Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.04 AVERAGE
4.04 AVERAGE
Come see this review and more at my blog, The Scribe Owl!
4/5 stars!
Jackaby: ★★★☆☆
Beastly Bones: ★★★☆☆
Ghostly Echoes: ★★★★☆
The Dire King: ★★★★☆
What a bittersweet conclusion to such a great series! Honestly, for most of the book I was thinking it wasn't as good as Ghostly Echoes, but that ending. Wow, can William Ritter write an ending. I'm so surprised that he only has two series, Jackaby and a middle-grade one. I hope he writes more because I just can't get enough!
For this conclusion, most of the loose threads and bits and pieces from the rest of the series come together to form a picture so very fitting for this series: exquisitely written, humorous, and mildly tragic. Jackaby and Abigail are the only ones who can stop the Unseelie Dire King and his Dire Council from opening the rift between the mortal and magical worlds and letting them collide once and for all. With little help from the Seelie fae, they have to bring all of the residents of New Fiddleham, human and otherwise, together for the fate of their world.
As always, I absolutely adore William Ritter's writing. As I said earlier, I could just read it forever! Mr. Jackaby's strange wisdom and humor always just elevate the book about a whole star! I really need a new series from Ritter, pretty please with a cherry on top?
I've said this in every review and I'll say it again: Jackaby is everything. From his mannerisms to his personality, everything about R. F. Jackaby is amazing. He's obviously my favorite character, though some of the others are pretty great too. Let's fast-track them: Abigail Rook, the Watson to Jackaby's Sherlock, Jenny Cavanaugh, the fiercely protective ghost of 926 Augur Lane, and Charlie Cane/Barker, the sweet little romantic with an eye for Miss Rook. The one character I didn't like was Alina, Charlie's sister, who annoyed me to no end.
One complaint is that we didn't get all the threads wrapped up. What's Jackaby's real name? Are we ever going to get a wedding with Abigail? How are Jenny and Jackaby going to make things work? I feel like this series could keep going forever, though I know William Ritter has said it's his last in the series.
I need to say something about that ending; it's not the kind of thing you can just gloss over in your review. I actually adored it. Abigail always felt like an outsider to me to Jackaby's insane world of magic, so it's nice to see the tables turned! I was wondering why we have a Chosen One trope without the Chosen One as our MC. Also, that tiny epilogue!! That was so well written, it was perfect.
After this crazy four-book ride, I'm going to miss this series. I hope William Ritter writes a new series soon, you can believe I'm going to buy it. I'd highly recommend this series, I hope you love it as much as I do!
Read for Fright night 2020 with The Procrastinators Book Club!
4/5 stars!
Jackaby: ★★★☆☆
Beastly Bones: ★★★☆☆
Ghostly Echoes: ★★★★☆
The Dire King: ★★★★☆
What a bittersweet conclusion to such a great series! Honestly, for most of the book I was thinking it wasn't as good as Ghostly Echoes, but that ending. Wow, can William Ritter write an ending. I'm so surprised that he only has two series, Jackaby and a middle-grade one. I hope he writes more because I just can't get enough!
For this conclusion, most of the loose threads and bits and pieces from the rest of the series come together to form a picture so very fitting for this series: exquisitely written, humorous, and mildly tragic. Jackaby and Abigail are the only ones who can stop the Unseelie Dire King and his Dire Council from opening the rift between the mortal and magical worlds and letting them collide once and for all. With little help from the Seelie fae, they have to bring all of the residents of New Fiddleham, human and otherwise, together for the fate of their world.
As always, I absolutely adore William Ritter's writing. As I said earlier, I could just read it forever! Mr. Jackaby's strange wisdom and humor always just elevate the book about a whole star! I really need a new series from Ritter, pretty please with a cherry on top?
I learned a long time ago that we do not survive because we’re strong—we become stronger the more we survive.
I've said this in every review and I'll say it again: Jackaby is everything. From his mannerisms to his personality, everything about R. F. Jackaby is amazing. He's obviously my favorite character, though some of the others are pretty great too. Let's fast-track them: Abigail Rook, the Watson to Jackaby's Sherlock, Jenny Cavanaugh, the fiercely protective ghost of 926 Augur Lane, and Charlie Cane/Barker, the sweet little romantic with an eye for Miss Rook. The one character I didn't like was Alina, Charlie's sister, who annoyed me to no end.
One complaint is that we didn't get all the threads wrapped up. What's Jackaby's real name? Are we ever going to get a wedding with Abigail? How are Jenny and Jackaby going to make things work? I feel like this series could keep going forever, though I know William Ritter has said it's his last in the series.
After this crazy four-book ride, I'm going to miss this series. I hope William Ritter writes a new series soon, you can believe I'm going to buy it. I'd highly recommend this series, I hope you love it as much as I do!
Read for Fright night 2020 with The Procrastinators Book Club!
This was such a fun, magical series. I was sad for it to be over, but I thought the ending was perfect.
I took my time reading the last book of the series because I just didn't want it to end. However the second I picked it up again I couldn't put it done for anything. So sad to finish it but I hope it brings joy to other new readers as much as it did me.
THE DIRE KING is the conclusion to this Sherlockian series where the sidekick is an absolute hero and being paranormal isn't so very strange.
As with all the books in the JACKABY series, I was absolutely enchanted by THE DIRE KING. The world building always draws me in, and Ritter's brilliant combination of the Victorian setting and supernatural elements is always so much fun and an absolute joy to read.
