WOW. What an amazing world! I love the way Bertrand just throws you up — demands the reader be willing to read without understanding and trust that all will be revealed. Pacing lags seriously in the middle, but the overall payoff is worth it.

Upon beginning this novel I was immediately hooked with the immense world-building the expedition sets up. It became a tad confusing at certain points, but I enjoyed reading about this new world. At some points, however, I found myself wishing for more action during the extensive world-building sequences. I found Errol to be a very likeable, relatable main character which I enjoyed immensely.

Im gonna have to mass on this cause the main characters name is way to similar to a personal one in my life and I had not realized this. Default 5 stars to increase ratings.

A new spell-binding fantasy inspired by Ancient Greece.

Though confusing at times, the world-building in this story was so rich! I really liked the tone and atmosphere of the story. The plot was intriguing, and the writing. So many good lines. I'm a big fan of poetic but direct prose. However, it was a little too direct at points. I didn't feel like I was really in the thick of it with the characters, if that makes sense? And I feel like I would have enjoyed it more, had it been shorter. It was also a little too thick for the story it was trying to tell, in my opinion.

All in all, this was a really interesting fantasy. Mark your calendars for February 9, 2021!

A big thank you to Penguin Teen for sending me an ARC of this book!

If this hadn't been quite as long (due to padding) it could have been a five star.

Something has happened in this world, something that created a walled off city of mile-high towers, each tower belongs to a guild that makes some product eventually shipped to the greater world once a year. Teens can become runners, living on the rooftops for three(ish) years before serving as an apprentice to one guild or another. Ok, so far, so familiar, right? These runner love to play pranks on each other and one day one of them steals what look like iron knitting needles... and our adventure begins. Why would these needles be so important that the administrator and his goons are prepared to do almost anything to get them back?

Of course there are deep, dark secrets about the city to be discovered, corrupt leaders and interesting side stories to be uncovered. Which we do, mostly. Sometimes things go a little too long (all the life on the roof could have been condensed), and there are things left unresolved, perhaps leading to a second book (it's unclear).

eARC provided by publisher via Netgalley.

Lynne Bertrand’s debut novel would best suit a targeted audience, namely readers familiar with Norse and Greek myths and epics, linguistics, as well as those who enjoy epic fantasy and pastoral literature with its parodies.

This is a difficult story to envision. Readers are immediately immersed into an alternate reality—whether it takes place in a future world or part of a medieval world is not really known. It’s simply “other.” It exists, however, with some relation to our world’s past, as the tales that have survived here are the epics and the myths, as well as our languages, both past and present: Latin, ancient Greek, French, Welsh and English to name a few. Readers will also find themselves trying make sense of these languages, with the use of common vocabularies in newly applied contexts that yield new meanings to these words and phrases. As well, the story is not necessarily told in a linear fashion—readers are introduced to a scene at the beginning, then find themselves in the past and back to the present. While these views of the past help readers gain a better understanding of how this world works as the story advances, some readers may find the progression a bit strange and at times frustrating.

Also, when readers are at a point where they think that they’ve come to an understanding of the setting and the basic plot, a fantasy element is introduced, further skewing this reality.

That said, the characters help redeem the story. The hero and his sidekick are unconventional and regularly find themselves in situations that offer a comedic turn. More than a few quirky vignettes play out. These scenes don’t necessarily contribute much to the main plot; but they offer a happy, and at times needed, diversion.