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SHADOWLARK by Meagan Spooner

SHADOWLARK

From the Skylark series, volume 2

by Meagan Spooner

Pub Date: Oct. 1st, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-7613-8866-1
Publisher: Carolrhoda Lab

It’s par for the course in Book 2 of the Skylark trilogy.

Picking up right where the first left off, Lark Ainsley is on the run, desperately searching for her brother Basil. Much of the opening gets bogged down in back story, and it will take readers a while to reacquaint themselves with the rules and language of this fantasy dystopia. The story begins to pick up speed when Lark follows Basil’s trail to the city of Lethe. There, she meets an interesting new cast of characters living in a magical underground city that is both a refuge for Renewables and the heart of a resistance movement to overthrow Prometheus, the leader of the surface world. References to Greek mythology further complicate an already Byzantine dystopian world, challenging readers to find a connection between Lethe and the broader plotline involving the architects from the first novel. What’s really interesting here is Lark’s struggle to come to grips with the enormity of her power. Is she a monster? A weapon? A savior? In the midst of this identity crisis, Lark also wrestles with her feelings for Oren, the half-human, half-shadow monster that has found his way into her heart.

This is a book for fans only. New readers need not apply. (Dystopian adventure. 14 & up)