#Review - The Skylark's Sacrifice by J.M. Frey #YA #Steampunk

Series: The Skylark Saga # 2
Format: Kindle, 364 pages
Release Date: September 3, 2019
Publisher: REUTS Publications, LLC.
Source: NetGalley
Genre: Young Adult / Steampunk

Robin Arianhod is on the run. Trapped behind enemy lines, her only choice is to lose herself in the sprawling capital of Klonn. But hiding in the shadows is a disservice to the rocket pack she escaped with, and to the man she once considered foe. Instead, she’ll enact his plan, harness the incredible power of the pack, and stop the war from the inside.

Wanted posters stalk her every move as rumor fuels the Skylark’s rise, and her attempts at vigilantism attract the attention of more than just the city guards. Robin finds herself embroiled in the machinations of a mysterious underground rebellion—Klonnish citizens as tired of the war as she is.

But are they really her allies, or are they using the Skylark as bait? And can she really trust that her former archnemesis turned his coat? Or will the secret of his true identity lead Robin, and her newfound friends, to their deaths?

Rife with high-flying action, subterfuge, and deception, The Skylark’s Sacrifice is the explosive conclusion to the saga of war-torn Saskwya, and the one pilot who can change it all.

The Skylark's Sacrifice is the second installment in author J.M. Frey's The Skylark Saga. As a summary, Captain Robin Adrianhod grew up in the shadows of a decade-long war which tore her people from their homes and left them with little money and struggling to survive. As a Saskwyan flight mechanic with uncanny luck, she found herself as the first Sealie promoted to pilot of her own aeroplane after encountering the dreaded Coyote and flying her damaged ship home.

As a Saskwyan Air Patrol Officer, she completed many successful missions until she was shot down and captured by her nemesis, the Coyote who had been waiting for her. Robin ended up escaping thanks to a jet pack she named WINGS. In her hurray to escape, she left the man called Coyote behind to his own devices. A man who she never knew who he really was or why he was so enamored with her. As the story opens, it has been two months since Robin escaped.

She's now deep in enemy territory in the capital of Klonn been doing her best to stay hidden while also trying to take out enemy munitions and factory's and airfields that the enemy uses to attack her home. After all, with WINGS at her back, she can accomplish remarkable feats. But, is it enough to change the outcome of the war which she desperately wants to end? Is it enough for Klonn to order a cease fire and end the decades old war? With wanted posters bearing her image and an obscene amount of money offered for her alive, Robin needs to find friends.

After meeting a woman calling herself Rose, Robin finds herself embroiled in the machinations of a mysterious underground rebellion—Klonnish citizens as tired of the war as she is. The adage of the enemy of my enemy is my friend as long as we have the same goals are in evidence in this story. For a while, Robin considers becoming one of the nowhere folk who have no place to live but has the ability to go anywhere they want. But what she never counted on was the appearance of Coyote now calling himself Velph.

Robin, who has dark skin, and shocking white hair after her crash in the previous installment, isn't exactly invincible. She needs to come up with a new name (Skylark), she needs to come up with a new disguise, she needs to learn how to trust others like Rose, Taddeus, and yes, even Velph if she is going to remain free from a determined enemy who will do anything to capture her. Under a new name, Skylark continues to hit strategic targets in the country. But, will anyone else help the rebellion? Are the so-called rebellion just playing a game because they can? Or, are they just gadflies who have no clue how to do anything to cause the war to come to an end?

But, what she never once counted on was falling in love with the man called Velph, or the secret that he has been carrying that will either crush Robin's spirit, or make her fight even harder to end the war even if it means her own life is sacrificed in the process. After all, it's not like she can go home. They would likely treat her as a traitor or a spy. I would say I have a lot to say about the ending, but I would be giving away huge, and I do mean, huge spoilers. The ending left me with so, so, so many questions. I understand that this is the final installment in the duology, but I'm kind of sad we don't learn what happens next. We are expected to open our minds and figure out what Robin will accomplish in the future.

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