Shadowlark by Meagan Spooner Review

Shadowlark by Meagan Spooner
(Skylark, #2)
Release Date: Ocotber 1, 2013
Publisher: Carolrhoda Lab; 336 pages

Ever since she escaped the city within the Wall, Lark Ainsley's wanted one thing: to find her brother Basil. She's always believed he would be the one to put an end to the constant fear and flight. And now, hidden underground in the chaotically magical city of Lethe, Lark feels closer to him than ever.

But Lethe is a city cowering in fear of its founder, the mysterious Prometheus, and of his private police force. To get the truth about what happened to Basil, Lark has no choice but to face Prometheus.

Facing her fears has become second nature to Lark. Facing the truth is another matter.

Lark never asked to be anyone's savior. She certainly never wanted to be anyone's weapon. She might not have a choice.

If you have NOT read Skylark, please read with caution. There are some spoilers that were unavoidable. Proceed with caution . . .

I was so excited to dive back in to this world that I fell in love with the first time around. I needed more from Lark and especially more from Oren. While the first book was full of twists and turns and magic this book fizzled a little. Skylark was very unpredictable with one especially huge turn that I did NOT see coming but Shadowlark was fairly predictable. Not a bad thing, it just wasn't as exciting. I really enjoyed this book though; traveling with Lark and Tansy.

Speaking of Tansy, she was a hard character to get adjusted to. There was just something about her that kept me from trusting her. She was an interesting character, don't get me wrong but I can't like a character unless I trust them. I didn't trust her. Was my lack of trust warranted? I don't know; you'll have to read to find out.

The one thing I love most about this series, besides the relationship between Lark and Oren was the relationship between Lark and Nix. Seriously, who doesn't love Nix? He is, hands down, my favorite character. I want him all to myself. If only 'machines' like him existed... But it warms my heart to see how much Lark has come to depend on Nix. Not just for help but for conversation. Who knew? There wasn't enough Nix, definitely not enough Nix.

The strain between Lark and Oren is very apparent in the majority of the book. You don't know how many times I was sitting there going 'oh get over it already and kiss him' but alas, it didn't happen (well, not when I wanted it to which was early on). But, I understand why she was so hesitant. If you've read Skylark, I'm sure you do, too. If you didn't, I still don't feel comfortable giving away such a huge spoiler even after the warning. What I can say is it's super nice to see Lark's jealousy emerge; which showed us just how much she cared for Oren, even if she wasn't willing to admit it. Definitely one of my favorite factors of this book were these two.

Prometheus...he's our villain in this book. He's using Renewable's to keep this underground city alive. While, what's he accomplished is mind blowing, the way he's accomplished it isn't. Using people against their will is definitely not something to be proud of. Lark joins a group of rebels that want to take him down and they'll do anything to accomplish this.

While this book is full of action, drama, reconnecting, self-finding and betrayal it's lacking the mystery the first book had. But seeing as that's the only thing missing from the first book, it's still a fantastic read. The ending leaves things set up wonderfully for the third book and I cannot wait for this. It sounds like it's truly going to be an epic journey and I'm biting my nails with anticipation just waiting for it.