The Loneliest Girl in the Universe by Lauren James

The Loneliest Girl in the Universe

by Lauren James

Nominated for the 2019 Carnegie medal

One of Barnes & Noble’s Top 15 YA Books

Shortlisted for the STEAM Children’s Book Prize

Can you fall in love with someone you've never met, never even spoken to – someone who is light years away? Romy Silvers is the only surviving crew-member of a spaceship travelling to a new planet, on a mission to establish a second home for humanity. Alone in space, she is the loneliest girl in the universe until she hears about a new ship which has launched from Earth – with a single passenger on board. A boy called J. Their only communication is via email – and due to the distance between them, their messages take months to transmit. And yet Romy finds herself falling in love, but what does she really know about J?

Reviewed by Ashley on

4 of 5 stars

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Well this book was completely unexpected...

I read the whole thing in one sitting; it's a SUPER fast read. Plus I absolutely adored the first 2/3rds or 3/4ths of the story, so that was awesome. But then it completely twisted in a new, totally unexpected direction. It wasn't necessarily bad, it just wasn't what I expected. I went into this book because I was in the mood for Genre A, then it just totally changed into Genre B. It wasn't what I was hoping for when I picked up the book (though maybe I would have still read it, just under different circumstances).

Click the following spoiler if you want to know what genre the book ends up being. I don't spoil the actual twist, I just reveal what genre you're probably expecting, and what genre it ends up being. You're probably expecting romance, but it doesn't end up being that at all. It's more like a thriller/suspense story.

I thought the reason for that genre change was a little weak. I didn't think J's reasoning for wanting to psychologically torture then murder a 16-year-old girl was really strong. I thought he was clutching at straws trying to blame her (or even her parents) for his parents' deaths. I also didn't think the ending was very satisfying. I really wanted an epilogue where Romy finally landed on the planet. I wanted to see what happened next!

I'm still rating the book high because I loved it for so long and I was pretty hooked. I'm just a bit bummed at how it turned out in the end.

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Reading updates

  • 23 September, 2017: Started reading
  • 23 September, 2017: Finished reading
  • 24 September, 2017: Reviewed