I’m just on a roll! I finished A Dark Sky by Giselle Rocha last night. I really like the plot and characters, but it has so many grammatical/spelling mistakes that it was hard to read, because, as you may or may not know, I’m a Grammar Queen and Spelling Cop.
The gist of the story is this: Kristen is sent to a special training school for young people who want to be a Royal Guard. There, she meets people and finds herself wound up in a myth that is supposed to be legend but is true. And the evil guy from the so-called myth is coming back!
For City of Bones, I said I never was like, Ugh, I don’t want to read it, but for A Dark Sky I had a few of those moments. I started it maybe 1-2 months ago, and got frustrated and bored. Frustrated, because of the simple mistakes, and bored, because the plot had some stand-stills. Overall, I really enjoyed it. The characters were believable and the plot was really good, if it was slow at times. There are nine more books in the series, I think, and Giselle is finishing up the second!
I give this three out of five stars because of reasons listed above. Giselle, if you’re reading this, my only feedback to you is to fix grammatical and spelling errors, because they were simple things, like misspellings because of typing (I could see) and quotation marks facing the wrong way. I love your writing; keep at it!
SPOILER ALERT! If you want to read the book, do not read below, unless you want to be spoiled.
I really enjoyed Kristen, the main character. She’s spunky and brave, but also isn’t totally super awesome; she has her flaws. I love the relationship between her and Tony. It’s really sweet. I liked how they were able to appreciate each other in the midst of chaos.
The twins, Valentino and Valentina, are hilarious. And Skyro being their dad? Never saw that coming. I was like, WHOAAA!!!
Tina cracks me up; she’s always a little hyper and freako. She’s very girly, too, and does stereotypical girl things, which was needed, because Kristen is nothing like that.
Vanessa, or Vani, is introduced later in the book, and I still don’t really get her. I pictured her with long blonde hair, until it said that she tucked a strand of short black hair behind her ear. Another watdaheck?! moment. She’s an animal lover, too, and has this supercute t-shirt that has a kitty on it; I need to borrow it!!!
There were a lot of references to our pop culture in the book, just changed. Rustin Jieber was one I thought was a little cheesy. And then Christmas was changed to something with a Z…? They all seemed like a faux pas. I did, however, like how the settings were modern day mixed with medieval/fairytale times, which was really cool.
The Voltage. They are uber-psycho! They’re drinking this bliss juice, I believe it’s called, and get high and do crazy things. Their hair is all different colors.
The plot was constantly twisting and changing and surprising me. Boom! Tony’s evil. Boom! Tony’s actually not evil; it was just the collar. Boom! Tony’s is evil for real; he’s trapping them. Boom! Tony’s a double agent but really is good. Crazy, right?
What did you think of A Dark Sky? Comment below.
If you haven’t read A Dark Sky, I recommend it.
Now, to the next matter at hand. Take a few seconds and scroll up to the top of the bar on the right, and scroll back down. I want to talk about these features.
At the top is my Camp NaNoWriMo image. I’m doing the camp this July, and I’m finishing Nakoma for it.
Below that is My Current Reading Marathon. I’m reading The Land of Stories: The Enchantress returns right now. I’ll have a different book as I finish each one, or a question mark if I have nothing to read.
Next are my top five most recent posts with links to them.
Then the top five recent comments…
Meta, whatever that is.
And the Archives. If you’re new, check them out!
Then the calendar. If you click on a day, it’ll go to the post (I think).
Lastly, the follow button. If you are not already subscribed to receive updates of posts, please do so now. Just click the button. If you’re not a WordPress member, just put in your email address. I promise it won’t send you spam or useless junk. It will just send an email with my newest post. It’s quite convenient! And I like to know who’s enjoying my blog. Please follow me if you enjoy my posts or Nakoma. I want to know! At least comment.
I hope you enjoyed this post. Leave a comment if you’ve got something to say. Also, there is a page called the Chat Room to talk. Check it out!
Oh, one more thing–I promise. If you like Nakoma, you’ll like this. It’s 46 things about her; I got the list of questions from Camp NaNo. Read below.
- Name: Nakoma
- Age: 15
- Height: 5’8”
- Eye color: purple
- Physical appearance: angular features and body, black hair, pale skin, purple eyes
- Strange or unique physical attributes: purple eyes, tattoo
- Favorite clothing style/outfit: shirt, pants, and boots
- Where does he or she live? What is it like there? Currently at Hope Rising HQ. It is very white and clean. It’s very organized and modern.
- Defining gestures/movements (i.e., curling his or her lip when he or she speaks, always keeping his or her eyes on the ground, etc.): looks people in the eye when she speaks.
- Things about his or her appearance he or she would most like to change: purple eyes.
- Speaking style (fast, talkative, monotone, etc.): doesn’t have a lot to say, steady and calm voice.
- Pet peeves: evil people
- Fondest memory: being with Falia
- Hobbies/interests: composing songs, singing, battle tactics
- Special skills/abilities: good at fighting
- Insecurities: her features
- Quirks/eccentricities: looks very different
- Temperament (easygoing, easily angered, etc.): fiery temper, emotional
- Negative traits: angered easily
- Things that upset him or her: talking about her appearance
- Things that embarrass him or her: her past, Silas
- This character is highly opinionated about: Crimson Rising
- Any phobias? Being alone, all her friends/family dying, Crimson Rising ruling the world
- Things that make him or her happy: being with Rasa, Falia, family
- Family (describe): Mother is Miriam, old-fashioned, gypsy; father is Gideon, modern, Western-beliefs; Falia is her twin
- Deepest, darkest secret: She loves Silas, even if he’s evil.
- Reason he or she kept this secret for so long: embarassment and scared about feelings, keeps to herself
- Other people’s opinions of this character (What do people like about this character? What do they dislike about this character?): headstrong, a good fighter, fun
- Favorite bands/songs/type of music: doesn’t listen to music
- Favorite movies: none
- Favorite TV shows: none
- Favorite books: none
- Favorite foods: sweets
- Favorite sports/sports teams: none
- Political views: wants a democracy, not oligarchy/monarchy
- Religion/philosophy of life: life shouldn’t be wasted
- Physical health: very healthy
- Dream vacation: anywhere safe
- Description of his or her house: doesn’t have a house
- Description of his or her bedroom: doesn’t have a bedroom
- Any pets? Enigma, a pink bird
- Best thing that has ever happened to this character: being kissed by Silas
- Worst thing that has ever happened to this character: being in Crimson Rising
- Superstitions: none, very practical
- Three words to describe this character: headstrong, fiery, fierce
- If a song played every time this character walked into the room, what song would it be? “Stronger,” “Roar,” or “Defying Gravity”
Learn something new about her? Comment below.
Hugs,
Chloe
Free As a Girl With Wings 