Ten Thousand Skies Above You by Claudia Gray is the second book in the Firebird series. In this one we pick up a few months after Marguerite chased, who she thought was her father’s murder, through the multiverse and fell in love with her soul mate. Ever since first using the Firebird, Marguerite–a perfect traveler, has caught the eye of the Triad, an evil organisation who wants to use her and the Firebird technology for their own corrupt gains.
Now Marguerite is forced to play the Triad’s game in order to get back the love of her life, Paul, whose soul has been splintered into four pieces across multiple dimensions. Marguerite must complete several tasks before the Triad will reveal the locations of Paul’s soul.
With every world she visits, Marguerite is one step closer to saving her Paul and one step closer to losing him forever. Will Marguerite be able to put Paul back together again? And what will she do when she learns the Triad’s endgame?
This was a pretty good sequel for a three book series. We still get to see multiple dimensions and we get a lot more information on the Triad, which will be a big part of the final book. The series basically goes like this: Book 1 – set the stage, introduce us to the Firebird and the characters, and hint at conflict to come. Book 2 – our character relationships develop and we get that conflict that will lead up to a bigger event in the third book. Book 3 – I am hoping will be a final battle and a tie up of loose ends.
Once again, I enjoyed seeing the different possibilities; the different lives that the Kane family might have lived if they’d made different choices. From the drastic to the not so drastic, it makes you wonder how even the tiniest decisions could alter our lives completely.
Just like the first book this one does the science right. I have no idea if any of it is true but the book uses science to make the technology sound, sound and yet it is not overwhelming for the reader. It’s actually kind of interesting to hear some of the theories, which is a nice way to get non-science-y types into the science.
Marguerite seems a bit naive to me. She understands the the multiverse is an infinite number of worlds, alternate to their own, that might have little difference or might have big ones. And yet she is honestly shocked to find darker versions of Paul. She believes that the soul is the same in every world, regardless of the different upbringing and circumstances. But she seems distraught to learn that Paul’s goodness doesn’t shine through in every universe. This just seems a little silly to me because in infinite possibilities, of course there will be those you don’t like. She comes around at the end but after all her “we’re meant to be in any universe,” sudden doubts that lead her to run away doesn’t seem completely in character for her.
Overall this one gets 3 stars from me. It was middle of the road for me but still a series I am enjoying.
That’s all for now!
-M-