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Darklands #2
Skyfall
The second book of the Darklands Trilogy opens in Port City, a city built in a series of interconnected Skydomes - thousands of metres above the ground and linked to one another by a series of Magnetic lifts or 'maglifts'. This city stands above the ruins of an ancient city, possibly Perth on the West Coast of Australia. It is home to the race we know from book one as 'nightpeople' - the decendents of the Skypeople of old, who, a millennium earlier when faced with the deterioration of the natural world, built the city (along with several others around the globe) to protect themselves from increasing levels of solar radiation and a rapidly degenerating environment. The 'Skypeople' are an advanced race, something akin to current Western Civilization, who see themselves as the descendents of 'pure' humanity.
496 pages, Trade paperback
First published January 1, 2007
9 people are currently reading
154 people want to read
About the author
Anthony Eaton
17 books69 followersBorn in Papua New Guinea in 1972, ANTHONY EATON spent an idyllic childhood growing up in the Perth hills, and on the Cocos (Keeling) Islands.
He attended High School and University in Perth, and studied a plethora of subjects before settling on a career in Teaching. He worked at Trinity College in Perth as a Literature and Drama teacher for eight years, during which time his first novel, 'The Darkness' was published by the University of Queensland Press. The novel was awarded the 2001 Western Australian Premier’s award for Young Adult Literature, and encouraged Anthony to turn his hand to further writing. In 2005, his historic fiction novel Fireshadow also won the WA premier’s award for Young Adult Literature and was named an honour book in the CBCA Book Of the Year awards.
His most recent book is 'Into White Silence', an historic Gothic novel set in Antarctica at the turn of the century, and dealing with the disappearance of an expedition to reach the pole from the East Coast of the Antarctic Continent. As a part of this, he spent Christmas 2005 at Casey Station in Antarctica as part of the Australian Antarctic Division’s Arts Fellowship programme. In April 2009, 'Into White Silence' was selected as an Honour Book by the Children's Book Council of Australian in the 'Older Readers' category of their annual 'Book of the Year' Awards.
In 2010, Daywards the long-awaited final book of his Darklands Trilogy will be released. He's pleased to finaly have this story out of his head.
He lives in Canberra, with his wife Imogen, son Tobias, and a slightly deranged Kelpie named Chelsea. He is an assistant professor of creative writing and literature studies at the University of Canberra.
He attended High School and University in Perth, and studied a plethora of subjects before settling on a career in Teaching. He worked at Trinity College in Perth as a Literature and Drama teacher for eight years, during which time his first novel, 'The Darkness' was published by the University of Queensland Press. The novel was awarded the 2001 Western Australian Premier’s award for Young Adult Literature, and encouraged Anthony to turn his hand to further writing. In 2005, his historic fiction novel Fireshadow also won the WA premier’s award for Young Adult Literature and was named an honour book in the CBCA Book Of the Year awards.
His most recent book is 'Into White Silence', an historic Gothic novel set in Antarctica at the turn of the century, and dealing with the disappearance of an expedition to reach the pole from the East Coast of the Antarctic Continent. As a part of this, he spent Christmas 2005 at Casey Station in Antarctica as part of the Australian Antarctic Division’s Arts Fellowship programme. In April 2009, 'Into White Silence' was selected as an Honour Book by the Children's Book Council of Australian in the 'Older Readers' category of their annual 'Book of the Year' Awards.
In 2010, Daywards the long-awaited final book of his Darklands Trilogy will be released. He's pleased to finaly have this story out of his head.
He lives in Canberra, with his wife Imogen, son Tobias, and a slightly deranged Kelpie named Chelsea. He is an assistant professor of creative writing and literature studies at the University of Canberra.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 25, 2012
I questioned why the first book in this series was in the YA section. It had a young protagonist but in all other respects it was worthy of being in the adult section. This second installment is a lot more YA oriented.
The first clue was the increase in the level of whining. Then there was the unexplained sibling rivalry, the barely-teenage kids getting caught up in adult schemes, the same kids with adult levels of intelligence, and there was the increase in whining (I know I said that already).
I am definetly enjoying this series, it has some really great aspects. This book is a bit more prescriptive then the first in the series. It follows the rather standard YA dystopian pattern. All the bad guys are adults, all the good guys are teenagers.
Even Saria, the wonderfully written protagonist from the first book, becomes a shadow of herself. She is the cardboard girl rarely conscious. She doesn't speak, her thoughts are poetic but lack substance, and she is going through the exact same emotional experience as she did in the first book... [spoiler] She uses the earth warmth to accidently kill someone, and then swears she will never use it again [/spoiler].
