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-.)
What do You think about 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
