Sky on Fire (Monument 14 #2), by Emmy Laybourne, 212 pages

Sky on Fire (Monument 14 #2), by Emmy Laybourne, 212 pages

Well, this was exciting- not only did I not realize that this sequel to Monument 14 had come out, when I was looking it up, I also saw that there are two short stories the author wrote as sort of prequels. Available for free here:  http://www.tor.com/stories/2012/05/dress-your-marines-in-white
and here:  http://www.tor.com/stories/2013/06/jake-and-the-other-girl

But on to the story- I was satisfied with this- the series could end with this book, as far as I'm concerned.  Some less than great things happen to several of the characters, but *spoiler alert* some families are reunited and there are a few happy endings out there.  The ending was annoying to me, though, in that same way that I knew I should have stopped reading Mike Mullin's Ashfall after the first book.

MBROGDON- Sky on Fire- Emmy Laybourne- 212

POSTED FOR MBROGDON- Sky on Fire- Emmy Laybourne- 212

Sequel to Monument 14.  Some of the kids decided to stay in the store, while some of the others decided to try to drive a bus to Denver, where they heard there could be safety.  Dean stays with at the store with his crush, while his brother Alex heads out to try to find their parents.  The cover kind of says it all.  YA read.

MBROGDON-- Monument 14- Laybourne- 294

POSTED FOR MBROGDON-- Monument 14- Laybourne- 294

A bunch of kids get caught in the middle of a bunch of natural disasters, but they find a safe place in a sort of Wal-mart.  YA read.

Monument 14, by Emmy Laybourne

Monument 14, by Emmy Laybourne, 296 pages

The day starts like any other for Dean, who is riding the school bus when a giant hail storm sends his bus into a wreck and a rescuing bus drives them into a super-store. Dean and thirteen other kids, ranging from kindergarteners to high school seniors, find themselves locked in the store and realizing that the hail storm was just the beginning.  A megatsunami has wrought havoc on the world, wiping out parts of the country and triggering massive earthquakes and natural disasters, including a release of chemicals from NORAD that have frightening results on those exposed.  High school drama is intense enough without a natural disaster thrown into the mix- this book was a page-turner for me and reminded me (in a good way) of Mike Mullin's Ashfall.