Scan barcode
cecilielaugesen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
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? It's complicated
4.75
While this book had me crying, wishing it would end differently I can honestly say that I thought at was a great conclusion to the series!
My few points of criticism:
1. At times it felt INCREDIBLY long - there were a lot of ends to tie which resulted in so many povs.
2. I kind of lost Lyra a little bit. I get that her development is an integral part of the story, but sometimes it felt that she had changed completely instead of evolving.
3.The sub-plot of Lyra and Will’s love story. Personally it just felt so weird to me when they were only 12 years old. I think it would have worked just as well if it had been a platonic kind of soulmate.
(Also, not necessarily a bad thing, just be aware before reading that this is definitely one big criticism of religion - especially Christianity, but also religion generally )
My few points of criticism:
1. At times it felt INCREDIBLY long - there were a lot of ends to tie which resulted in so many povs.
2. I kind of lost Lyra a little bit. I get that her development is an integral part of the story, but sometimes it felt that she had changed completely instead of evolving.
3.
(Also, not necessarily a bad thing, just be aware before reading that this is definitely one big criticism of religion - especially Christianity, but also religion generally )
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, War, Abandonment, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Death of parent
ladythana'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Religious bigotry
Moderate: War, Abandonment, and Violence
Minor: Grief, Death of parent, Confinement, Blood, Gun violence, Child death, Kidnapping, Animal cruelty, and Injury/Injury detail
alsira98's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War and Violence
thehobbitbarbie's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Minor: War, Sexual content, Animal cruelty, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Murder, Grief, Child death, Death of parent, Violence, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, and Abandonment
deliriah'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? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Death, and War
bones_jackson's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Foi um desfecho até que bom, mas muitas coisas foram apressadas ou simplesmente jogadas lá, como se tivesse sido uma ideia de última hora. Parece que o autor criou um monte de seres só para se encaixar no plot, e ficou muito forçado. O relacionamento da Lyra e do Will foi muito apressado e súbito.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Grief, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, War, and Violence
fjerda's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
4.5
Pullman’s writing is concise and gorgeous: lush in the extreme. Lyra and Will pull on my heartstrings deeply. A very well executed finale.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Gun violence, Animal death, Blood, Death, Mental illness, Torture, Murder, Violence, War, Death of parent, Child death, and Gore
brycestevenwilley's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.0
Lots of unorganized thoughts. I'll extend this as I add more:
- it's very good
- it's very cheesy
- it does the "chosen one" and prohpecy thing a lot, which I'm not a fan of. But it didn't feel like it mattered as much to me as it normally does
- the last paragraph of
the battle scene, where Lee becomes part of the universe is one of my favorites of all time - it's very weird
- I rated Subtle knife lower because it starts to introduce all of these weird plot points, almost too many, but Amber Spyglass really uses them well. It also adds some things that I think are unnecessary, but I'm willing to overlook some
- the begining is slower than I remember, but the last half is such a wild ride
human / daemon / ghost split as the holy trinity is really clever, and ties in well with a lot of what is in the Golden compass the amber spyglass itself really doesn't affect much; Mary never does anything to affect the plot, she just reports on what's happening with Will and Lyra. Story would be the same without it. - the thing I like most anout this book is that the plot and story is very complex, but the themes are simple.
- Much of it really does read like a myth or a folk story, where the details are replaceable, and the main points are extremely strong and iconic. That makes sense given how much of it is from bible stories like Paradise lost, and other misc myths and hero stories
- somehow does the least with it's multiple worlds than other multiverse stories. Mainly a twin universe story, with a few side universes as well
father gomez was a mildly interesting thread with an extremely underwhelming ending. Literal angel ex machina, but no one even knows about it, and kinda makes it stupid Metatron was interesting and built up to be intemidating, but was also dealt with stupid quickly. "He just really horny" is a waste of a character - Focuses on Will more, and I really wish that Lyra felt like she had more agency.
