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devonforest's review against another edition
4.0
I was expecting more from this. Especially being the last book in the series. The plot line where I thought there would be more time spent seemed to be almost secondary. The series was good, I was just hoping for a bit more.
frasro's review against another edition
4.0
In my opinion this was the best book of the series. Well worth the misgivings of the previous two books.
fantasynovel's review against another edition
5.0
All I can say is ... wow. The first book was OK, the second book was good, and this book was absolutely awesome. Grossman really hit his stride with this one--fast-paced, interesting, funny, cool, and smart. The world-building(s) really came together in this one. Everything that bored me about Fillory was subsumed by all the freaking fantastic stuff about Fillory (badass Queen Janet, anyone?). Quentin finally, finally, grows up and becomes a bearable narrator, Plum is a hilarious and unique addition, and Janet and Elliot's friendship plays out to a T. Loved, loved, loved this book!
jakeski1234's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
4.0
booksandbars's review against another edition
5.0
No spoilers. It's a wow conclusion. Just so great. More later.
em_gordon's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
lindzann's review against another edition
5.0
I am a huge fan of Harry Potter and the Chronicles of Narnia and throughout this series the two worlds have been united perfectly. I wish the series went on.
peterkeep's review
5.0
I love endings. The ends of different series are always a bit bittersweet: even with the sadness of no new stories in that specific world and no new adventures for those specific characters, it's always nice to be able to sit back and view the whole completed series at once and see the finished product that the author was intending all this time. I think that's the strength of this series. This final volume really pulled everything together and justified all of the depressing tone, the angst, and especially the homage to Narnia and Harry Potter.
There was a bit near the end of the book where Quentin is thinking back on Fillory and what it actually was like in comparison to what he read as child - this little passage was a really great representative for the series. The world isn't a perfect place, just like Fillory wasn't the ideal fantasy landscape that Quentin grew up reading about, but that doesn't matter. "The Fillory [he] dreamed of as a little boy wasn't real, but in some ways in was better and purer than the real one." The characters had to grow and struggle and become people that they didn't expect to be (or maybe even want to be in some cases). Again, Quentin thinks back to himself as a young naive child: "He wished he could tell him that none of it was going to turn out like the way he hoped, but that everything was going to be all right anyway."
Anyways, I'll quit rambling about the main message of the series, because I don't want to ruin any of the story. It's a really great, bizarre adventure that has a really beautiful message, even among the depravity and depression of it all.
There was a bit near the end of the book where Quentin is thinking back on Fillory and what it actually was like in comparison to what he read as child - this little passage was a really great representative for the series. The world isn't a perfect place, just like Fillory wasn't the ideal fantasy landscape that Quentin grew up reading about, but that doesn't matter. "The Fillory [he] dreamed of as a little boy wasn't real, but in some ways in was better and purer than the real one." The characters had to grow and struggle and become people that they didn't expect to be (or maybe even want to be in some cases). Again, Quentin thinks back to himself as a young naive child: "He wished he could tell him that none of it was going to turn out like the way he hoped, but that everything was going to be all right anyway."
Anyways, I'll quit rambling about the main message of the series, because I don't want to ruin any of the story. It's a really great, bizarre adventure that has a really beautiful message, even among the depravity and depression of it all.
alittlebithopeful's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
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? Yes
4.0
midici's review against another edition
4.0
More mature, competent, gritty Quentin getting his hands dirty in the illegal, scuzzier side of magical culture on Earth? Yes please. I wish there had been more of it. I like the whole idea of it. We spent the whole first book getting to know Quentin, and the second book watching Quentin finish growing up, and now in this third and final book we get to see Quentin as the man he has become. He has much less anxiety than he used to. He's aware of his skills and determined to make the most of his time on Earth. He's letting his inner researcher come out and is spending a lot of time delving in difficult, more theoretical magics. And of course, through no fault of his own, he runs into his ex-lover Alice, who is existing as a "magical rage demon" (in Eliot's words). Despite his best efforts, Fillory isn't done with Quentin, even if he was finally ready to be done with it.
