Good, fun, light reading. Secry is a teenager whose father has disappeared mysteriously when he was very young and whose home village is taken over by a Corporation digging for resources called Endrin, thus forcing them all to re-locate in the city of Sky, where he meets new friends, learns new games, discoveres love and uncovers an Endrin conspiracy. All in a few weeks time. There are throughout the book several inconsistencies and deus ex machina moments, but overall a nice read for an YA level of audience. Overall, I thought CotFS was a good first novel for the author. There is a creative concept and an interesting world that I think will be better flushed out in future stories. The main characters of Secrky and Eiya were entertaining, as was the Friction game. There were a few "convenient" escapes out of the situations Seckry and his friends faced, and some of the dialogue seemed a tad forced to move the plot along. Some of the characterization was a little 2-D or implausible: the character of Vance struck me as a bit unbelievable (sharing deep, dark secrets with a high school student he's just met), or contrived, though I really wanted him to be "cool," and I hope in future stories, he's fleshed out a little more. It seems in the epilogue that this may be the case. We'll see.I was left a little unsatisfied in the world creation, this alternate reality has a few "cardboard trees": a somewhat strange mixture of hi-tech with present-day tech, and the fantastical creatures seemed superfluous additions, almost like the puffskeins, with somewhat of a running gag feel to them. A lot is left to the imagination, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I would have enjoyed a bit more back story on the world they inhabit. But in the end, these are minor detractors.Where the novel really wins is the ending. A lot of seemingly random items come together to produce a YA mystery reminiscent of the Harry/Ron/Hermione team of The Philosopher's Stone. Mr Evans has a lot of potential, and his first foray into fantasy is worth a look. If half-stars were allowed, I'd give it a 3.5 (C+ to B-.)
Do You like book City Of The Falling Sky (2011)?
Great book. Number one in the series and leaves you waiting for more! Loved it!
—low
Very very interesting story I am anxiously awaiting the next in this series!
—RedWine
