An oracle’s final prophesy proclaims that Isla Crown will either save or destroy the world. But it also predicts that Isla will first kill one of the men she loves.
An oracle’s final prophesy proclaims that Isla Crown will either save or destroy the world. But it also predicts that Isla will first kill one of the men she loves.
Isla Crown, the ruler of the Wildings, has gone through quite the wringer as of late (as documented in the first two books of The Lightlark Saga).
Initially she thought herself completely powerless. And she was raised as such—to hide her powers even from herself.
You see, the rulers from the other five realms all have amazing powers at their beck-and-call—such as the Sunling king’s ferocious fire and the Starling ruler’s ability to create matter from thin air—and Isla was convinced that her powerlessness would surely mean ruin for both herself and her realm.
However, Isla had far more power than she thought. And after facing off against almighty foes and impossible odds, she gained even more power. In fact, it’s getting to the point that Isla’s churning abilities are becoming difficult to control.
But it’s not just newfound power that Isla must manage. She also has to juggle her love life.
You see, in the course of the above-mentioned conflict, she fell in love with the impossibly attractive Sunling king, Oro. And thereafter, she learned she used to be married to an ancient master of shadows, the Nightshade ruler Grim.
That was a shocker. Her memories had been tampered with for some reason and once she begins to regain them, she finds herself in love with two powerful men. And those two kings are now out for each other’s blood.
Oh, but that’s not all. Other dark forces are on the move. And as a bloody war between realms unfolds, a famed oracle delivers his final prophesy: The increasingly powerful Isla will ultimately either save the roiling realms or destroy them. And as a side note, she’s also told that she’ll kill one of her dedicated lovers by stabbing him in the heart.
Mind you, this oracle is never wrong.
It’s all on Isla’s shoulders now. She’ll have to use every bit of the magic flowing through her veins, be wise and wily, and find a way to outfox fate.
Being beautiful, intensely desired and explosively powerful ain’t as easy as it looks.
None.
Skyshade continues Isla’s story in the magical world first presented in the novel Lightlark. Her land is tossed and turned by magical abilities and curses; dragons and demons; and spells that are conjured by blood, bones and shapes carved into one’s flesh.
Isla absorbs magical abilities when she kills another magic wielder. And she describes the turbulent abilities within her as if it were a beast wanting to burst forth. In fact, one individual warns her that if she keeps experimenting with the dark arts it could turn her into a demon.
A character called the Auger studies, tastes and draws great power from blood—including the ability to foretell the future. We also read about ancient and powerful beings with god-like abilities. One such being, for instance, can’t be killed since she instantly heals from any wound, and she can raise the dead for an undead army. And the leaders from each of the world’s realms are magically connected to their people (they can be bonded with others, too), so if a leader dies, his or her whole society dies as well.
We’re told there is the physical world and a dark underworld, linked by a portal. That portal creates great magical storms that rip at and destroy the physical world.
For all of their personal, power-focused foibles, both Oro and Grim truly love Isla. And even when her actions appear suspect, both men would readily put his own life on the line for her. (And both do.)
Isla, however, isn’t always so consistent. She is intent on saving the world at large and the men she loves, and she makes self-sacrificial choices to that end. But she also makes a series of less-than-wise choices. Add in her moral ambiguity, and Isla isn’t always the most admirable individual.
That said, it’s plain that a lot of responsibility for the world has been heaped on Isla’s plate—things that she did not seek—so it’s understandable that she would make mistakes while trying to help others.
There’s no foul language in the story. We do find, however, some very general nods toward the drinking of alcohol. And this tale’s bloodletting violence can get heavy at times.
We hear of scores of people being killed during brutal, bloody battle, for example. Gravesites are razed. Crowds are slashed, turned to ash or set aflame. Massive creatures attack and rip at humans and other beasts with massive teeth, claws and lightning blasts among other things.
Grim, Oro and Isla are all badly wounded in the course of battles, creature attacks and magical storms. For instance, Oro is impaled by a large blade-like object and almost dies. And Isla’s leg is slashed open by a blood-sensing creature. She then tears open her own wound and uses a blood-soaked garment to make her escape.
On the other side of the coin, Isla kills a series of male predators and cuts out their hearts, each kill feeding some lust for death-dealing inside her: “As she watched the life leech out of his eyes, Isla realized with horror and fascination that taking it felt good.”
Some people dedicate their lives to serve Isla and then commit bloody suicide at her feet or impale themselves upon her sword. Isla discovers a cursed book that is spattered in blood and protected by a ravenous demon. We hear of Nightshade rulers who raised many children and forced them to fight to the death. Etc.
We read about a number of sexual interactions between Isla and her two separate lovers (either in flashback or in real time). It’s said she has a “heart split in two” since she loves and desires both men equally.
Her sexual interludes—which range from caressing and licking body parts to oral sex to intercourse—take place in a variety of different locales. And they take place whenever Isla’s passions boil over. Her male partners are eagerly awaiting and always ready for that passionate boil. The carnal interactions are lightly veiled by poetic language.
There’s also quite a bit of flirting between Isla and the men. And it’s obvious that Grim and Oro are each solely dedicated to only her. (Isla proclaims to be dedicated to one of the men but justifies her ongoing desires and dalliances with both.)
None.
This YA fantasy novel sequel feels a bit convoluted and difficult to follow if you haven’t read the first two books. But it does have lots of heroic action, self-sacrifice and fantasy color in its story mix.
That said, it should be noted that there’s quite a bit of bloody violence in the dark magical mayhem here. And the book doesn’t shy away from passionate sexual interludes—encounters that are only lightly concealed behind poesy verbiage.
You can request a review of a title you can’t find at [email protected].
Book reviews cover the content, themes and worldviews of fiction books, not necessarily their literary merit, and equip parents to decide whether a book is appropriate for their children. The inclusion of a book’s review does not constitute an endorsement by Focus on the Family.
After spending more than two decades touring, directing, writing and producing for Christian theater and radio (most recently for Adventures in Odyssey, which he still contributes to), Bob joined the Plugged In staff to help us focus more heavily on video games. He is also one of our primary movie reviewers.
Our weekly newsletter will keep you in the loop on the biggest things happening in entertainment and technology. Sign up today, and we’ll send you a chapter from the new Plugged In book, Becoming a Screen-Savvy Family, that focuses on how to implement a “screentime reset” in your family!
