Cover Image: The Towering Sky

The Towering Sky

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

I will not be giving feedback on this book as I couldn’t really get into it but I think others may enjoy it.

Was this review helpful?

I was incredibly excited to read the conclusion to the 'The Thousand Floor' trilogy, but this novel completely lost me. While I really enjoyed The Thousand Floor, and it's sequel, The Dazzling Heights, I often struggled with the perspective changes within the narrative. It often felt disjointed, or I found myself getting lost in the story - and not in the good way.

This was worse. Which, in part, could be due to the long time it has been since I read the first novel and it's sequel. However, as much as I tried to continue reading on with this, I just did not find myself gripped in to the drama and the mystery as I previously did. Instead, I grew weary and tired with it. In the end, I did not finish reading this, instead put it down. I may return to it after a later date, if I re-read the first two, but at this moment I am marking this as 'no longer interested'. However, I would still recommend to anyone who is up for a drama filled binge - you may get on better with it if you can still with the characters continuously.

Was this review helpful?

I can't describe how much I love this series! This book in particular felt a little drawn out, and the ending was more than a little predictable, but I just loved it. It was a really great series to read.

This book focused more on Avery than the others, and that does make sense in the plot, I just don't like Avery all that much compared to the others. I did really like Calliope and her storyline, but overall, her plot felt a little redundant. You could take her plot out and it would all still happen as it did. It's the same problem with Rylin, whose storyline was literally wrapping up from her first chapter. The murder mystery also kind of petered out and was solved very hurriedly near the end, which I wish that had been spread out more in the books.

Overall, it was a great book, with a few minor flaws, but a great conclusion to the trilogy. Can't wait to read more from Katharine McGee!

Was this review helpful?

The Towering Sky was a great ending to a brilliant trilogy, It cou lent have ended any other way.

This one is definitely the darkest of the three books, all of the characters had really good conclusions. There have been twists and turns throughout the first two books, and there were new twists and turns to add to the chaos throughout this book.

I throughly enjoyed reading the concluding part of these books, I really loved reading this series, getting lost in this world, all it’s technology and I cannot wait to see what Katherine releases next,

Was this review helpful?

I received a copy from Netgalley.

I finished a trilogy!!!!

This will be a super short review because it’s going to very hard to avoid spoilers as this is the conclusion of an epic series.

A satisfying ending with all the questions and lose ends tied up.

We finally get the will-they-won’t-they answer to Rylin and Cole. Leda and Watt get a conclusion and start looking towards their futures. Watt has some pretty tough choices to make regarding his education and his super computer implant Nadia. Leda has some demons to deal with and amends to make for her crappy behaviour. The secrets between Avery and Atlas finally come full circle. Not, of course, without it’s drama. Calliope and her con artist mother have their work cut out for her when one Calliope’s former marks, who happens to be Cole’s older brother Brice turns up hot on her heels. But things take an unexpected turn. Avery makes a life changing decision.

Same epic world building and emotional drama as the first two. Glitz and glamor, romance and betrayal, questionable motives and morals abound. What’s not to love? As with the other two, it doesn’t take any great effort to enjoy this, it’s fun and easy to read and great ending.

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK Children’s.

Was this review helpful?

This was another good read to conclude an enjoyable series. Following some rich and entitled, and some intelligent and struggling teens living in high high rise technologically advanced sky scrapers as they try to deal with the events of the previous books. This series isnt the most brilliant piece of literary work however they are inventive and fun. With some interesting twists and plenty of gray characters this is a fast paced and entertaining read.

Was this review helpful?

A good but not brilliant conclusion to an enjoyable trilogy. The main problem is this novel could have easily been half the length, its been stretched out too far. I got a bit bored in places but then it would reel me back in. The conclusion was good but could have been braver. I felt it copped out a little in the final paragraphs. But despite these niggles, I'm glad I did read these books. The creation of this towering world has some ingenious little touches that make me hopeful for future novels from this writer.

Was this review helpful?

An excellent conclusion to the series, tied up all the loose ends and gave the characters exactly what they needed from the first book. So sad it's over, but I'll definitely be recommending this sci-fi 'Gossip Girl' to anyone and everyone from now on!

Was this review helpful?

Unfortunately I just didn't enjoy the characters in this series. The concept was so great but it just fell flat for me. It felt like a bit of a let-down of an ending, and felt more like a guilty-pleasure read than a solid dystopian/scifi kind that I was expecting.

Was this review helpful?

The Towering Sky is the final book in The Thousandth Floor series. Thank God... Any more books would be way too much. I binged on the whole series, because the first novel was so fun and trashy, and had fabulous lives of rich people in a cool, futuristic scenery in it. I was hooked on the drama and glamour, and I wanted more. Second book was all right, but I started to get bored with the formula. In the third book, the formula for the story is overused. The story felt stretched out and repetitive.