This book is where I expected to see the relationship set up. The boy and the girl should connect, either in a negative or a positive way, leaving the relationship to be resolved in the final book. It didnt happen though. I am left with no clue about how the relationships will end. Odd given that the first book made it clear that fertility was non-existent. Someone has to have a baby soon. I think a few people need to have babies soon.
[spoiler]I had a real issue with some things in this book. The plot is essentially that the dark landers are infertile (except for one long-dead woman) and the infrastructure that the sky people live in is breaking down. So we need to cross-breed the darklanders ability to live outside with the sky people's ability to breed. Some big things are overlooked. The last fertile darklander is dead. Everyone assume her offspring will be fertile. What is that assumption based on? Every infertile person has a fertile mother... The logic is flawed. There are entire clans of people existing outside. The authorities seem to ignore them, but surely given that the government is looking for ways to survive then these people would be worth a closer look. [/spoiler]
So this book is an interesting second book. It hasn't left me jumping on the lounge going "wow" like I did with the first book, it was definetly more geared to the YA audience, but I did enjoy it all the same. Off to track down the third book.
The first clue was the increase in the level of whining. Then there was the unexplained sibling rivalry, the barely-teenage kids getting caught up in adult schemes, the same kids with adult levels of intelligence, and there was the increase in whining (I know I said that already).
I am definetly enjoying this series, it has some really great aspects. This book is a bit more prescriptive then the first in the series. It follows the rather standard YA dystopian pattern. All the bad guys are adults, all the good guys are teenagers.
Even Saria, the wonderfully written protagonist from the first book, becomes a shadow of herself. She is the cardboard girl rarely conscious. She doesn't speak, her thoughts are poetic but lack substance, and she is going through the exact same emotional experience as she did in the first book... [spoiler] She uses the earth warmth to accidently kill someone, and then swears she will never use it again [/spoiler].
This book is where I expected to see the relationship set up. The boy and the girl should connect, either in a negative or a positive way, leaving the relationship to be resolved in the final book. It didnt happen though. I am left with no clue about how the relationships will end. Odd given that the first book made it clear that fertility was non-existent. Someone has to have a baby soon. I think a few people need to have babies soon.
[spoiler]I had a real issue with some things in this book. The plot is essentially that the dark landers are infertile (except for one long-dead woman) and the infrastructure that the sky people live in is breaking down. So we need to cross-breed the darklanders ability to live outside with the sky people's ability to breed. Some big things are overlooked. The last fertile darklander is dead. Everyone assume her offspring will be fertile. What is that assumption based on? Every infertile person has a fertile mother... The logic is flawed. There are entire clans of people existing outside. The authorities seem to ignore them, but surely given that the government is looking for ways to survive then these people would be worth a closer look. [/spoiler]
So this book is an interesting second book. It hasn't left me jumping on the lounge going "wow" like I did with the first book, it was definetly more geared to the YA audience, but I did enjoy it all the same. Off to track down the third book.
February 25, 2015
So, immediately after finishing Nightpeople, I started reading Skyfall - the second book in Eaton's Darklands trilogy.
Whilst set in the same universe, it continues the story told from the perspective of the aforementioned "Nightpeople" a.k.a. the human race a thousand years later, living in protective domes in the sky. From the book's title, and from occasionally not-so-subtle usage of the phrase "the sky is falling", the human race's future survival is not guaranteed, and it's only a matter of time until it all falls apart.
Central to the story is Larinan, or Lari, the youngest son of Dernan, the head of the Darklands Genetic Adaptation Program (DGAP) - through which we, the readers, learn about the actions of the "Nightpeople" from the first book. As he learns about the reason that he was born (against the society's policy of having equal numbers of male and female children), and the mysterious girl, Saria, who has been brought in from the Darklands, it becomes clear that time is running out for everybody, as both the life support technology and the social framework begins to rapidly erode.
This is a very different book to the first, resolving a number of unanswered questions and bringing a new perspective to Eaton's universe. As speculative fiction, it explores a number of philosophical questions - the central one being the idea of entropy, and how long a society can sustain itself without adapting or changing. Again, there are also echoes of political issues - this time, the theme of ignoring the scientific evidence or impending doom in favour of maintaining social order is reminiscent of the Australian government's stance on Climate Change and dismantling of agencies with the task of investigating and advising on action.
Furthermore, Eaton's decision to follow an ensemble of characters, which chapters switching between various points-of-view, helps keep the action moving quickly, as there is a lot going on, especially with the book's explosive climax.
