The Girl in the City is a dystopian novella set in the world of Michael Bunker's Pennsylvania. I haven't read that book, but was intrigued by the summary of the book. Leah and her dad live in the City which is controlled by Transport. They control everything and Leah tries to her her family get enough food by scavenging the outskirts for metal, circuit boards and anything else of value. Then, on the way back one night, she is given a bag by a dying man and suddenly find herself in more danger than ever.

A wonderful novella that felt complete yet had me yearning for more. Leah is well developed as is the City. An enjoyable read.

Stars (Out of 10): 8/10 Stars

Overall Thoughts: Since this was a fairly short novella, I didn’t necessarily expect the author to be able to craft too fantastical of a story, but what this author was able to create in 80 pages ended up really surprising me! It was a quick but great read, and exceeded my expectations in every way! While the end wasn’t a twist, it definitely wasn’t expected, and that was one of my favorite parts! Overall an enjoyable read that I would definitely recommend! (Also love the new cover!)

SPOILERS BEGIN HERE

The Good: The ending really surprised me, and the society they were in seemed really interesting! I was super intrigued from the start, and the novella continued to keep me hooked the whole time!

The Bad: There was very little closure at the ending, even for the short story it was. We saw the city explode, and then Leah leave, but with absolutely no hint as to “what’s next?” I wish there was a bit more, but I understand the lack of it, since it was a short story. I also felt a bit more personality could’ve been added to Leah.

The Characters: We didn’t really have enough places to explore both this and the plot, but I still enjoyed the characters we were given for the short time we read about them.

The Plot: It was simple and short, but actually did not happen according to my expectations. I assumed all would be fine and everyone would be saved, including Isaac and her father, but the ending definitely did not have that mind! Instead everything went completely wrong except for the fact that Leah survived, now lost in the wilderness, as well as lost in what to do. Definitely the complete opposite direction most stories like this end up taking.

The World Building: This novella actually did a pretty good job of explaining the basics in the very few pages it had. We didn’t necessarily learn the “whys” of everything, but more about the present and the facts of the now.

Buy it, Borrow it, or Bin it: Buy it!