What annoyed me in this book is how much stuff that happened in previous books is brought up and summed up for the reader. I read this book right after completing precious books, so I knew exactly what was going on. I guess it would be useful for the readers that forgot what happened in previous parts, but it could be done in more subtle way, not like a "Previously on..." recap.

I got tired with the characters, I couldn't handle their issues and how they all reacted to them. I didn't feel compassionate towards them, I mostly felt annoyed with them. In previous books, plot line of every character come together at some point, in this part we still have Calliope. She has no part in the plot line of other characters, her chapters are just there and are of no use. There is a serious imbalance between characters development, there is a focus on Averey and Lada, there's no depth to other characters.

The main thing I can think of that I like in the book is the ending. It was good, I didn't expect this result of the mystery we were served in the second book. This was an interesting resolution, and I appreciate it.

As my ratings suggest, the series was getting worse with each new book. Overall I still have somewhat positive thoughts about it.

Was this review helpful?

Ok, so confession time, I requested this book before fully realising it was the concluding installment to a trilogy but..... I read it anyway and although there are clearly things I've missed I really enjoyed this book. I immediately went out and bought the firat two because although I'm working backwards I need to know the back story so to speak. I loved the writing, the drama and I really enjoyed the different characters pov's and narrations.

I will definitely recommend this series to anyone and everyone. Great book.

Was this review helpful?

Do you like futuristic cities with amazing technology? Beautiful complicated girls? A web of intrigue, murder and secrets? WELL, HAVE I GOT THE RIGHT SERIES FOR YOU.

I have loved this series since the very first book. The Thousandth floor was one of my most anticipated reads the year it came out. All of that above is just almost everything I look for in a book. Dazzling people who hide things as a premise will usually convince me to read a book.

Having read and loved this series for so long now, I was apprehensive about this book. The final book in a trilogy is such a difficult thing to nail. Occasionally, I've had series build and build, only to be let down by the final instalment. This was not the case here however.

The Towering Sky is definitely the darkest of the three. The first two had it's stakes and drama but was always more lighter and fun at it's heart. Here right from the get go, everything is heavy. Leda is stunned and traumatised from the events of the last book and is desperate for redemption - even going so far as to cut herself off from Watt. Rylin is back with her old boyfriend but she can't quite escape the presence of Cord. Watt wants nothing more than to have Leda back and Avery is trying to move on from Atlas. And amongst all of the romantic tension and confusion, the police are questioning the group about Marisol's death, suspecting that they may be involved and one of them is the killer.

This book still has the escapist vibe as the first two but for a little while in this one, I genuinely doubted that it would end happily. Especially for poor Avery who was just put through the ringer in this book. The poor girl already can't get a break but this one really seemed determined to break her. She's my favourite character so this was hard to read!

Leda has had the best journey through all three books. She started out as an insecure, addicted mean girl and has grown a lot and really regrets her past actions. This led her to love with Watt and real friendship with the others. Long gone is the girl who would blackmail and pine after Atlas, taking pills to numb herself. The Leda in this book is nothing like the one in TTF and I love characters with such good redemption arcs.

Rylin had the weakest plot line in this book, I felt. Aside from the obvious murder/police threat, Rylin had very few stakes compared to the others. She's on a good career path, doing well in school and seems to have found some balance in her life. Aside from some boyfriend drama, she is not dealing with the same problems that the others have. Avery is at risk of being shamed and ostracised, Leda did kill her half sister, intentional or no, and Watt is hiding illegal tech. Rylin contributes a lot less to this book but her story arc has mostly run it's course. Even Calliope has more to deal with than that!

This book gets a 4.5 from me and the only reason it didn't get the full 5 is because I felt that Rylin could have not been there and it wouldn't have mattered? But otherwise it was a fun and thrilling conclusion to a series I love. Also I did not go complain at Katharine on Twitter about how she's always so mean to Avery! (I did and I'm not sorry. Seriously, best girl suffers through so much)

Was this review helpful?

am really going to miss these teens and their drama. It was a really great conclusion. It wrapped up everything despite all the tangled mess of the whole thing. I'm still just not a fan of Avery and Atlas, but I loved Avery's ending otherwise. I've always been interested in her story of fame and perfection and how trapped she was by being Avery Fuller, so it was really nice that there was a resolution for that and not just the relationship with Atlas. I loved her so much better in Oxford with Max, but I didn't expect much to come from that, so I'm not that disappointed. I'm fairly happy with how things turned out.

