Once again I am embarking on a scheduled plan to review and post said reviews in bulk because I now have a very uneven number of books read vs books reviewed. This situation arrived because as I lunged around finishing one book I just moved on to the next on my list without moving from that spot. This is nothing but sheer laziness on my part and I fully intend to keep to my plan of sitting in one place and drafting as many as I can in the next day or two (at least make sure I do not spill any of this over to the next month!). I make this ambitious statement once every three months or so and only succeed every other time, I hope this is that other time.
I know I should not pick up another series by an author I enjoy when there are so many incomplete ones that I refuse to actively think about it. But when I saw the copy of Skyward’s first book sitting on my library’s shelf (as mentioned earlier they have a very eclectic English collection), I brought it home anyway.
This is a young adult’s book, and it shows. The writing is simpler and swifter and less convoluted than some of the author’s other series’. The story also has, at the most one secret arc and smaller ones for the characters themselves. We meet our leading lady Spensa who lives on a planet that is not the earth in a time way ahead in the future. They have different hierarchies and roles, and she thinks she knows the direction her life is going to head. That is, until one fateful day when the unthinkable happens, and her family falls into disgrace.
She has to struggle harder and longer for the same things others get (much more easily). Spensa is still not guaranteed a seat in the role she wants until a twist of fate hands her an opportunity. This is when the story picks up pace. We are now given a better understanding of the world-building and possible secrets. There are interesting characters introduced, who are entertaining to watch grow and change. Finally, I liked the book because the ending was surprising and pretty well done. I have not read too many books set in such worlds, and therefore my word should be taken as a novice’s.
I look forward to reading the second when and if I ever get my hands on it. I think my reading experience was also mildly influenced by the fact that I have read and enjoyed many of the author’s previous works.
Superfluous Reading 