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hilocrasher's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Mass/school shootings, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Gore, and Gun violence
erynelle's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
+I’m glad Rowan and Citra got their ending, although I wasn't expecting the way it happened. In a way everyone got their happy endings.
-I’m so sad Greyson unsavory-ed the Thunderhead 😭 do I understand it plotwise? Yes. Do I like it? Actually, no.
-
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
fancypotato1995's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Torture, Classism, Blood, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Genocide, Hate crime, and Violence
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
allidone's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, Murder, Bullying, Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Religious bigotry
rachelditty's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
An incredible finale to a smart and captivating series. Neal Shusterman is an insane mastermind of his craft, and ot shows in this entire trillogy. There's so much to love.
It's about love and compassion. It's always been about love and compassion.
I think the only thing that keeps me from giving it 5 stars is that I don't love the dip in narration from Rowan toward the end when he's in the Lone Star region. I felt like he got a bit sidelined after he was nearly burned to death.
Reading about Scythe Faraday and Murina at the beginning, hearing the Thunderhead's siren but not understanding what it is, and knowing they're about to be marooned on a secluded island where no new will reach them, was incredible to read. It's upsetting and tense, and just like not knowing when Rowan and Citra will come back, you have no idea when Faraday and Murina will learn about Endura. And the whole time, Faraday has such hope and faith in Curie. It's so sad.
The Thunderhead really does evolve into one of my favorite characters in the series. It makes jokes to Grayson, who rolls his eyes but secretly finds them funny. Understanding the Thunderhead's thought process is so interesting and sympathetic to me. It monitors Grayson because it can't embrace him. It doesn't give him reassurance or scorns he doesn't need, but that doesn't mean it isn't afraid for the state of the world and the people on it. My favorite scene in the book is when Scythe Morrison comes to glean Grayson, and the Thunderhead has to work around its own programming to help Grayson escape. I love that it finds ways to sneak around the blind spots of its own rules. Chapter 23, "How to Glean a Holy Man," is my favorite chapter.
Scythe Constantine is such a gray character. You don't want to trust him because he's hunting Rowan in book two, but is also a confidant of Curie and Anastasia. When Rowan and Constantine see each other in this book, and Constantine is kind of gloating only for Rowan to respond with "I love you too" is such a fun dynamic. I would have loved to see more of them hating each other in a begrudgingly allied way.
The Mile High Gleaning is blood chilling. Watching Rowan succumb to the fact that he really will die in front of thousands of people, only for Goddard to turn everything on its head and glean the audience, is awful to watch. Rand tried to make things better, but she only made things worse. It's such a punctual point of Goddard's inability to return from this line of morality he's crossed, aside from Endura, and literally everything else that's talked about in this book.
Jericho was always such an interesting character to me. The captain was intelligent and loyal, and was always there to provide a sense of calm to the other characters. I loved Jericho's dynamic with Grayson, and with Anastasia, and having the captain be the one to be a middle-man for Grayson and the Thunderhead, and then be the character to bring up the idea of vessels, was such miniscule foreshadowing that was incredibly done. Even the similarity in Hello Grayson. It was just so well lined up. I'm glad Jericho and Grayson stayed together after everything.
I cannot even express how amazing I think the end of this book is, and the end of the series. The founding Scythe Da Vinci putting hints to the failsafe in not only a children's song, but the ENTIRE Tonist religion? The two prongs being the transmitter? The Tonist's putrid water of diseases being the ten diseases in everyone's nanites once the diamonds are destroyed? The fucking signal the transmitter lets out being a G-flat (or is it A-sharp?). It's all just so INCREDIBLY smart and well-rounded, I cannot believe it all comes together so seamlessly.
Grayson marking the Thunderhead as unsavory for what it did to Jericho, saying it, like humanity, can be redeemed in his eyes in time. Scythe Faraday and other scythes in his footsteps taking the chance to not choose people for death, but help them pass on in a calm and painless manner when they become sick, giving the family the chance to mourn and giving the person a fast passing. Rowan being there when Citra finally wakes up, after hundreds of years in space, having turned a corner so he looked the same to her. It's all about love. The whole series was just about humanity's compassion for one another and the love we show. It's so good. I cannot express how good it makes me feel by the end. It's about love. It's always been about love.
Quotes I Loved:
"'If the bar can't be lowered... then the floor must be raised,'" (p. 185).
"'Why stress my emotional inanities by thinking of terrible things?'
A fine philosophy until the terrible thing comes to you," (p. 217).
"'A successful lie is not fueled by the lair; it is fueled by the willingness of the listener to believe. You can't expose a lie without first shattering the will to believe it. That is why leading people to truth is so much more effective than merely telling them,'" (p. 308-309).
"The rest of the world saw them both as symbols. Intangible light to guide them in the darkness. She understood now why ancient peoples turned their heroes into constellations," (p. 444).
"If there was one thing Rowan had learned, it was that no one could be trusted to stay true. Ideals eroded, virtue tarnished, and even the high road had dimly lit detours," (p. 529).
"'Only a moment ago,' Rowan tells her. 'Only a moment ago,'" (p. 631).
What an incredible series.
It's about love and compassion. It's always been about love and compassion.
I think the only thing that keeps me from giving it 5 stars is that I don't love the dip in narration from Rowan toward the end when he's in the Lone Star region. I felt like he got a bit sidelined after he was nearly burned to death.
Reading about Scythe Faraday and Murina at the beginning, hearing the Thunderhead's siren but not understanding what it is, and knowing they're about to be marooned on a secluded island where no new will reach them, was incredible to read. It's upsetting and tense, and just like not knowing when Rowan and Citra will come back, you have no idea when Faraday and Murina will learn about Endura. And the whole time, Faraday has such hope and faith in Curie. It's so sad.
