Sky on Fire by Emmy Laybourne

Book: Sky on Fire (Monument 14 #2)

Author: Emmy Laybourne

# of Pages: 215 (Hardcover)

Rating: 3.5 stars

Goodreads Summary:

Trapped in a superstore by a series of escalating disasters, including a monster hailstorm and terrifying chemical weapons spill, brothers Dean and Alex learned how to survive and worked together with twelve other kids to build a refuge from the chaos. But then strangers appeared, destroying their fragile peace, and bringing both fresh disaster and a glimmer of hope.

Knowing that the chemical weapons saturating the air outside will turn him into a bloodthirsty rage monster, Dean decides to stay in the safety of the store with Astrid and some of the younger kids. But their sanctuary has already been breached once. . . .

Meanwhile, Alex, determined to find their parents, heads out into the darkness and devastation with Niko and some others in a recently repaired school bus. If they can get to Denver International Airport, they might be evacuated to safety. But the outside world is even worse than they expected. . . .

My Thoughts:

If you have not read Monument 14, there may be spoilers.

Sky on Fire picks up right where Monument 14 ended. Dean and a couple of the other kids stay behind at Greenway, while his brother, Alex, and the rest set out into the outside world with its compound infused air that affects each blood type differently.

I really liked how the chapters were set up. The story was told by both Dean and Alex giving insight into what is happing within the Greenway store as well as the world beyond its walls. This book is definitely darker than the first with some unexpected twists. We do get to know some of the characters better. I did like Sahalia more in this book. But, I'm still not entirely sure about Astrid. She has her moments when she can be nice, while at others she is bitchy.

There were a couple things that did bother me though. This was a short book, but the pacing was quite slow, and it took me over a week to finish it. Also, there were things that the younger kids said that I just could not picture five, six, seven-year-old kids ever saying.

Overall, Sky on Fire was a good book, but I just kept hoping for something revolutionary would happen, but it never did. There is not a cliffhanger ending, but there is going to be a third book in the series. It will be interesting to see where Emmy Laybourne takes her story next.