Lark Ascending -- Meagan Spooner

Book 3 (final) of Skylark trilogy

@62% into book
This last book is probably the least haphazard one of the trilogy with a much clearer direction. Even with new events surfacing that give rise to new plot twists, we’re at least still focusing on one main conflict, even if said main conflict is extremely predictable.

Unlike the first two books, I’ve yet to encounter too many dragging moments. And then, much like the first two books (with the exception of some of the first book), Lark Ascending is fast-paced with an urgent “need-to-know-what-happens-next” narration. At least it has that going for it.

However, also much like the first two books, the characters are hard to relate with--I find myself caring very little for them or concerning myself about what happens to them. This book is more plot driven than it is character driven; but as I’d mentioned in the other two Skylark reviews, the characters have a lot of potential for great story. They just don’t seem to come to life in the books.


@ Book’s Completion
To be honest, this wasn’t a bad ending for the Skylark trilogy, if only because despite having an ongoing conflict that was hard to grasp, each book also had it’s own well-rounded conflict and conclusion.

And maybe, aside from that fast-paced storytelling that made the books within the Skylark trilogy easy to read, I can give it a little bit of credit for the above-mentioned well-roundedness of each book’s sub-conflict within the bigger main conflict of the trilogy.

Of course, for all the other things I stated in the 62% few paragraphs further up in this haphazard review (characters that are hard to relate with, ready predictability of story direction, uncertainty of each book’s general direction throughout the series…), the overall impression I got from the trilogy was quite less than enjoyable.

Makes sense? Probably not. I’m not even quite sure I know what I’m trying to say.

Nevertheless, I still managed to fly through the books without too much trouble.


In this conclusion:
Basically, it feels like we’re moving forward in the main series conflict with the start of Lark Ascending. But at the same time, it feels like the book recycles the same formula and storyline from both, the first and the second book.

There’s traveling in the dark wilderness outside of the safety of magic-generating cities wherein Lark and her companions are headed to fight another evil. Except that, much like the first two books, she doesn’t know she’ll find another villain to save the world from--she’s just traveling to her destination to find answers she has lots of questions about. And in doing so ends up in another large-scale battle to save lives and overthrow oppression or defeat the bad guys or something like that.

There’s a lot of fighting, a lot of bloodshed, a lot of inner monologue-ing angst about darkness and evil and monsters and etc….


My Thoughts:
The only real difference between this book and the previous two in the trilogy was the fact that (as I’d already stated), the main conflict and the story’s direction are a little more clear cut. It made the book easier to read than the previous two books; I fell asleep less often and got bored less often. I turned pages with a good bit of urgency, curiosity, mostly; wanting to know how the series would tie up; disappointed that there were still a lot of loose ends. Of course, it could also be stated that because the storyline was easier to grasp, so was the predictability of future twists and secret reveals.

Even then, it doesn’t mean that the book itself wasn’t chaotic.

As a dystopian in a sea of other YA dystopian series/trilogies, Skylark isn’t a terrible set. As I’d stated before, the world created in Skylark has potential; the storytelling and the general YA formula, however, made it into “Just another YA dystopian trilogy”.

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This book is a pre-chosen participant in the following Reading Challenge(s):

• 2015 Reading Assignment Challenge hosted by Because Reading and Fantasy is More Fun

This book felt like a perfect end to the series. I loved the first book, but felt like the second book was a bit slow, too lengthy, and filled with mini info-dumps. "Lark Ascending" is the perfect combination of books one and two; it had rapidly-developing characters and fast-paced plot like the first book, but continued to build upon the world and provide more information about the society in which Lark lives like the second book. The result of this combination is an absolutely amazing science-fiction/steampunk/fantasy read that will have you on the seat of your chair from the first page to the last.

I will admit, the beginning of this book was a little rough for me, not due to the writing but simply due to the fact that Spooner wastes absolutely no time recapping. You are expected to remember where we left Lark in the second book all on your own. This is one of those series with so much information that it would be best read the books back-to-back. It did not take long for me to remember what was going on, though, so no harm done.

One of my issues with book two was that it tended to have large lulls in the plot, making an already very long book feel thousands of pages long. This third book did not have that issue at all. From the very first chapter there was always something happening to someone, whether it be Lark, Basil, Eve, Kris, or Oren. In addition to pace improvements, the story is also jam-packed with even more information about Lark's world and its origins. Spooner had already done an absolutely magnificent job creating a believable world by providing readers with tons of detail--this book just takes that to a whole new level.

The characters are also fleshed out more in this final volume in the series. Backstories, origins, and relationships between characters are all fleshed out really, really well. My favorite details were those of Eve. I would love to see a prequel or a novella revolving just around her, but the bits we are treated to throughout "Lark Ascending" should not be discounted. I appreciated her story the most because it has so many facets--when watching Eve's life through flashbacks about the past and from Lark's perspective in the present the reader is able to feel sad, happy, scared, unsettled, horrified, relieved--the emotions run the whole gambit. We are also able to see Eve come full circle. She was just a normal girl, who ended up trapped in a laboratory that drove her literally insane. This, to me, makes her the most complex and interesting character in the entire novel.

Aside from my complete adoration of Eve, I really enjoyed what Spooner did with Lark and Oren's romance. It is never over the top or cheesy, just honest, sweet, and comfortable. Also appreciated the fact that Spooner has a really fantastically set up potential love triangle but chooses not to use it in favor of friendship. Normally don't see that kind of thing in YA Fiction, so it was really refreshing to see something different.

Overall, I really loved this book. It was fast-paced, filled with well-developed characters and wonderful world-building. If you like science fiction/steampunk/fantasy books which are light on romance and love triangles but heavy on world-building, you will love this series and you should go out and pick up the first book, "Skylark", right now.