This is my first book review as a reviewer on Reedsy Discovery! Please do check out the book and the plethora of books by up and coming novelists. I reviewed Interland, a fictional adventure novel by Gary Clark.
Interland is the second book by Gary Clark in the Interland Series. Set in dystopian England, during a devastating economic collapse, there are people who have been born with special powers called The Given and there are people out to annihilate them, known as Readers. The ‘Interland’ is a safe haven for The Given, hidden away underground, where no one can harm them. However, the Readers who are led by a mysterious well-dressed man, are up to something, and it can only mean trouble for The Given. We follow the main character Jay, a powerful Given but with incredibly low self esteem, and her family and friends, Sammy, Cassie and Stitch as they fight against the Readers and a few unexpected enemies to save the Interland.
I did not read the first book before I picked this one up and I was afraid that because I lacked the background of the first book I would have some difficulty following the story but the plot didn’t hinge so much on the first book but rather built on that foundation. Interland incorporates a lot of familiar themes from popular YA fantasy and adventure; it gives Divergent meets Avatar the Last Airbender (except they’re not manipulating the elements but drawing energy from them). The story flows well between each scene. The author also dotted this book with a diverse group of characters and as a black African I liked the book just a bit more because of that.
Having said all this, I found the book hard to follow in the parts that really mattered, where a lot of action and pivotal moments were happening. Often the action scenes fell flat and I had to re-read a paragraph because of how quickly events would happen without a clear description. This might be frustrating to some people. I also felt that the description of the powers and ‘levels’ wasn’t clear however; this is probably explained more clearly in the first book.
In essence, Interland is well-paced, and has a handful of scenes that will have you on the edge of your seat, I recommend it to anyone who would like to delve into a new world of adventure from a new author.
Nyasha Rambles 