The Mr.’s Mini Review: Skyship Academy: The Pearl Wars by Nick James

Back cover blurb: Control the Pearls, Control the World

First lines: My fingers grip the ledge, searching for cracks. The rest of me dangles into empty sky like some demented human windsock.

Small mysterious orbs called “pearls” fall from space; these are a devastated Earth’s only hope. These pearls supply the energy that the world now uses to power its cities.  The remaining inhabitants of Earth are divided into two groups, those that remain on the land and those that orbit the Earth in Skyships; these two groups are at war – seeking to control the power by controlling the Pearls.

When two teens from the competing factions cross into forbidden territory, they gain dangerous powers. Powers that the government would stop at nothing to possess. Now sharing a common goal, the two will learn shocking secrets about the past, present and the Pearls.

The Mr. said that this book had a “shocking” and “stunning” twist that he never expected, but was set up well and really made the story. This is dystopian fiction with an inhuman twist.  James Dahner called it “a definite must-read!” and who can argue with him? Unfortunately, this title will probably get lost among all the other dystopians in the market today. The twist takes it more into traditional, and too often neglected these day, sci fi territory. An additional purchase, recommended to Orson Scott Card and more traditional sci fi fans (not that there is anything wrong with dystopian, it is one of my favorite genres.)  This book was released in 2011. The Mr. gave it 3.5 stars out of 5.

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