The same can be said of the other characters. They all had really good conclusions, getting things that they wanted but also making sacrifices. I especially liked Watt's ending, I'd really like to see a sequel about him and how he copes with what happened at the end of the book.

The ending itself was a roller-coaster. Through all the books there've been shocking twists and turns and new things to throw things into chaos, and this book definitely delivered exactly what I've come to expect from Katharine McGee, something completely unexpected!

I really do think this was a fantastic series, despite the incest. A fantastic murder mystery series in such a unique setting.

Was this review helpful?

I enjoyed this book a little less than the first and found that I have lost interest in the series. It is a nice read and I enjoy the writing but the characters and plot haven't hooked me.

Was this review helpful?

The Towering Sky is an entertaining and satisfying conclusion to The Thousandth Floor trilogy. Filled with secrets, friendship, drama, romance, lies, and all the fun futuristic elements, this is everything you could want out of the third book in the series. The writing flows and is easy to read. There characters are all distinct, on top of being fun to read about. Each of their individual stories will keep you reading. I am very excited to see what Katharine McGee writes next. It'll be hard to leave these characters behind, but a joy to see what else she can come up with. Highly recommended to readers who enjoy YA dramas. Think futuristic Gossip Girl.

Was this review helpful?

This is the third part of the series, starting with The Thousandth Floor, about a group of rich, and not so rich, kids in a New York which is dominated by the tower – those who live at the higher level being better off and more privileged than those on the lower levels.
The same characters, Avery, Atlas, Watt, Rylin, Leda, Calliope, and others are here, still reeling from the deaths in the last two books, and experiencing the fallout.
However, this time, very little seemed to happen, and the climax, when it came was rather a damp squib, and the twist predictable.
People made predictable decisions, and I really don’t understand the big Avery/Atlas problem – he’s an adopted brother, not a blood relation.
I also had problems with the token European, Max, and the depiction of Oxford (buttercream scones?????, sophomore year in Oxford????). If you are moving the action out of the USA, at least check your facts.
An easy read, but disappointing.

Thanks to Netgalley, and HarperCollins UK Childrens for the opportunity to read this book.

Was this review helpful?

This was an interesting and satisfying conclusion to this trilogy. First thing, the three UK covers for this trilogy are possibly the nicest I’ve ever seen. Second thing, some people were bothered by the multiple perspectives but I thought it was the only way to make the story work. Each character sounded different and I was impressed by the way the stories meshed together, can only guess how much planning this author had to do. Although this trilogy is finished i’d Definitely pick up something else from this author

Was this review helpful?

So, last part in the trilogy and I really didn’t know what to expect.
The opening sets up an idea very clearly and had me wondering what on earth might lead to that conclusion. Then our action switches to three months earlier and we are shown some of the details that bring us to the end-point.
I found myself trying to recall some details from the previous two books, but here we see how the teens have been affected by Mariel’s death and the way they’ve been coping with events since then.
Avery has herself a new boyfriend, Max, and is toying with the idea of moving to study in Oxford. But her love for Atlas is not going to die easily, and their father’s election leads to some awkward situations.
Watt and Leda - possibly my favourites of the group - drift together and we see them piecing together the events of the last few months. Rylin and Cord are very different, but we learn sometimes the differences aren’t such a barrier. Calliope, stuck in her con for the first time ever, is struggling to stay true to herself. Thankfully, some matters aren’t left in her hands.
While the ‘ending’ was dramatic, I was pleased that not everything was as clear cut as we expected. I was surprised by one or two revelations, but it felt this could have been tightened up.
Already ordered my own copy, but thank you to NetGalley for getting it to me prior to publication.

Was this review helpful?

The Towering Sky is full of what I loved since I've started reading the Thousandth Floor, drama, friendships and rivals with a bit of romance thrown in.

The technology continues to be interesting including the fact that Avery was completely engineered from the DNA of both her parents picking the best ones. What's even more interesting is that Avery herself does not feel perfect and hates being called it.

The Towering Sky is full of drama unfolding from the aftermath of one friends death from the top of the tower. All of the group must unite to ensure that their secrets are safe as some would shock and others would send them to prison.

The romance element of the book was so fun seeing how the characters dealt with the endings of the last book and restarting in this. My favourite would have to be Watt and Leda's relationship as they really help each other in different ways.

I am so sad to leave these characters and would completely recommend this book for anyone looking for a fun slightly futuristic triology with all the drama.

*ARC received from netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

Was this review helpful?

This book completely blew me away I am so in love with this series, and this was the best ending that could ever have happened. I honestly loved every single character, and every single interaction between them and the ending made me cry so much!

Was this review helpful?