Review: The Sky is Yours by Chandler Klang Smith

A sprawling, genre-defying epic set in a dystopian metropolis plagued by dragons, this debut about what it's like to be young in a very old world is pure storytelling pleasure

In the burned-out, futuristic city of Empire Island, three young people navigate a crumbling metropolis constantly under threat from a pair of dragons that circle the skies. When violence strikes, reality star Duncan Humphrey Ripple V, the spoiled scion of the metropolis' last dynasty; Baroness Swan Lenore Dahlberg, his tempestuous, death-obsessed betrothed; and Abby, a feral beauty he discovered tossed out with the trash; are forced to flee everything they've ever known. As they wander toward the scalded heart of the city, they face fire, conspiracy, mayhem, unholy drugs, dragon-worshippers, and the monsters lurking inside themselves. In this bombshell of a novel, Chandler Klang Smith has imagined an unimaginable world: scathingly clever and gorgeously strange, The Sky Is Yours is at once faraway and disturbingly familiar, its singular chaos grounded in the universal realities of love, family, and the deeply human desire to survive at all costs.

The Sky Is Yours is incredibly cinematic, bawdy, rollicking, hilarious, and utterly unforgettable, a debut that readers who loved Cloud Atlas, Super Sad True Love Story, and Blade Runner will adore.

My Review:

I had high hopes after reading the synopsis, I was a little disappointed. Although the characters are good, and the world building is, well, out of this world-the plot leaves a bit to be desired. The first half of the book is slow, and there isn’t any real clear direction the story is taking. It jumps around a bit, in no particular order. 

I did finish the book, and have hopes for future books from this author as her world building and imagination is phenomenal. 

*I received this book from Blogging For Books in exchange for an honest review.

About the Author:

Chandler Klang Smith

A graduate of Bennington College and the creative writing MFA program at Columbia University, Chandler Klang Smith has worked in book publishing, as a ghostwriter, and for the KGB Bar literary venue. She recently served as a juror for the 2016 Shirley Jackson Awards. She teaches and tutors in New York City.