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 Cancrian 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?
Embark on a dazzling journey with ZODIAC, the first novel in an epic sci-fi-meets-high-fantasy series set in a galaxy inspired by the astrological signs.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful.
An incredibly imaginative, original, epic and completely riveting read
By Fiktshun
Action-packed, riveting, epic and original, ZODIAC is the first book in a new series of the same name that invites readers to explore a fascinating and intriguing world that is elaborate, unique and incredibly imaginative. It delivers a story filled with nail-biting suspense, deadly battles, catastrophic loss, devastation, deception, and heartbreak and introduces a heroine strong enough to fight, to stand up against those that doubt her, and to pick herself back up after she’s been knocked down.Rhoma Grace barely had time to recover from the fallout from the explosion on Thebe that left most everyone at the Academy on Elara dead and her home, House Cancer, ravaged, let alone mourn their loss, before being asked to step in as her House’s next Guardian. Young and untrained, she’s not sure she’s the right person to read the stars and lead her people. Especially when no one else sees what she sees in her readings.But with no other options, no home to return to, and her family’s whereabouts unknown, she has nothing left to lose by saying yes. Except for her life, the lives of everyone counting on her to keep them safe, the entire Zodiac.Romina Russell has built a world, a galaxy, a universe, that is utterly enthralling and hugely inventive. One that is filled with a vast array of interesting characters whose customs, behaviors and appearances vary widely from House to House. She has created a story that is constructed from myth that is not commonly used as a basis for stories in the genre. Myth that she expanded upon, made exciting, made her own.She brought the Zodiac to life. She developed each House, its landscape and its citizens - some beautiful, whimsical, fantastical, others peaceful, others practical, others disturbing, others dangerous. She created Houses that could be trusted and others that are suspect. And she introduced an enemy that could unite or destroy them all.ZODIAC is an amazing story that is rich with detail, exploding with possibility, filled with heart-stopping danger, thrilling adventures, swoon-worthy romance, and grievous loss. It is a daring and refreshingly different story with a likable and fearless heroine and two loyal and protective heroes that will hold readers captive from beginning to end. It’s an outstanding story that will be unputdownable.It is a must read first book in this series that is absolutely mind-blowing.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful.Stellar Debut by Romina Russell
By Erin (The Hardcover Lover)
Romina Russell's debut novel, Zodiac, is both out of this world fantastic and stellar. Trust me and the bad puns - you don't want to miss this book. Ms. Russell creates a new kind of world in the science fiction genre that both teens and adults will want to explore for years to come.In the first book of the proposed trilogy, Russell introduces readers to a futuristic world whose inhabitants are descendants of the people from our world. Parts of this story are revealed in the book, and Russell definitely proves to her readers that she didn't just dream this world up in one night. There are allusions and references to stories that we know, but they've been altered so that they now belong in this futuristic solar system named after the Zodiac.Ms. Russell's world building is fantastic. I truly believe that people are going to compare her to some of the top names in YA with this book just because of all of the details that she includes in her books. It's so full of new and original vocabulary that describes not only simple devices to all kinds of new planets and moons. She even includes a glossary on her website so that readers can look up these terms.The characters in Zodiac are also creative and innovative. Even though they represent people from a future society, they still hit close to home. Readers can pick up on how far this society is removed from Earth, but still relate to how human they remain.Rho Grace, the novel's protagonist, has faced a lot of adversity in her young life, and it truly shows. Her rise to power is quick, and she faces it the way that any teen would. She's a little scared and confused. She is a unique character that will leave readers wanting more after they finish the last page. Rho is supported by two great groups of supporting characters - her friends and the people with whom she journeys through the far reaches of the Zodiac.Yes... there is a love triangle in Zodiac. If you're one of those people who choose not to read books because of the inclusion of love triangles, I'm asking you to give this book a chance. The inclusion of the love triangle in no way takes away from the impressive plot.The many twists and turns in Zodiac will leave readers wishing for more. Sometimes you find a book that's predicable, but that is not the case with Zodiac. I was shocked and surprised multiple times while reading. I know that I'm already waiting on the sequel, and this book isn't even out yet!I received a free copy of this book through the Goodreads First Reads program.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful.Most Favorite Book in 2014!
By Book Lovers MY
This review is also posted on: [...]Disclaimer: This copy of printed ARC is obtained from the publisher in exchange of my honest review.This is definitely my most favourite book of 2014! Brilliantly written with its Science Fiction (space) and High Fantasy (innovative invention of the world based on Zodiac system) elements, Romina will blow your mind away with this book!The world of Zodiac is set in a future era when humans live in 12 Houses in the Zodiac Galaxy after the Earth is destroyed. Each of the Houses has their own role and knowledge in survival skills in the Zodiac.The protagonist (and also the narrator) of the story is Rho, aka Rhoma Grace, who is a 16-year-old student in the academy of Zodai (star readers and peacekeepers of the Galaxy) on Cancer's closest and largest moon, Elara. Since young, Rho is trained by her Mom to read the stars and know the history of the Galaxy. As a result, she has exceptional star reading ability which later on caused her to be elected as the Guardian (top star reader) of Cancer.Too young to be a Guardian or leader of a House? Yes, she is. When I read through the story, Rho struggles a lot in trying to fit in into the role "given" to her and even most of her Advisors (including her crush - Mathias Thais) doubted the omen she read from the stars. The author has done a good job in directing my emotion into Rho that I think I can feel what she feels in the story.There's a love triangle in the book which is breathtaking. Rho has a crush on Mathias Thais who is 4 years older than her since she first saw him at the Academy (if I remember well). Everything changed after she meets Hysan Dax - a young envoy from the Libra House. Hysan's irresistible charm and centaur smile (as what Rho mentioned in the book) attracts Rho's attention and makes her wanted him so much. There is not much kissing and sex scene in the book and I love the romance between Rho and Hysan.There are times I am confused by the terms (e.g. Zodai, Acolytes, etc) used in the book but thankfully, there is a website which has the Glossary and Signs sections to help me understand more on the book and also the Zodiac system.This book is highly recommended to the fans of Divergent if you love the five factions created by the author. But I would say Zodiac is more complex and more diverse in the story and writing. I would love to see the story being adapted into a movie or TV series as I can imagine it'll be a great hit!Romina has just submitted the draft of her Book 2 in the series to the publisher and hopefully I'm able to receive a copy of the ARC soon!
