(This review contains spoilers for the book that immediately precedes it, The Shadow Road. Please do not read further, and instead read the review of that novel if you are starting the series.)

The Ravenous Sky continues the adventure begun by K. D. Kirchmeier in The Shadow Road. This novel hits the ground running, with the young heroes searching for new allies in their fight against the monstrous, dragon-like creatures known as the blitz. Having found shelter and a base of operations, the brave teens, Cassie and Thomas, strike out on a mission to explore the world that has been decimated by monsters, searching for allies of both the human and magical kind.

The author does a good job building an immersive fantasy world from the ashes of our own. The inhabitants of the setting, whether magical or mundane, have character and, though the world is sparsely populated, its inhabitants bring life to the story and drive the plot forward rather than simply existing. Along the way, the heroes meet a few more young characters who become central figures in their own right, and young readers are likely to find that they identify with the curiosity and determination that these new additions bring.

Fans who enjoyed the first novel will find more of what they loved about it, with new monsters, more treacherous villains, and fresh friends to make in the pages. For anyone who found the first installment engaging, this new book is not to be missed.

Review of an Advance Reading Copy from the Publisher

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language: 12 religious exclamations; 50 mild obscenities; 55 scatological words; 4 derogatory names; 13 anatomical phrases; 3 religious profanities. Note: “Hell” is used to reference a place of suffering (not tallied).

Violence/Gore: Characters find blood trails or dead bodies a few times; report of people killed by monsters; buildings are destroyed by monsters; a few fights in which characters or monsters are injured or killed with some blood described; report of cities destroyed; report of seeing a monster with a bloody visage; a few verbal threats; a fight between teens with minor injury; a monster bites a teen in half; a monster kills a teen in a non-bloody manner; animals eat prey that they hunted, with gore mentioned; a scene in which monsters are injured and killed with no graphic description; characters are chased by monsters a few times; report of a man shot, then killed because he was too badly injured to heal; characters hear sounds of a fight in which people are killed; a monster eats dead bodies; a few reports of fights; a fight without major injury; a character kills another in self-defense; a monster has blood on its claws indicating it has been in a fight; an animal is shot; a character has a dream about being burned alive.

Sex/Nudity: A teen boy and girl kiss and say they love each other.

Mature Subject Matter:

Some characters are orphans; death of parents (reported); death (friend); kidnapping.

Alcohol/Drug Use:

Report of a character drinking too much; speculation that someone’s mother smoked crack while pregnant.