Dark Life (Volume 1) - Softcover

Falls, Kat

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1847387616 ISBN 13: 9781847387615

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's UK, 2010

Synopsis

Ty has lived under the ocean for his entire life. Following global warming and the rise of the seas, his family joined an underwater community in hopes of living in the new frontier of the ocean floor. But When Ty meets Gemma, a girl from "topside", who is searching the seas for her brother, she quickly makes his life very complicated. Together Ty and Gemma face dangerous sea creatures and venture into the frontier town's rough underworld as they search for her missing brother. But the deeper they dig, the more attention they attract, and soon Ty and Gemma find themselves being hunted by a gang of outlaws who roam the underwater territories causing havoc, and who seem to have eerie abilities. But Ty has a secret of his own, living underwater for his entire life has meant he has also developed a "special" power. Can he keep it a secret from Gemma and his family or is it time for him to finally tell everyone the truth?

About this title

Review

The worldbuilding of countless eco-thrillers serves here as the setting for a classic Western. A Western, that is, with plankton instead of cows, harpoons instead of six-shooters and submarines instead of covered wagons. Ty lives below the ocean, in a future in which water levels have risen and Topsiders live cramped together in unbearable conditions. Undersea, any brave settler can stake a claim and build a huge homestead. Ty was born down here, and he loves it. When he encounters freckle-faced Topsider orphan Gemma, he revels in showing her his world, from inflatable houses shaped like jellyfish to beautiful schools of swordfish. If only they weren\u2019t in danger from the villainous Seablite gang that keeps attacking homesteads! This caper features a slew of Western standards--the crabby old doctor (\u201cDoc\u201d), the saloon filled with bandanna-clad thugs, the posse of furious citizens--and a few plot twists keep the tension high. A thrilling conversion of the classics to one of our newer frontiers. (Science fiction. 10-12)
-- Kirkus, April 1, 2010
Sixteen-year-old Ty, first child born to the pioneers who live in the depths of the ocean, has little patience for topsiders (land dwellers) until he meets feisty Gemma, who immediately enlists his help to locate her missing older brother. Their search is interrupted by pirate attacks of the notorious Seablite Gang and an ultimatum from the Commonwealth Government (located topside) that makes the pioneers responsible for stopping the raids. Ty and Gemma uncover connections between the pirates, illicit medical experiments, and Gemma\u2019s missing sibling, who happens to have secret supernatural gifts--like Ty. Although set in an undersea future, this rousing adventure has all the hallmarks of a western, including outlaws, homesteaders, and plenty of shoot-\u2019em-up action (only with harpoonlike weapons). Good guys and bad guys are fairly obvious, as is the outcome, but the exotic setting and well-conceived details about undersea living, along with likable characters and a minor surprise at the end, will keep readers turning the pages. Try this with the ecofiction of David Klass.
-- Cindy Welch, Booklist, May 15, 2010
It's not \u201cGo West, young man, \u201d but \u201cGo Deep, \u201d in this action-packed aquatic adventure by newcomer Falls. Years after climate changes have devastated the Earth's surface, the new frontier is underwater, where rugged individualists have carved out lives on the ocean floor. \u201cThe Topsiders clung to the chunks of oversea land that were still left, and they didn't understand why we weren't clinging, too, \u201d says 15-year-old narrator Ty, part of the first generation born and bred in the so-called Dark Life. When he meets Gemma, a Topsider girl searching for her lost brother among the prospectors and toughs of the region, Ty feels obligated to protect her, especially when they run afoul of the Seablite Gang, pirates who've been preying on local settlers. In their struggle for survival, Ty and Gemma learn the fate of her brother and uncover long-hidden secrets regarding the Deep Life. Though the science and future history are only lightly explored, there's no denying the nifty premise, solid characterization, and tense moments that contribute to a cinematic reading experience. Falls's undersea world warrants further exploration. Ages 9-12. (May)
-- Publishers Weekly, April 5, 2010

About the Author

Kat Falls grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland and now teaches at NU, where she is continually inspired by her students' creativity. She started writing DARK LIFE as a writing exercise. Knowing that her 12-year-old son loved reading about the ocean, Wild West pioneers and, of course, the X-Men, she combined his interests and created the premise for a story that kept her up nights plotting and world-building. Kat lives in Evanston, Illinois with her husband, theatre director Robert Falls, their three lively children, two cats, two guinea pigs and a snake named Poncho.

About this edition

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's UK
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 1847387616
• ISBN 13: 9781847387615
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304