The Thunderhead really does evolve into one of my favorite characters in the series. It makes jokes to Grayson, who rolls his eyes but secretly finds them funny. Understanding the Thunderhead's thought process is so interesting and sympathetic to me. It monitors Grayson because it can't embrace him. It doesn't give him reassurance or scorns he doesn't need, but that doesn't mean it isn't afraid for the state of the world and the people on it. My favorite scene in the book is when Scythe Morrison comes to glean Grayson, and the Thunderhead has to work around its own programming to help Grayson escape. I love that it finds ways to sneak around the blind spots of its own rules. Chapter 23, "How to Glean a Holy Man," is my favorite chapter.
Scythe Constantine is such a gray character. You don't want to trust him because he's hunting Rowan in book two, but is also a confidant of Curie and Anastasia. When Rowan and Constantine see each other in this book, and Constantine is kind of gloating only for Rowan to respond with "I love you too" is such a fun dynamic. I would have loved to see more of them hating each other in a begrudgingly allied way.
The Mile High Gleaning is blood chilling. Watching Rowan succumb to the fact that he really will die in front of thousands of people, only for Goddard to turn everything on its head and glean the audience, is awful to watch. Rand tried to make things better, but she only made things worse. It's such a punctual point of Goddard's inability to return from this line of morality he's crossed, aside from Endura, and literally everything else that's talked about in this book.
Jericho was always such an interesting character to me. The captain was intelligent and loyal, and was always there to provide a sense of calm to the other characters. I loved Jericho's dynamic with Grayson, and with Anastasia, and having the captain be the one to be a middle-man for Grayson and the Thunderhead, and then be the character to bring up the idea of vessels, was such miniscule foreshadowing that was incredibly done. Even the similarity in Hello Grayson. It was just so well lined up. I'm glad Jericho and Grayson stayed together after everything.
I cannot even express how amazing I think the end of this book is, and the end of the series. The founding Scythe Da Vinci putting hints to the failsafe in not only a children's song, but the ENTIRE Tonist religion? The two prongs being the transmitter? The Tonist's putrid water of diseases being the ten diseases in everyone's nanites once the diamonds are destroyed? The fucking signal the transmitter lets out being a G-flat (or is it A-sharp?). It's all just so INCREDIBLY smart and well-rounded, I cannot believe it all comes together so seamlessly.
Grayson marking the Thunderhead as unsavory for what it did to Jericho, saying it, like humanity, can be redeemed in his eyes in time. Scythe Faraday and other scythes in his footsteps taking the chance to not choose people for death, but help them pass on in a calm and painless manner when they become sick, giving the family the chance to mourn and giving the person a fast passing. Rowan being there when Citra finally wakes up, after hundreds of years in space, having turned a corner so he looked the same to her. It's all about love. The whole series was just about humanity's compassion for one another and the love we show. It's so good. I cannot express how good it makes me feel by the end. It's about love. It's always been about love.
Quotes I Loved:
"'If the bar can't be lowered... then the floor must be raised,'" (p. 185).
"'Why stress my emotional inanities by thinking of terrible things?'
A fine philosophy until the terrible thing comes to you," (p. 217).
"'A successful lie is not fueled by the lair; it is fueled by the willingness of the listener to believe. You can't expose a lie without first shattering the will to believe it. That is why leading people to truth is so much more effective than merely telling them,'" (p. 308-309).
"The rest of the world saw them both as symbols. Intangible light to guide them in the darkness. She understood now why ancient peoples turned their heroes into constellations," (p. 444).
"If there was one thing Rowan had learned, it was that no one could be trusted to stay true. Ideals eroded, virtue tarnished, and even the high road had dimly lit detours," (p. 529).
"'Only a moment ago,' Rowan tells her. 'Only a moment ago,'" (p. 631).
What an incredible series.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, Gore, Grief, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Murder
headinthepages's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I adore this series. This book rounded things off enough to feel satisfying, yet left me wanting more. I could have kept reading this book way past it’s ending.
I think Shusterman has created something genuinely brilliant, with characters you really root for, a plot that keeps you engaging and magnificent, thoughtful world building.
I honestly absolutely LOVED my time with these books and the audio narration my Tremblay was fantastic throughout!
I think Shusterman has created something genuinely brilliant, with characters you really root for, a plot that keeps you engaging and magnificent, thoughtful world building.
I honestly absolutely LOVED my time with these books and the audio narration my Tremblay was fantastic throughout!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Racism, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Grief, Blood, Medical content, Murder, Cancer, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Violence, and War
unicornofthesea's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Gore, Car accident, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Suicide attempt, Violence, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Racism
marareading's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I enjoyed this third book more than book two. The twists were more intense. I am not sure how I feel about the ending yet. The plot of this particular book is so random, I. Not sure if I love it or not. It is definitely going to sit with me, and on that basis alone it gets high marks. It is original, and very well thought out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Violence, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Bullying, Kidnapping, Suicide, Terminal illness, War, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Mass/school shootings, and Self harm
themoodreader's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder and Death
Minor: Genocide, Vomit, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, and Confinement
kshertz's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
What can I say without giving away any spoilers?. This is the very last book in the series in the arc of a scythe. I definitely hope that there’s going to be another book because I wasn’t 100% satisfied with the ending however a lot of questions were answered and as always I was hooked and cannot put the book down. I think anyone who picks up this series would really enjoy it. It’s supposed to be a utopia which eventually becomes a dystopia and I think it has so much relevance to today in our society. It’s a YA book that I feel like I’m going to be recommending a lot to everyone I know.
Content Warnings
Minor: Medical content, Violence, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail