Language: R (193 swears, 0 'f'); Mature Content: PG13 (Innuendo, insults); Violence: R (Physical violence, fights to the death, murder, attempted murder, monster violence, monster hunting, lots of gore, many injuries)
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
APPEALS TO: SOME
16yo Conrad spent his childhood in luxury. His father was the Archduke. But when his Uncle takes the throne, and exiles Conrad and his mother to the Low, Conrad spends his early teens fighting for his life, and trying to earn enough money for his mother's medicine. At 16 he joins the Selection, and is accepted as a Hunter; Sky warriors who fight giant steel armored monsters called gorgantauns. But when Pound, his archenemy is put on the same ship, and Conrad find himself in the worst job possible - the Scabbie - he is desperate to rise to the position of Captain, and maybe win the chance of commanding his own airship.
I gotta say - I had a hard time enjoying Sky's End. The Riches to Rags to Riches plot wasn't helped by Conrad's sullen and "trust no one" and "I can do this all myself" attitude. I don't love books where children kill each other and there is a lot of this - everyone is taught to fight, there are some senseless killings and the gore is a lot. Conrad gets beat up by Pound just before an important duel and fights with broken ribs. There are no adults directly supervising these kids. 16 is too young to be sent into the skies on a death mission to hunt monsters. An optional read, certainly because of the violence and swears, and the last 100 pages would have been better as the first 100 pages of the next book. The characters are humans.
Lisa Librarian
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