Skylark by Megan Spooner

Skylark was one of those books that I had a love/hate relationship with. It had its moments where I enjoyed reading it immensely, and then there were moments where I was like, ugh, why am I reading this again? There were even a few times when I wanted to put it down and just give up on it. But I kept chugging and finally finished it.

Lark Ainsley is a 15 year old girl who lives in a city surrounded by a Wall. This Wall is powered by magic, which is also known as the Resource. Everyone in the city has the Resource, but it is harvested from them when they are young. Then they are given a job and become a cog in the machine, basically. The harvesting is done at a place known as the Institute, and everyone speaks fondly of their Harvest Day.

Lark has always believed she'd be harvested one day and become an important part of her City. That, of course, is a lie. When she goes in to be harvested, she discovers horrible secrets and lies about the Institute and what they're really up to. Escape is her only option.

Once out in the Wilderness, Lark has to find a way to get over her terror of the wide open sky and find her way to survive long enough to make it to the Iron Wood, a place where there are others like her(Renewables). These people have the ability to regenerate their magic, which the Institute would love to use for their own sick purposes.

The things I disliked about the book were the fact that we don't really know anything at all about the War that wiped out the rest of the world and caused the City to be protected by a magical Wall. Sure, there are "shadow people" out there(cannibals from what I can tell), but how did they become that way? What caused the War? These things are never really explained. Neither is how everyone got their magic. Did it just somehow show up after the War? I just didn't understand that. I also had a hard time keeping up with the constant shifting of scenery/location. I did enjoy the imagery, but it was difficult for me to follow.

In a way, Skylark reminded me a little of Julie Kagawa's The Iron Fey series, only not as in depth or descriptive, I suppose. And the citizens weren't faeries; they just had magic and there was Iron that couldn't be touched by Magic.

Overall, the book was a decent read, but I wish more had been explained in it. I wouldn't say I'd buy the book to own, but it would be worth checking out at a library or something.