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theglossreview's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars! Yes, we are back to 4 stars for The Scholomance. The third was as good as the first volume. The second one was weaker due to the endless repetition and slow-moving plot.
Spoilers ahead: Based on the second book, I made predictions for this one. I am so glad that not all of them came true. It would have been horrible if El had been hit by the same fate as her mother. However, my prediction for Orion was quite accurate: Just as I imagined, he disappeared for a while and then returned, turned into an evil wizard with dark new powers and less capacity for common humanity after a time spent near the void and only in the company of monsters.
But this is where Orion defeated my expectations: He did not emerge WITH an army of monsters, but after having EATEN AND ABSORBED an army of monsters. Technically, he didn’t return, but was DRAGGED OUT OF SCHOOL by El and her allies.
Surprise: Her allies were Ad and … LIESEL MÜLLER. Liesel was one of the best parts of this book and deserved more attention.
Another defeated expectation: I expected Orion to stay near the void for YEARS and I assumed that El would grieve for him for just as long. But how long has it actually been until
a) he is rescued and
b) El becomes romantically entangled (albeit rather physically than romantically) again?
It’s been ONE WEEK. Only one week.
That’s something I don’t like in The Golden Enclaves: The lack of meaning of time and space. The entire plot takes place within only a couple of weeks, within which the main characters are literally JET SETTING ALL OVER THE WORLD. Not with magical portals, but actual airplanes. It’s highly unrealistic. Especially considering that El has only left the UK once before: Where’s the appreciation? The price, timing, environmental impact, culture shock, expenditure of energy and sheer wonder of global air travel are glossed over constantly. Each aspect is mentioned once or twice, but apart from that it’s like it’s nothing special, barely an inconvenience. (Never mind visa and passport control?)
The whole trilogy is a bit of a “me me me” show for El. It’s like each person she’s close to has a few chapters dedicated to them but they simply disappear from the plot (and El’s mind) while it’s not “their turn”. That’s not how relationships work. But to be fair: The El Show still works if you like El! And I do.
Overall, the book was an action-packed romp around the world with a genius twist and big reveals. I’m happy with this conclusion to the trilogy!
Spoilers ahead: Based on the second book, I made predictions for this one. I am so glad that not all of them came true. It would have been horrible if El had been hit by the same fate as her mother. However, my prediction for Orion was quite accurate: Just as I imagined, he disappeared for a while and then returned, turned into an evil wizard with dark new powers and less capacity for common humanity after a time spent near the void and only in the company of monsters.
But this is where Orion defeated my expectations: He did not emerge WITH an army of monsters, but after having EATEN AND ABSORBED an army of monsters. Technically, he didn’t return, but was DRAGGED OUT OF SCHOOL by El and her allies.
Surprise: Her allies were Ad and … LIESEL MÜLLER. Liesel was one of the best parts of this book and deserved more attention.
Another defeated expectation: I expected Orion to stay near the void for YEARS and I assumed that El would grieve for him for just as long. But how long has it actually been until
a) he is rescued and
b) El becomes romantically entangled (albeit rather physically than romantically) again?
It’s been ONE WEEK. Only one week.
That’s something I don’t like in The Golden Enclaves: The lack of meaning of time and space. The entire plot takes place within only a couple of weeks, within which the main characters are literally JET SETTING ALL OVER THE WORLD. Not with magical portals, but actual airplanes. It’s highly unrealistic. Especially considering that El has only left the UK once before: Where’s the appreciation? The price, timing, environmental impact, culture shock, expenditure of energy and sheer wonder of global air travel are glossed over constantly. Each aspect is mentioned once or twice, but apart from that it’s like it’s nothing special, barely an inconvenience. (Never mind visa and passport control?)
The whole trilogy is a bit of a “me me me” show for El. It’s like each person she’s close to has a few chapters dedicated to them but they simply disappear from the plot (and El’s mind) while it’s not “their turn”. That’s not how relationships work. But to be fair: The El Show still works if you like El! And I do.
Overall, the book was an action-packed romp around the world with a genius twist and big reveals. I’m happy with this conclusion to the trilogy!
madspank's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
4.5
jake_caldwell51's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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
4.0
mlwalker99's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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? It's complicated
4.5
This read captivated me due to its twist and turns. The author did a good job of keeping me engaged and invested the plot twists. I was left satisfied with the series end.
elsharpe's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jillie's review against another edition
DNF @ 34%
and i’m so mad about it. I LOVED the first two books and I cannot believe what happens in this one. what the heck was the thought process to any of this?? was it supposed to be a duology and then the publisher tacked on a third? *incredibly* disappointed & thrown off.
considering I am not really a fan of the other Novik books i’ve read, I won’t be picking up another by her.
April 2024
and i’m so mad about it. I LOVED the first two books and I cannot believe what happens in this one. what the heck was the thought process to any of this?? was it supposed to be a duology and then the publisher tacked on a third? *incredibly* disappointed & thrown off.
considering I am not really a fan of the other Novik books i’ve read, I won’t be picking up another by her.
April 2024
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity
aubreylynnmatt's review against another edition
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
zre_rodri's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
clumsyvalkyrie's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I’ve been thinking about this series for a few days. The series overall were very fun, interesting world, lovable and diverse characters. My favorite book from the series is still book 1 but I liked that the last book expanded the world, and revealed a bit more about the enclaves and what it’s like to live in the outside world.
The series had a few shortcoming like the constant internal mono logs by El when she was about to go in and do something epic. It slowed the pace of the book and became a bit frustrating especially in Golden Enclave. Furthermore,Ophelia, I really don’t get her. What was her plan? The book said she was trying to make the enclaves share but she should have known the moment El showed up that her enclave war plans were over. I really don’t get how she thought El would just leave her do what she wants. Also, how is Orion’s father ok with his mother killing him as a baby and making a monster out of him… there was no addressing of it… . These few plot holes kind of made the ending of the series a bit dissatisfying for me.
However, overall the series were great, especially if you’re craving something magical school associated with an interesting world. There are not that many magical school books to begin with.
P. S. I think Scholomance would make an awesome video game!
The series had a few shortcoming like the constant internal mono logs by El when she was about to go in and do something epic. It slowed the pace of the book and became a bit frustrating especially in Golden Enclave. Furthermore,
However, overall the series were great, especially if you’re craving something magical school associated with an interesting world. There are not that many magical school books to begin with.
P. S. I think Scholomance would make an awesome video game!