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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Anti climatic full of pointless filler! Just don’t bother! The characters are awful other than maybe Pedro.
"I've got a big story to tell. The end of the world... and stories don't get any bigger than that." The opening lines are also an appropriate opening for it's review. [a:Horowitz19075728] doesn't hold anything back in his ambitious finale to the Power of Five series. The structure of [b:Oblivion|13343752|Oblivion (The Gatekeepers, #5)|Anthony Horowitz|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1334922116l/13343752._SX50_.jpg|18557835] is significantly different than the previous books, being separated into sections which follow each character on their quest to locate each other for the second time.
For this I believe even a brief summary would be too long, but the premise is simple: the Five must somehow find their way back to one another after being scattered across the planet... and somehow thrown ten years into the future. The world has been ravaged by the Old Ones, who have now obtained ultimate control, though are still trying to remain unnoticed.
The scale of the apocalypse is clear through each of the 'sub-stories' we follow. Jamie arrives in a small, slightly hostile English town. With no electricity or any kind of power, the people seem to be living simple but difficult lives. Scarlett appears in a war-torn Egypt, far beyond any unrest currently occurring in the Middle East. She is assisted by a resistance group, intent on giving the power back to the people, but who don't believe in the existence of the Old Ones. Matt is catapulted (again) to South America, where slavery and drug lords are now widely spread and without secrecy. Finally we have Scott and Pedro, who find themselves captured in Italy by a corrupted police force, who are intent on turning them to work for the Old Ones.
The real strength in this novel comes from Horowitz's description of the devastation the world has been subjected to. There is no hand holding, and there are some truly chilling descriptions of corpses in a London tube train and the widespread famine left after terrorist attacks. This is also accompanied by a blow-by-blow recounting of a volcanic eruption and the widespread panic it causes. All of this is underpinned by a sense that none of this is the fault of the Old Ones, and is more of a commentary on the current state of the world. Stories of extreme deforestation, climate change and inequality are taken to the extreme, yet do not stray too far from reality.
This was all very subtle, and didn't take anything away from the main story. The only part that I thought was lacking was some description of the mythology. There doesn't seem to be any description of what the dreamworld is, or where the Old Ones came from, or why the Five exist. I only became satisfied that I understood what was happening after I had a time-out to think about it.
This was the only downside in what was an otherwise phenomenal conclusion to the series; and even then it was nice to be able to come to a solution on your own. It's great to read a book with such complexity aimed at young adults, who are rarely exposed to these kinds of themes. [a:Horowitz|7155094|Ben Horowitz|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1389896445p2/7155094.jpg] stated he wanted to achieve a '[b:The Lord of the Rings|33|The Lord of the Rings|J.R.R. Tolkien|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1566425108l/33._SX50_.jpg|3462456]' scale story in the real world, and finally this came close to that goal. Once again, I would recommend this to any young reader looking for more of a challenging, yet still enjoyable, fast-paced novel.
For this I believe even a brief summary would be too long, but the premise is simple: the Five must somehow find their way back to one another after being scattered across the planet... and somehow thrown ten years into the future. The world has been ravaged by the Old Ones, who have now obtained ultimate control, though are still trying to remain unnoticed.
The scale of the apocalypse is clear through each of the 'sub-stories' we follow. Jamie arrives in a small, slightly hostile English town. With no electricity or any kind of power, the people seem to be living simple but difficult lives. Scarlett appears in a war-torn Egypt, far beyond any unrest currently occurring in the Middle East. She is assisted by a resistance group, intent on giving the power back to the people, but who don't believe in the existence of the Old Ones. Matt is catapulted (again) to South America, where slavery and drug lords are now widely spread and without secrecy. Finally we have Scott and Pedro, who find themselves captured in Italy by a corrupted police force, who are intent on turning them to work for the Old Ones.
The real strength in this novel comes from Horowitz's description of the devastation the world has been subjected to. There is no hand holding, and there are some truly chilling descriptions of corpses in a London tube train and the widespread famine left after terrorist attacks. This is also accompanied by a blow-by-blow recounting of a volcanic eruption and the widespread panic it causes. All of this is underpinned by a sense that none of this is the fault of the Old Ones, and is more of a commentary on the current state of the world. Stories of extreme deforestation, climate change and inequality are taken to the extreme, yet do not stray too far from reality.
This was all very subtle, and didn't take anything away from the main story. The only part that I thought was lacking was some description of the mythology. There doesn't seem to be any description of what the dreamworld is, or where the Old Ones came from, or why the Five exist. I only became satisfied that I understood what was happening after I had a time-out to think about it.
This was the only downside in what was an otherwise phenomenal conclusion to the series; and even then it was nice to be able to come to a solution on your own. It's great to read a book with such complexity aimed at young adults, who are rarely exposed to these kinds of themes. [a:Horowitz|7155094|Ben Horowitz|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1389896445p2/7155094.jpg] stated he wanted to achieve a '[b:The Lord of the Rings|33|The Lord of the Rings|J.R.R. Tolkien|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1566425108l/33._SX50_.jpg|3462456]' scale story in the real world, and finally this came close to that goal. Once again, I would recommend this to any young reader looking for more of a challenging, yet still enjoyable, fast-paced novel.
adventurous
The last book was as good as the first I suppose. All in all a nice series. But it does not go beyond entertainment.
These were my thoughts.
Ooh, new character!
This is interesting.
Woah wait A WHOLE DECADE??!
The world is screwed up.
Klunk, now the Five are separated AGAIN.
Dammit Lohan!
Volcano!
*Shivers*
WHAT WHY DID YOU MAKE RICHARD KILL MATT YOU CRUEL HEARTLESS AUTHOR
SCOTT TOO? NOOOOO. MY FEELS
RICHARD KILLED MATT FWIHNWIOMDQ{CMDV{"A
WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?
AND THEN EVERYONE YOU LOVE DIES. D:
BAM! THE FIVE ARE GONE AGAIN!
I HATE YOU. *Le angry rage at the book*
Ooh, new character!
This is interesting.
Woah wait A WHOLE DECADE??!
The world is screwed up.
Klunk, now the Five are separated AGAIN.
Dammit Lohan!
Volcano!
*Shivers*
WHAT WHY DID YOU MAKE RICHARD KILL MATT YOU CRUEL HEARTLESS AUTHOR
SCOTT TOO? NOOOOO. MY FEELS
RICHARD KILLED MATT FWIHNWIOMDQ{CMDV{"A
WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?
AND THEN EVERYONE YOU LOVE DIES. D:
BAM! THE FIVE ARE GONE AGAIN!
I HATE YOU. *Le angry rage at the book*
Too long a delay in releasing this book so there's much retelling of stories form the first 4 books. Not as good as the others