So yes, Quentin being a magical, competent badass were definitely highlight points. Rupert's story, fleshing out Martin Chatwin's backstory, was descriptive and depressing and wonderful. Quentin using his new found skills to turn Alice back into a human was the best thing, in a wish fulfillment sort of way. His determination to create his own magical world instead of living out childhood dreams in someone else's world, as a chance to create something as a great magician, that was a wonderful plot. Janet's backstory was also super entertaining - going out on her own to confront challenges and deciding to leave herself vulnerable for once. And when things go south, taking back her power in glorious violence as befitting the no-nonense, violence-loving Janet that gleefully makes most of Fillory fear her for shits and giggles. And I doubt anyone disliked getting a return to Penny the petty and his long overdue punch to the face.
Things that did not work so well: the way Eliot's inner character voice sounded way too much like Quentin's and not enough like his own distinct character. The times when he sounded the most like his own person was when he was thinking of other people (Quentin and Janet). I could not for the life of me figure out why Plum was expelled. Sure, Quentin gets fired from his Brakebills teaching gig by ignoring safety protocol and almost getting a student killed via a magical demon. But Plum accidentally gets lost in the sublevels and then gets attacked...so she gets expelled? I understand why she needed to be out of Brakebills for the story to work but it was weak. Umber didn't live up to my expectations; he was too much like Ember and too ridiculous to take seriously. The thing with going to see the professor at South Brakebills almost worked. He and Quentin mirror each other in a lot of ways, so the potential for connection was good. But insted we're left with a too vague, fuzzy recollection that the prof somehow took part in the battle at the end of the last book, and that he gives his magic coins to Quentin and Plum, the end.
I have mixed feelings about god-Quentin fixing Fillory and then dropping the power afterwards. It seemed like too much of a solution (just in the nick of time!) and not enough of one (where did the power go?). In any case ending with Quentin and Alice creating a new world to expore and slowly relearn each other was a nice way to end it. Both characters had been through a lot, and had changed very much, and were ready to take the next step, leaving Fillory (and the Magicians trilogy) behind them.
So yes, Quentin being a magical, competent badass were definitely highlight points. Rupert's story, fleshing out Martin Chatwin's backstory, was descriptive and depressing and wonderful. Quentin using his new found skills to turn Alice back into a human was the best thing, in a wish fulfillment sort of way. His determination to create his own magical world instead of living out childhood dreams in someone else's world, as a chance to create something as a great magician, that was a wonderful plot. Janet's backstory was also super entertaining - going out on her own to confront challenges and deciding to leave herself vulnerable for once. And when things go south, taking back her power in glorious violence as befitting the no-nonense, violence-loving Janet that gleefully makes most of Fillory fear her for shits and giggles. And I doubt anyone disliked getting a return to Penny the petty and his long overdue punch to the face.
Things that did not work so well: the way Eliot's inner character voice sounded way too much like Quentin's and not enough like his own distinct character. The times when he sounded the most like his own person was when he was thinking of other people (Quentin and Janet). I could not for the life of me figure out why Plum was expelled. Sure, Quentin gets fired from his Brakebills teaching gig by ignoring safety protocol and almost getting a student killed via a magical demon. But Plum accidentally gets lost in the sublevels and then gets attacked...so she gets expelled? I understand why she needed to be out of Brakebills for the story to work but it was weak. Umber didn't live up to my expectations; he was too much like Ember and too ridiculous to take seriously. The thing with going to see the professor at South Brakebills almost worked. He and Quentin mirror each other in a lot of ways, so the potential for connection was good. But insted we're left with a too vague, fuzzy recollection that the prof somehow took part in the battle at the end of the last book, and that he gives his magic coins to Quentin and Plum, the end.
I have mixed feelings about god-Quentin fixing Fillory and then dropping the power afterwards. It seemed like too much of a solution (just in the nick of time!) and not enough of one (where did the power go?). In any case ending with Quentin and Alice creating a new world to expore and slowly relearn each other was a nice way to end it. Both characters had been through a lot, and had changed very much, and were ready to take the next step, leaving Fillory (and the Magicians trilogy) behind them.