Reviews

The Quillan Games by D.J. MacHale

a_menace_2_society's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

bsmorris's review against another edition

4.0

I appreciate this series more and more as I read further. I wonder if young readers understand that contemporary problems are being presented to them in a fantasy format? At any rate, this is a great series for getting young people to contemplate some pretty serious issues, maybe without realizing it.

booksong's review against another edition

4.0

This is the beginning of the end.

So believes Bobby Pendragon as he enters the unbelievable, twisted, amazing territory of Quillan. On Quillan, the people play games where the stakes could mean life and death; betting in order to continue their very existance. Mindless robotic dolls called dados keep order. A sadistic and creepy pair named Veego and LaBerge pit Challengers against each other...and Bobby has stumbled into the middle of their deadly games. Meanwhile, tragedy strikes on Second Earth as Mark and Courtney struggle to understand the immensity of their best friend's duty and the depths of Saint Dane's evil. The demon Traveler's plots are spiraling outward to become ever more complex and astoundingly clever.

Really, this series is one of the most imaginative I've ever read in terms of sheer originality for every volume. And the style is awesome. You can see how far Bobby has come from the first book, and yet he still has deeply realistic vulnerabilities and thoughts in different situations. And although you keep on thinking that you really should've gotten Saint Dane's measure by the 7th book, each diabolical twist of his was still a surprise to me. And now, unbelievably, the action and intrigue seem to be about to be taken up another notch for the 8th book!

aribel2805's review against another edition

4.0

I want to murder D.J.MacHale. How in a thousand years could he come up with a story that would me make suffer and cry, yell and laugh, basically make me die from the inside. He is just a genius. This series may be as good or better than Harry Potter ( being a HP fan myself) This book took me a while because the start is a bit slow and I also read other books while reading Prengadon, which is unusual of me, but from the half of the book is pure adrenaline; in one word: AMAZING!!! 4.5

deviki's review against another edition

3.0

Books I've read and provided detailed reviews over the years but all data is lost after accidental deletion and GD's refusal to restore it back.

Adding books back to my library for my own reference and tracking purposes

rinn4's review against another edition

2.0

I am getting bored of this series personally. Each book is along the same lines and they get more and more depressing as you read. I think the writer is really clever because a lot of the things are really unexpected but there should be a least a little bit of clarity in the book. I found that in this installment you really felt that there was no way they could win in the end because well you just didn't really know what was going on. The writing it self is also getting a little old, I wish I could say that I liked it but I think the series is been drawn out to long and I want to see how he will resolve it already. This book is making me question my love of series novels which is a new thing. I wouldn't say don't read it but don't expect anything conclusive to come out of this one you will be even more confused than before and the story doesn't change.

itkovian_books's review against another edition

5.0

This was a great installment in the series. The Games were thrilling and fun, with high stakes set up early on. The B-plot on Second Earth kept my interest and changed a lot of circumstances for Mark and Courtney. There were several good twists in the last quarter of the book as well, some of which I remembered from my first read 10 years ago, and others that I’d forgotten about and got to experience all over again. Lastly, the cliffhanger ending was exciting both for the characters and for me as the reader, and I’m eager to continue on.

Rating: 9/10

hoosgracie's review against another edition

5.0

Bobby travels alone to Quillan after being taunted into it by Saint Dane. Quillan is a world were games mean death. There is also a crisis with Mark and Courtney which should lead to an interesting book the next go round.

deefinglee's review against another edition

This one had so many twists and turns, one of the craziest ones yet.

cyanide_latte's review

mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.75

Genuinely just starting to lose interest in these. I really don't care about any of the characters any more outside of Mark and Courtney (and even Courtney's pushing it,) and I've really not cared about Bobby in ages. Might continue to push through with the rest of the series just to say I got through it, might not. I just really don't care. Even the unique world-building has reached a point where it's becoming underwhelming.