Book Two in the MYSTERIES OF COVE trilogy has arrived and the adventure heads outside the mountain where dragons can end your life in an instant. I reviewed Book One, FIRES OF INVENTION last year and was anxious to read what happens next. I was not disappointed.
The young gifted mechanics, Trenton and Kallista, ride their mechanical dragon
to find Kallista’s father and uncover the reasons why Cove was created. First stop – Seattle – but not like the one we know. Due to unsettling conditions Seattle is now an underground city. They find a puzzling set of clues and some intriguing weapons to build in this new city.
The mystery deepens and fire breathing dragons aren’t the only menace our heroes have to fight off. It is a classic Who do you trust? scenario and readers will enjoy guessing just which side of the good and evil fence each new character resides.
You could certainly jump in here without reading the first book as the author does a good job of filling in the missed details. But I wouldn’t. This new adventure is a smart, exciting, and one thrilling ride sure to be enhanced it you were there from the start. It will also have you fully prepared for Book Three when hopefully all of the dangling plot details will be resolved.
PUBLICATION DATE: September 20, 2016 PAGE COUNT: 352
FULL PLOT (From Amazon): After finding a compass and clues left by Kallista’s father, Leo Babbage, Trenton and Kallista head west aboard their homemade mechanical dragon to search for the missing inventor. The two teenagers hope to find answers about their mountain city of Cove, but instead, they find only a blackened forest, ruined buildings, and a small underground city
Almost immediately, Trenton and Kallista are caught up in a civil war between a clan of scavengers called Whipjacks and the Order of the Beast, people who believe that dragons are immortal and divine.
Stranded in a new city, the two friends meet Plucky, a Whipjack girl with mechanical legs, and Ander, a young member of the Order who claims humans are able to communicate with dragons. Can they trust anyone, or have they unknowingly stepped into a trap?
And high above in the sky, the dragons are gathering . . .
FIVE THINGS TO LIKE ABOUT: GEARS OF REVOLUTION by J. Scott Savage
- Plucky is a great new female character with mechanical legs she built to get around. The accident causing her problem is revealed and it’s not something you’d guess.
- The curse of the second book in a series is no where to be found here. With new questions surfacing and a new setting, the tension continues from Book One.
- Parents are supportive and smart in the story and try to instill these traits in their children. It’s a different world to achieve this feat, but they pull it off.
- Trenton is thrust into a leadership role far beyond what any 13-year-old would ever imagine. His character grows in his understanding of himself and what his true quest in life is to become.
- Visual learners rejoice. The world building is perfect and the hands-on gadgets will have you dreaming of the creations.
FAVORITE LINES:
Trenton pulled the flight stick backward, trying to break free.
The ropes twanged, but held.
From below, a mechanism began to reel them in. Kallista slashed with Ladon’s talons and Trenton swung the tail, but it was no use. There were too many ropes, and they were too strong.
“Hang on!” he screamed as they began to drop. They were going down.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
J Scott Savage is the author of the Farworld middle grade fantasy series and the Case File 13 middle grade monster series. He has been writing and publishing books for over ten years. He has visited over 400 elementary schools, dozens of writers conferences, and taught many writing classes. He has four children and lives with his wife Jennifer and their Border Collie, Pepper in a windy valley of the Rocky Mountains. (From Shadow Mountain Publishing.)
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Check the links to other Middle Grade novels over at Shannon Messenger’s Marvelous Middle Grade Monday post.
Always in the Middle... 
Oooh. You recommended this to me a week or two ago. I am even more eager to read it now that I’ve seen your review, (which is to say, definitely on the next library excursion!) Thanks.
Haven’t read this series. Your enthusiasm is contagious. I like the idea of being able to jump into this book without having to read the first. Your comments really highlight important aspects of the book for you. I like authors who really are good at world building.
I also don’t know this series, but it sounds like fun. I’ll have to check it out and see for myself. Thanks for the great review.
I just love middle grade adventures that take readers on such exciting journeys! This series is a must read.
Thanks for the review. I have this one sitting on my dresser at home–can’t wait to read it.
This sounds like a lot of fun. I love that it’s set in a reimagined Seattle–which is near where I grew up. I’ll have to check it out just for that.
I’m not much of a fantasy reader, but you make this sound awfully fun. Maybe, time given, I will check it out. Thanks for the review.
I haven’t heard of this series but my boys love dragons and I like the idea that they’re mechanical and I love alternate versions of familiar things, like this Seattle sounds. Thanks for the review!
This sounds exciting and steampunkish. Love the favorite lines you quoted.
I just found your blog and I’m really enjoying looking around. I haven’t heard of this series but will defintiely order it for my library.
Thanks for stopping by, Bill. You might want to take a look at the nominated books for this years Cybils Awards. You can also join in and nominate your own favorite. Here’s the link http://www.cybils.com/2016/10/and-go-cybils-nominations-are-open.html