So, again, a thought-provoking page-turner, which left me itching to pick up the final book, "Daywards"...
Whilst set in the same universe, it continues the story told from the perspective of the aforementioned "Nightpeople" a.k.a. the human race a thousand years later, living in protective domes in the sky. From the book's title, and from occasionally not-so-subtle usage of the phrase "the sky is falling", the human race's future survival is not guaranteed, and it's only a matter of time until it all falls apart.
Central to the story is Larinan, or Lari, the youngest son of Dernan, the head of the Darklands Genetic Adaptation Program (DGAP) - through which we, the readers, learn about the actions of the "Nightpeople" from the first book. As he learns about the reason that he was born (against the society's policy of having equal numbers of male and female children), and the mysterious girl, Saria, who has been brought in from the Darklands, it becomes clear that time is running out for everybody, as both the life support technology and the social framework begins to rapidly erode.
This is a very different book to the first, resolving a number of unanswered questions and bringing a new perspective to Eaton's universe. As speculative fiction, it explores a number of philosophical questions - the central one being the idea of entropy, and how long a society can sustain itself without adapting or changing. Again, there are also echoes of political issues - this time, the theme of ignoring the scientific evidence or impending doom in favour of maintaining social order is reminiscent of the Australian government's stance on Climate Change and dismantling of agencies with the task of investigating and advising on action.
Furthermore, Eaton's decision to follow an ensemble of characters, which chapters switching between various points-of-view, helps keep the action moving quickly, as there is a lot going on, especially with the book's explosive climax.
So, again, a thought-provoking page-turner, which left me itching to pick up the final book, "Daywards"...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 12, 2017
I was so excited to start reading this after such a large gap from when I first read the first one in the series. They both were nice easy going reads. I enjoyed them very much. I am equally excited to get to the third and I am a bit sad even now that it has to end. I liked what the format added to the stories growth; it added many stories. I think we can all relate to this very possible future history of earth.
September 14, 2012
Not as original or thought-provoking as the book before it. Also, the YA style is more on show here - the protagonists are mostly kids aged 12-13. Call me a rebel but this is this book's major problem. The scene and theme calls out for adult treatment. What's going on in the world of Skyfall is deadly serious, but we get a young teen's perspective on it. What's wrong with that, you ask? It dilutes the impact of it - instead of dealing with the issues first hand, we're skirting around the periphery of them because we need to keep things "pre-teen". It's like putting an enticing and huge treasure chest before you and all we can do is marvel at the hinges of it.
If this was rewritten as an adult novel, there would be a classic here.
If this was rewritten as an adult novel, there would be a classic here.
December 25, 2014
In this second book in the series, Eaton leaps from the scene of the first to the completely opposite side of the coin; we go from the darklands to the city of the night people.
One learns about the world outside the wall and we find as people have been finding since the existence of the first city, that cities can be a hell of a lot more dangerous than the country. Here there are plots and politics, schemes and betrayal outside the scope seen in Nightpeople.
it was a god story, heavier on the 'sci' part of sci-fi than the first novel, and lighter on the dystopian element.
I gobbled it a bit, read it too fast. Must go back re-read slowly sometime.
One learns about the world outside the wall and we find as people have been finding since the existence of the first city, that cities can be a hell of a lot more dangerous than the country. Here there are plots and politics, schemes and betrayal outside the scope seen in Nightpeople.
it was a god story, heavier on the 'sci' part of sci-fi than the first novel, and lighter on the dystopian element.
I gobbled it a bit, read it too fast. Must go back re-read slowly sometime.
April 24, 2016
I loved the post-apocalyptic Australian outback setting from the first book, but the second Darklands novel changes it up with a new setting (the sky home of the nightpeople) and a new main character. It's very dark for a YA book. But what disturbed me profoundly (hence the rating) was the horrible representation of scientists and researchers. There is no discussion of ethics of research and characters we're supposed to admire do horrible things to other human beings in the name of science. I wished there'd been more criticism of a supposedly advanced society that subjects minors to extended medical torture.
March 20, 2010
Amazing book. Once started the reader will get completely sucked into it. The whole concept of the dying world is very realistic in the book. Can't wait for the third book.
July 22, 2010
Very gripping, cant wait to see what happens in the final book!
June 13, 2010
wow...this was i have to say a lot more interesting than the first
August 1, 2009
Part 2 of the postapocalyptic Australian series. A bunch of misfits escape into the desert
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews