Scan barcode
amerikinz14's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The main conflict between Lyra and Pan is alright but there were moments where their arguments seemed too harsh. Yes, coming from the end of “The Amber Spyglass”, their relationship is strained. In the original HDM trilogy, I enjoyed Lyra and Pan’s camaraderie and their interactions were one of my favorite aspects. While in “The Secret Commonwealth”, they spend a good portion of the book either arguing with or being separated from each other. It fits the story but it isn’t how I envisioned the characters grown up.
The characters from “La Belle Sauvage” get re-introduced (since TSC takes place when Lyra is 20 years old; years after HDM ends) and I REALLY enjoyed that aspect! Pullman blended the familiar and new characters well.
The plot itself is somewhat confusing. Since the audiobook is 20 hours long, I found myself tuning in and out (and I sped up the narration) which led to some details being lost. I got the gist of it as the book progressed but I think the author tried to cram a lot into the book (which is basically 640 pages), spending time on flushing out less important details. And knowing there will eventually be a third book is very interesting!
Still docking points for the “Unabridged” audiobook version having some vulgar language and a few triggers.
Overall, I like “The Book of Dust”. I prefer the stories of “His Dark Materials” but “The Book of Dust” fits well as a continuation!
The characters from “La Belle Sauvage” get re-introduced (since TSC takes place when Lyra is 20 years old; years after HDM ends) and I REALLY enjoyed that aspect! Pullman blended the familiar and new characters well.
The plot itself is somewhat confusing. Since the audiobook is 20 hours long, I found myself tuning in and out (and I sped up the narration) which led to some details being lost. I got the gist of it as the book progressed but I think the author tried to cram a lot into the book (which is basically 640 pages), spending time on flushing out less important details. And knowing there will eventually be a third book is very interesting!
Still docking points for the “Unabridged” audiobook version having some vulgar language and a few triggers.
Overall, I like “The Book of Dust”. I prefer the stories of “His Dark Materials” but “The Book of Dust” fits well as a continuation!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Vomit, Murder, Physical abuse, War, and Blood
bookishwondergoth's review
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I actually kinda loved this. The Book of Dust isn’t a patch on the original His Dark Materials trilogy, but this instalment still had bags of intrigue, magic and philosophy; it was definitely quite significantly better than book 1 in the trilogy, ‘La Belle Sauvage’.
It was really lovely to be back with Lyra and Pan again and to explore their relationship in a whole new way after certain events in ‘The Amber Spyglass’. I also really enjoyed how all the rationality and atheist leanings in the first trilogy were explored and deepened to order to take into account things like spirituality, imagination and faith.
The pacing for this book is very slow and at times a bit plodding, especially Malcolm Polstead’s chapters. I also thought it was a bit… hmmm… 🚩🚩🚩 what Pullman has decided to do with Malcolm and Lyra in terms of where their relationship is going. These are the things that brought my rating down.
I love both Lyra and Pan very much and I want nothing but the best for them. They both went through the wringer in this book, but it was so well done and felt necessary.
After avoiding reading this book for so long given how disappointed I was with ‘La Belle Sauvage’, I’m really happy I’ve read this now and can genuinely look forward to the release of the final book in this trilogy.
It was really lovely to be back with Lyra and Pan again and to explore their relationship in a whole new way after certain events in ‘The Amber Spyglass’. I also really enjoyed how all the rationality and atheist leanings in the first trilogy were explored and deepened to order to take into account things like spirituality, imagination and faith.
The pacing for this book is very slow and at times a bit plodding, especially Malcolm Polstead’s chapters. I also thought it was a bit… hmmm… 🚩🚩🚩 what Pullman has decided to do with Malcolm and Lyra in terms of where their relationship is going. These are the things that brought my rating down.
I love both Lyra and Pan very much and I want nothing but the best for them. They both went through the wringer in this book, but it was so well done and felt necessary.
After avoiding reading this book for so long given how disappointed I was with ‘La Belle Sauvage’, I’m really happy I’ve read this now and can genuinely look forward to the release of the final book in this trilogy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Gun violence, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Gaslighting, Sexual assault, Suicide, and Cursing
Minor: Classism and Torture
Additional content warning not listed:the_pysselfia's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Trafficking, Toxic friendship, Sexism, Physical abuse, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Death, Cursing, Classism, Body shaming, Animal cruelty, Xenophobia, Violence, Stalking, Sexual harassment, Rape, and Racism
tragedeke's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault
Moderate: Cursing
snuzzbobble's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Ableism
Minor: Cursing, Trafficking, and Murder
More...