Okay well, this book absolutely blew me away. I am honestly not sure what I was expecting, but what I got was a book with such depth of character and originality and such compassionate and exciting characters. Reading this book was so enjoyable for me--not just because in its own right this is a brilliant book, but because it harkened to that time in the mid-2000s when dystopian YA was taking over and I devoured every single thing that came out.This book is not just any other book, though, and should be approached with care and wonder because it has its own uniqueness that stands it apart. With the care Franz has taken in creating his world, you can tell he has a passion for this story, its characters, the ways the story moves and teaches us beautiful things. And its brilliance truly is in its characters: how they live and move in the world Franz has created for them, how they fight for what's right and true, how they grow and learn.Any teen and adult will so enjoy this book and every reader will be left satisfied and desperate for more. I so look forward to more from Michael Franz and this wondrous world he's created for us. For people looking for an engaging, easy read filled with thrills and insight then this is the perfect book. I know I'm not alone in this, but I couldn't help but be reminded of The Hunger Games while reading Skid Kids, and I was not mad about it.And most importantly--why isn't roller derby style content in more books??