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James can fly, though his landings need some work. However, that’s the least of his problems when he crash lands into a city in the clouds. Soon James is drawn into a race against time to find the SAFFIRE, a new technology designed to save the city from the effects of climate change. Finding his way home seems impossible but with the help of Aureole, a young girl determined to save her city, James just might be able to fly away and help save the city in the process.
462 pages, Paperback
Published July 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
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August 3, 2018Superman never had this problem.
James can fly, though his landings need some work. However, that's the least of his problems when he crash lands into a city in the clouds. Soon James is drawn into a race against time to find the SAFFIRE, a new technology designed to save the city from the effects of climate change. Finding his way home seems impossible but with the help of Aureole, a young girl determined to save her city, James just might be able to fly away and help save the city in the process.
James can fly, though his landings need some work. However, that's the least of his problems when he crash lands into a city in the clouds. Soon James is drawn into a race against time to find the SAFFIRE, a new technology designed to save the city from the effects of climate change. Finding his way home seems impossible but with the help of Aureole, a young girl determined to save her city, James just might be able to fly away and help save the city in the process.
August 12, 2018
I loved this so much! Could not put it down. The complicated plot that unfolds was well thought out and easy to follow. Likeable characters and an interesting concept.
June 27, 2019
Really enjoyed this book!!!!!
July 17, 2021
I enjoyed the ideas. Lots of cliches and the writing a bit clunky. I wonder if there's a sequel coming?
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July 3, 2022This review was first published on the Underground Writers website and can also be read on the reviewer's blog here: https://oddfeather.co/2019/02/17/revi...
Wraith, by Shane and Alex Smithers, is the story of James Locke, a sixteen your old boy living with his parents in rural New South Wales. Who can fly. His best friend Darren is training him to be better at landings, but before he can truly master them he is sucked into a cloud and a world that he never even dreamed existed. What follows is a fast-paced YA adventure that takes James and his new frenemy Aureole to islands, cities and rural towns around Australia as they hunt for the SAFFIRE. This object, a new technology developed by Aureole’s people, will save her home from climate change, and they need to find it fast. With the help of some friends and family in surprising places, a little investigative skill, and a lot of dumb luck, James and Aureole just might be able to find the SAFFIRE in time. What they don’t know, however, is that someone else is after the new technology, and they’re willing to bust career criminals out of jail to try and steal it.
I enjoyed this book, but I think if I had read it as a young adolescent I would have been absolutely glued to it – unfortunately for my pre-teen self it was only just published in July 2018. The sci-fi aspects of this work are the most engaging element; Alex Smithers’ background as a secondary school science teacher served her well in constructing the finer scientific concepts of this book. There is also a little romance, in a very genteel, hardly-spoken sort of way – enough to be interesting without dominating the story.
My only disappointment is in the open-endedness of some major plot-points, but I suspect this is to pave the way for a sequel, which, if this work is anything to go by, will be interesting, tricky, and full of interesting characters. This story is easy to follow, despite it complications, revelations, twists and turns; the language and characterisation are straightforward and engaging; and there is enough moral ambiguity to raise questions but not be intimidating. In short: a very good sci-fi book for 11-16 year olds.
Wraith, by Shane and Alex Smithers, is the story of James Locke, a sixteen your old boy living with his parents in rural New South Wales. Who can fly. His best friend Darren is training him to be better at landings, but before he can truly master them he is sucked into a cloud and a world that he never even dreamed existed. What follows is a fast-paced YA adventure that takes James and his new frenemy Aureole to islands, cities and rural towns around Australia as they hunt for the SAFFIRE. This object, a new technology developed by Aureole’s people, will save her home from climate change, and they need to find it fast. With the help of some friends and family in surprising places, a little investigative skill, and a lot of dumb luck, James and Aureole just might be able to find the SAFFIRE in time. What they don’t know, however, is that someone else is after the new technology, and they’re willing to bust career criminals out of jail to try and steal it.
I enjoyed this book, but I think if I had read it as a young adolescent I would have been absolutely glued to it – unfortunately for my pre-teen self it was only just published in July 2018. The sci-fi aspects of this work are the most engaging element; Alex Smithers’ background as a secondary school science teacher served her well in constructing the finer scientific concepts of this book. There is also a little romance, in a very genteel, hardly-spoken sort of way – enough to be interesting without dominating the story.
My only disappointment is in the open-endedness of some major plot-points, but I suspect this is to pave the way for a sequel, which, if this work is anything to go by, will be interesting, tricky, and full of interesting characters. This story is easy to follow, despite it complications, revelations, twists and turns; the language and characterisation are straightforward and engaging; and there is enough moral ambiguity to raise questions but not be intimidating. In short: a very good sci-fi book for 11-16 year olds.
April 12, 2020
Thoroughly imaginative and enjoyable - very good for slightly younger reader's, maybe 12-16, with an interesting plot, lots of theoretical science, and many daring escapes and getaways!
My full review of this book can be found here: http://oddfeather.co/2019/02/17/revie...
My full review of this book can be found here: http://oddfeather.co/2019/02/17/revie...
September 10, 2018
Awesome book! Finished recently and can't wait to read again soon! Very fun, believable characters put in situations that test them.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews