When Seckry Sevenstars is forced out of his village by the greedy Endrin Corporation and relocated to the daunting metropolis of Skyfall City, he harbours resentment for the company and vows to get them back one day for taking away his home, his school and his friends.
Then, when a mysterious email asks Seckry to break into the headquarters of the Endrin Corporation to steal a container full of worms for a hefty sum of money, his anger resurfaces, and he can’t resist the revenge he promised himself.
But what Seckry finds isn't what he expected. Staring at him through the darkness, with wide, innocent eyes, is something that makes Seckry’s heart almost stop.. A girl. Suddenly the question of what Endrin were doing with a few worms becomes the last thing on Seckry’s mind. What were Endrin doing with a human?
City of the Falling Sky by Joseph Evans is an exhilarating and unique story about a teenage boy named Seckraman Sevenstars as he and his family are forced out of their home and into the metropolis that is Skyfall City. After dealing with his initial frustration, Seckry begins to settle and enjoy his new home, but that moment of bliss can only last for so long before things begin to stir, resulting in Seckry being sucked right in.
From the get go it is clear that the plot is well thought out, creative, intriguing and unlike anything I've read in a long time. The tone of the book is excellently set in the prologue and instantly grabs your attention, not wasting time by setting out an unnecessary and draining build up; Evans just dives straight in and I love that. Evans' descriptive techniques and vivid imagination are beyond admirable and I found myself engrossed by and so easily picturing the world he's created, every unfolding event and setting, ranging from the magic and fantasy of the Friction game, to the futuristics of Skyfall City and Estergate High. In fact, whilst reading I found myself reminiscing about the world of Harry Potter and although I don't like to create comparisons between books, it just came natural to me, so it's apparent that Rowling has inspired Evans just like she's inspired the rest of us.
I really loved how the plot progressed throughout the book, expanding in an entertaining, gripping and knotty manner at the conclusion of every chapter. Questions are constantly being raised, as soon as you think you know what's going on the narrative is flipped and you're left stunned and confused by how you didn't see something coming, which is a great representation of just how talented Evans is. Although there are an array of narratives intertwined with each other, Evans eases the reader into any new aspects of the story and revisits them at later points when the picture becomes clearer, so you never for a second find yourself confused.
Albeit there are elements of the story that will forever remain fiction (or at least I hope so), I found myself relishing in the contrast between realism and fiction. It's difficult for a story, particularly one with such strong themes of fantasy, to find a balance that is both believable and totally out of this world, but that doesn't seem to be a problem within this novel. The characters are well developed with legitimate, human connections to each other and I especially found myself drawn to Seckry, sympathising with every ounce of pain, struggle and frustration he experiences. He's clearly flawed but not necessarily in a negative light, although I did find aspects of him, such as the way in which he dealt with Snibble, contradictory of his character. On the whole however he is a charming and ordinary human who extraordinary things have happened to, and that is part of what makes him such a great character
Finally, the ending had me in pieces. It was fantastic. Oh how I so desperately want to share it with you, but that would be unfair of me to do. I found it so compelling and exciting and I loved how everything was wrapped up nicely with no loose ends, which would inevitably lead to a rushed resolution in the follow-up if the ending was the complete opposite.
Overall, this book is a truly exciting and compelling YA novel that stretches the boundaries and successfully presents the generic conventions of sci-fi and fantasy whilst also having a great sense of uniqueness, and although I found one or two typos here and there, I didn't for a second find myself irked or distracted by them.
I give Joseph Evans and The Seckry Sequence: City of the Falling Sky ★★★★★
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