Skylark (Skylark Trilogy Series #1)

by Meagan Spooner

Overview

Vis in magia, in vita vi. In magic there is power, and in power, life.

For fifteen years, Lark Ainsley waited for the day when her Resource would be harvested and she would finally be an adult. After the harvest she expected a small role in the regular, orderly operation of the City within the Wall. She expected to do her part to maintain the refuge for the last survivors of the Wars. She expected to be a tiny cog in the larger clockwork of the city.

Lark did not expect to become the City's power supply.

For fifteen years, Lark Ainsley believed in a lie. Now she must escape the only world she's ever known…or face a fate more unimaginable than death.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780761388654
Publisher:	Lerner Publishing Group
Publication date:	08/01/2012
Series:	Skylark Trilogy Series , #1
Pages:	344
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.60(h) x 1.30(d)
Lexile:	830L (what's this?)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Meagan Spooner grew up reading and writing every spare moment of the day, while dreaming about life as an archaeologist, a marine biologist, an astronaut. She graduated from Hamilton College in New York with a degree in playwriting, and has spent several years since then living in Australia. She's traveled with her family all over the world to places like Egypt, South Africa, the Arctic, Greece, Antarctica, and the Galapagos, and there's a bit of every trip in every story she writes.

She currently lives and writes in Northern Virginia, but the siren call of travel is hard to resist, and there's no telling how long she’ll stay there.

In her spare time she plays guitar, plays video games, plays with her cat, and reads.

You can visit her online at http://www.meaganspooner.com.

Editorial Reviews

"Magic and technology blend seamlessly here... The current demand for grim YA renditions of a dystopian future, plus the splashy landing, will likely ensure a significant readership for fans of the genre." —Booklist

From the Publisher

Another debut, another dystopia. For 15 years, Lark Ainsley, like all other children in the city, has longed to have her Resource harvested so she can begin life as a working citizen who contributes to the good of the whole. But Lark isn't like all the other children. When she discovers that the architects plan to use her unique brand of innate magic to power the entire city, she is forced to choose between living life as a glorified battery or venturing beyond the Wall, leaving everything and everyone she has ever known behind, to search the wilds for others of her kind. Hunted for a power she possesses but barely understands, Lark is forced to journey through a treacherous wilderness, with little more than a hope that she will find her way to the safe haven of the Iron Woods. Spooner's debut, the first in a planned trilogy, gets off to a bumpy start. Readers will likely be scratching their heads for a few chapters as they acclimate themselves to the rules and language of this dystopia. However, as the story becomes clear, readers will quickly find themselves invested in Lark's success. Though magic lends an interesting dimension to the narrative, at its heart, this is an intense story of survival and self-discovery. At the end, though, it doesn't stand out from the throng of like dystopias. Only for those who will read nothing else. (Dystopian adventure. 14 & up)

Kirkus Reviews

Angela Lin takes listeners into the outside world when Lark runs away from the domed city that surreptitiously harvests the magic of its young people to provide energy for the city. At 16, Lark is being scorned because she’s still in school and has not had the rite of passage known as “harvesting.” After she’s selected and sees what’s really happening and the bleak future in store, she runs away. Lin's presentation of the characters is sympathetic and engaging. Her portrayal of the architect who is assigned to Lark is particularly chilling. In this dystopian world, Lin takes Lark through dark times that have an undercurrent of hope. J.E.M. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine

FEBRUARY 2013 - AudioFile