The plot of this book is full of twists and turns, and it's a bit darker than the other books in the series have been thus far, which I really enjoyed. There are a lot of fantastic action scenes all building up to the epic battle at the end, which is full of paranormal creatures as well as characters from previous books in the series.
I typically find Jackaby's character to be funny and entertaining, and he did fall a bit flat for me in this final installment in the series, which is probably due to the dire situation the characters find themselves facing. I would have liked to have seen just a bit more of his classic eccentrism and quirkiness though.
Abigail Rook, as ever, is a phenomenal heroine. I love that Ritter has taken a character that is really the sidekick in the series, and put her in a position to show her strength and that she is a total hero in her own right. She's smart, brave, and definitely the kind of character I love reading about.
I'm posting this review a little teary eyed, because I'm sad that the series is over. I think an annual October re-read may be in my future. If you haven't read these books yet, definitely do. They are an absolute delight.
As with all the books in the JACKABY series, I was absolutely enchanted by THE DIRE KING. The world building always draws me in, and Ritter's brilliant combination of the Victorian setting and supernatural elements is always so much fun and an absolute joy to read.
The plot of this book is full of twists and turns, and it's a bit darker than the other books in the series have been thus far, which I really enjoyed. There are a lot of fantastic action scenes all building up to the epic battle at the end, which is full of paranormal creatures as well as characters from previous books in the series.
I typically find Jackaby's character to be funny and entertaining, and he did fall a bit flat for me in this final installment in the series, which is probably due to the dire situation the characters find themselves facing. I would have liked to have seen just a bit more of his classic eccentrism and quirkiness though.
Abigail Rook, as ever, is a phenomenal heroine. I love that Ritter has taken a character that is really the sidekick in the series, and put her in a position to show her strength and that she is a total hero in her own right. She's smart, brave, and definitely the kind of character I love reading about.
I'm posting this review a little teary eyed, because I'm sad that the series is over. I think an annual October re-read may be in my future. If you haven't read these books yet, definitely do. They are an absolute delight.
An incredibly satisfying ending to the story arc. It was wonderful to see so many characters brought back and the book is bursting with emotion. The only thing I could ask for is just a little more. I wish there had been more time to delve deeper into certain aspects of the tale. But really, for me to get what I wanted, the book would have been twice the size. Perhaps it's just that the description says this is the conclusion, so I can't help but just want more!
This book has had me on such a roller coaster of emotions. I was so excited when I read the announcement that the book would be out this summer and then absolutely devastated when I read that it would be the last in the Jackaby series. I have loved reading this series and absolutely could not understand why William Ritter would be ending it. It seems like the kind of series that could go on forever, like Nancy Drew, with Jackaby and Miss Rook solving fun, paranormal mysteries around New Fiddleham.
The Dire King just blew me away, especially the ending. I really don't want to give anything away but I will say that any anger I had felt toward Mr. Ritter with regards to ending the series was totally erased by the ending of the book. The ending was just perfect.
There were several times reading The Dire King that I had to stop to read a passage aloud to my husband because I was so overcome with agreement. I read this as an ARC on my kindle (Thank you, Netgalley!), so I don't have page numbers for these quotes, unfortunately.
"This world doesn't need showy champions. It needs people who are good, people who do good, even if nobody will ever know."
"Real strength comes from courage and compassion and hope. Never fear."
"Real love is when you let another person make you better. You don't lose yourself in love - you find yourself there."
The Dire King just blew me away, especially the ending. I really don't want to give anything away but I will say that any anger I had felt toward Mr. Ritter with regards to ending the series was totally erased by the ending of the book. The ending was just perfect.
There were several times reading The Dire King that I had to stop to read a passage aloud to my husband because I was so overcome with agreement. I read this as an ARC on my kindle (Thank you, Netgalley!), so I don't have page numbers for these quotes, unfortunately.
"This world doesn't need showy champions. It needs people who are good, people who do good, even if nobody will ever know."
"Real strength comes from courage and compassion and hope. Never fear."
"Real love is when you let another person make you better. You don't lose yourself in love - you find yourself there."
I was actually a little disappointed in this book. My hopes were high because the previous book (Ghostly Echoes) set up a very well thought out plot line. Unfortunately the execution of this was a bit derivative. I guessed what was going to happen very early on, and thus was pretty bored as things kept turning out the way I expected them to, right down to the last page and the last twist. This series could have used about three more books to really flesh out the tertiary characters, because Ritter deftly brings everyone back together, but without them having a larger role (Characters like Alina) they felt like Deus Ex Machina, rather than an integral part of the plot.
That being said, the main characters are spectacular and the writing is astute in its pithy. This is a world that I would come back to again and again, so I am a bit sad to know that it's over. Ritter is writing another series, however, so it looks as though I'm going to be jumping over to that one soon!
That being said, the main characters are spectacular and the writing is astute in its pithy. This is a world that I would come back to again and again, so I am a bit sad to know that it's over. Ritter is writing another series, however, so it looks as though I'm going to be jumping over to that one soon!
Overall: 3/5
Characters:3.5/5
Plotline:2/5
Enjoyment Factor:3/5
Review: I feel like as a finale everything was super drawn out and I was bombarded with so much new information I was not able to fully appreciate the end game of this series. I think it introduced some really intriguing aspects and I did enjoy the atmosphere of The Cruel Prince but make it Victorian.
Characters:3.5/5
Plotline:2/5
Enjoyment Factor:3/5
Review: I feel like as a finale everything was super drawn out and I was bombarded with so much new information I was not able to fully appreciate the end game of this series. I think it introduced some really intriguing aspects and I did enjoy the atmosphere of The Cruel Prince but make it Victorian.