"There are three rules of survival in the Walled City: Run fast. Trust no one. Always carry your knife."
In The Walled City, no laws exists and criminals run rampant. There's drug-lords, prostitutes, drug trafficking, human trafficking, gangs, murder, vagrants, street children and violence. The world in The Walled City, while fictionalised, is based on The Kowloon Wall City that used to exist in Hong Kong. The Walled City is dark, gritty and violent and it's atmosphere reminds me of Six of Crows and The Hunger Games. The world and its concepts are unique and interesting and provides a backdrop for themes such as survival and freedom.
The Walled City is told through the POV of three characters: Jin Ling, Dai and Mei Yee. The characters are well-developed and have different reasons for being in the Walled City. The characters stories naturally intertwine, but the characters seem to trust each other too easily. Although the characters are well-developed, for some unexplained reason, I found them lacking. The POVs also bleed into each other because the characters sound similar, but their unique situations helps to differentiate their POVs.
A unique YA read with an interesting, dark, gritty, violent and dangerous world. I flew through the The Walled City.
"I've never been able to sit back and watch things happen. Not without a fight."