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A review by novelsbycaitlin
City of Savages by Lee Kelly
4.0
I'm struggling how and where to start this review, so I'm going to blurt sentences and hope something coherent comes out.
City of Savages is a dystopian. Wait! Don't fret! Don't run! I've grown weary of dystopians myself, but City of Savages at its core isn't your tag and bag dystopia. It's told through three narratives, two sisters and a mother's journal. Sky is the older sister who spends her time reading whatever she can find and dreams of one day leaving Manhattan. Phee is the younger, more rough and tough, more interested in the here and now who thrives in Manhattan. Their mother's journal is a voice of the past--how things fell apart--how she fell apart. And thankfully, all three narratives stand on their own two feet and have a beating heart.
To be honest, I feel biased here. I have a younger sister who I'm extremely close to, despite our differences. She's the Phee to my Sky. We do (or used to) do everything together. Yes, this book about surviving and protecting your own, but ultimately this story is about family. Sky and Phee would speak about a wall forming between them, and I've been there. I could relate times a million. Instead of ingesting page by page, this book sort of rung in me like a bell.
BUT from a technical perspective, this book still shines! The first quarter of this book is slow, but necessary. But after that, you're thrown into horrifying and equally emotional loops. The girls switch back and forth, giving their own spin on the situations, venting their worries and desires. There was a bit of romance--even a love triangle played out between the sisters and a boy--but it wasn't overwhelming (thank god). There are some truly frightening things in this book that left me clawing at my face like "oHH NOOO." I would NOT want to be in that situation.
The only two elements that lacked was--of course--the science behind this dystopia. Yea, there were a few questions answered, but many more that were failed to be asked. Lastly, Ryder, the love interest. There's nothing essentially wrong with his character, although I found him TOO perfect. Like, what are the chances you meet the most gentle and kind and understanding person in the middle of a savage city? Like??? Really?
But, I for one am looking forward to whatever Lee Kelly writes next. She's proven she's capable of writing an good novel packed with action and emotion and some horror.
City of Savages is a dystopian. Wait! Don't fret! Don't run! I've grown weary of dystopians myself, but City of Savages at its core isn't your tag and bag dystopia. It's told through three narratives, two sisters and a mother's journal. Sky is the older sister who spends her time reading whatever she can find and dreams of one day leaving Manhattan. Phee is the younger, more rough and tough, more interested in the here and now who thrives in Manhattan. Their mother's journal is a voice of the past--how things fell apart--how she fell apart. And thankfully, all three narratives stand on their own two feet and have a beating heart.
To be honest, I feel biased here. I have a younger sister who I'm extremely close to, despite our differences. She's the Phee to my Sky. We do (or used to) do everything together. Yes, this book about surviving and protecting your own, but ultimately this story is about family. Sky and Phee would speak about a wall forming between them, and I've been there. I could relate times a million. Instead of ingesting page by page, this book sort of rung in me like a bell.
BUT from a technical perspective, this book still shines! The first quarter of this book is slow, but necessary. But after that, you're thrown into horrifying and equally emotional loops. The girls switch back and forth, giving their own spin on the situations, venting their worries and desires. There was a bit of romance--even a love triangle played out between the sisters and a boy--but it wasn't overwhelming (thank god). There are some truly frightening things in this book that left me clawing at my face like "oHH NOOO." I would NOT want to be in that situation.
The only two elements that lacked was--of course--the science behind this dystopia. Yea, there were a few questions answered, but many more that were failed to be asked. Lastly, Ryder, the love interest. There's nothing essentially wrong with his character, although I found him TOO perfect. Like, what are the chances you meet the most gentle and kind and understanding person in the middle of a savage city? Like??? Really?
But, I for one am looking forward to whatever Lee Kelly writes next. She's proven she's capable of writing an good novel packed with action and emotion and some horror.