Review of Zodiac by Romina Russell

Release Date: December 9, 2014

Publisher: Razorbill

Page Count: 336

Format: ARC

Genre: YA/Fantasy

At the dawn of time, there were 13 Houses in the Zodiac Galaxy. Now only 12 remain….
Rhoma Grace is a 16-year-old student from House Cancer with an unusual way of reading the stars. While her classmates use measurements to make accurate astrological predictions, Rho can’t solve for ‘x’ to save her life—so instead, she looks up at the night sky and makes up stories.
When a violent blast strikes the moons of Cancer, sending its ocean planet off-kilter and killing thousands of citizens—including its beloved Guardian—Rho is more surprised than anyone when she is named the House’s new leader. But, a true Cancerian who loves her home fiercely and will protect her people no matter what, Rho accepts.
Then, when more Houses fall victim to freak weather catastrophes, Rho starts seeing a pattern in the stars. She suspects Ophiuchus—the exiled 13th Guardian of Zodiac legend—has returned to exact his revenge across the Galaxy. Now Rho—along with Hysan Dax, a young envoy from House Libra, and Mathias, her guide and a member of her Royal Guard—must travel through the Zodiac to warn the other Guardians.
But who will believe anything this young novice says? Whom can Rho trust in a universe defined by differences? And how can she convince twelve worlds to unite as one Zodiac?

From the first time I laid eyes on the book itself, I knew I had to read Zodiac, the cover alone was enough to draw me in but every single aspect of it was basically perfect. I'd never read a YA book about constellations and signs before so the description of the book was VERY interesting. Coupled with the aforementioned amazing cover and raving reviews it turned out to be one of the best books I've read in 2015.

The settings were simply beautiful and once again amazing. Multiple worlds, environments, lifestyles, and cultures. From the constellations themselves to the intricate details of a single planet it was all there. Despite not being a high fantasy book, Zodiac's world-building and settings were on par with heavyweights like S.J. Maas's books and Leigh Bardugo's. Throughout Zodiac, multiple planets are explored and each one is unique by itself. From Cancer's shimmering blue sea to Aries' soldier-controlled slums. I'm being legitimately honest when I say that my words don't do justice to Zodiac at all. Despite Zodiac being her debut novel, Romina Russell delivers a rich and vibrant array of settings that are on level with seasoned writers.

Characters and plots continue the high level of quality that was introduced in the settings area. Each character shown was complex and interesting, especially since they came from all corners of the galaxy. The different cultures, lifestyles, and social rank are all added to make each character more layered and worth reading about. From Rhoma the main character (hailing from Cancer) to people like Hysan (hailing from Libra) each person had stories and experiences to share. While I'm not going to go into too much detail as to the characters, the romance is one part I'll talk a bit about. From the start I was against Mathias, like 100% against him. Sure, he's a good Adviser and all that but Hysan was the one for Rhoma from day one. The love triangle only made the romance complicated and annoying and hopefully she'll pick Hysan in the sequel instead of Mathias. As for the plot, it was one of the best I've read in a while. Full of twists and turns, fulfilling scenes, and cliffhangers, it was a wild ride from start to end. Once again, Romina Russell bursts into the publishing industry with a simply amazing plot and exemplary characters.

I finished Zodiac in one day, another sign of how badly I had to keep reading and after that ending I NEED the sequel. As we speak I have posts and tweets up about trading for Wandering Star and emails sent to publishers in regards to it. This book is perfect for anyone who likes YA, do yourself a favor and go read this NOW!

5/5 - Amazing book