This is a review for books 1, 2 and 3 of the series (Skyward, Starsight and Cytonic). For some reason I was under the impression that this was a trilogy, and was frustrated when the third book did not provide closure. It turns out that I was wrong: it's a tetralogy and the last book is coming out later this year (2023), so I'm not holding that against the series.

This is a SF YA series, so if you don't enjoy YA stories this might not be for you.

What I liked:

* The characters, particularly the main character, Spensa, a teenage girl with the heart of a warrior. She has been raised with stories of ancient heroes, and she wants to fight and protect her people, even though she is not treated very well since she is the daughter of a pilot who ran away in the middle of a fight. I like that beyond her tough persona, she has flaws and vulnerabilities, and that she learns and grows as the story progressed. She is a likable protagonist.

* The plot/worldbuilding was rather interesting. As the story begins, what remains of humanity live underground in a planet called Detritus, subject to constant bombardments and attacks from mysterious alien starfighters. As the story goes on, we learn a lot more about what's going on in the galaxy and about the mysterious power called cytonics.

What I didn't like so much:

* Occasionally I felt that the execution was a bit disappointing. For example, the main character is an ace pilot, and air or space battles play a big role in the series, but that whole element feels simplistic and unrealistic. Lets say that new pilot candidates are accepted by the military, and on their first day of training, when they have only a few hours with a simulator and no real flying at all, they are called to take part in a real aerial battle. True, they are not asked to do much in the battle, but still it's difficult to maintain suspension of disbelief when trainees are given a plane and are ordered into a battle with a total of zero hours of actual flying, and only a few hours in a simulator.

Other thoughts:

* Each of the three books takes place in a very different setting and with a mostly different cast of characters (excepting our main character and her AI). That allows for more worldbuilding, but made the whole story a bit less cohesive. I'm hoping that book 4 will close the circle.

* Of the three books I read, I liked book 3 the least. I got a bit tired of that whole setting. ( )

Defiant is the third book in the Skyward quartet, although additional novellas and forthcoming novels take place in the same universe. At the end of book 2, Spensa jumped through a portal into the nowhere, so almost all of book 3 takes place in the nowhere. Due to Spensa's distance from her friends, like book 2, Cytonic introduces a new cast of secondary characters. The series is overall well written, with compelling characters and engaging plot.

This book felt a bit meander-y, which was probably partly by design. I'm glad I don't have to wait to read the next one. ( )

Scud! That was fun. It's a slower moving plot than the first two books. Plenty of adventure and exploration of the nowhere. Spensa's character really grows in this one. Now the long wait for the final book. ( )

So far this one is my least favorite books of the series. That being said,I enjoyed it a lot. Loved the character development and the world building. I really missed some of the characters from other books. And there were a couple of plot developments that felt just a bit too deux ex-machina for me (it is a yound adult book after all) and that really is the extent of my complaint. All in all,an easy, enjoyable read. ( )