She gets a little in the end, but, nothing compared to Will's entire 1/3rd of the book dedicated to just him
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, and War
Minor: Pedophilia and Colonisation
erynelle's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
Please the way Pullman writes about love towards the end has captivated me
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and War
orchidlilly's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
3.0
I have a lot of opinions on The Amber Spyglass, many of which aren't very popular.
First the good: when people said the books got too religious, I expected a thinly veiled Jesus metaphor like is found in Narnia, instead I was pleasantly surprised with the opposite. It's really quite refreshing to read a book whose religious themes are critical of the church as opposed to praising it. I found the whole 'kill god' basis of Asriel's motivation rather amusing and the commentary on the church is, as a Christian, very accurate and not without basis. The writing is, as always, impeccable, and I found myself becoming very attached to the minor characters of Dr. Mary Malone, the Galevespians, Balthamos, and Baruch.
The bad: It annoys me greatly that Lyra is once again reduced to nothing more than a damsel in distress for Will to moon over. For the majority of the book, Lyra is asleep and helpless, and once she wakes up, she becomes a nervous, clingy, mostly useless ingenue. The only time we get to see the old Lyra is in the land of the dead, and that fire is short-lived. For all Will loves to wax poetic about how strong and stubborn Lyra is, we get to see exactly none of it. There is also the matter of the character deaths. After Scoresby and Mr. Perry, the deaths of our beloved side characters begin to feel very forced and unnecessary very quickly. Asriel and Coulter's "redemption" is so short, abrupt, and seemingly out of character that it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. Worst of all, is the romance between Will and Lyra. The entire book, the budding romance feels both painfully obvious and forced. The love conquers and fixes all theme is tired at this point, and it only works if the characters have any chemistry as lovers, these two are just about as ridiculous as Romeo and Juliet. So many questions are left unanswered that the story almost feels unfinished, which is a great disappointment given Pullman's in-depth worldbuilding from the two previous books.
Three stars because up until the last seven or so chapters, the story is just as captivating as its predecessors.
First the good: when people said the books got too religious, I expected a thinly veiled Jesus metaphor like is found in Narnia, instead I was pleasantly surprised with the opposite. It's really quite refreshing to read a book whose religious themes are critical of the church as opposed to praising it. I found the whole 'kill god' basis of Asriel's motivation rather amusing and the commentary on the church is, as a Christian, very accurate and not without basis. The writing is, as always, impeccable, and I found myself becoming very attached to the minor characters of Dr. Mary Malone, the Galevespians, Balthamos, and Baruch.
The bad: It annoys me greatly that Lyra is once again reduced to nothing more than a damsel in distress for Will to moon over. For the majority of the book, Lyra is asleep and helpless, and once she wakes up, she becomes a nervous, clingy, mostly useless ingenue. The only time we get to see the old Lyra is in the land of the dead, and that fire is short-lived. For all Will loves to wax poetic about how strong and stubborn Lyra is, we get to see exactly none of it. There is also the matter of the character deaths. After Scoresby and Mr. Perry, the deaths of our beloved side characters begin to feel very forced and unnecessary very quickly. Asriel and Coulter's "redemption" is so short, abrupt, and seemingly out of character that it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. Worst of all, is the romance between Will and Lyra. The entire book, the budding romance feels both painfully obvious and forced. The love conquers and fixes all theme is tired at this point, and it only works if the characters have any chemistry as lovers, these two are just about as ridiculous as Romeo and Juliet. So many questions are left unanswered that the story almost feels unfinished, which is a great disappointment given Pullman's in-depth worldbuilding from the two previous books.
Three stars because up until the last seven or so chapters, the story is just as captivating as its predecessors.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Violence, War, Toxic relationship, Blood, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Animal cruelty, and Grief
Minor: Alcohol, Chronic illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Classism, Genocide, Colonisation, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicidal thoughts, and Infidelity