Reviews

The Ever Storms by Amanda Foody

marisatn's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful mysterious 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? No

4.0

chelseazhao's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

4.5

paigestooksbury's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious 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

5.0

This series has captured my imagination! It’s so sweet and interesting and adventurous! Barclay is a delightful main character to follow. This installment included an academic setting reminiscent of Hogwarts, which was fun and set it apart from the previous two. 

tori_'s review against another edition

adventurous funny medium-paced

4.5

lebanesebookwrom's review

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.75

amberreadsromance's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

jody_diou's review

adventurous challenging hopeful mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

4.5

fyziksgirl's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

The best book so far! I love how complex the relationships are and how 3 dimensional every level of characters is. Exciting, fun continuation of the adventure with gobs of character development.

jenlouisegallant's review against another edition

4.0

This series is so fun. I like all the characters and all the interesting creatures that the author has come up with.

blankpagealex's review against another edition

3.0

My third grader has been loving this series so we had to pick up the new one as soon as it came out and we've been slowly working our way through it over the past two months. I must say this is my least favorite of the three so far and feels like a slight step back from the second installment. The Accidental Apprentice had a cute setup with an easy to follow Pokemon-meets Harry Potter storyline. The Weeping Tide was a huge step forward making the Wilderlore world feel wholly original, introduced new, memorable characters, and made this series seem like one that was really going to stand out in middle grade fantasy.

In The Ever Storms we stick with many of the characters we met in the previous book and add many more - too many - to the point where it became hard to keep them straight. In addition to the apprentices and guardians we'd already gotten to know we add parents (and step-parents), about a half-dozen faculty members, and lots of new students. This meant not only did we not establish much about them, but we got little time with old favorites like Runa or Viola.

This also felt more derivative of Harry Potter than either of the two previous books. The initial setup was Potter-esque with an orphan boy being suddenly integrated into a world of magic he didn't previously know existed, but the second one did a good job creating a new setting that felt original. In The Ever Storms they basically go to Hogwarts to study for their OWLs. Even the villain now has a "special connection" to Barclay because they are both outsiders in the magical world.

I hope the next installment is more like the 2nd book than this one as this still has some excellent writing that kids will love.