASA. This means that on another planet, there is another version of Tara, a Tara who could be living better, burning brighter, because of tiny differences in her choices.

• ISBN10: 1595148566
• ISBN13: 9781595148568
• Publish Date: 21 June 2016
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 11 October 2023
• Imprint: Razorbill
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 352
• Language: English

Reviews

[anastasia]

Full Review on my blog!

This book wasn’t what I expected at ALL, but once I settled into the understanding that it’s a YA contemporary with what I’d call a sci-fi overlay, I really enjoyed it.

The plot centers around a girl named Tara who feels out of place in her small town. When in a strange and sad turn of events, Tara gets wrapped up in the popular group at her school. She finally thinks that she is finding a way to fit in. But all of that is eclipsed when scientists discover another Earth, far out in the solar system. This new Earth turns out to be an almost exact copy of Tara’s own world; mirroring people, places, and events. Now everyone is left wondering how big an impact their decisions made, and if they had better lives on this new Earth.

The characters are all well-written and reading about their dynamics and relationships was completely absorbing and moving. The main character is the only person of color in her school and I particularly enjoyed her frank discussion of how this effects her and her feelings on the subject. All of the characters are flawed and some are more sympathetic than others early on.

While I enjoyed Mirror in the Sky a lot, there were some things I didn’t like as much, which is why I’m giving it a 3.5 rating.

THE ENDING THOUGH. I want to say the ending was amazing (which it was) but it kind of felt rushed and while some issues are tied up a little too neatly, others are left unresolved. Ultimately, I really enjoyed Mirror in the Sky but it needed something more.

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[Briana @ Pages Unbound]

The key to enjoying the book is realizing that the newly discovered alien world doesn't really matter. This isn't an alien book or really a sci-fi book. It's a story about people trying to embrace life and make different choices, once the discovery of an alternate earth puts the idea into their minds that shaking up their lives is possible. I agree with other reviewers who said the alternate earth part of the plot isn't even entirely necessary. Khorana could have written a book focused on the same group of characters who were motivated to spice up their lives by some other catalyst.