Reviews

The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman

sians's review

adventurous challenging mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

I preferred La Belle Sauvage, but this was still a magnificent book! I would have preferred less politics and more focus on the fantastical. 

jepson_brown's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

potplant's review against another edition

*Spoilers* Thrilling adventure about embracing imagination and uncertainty. I am desperatly invested in Lyra and Pan reconciling. But, not sure how I feel about Lyra and Malcom. 

abilily2707's review against another edition

adventurous emotional fast-paced

5.0

errie's review against another edition

adventurous

3.5

nincrony1's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad 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

4.5

Lots and lots of thoughts on The Secret Commonwealth. Spoilers ahead as well - I recommend going in blind.

Phillip Pullman’s return to Lyra, first introduced in the classic Dark Materials trilogy, see her on an adventure fraught with darkness and difficult themes. This is most definitely a novel for those who grew up with the original books and have grown up. Lyra is now a 20-year old student, precocious as ever but in an intellectual way that is rubbing her daemon Pan the wrong way. And things kind of develop from there - I can only really bullet point my thoughts as I have a lot. Needless to say, I really enjoyed the book and can’t wait to see how it ends; for it does end on quite the cliffhanger. 

• The choice to have this novel explore the implications of Lyra and Pan separating following The Amber Spyglass is a stroke of genius. If there was going to be a late sequel to the series, I think picking up on this aspect makes sense and opens the world up even further. All the stuff involving the expansion of the daemons is fascinating, expertly handled and quite heart breaking 
• I loved its evocation of Europe, stretching from England to Turkey. The interconnected rail, the variety of cultures, it’s a peon to the place and perhaps in a way, a reminder of the disaster Brexit has robbed from us Brits
• That said, the book doesn’t shy away from the refugee crisis modern Europe faces. This aspect is worked quite naturally into the story and serves as a backdrop to Lyra’s adventure as the Magisterium becomes even more totalitarian and expanding into aggressive capitalism
• I liked La Belle Savage ok but I thought this one was much better. That said, the book does a good catching one up on the previous Book of Dust novel and I found myself enjoying the returning characters and locations, especially the pub that Pullman so thoroughly established in the last book. 
• That said, I wasn’t crazy about an aspect to Malcolm’s character. I’m curious as to how it will pay off but it’s just little creepy
• This is a dark novel but it’s mature in its darkness. Some very bad stuff happens in the book but it’s never there for the sake of it. The book is about Lyra as an adult and part of that is being an out-spoken strong woman in a world dominated by men and how that can grind one down. 
• The depiction of Lyra has been controversial, some thinking Pullman used her as a mouthpiece for his thoughts on the state of the world. I think this is bad faith criticism. The plot is partly about Lyra seeing that the world is so much larger and complex than what Jordan has to offer. It makes sense that as a precocious questioning sort, and like anyone at that age in academia, would subscribe to challenging new schools of thought and how this might put a wedge in relationships. I suspect the character arc is Lyra reaching true maturity but we will have to wait and see
• I think there might be one too many subplots but for the most part I enjoyed the espionage and secret societies of the plot. 
• Excellent prose as always. Pullman just has this ability to beautifully craft scenes and suck me in. I’ve been reading this fairly addictively

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault

booklove79's review against another edition

5.0

Following Lyra into adulthood is just as emotional as myself entering adulthood. The struggles faced head on. Lyra's determination but self doubt spurs her onwards.

okevamae's review against another edition

2.0

I've had a couple of weeks to think on this book and I'm downgrading it to 2 stars. This book was a big disappointment and had too much of the unfortunate and unnecessary grossness that is so often included in books about young women that are written by older men. The plot, and the conflict at its heart, are also really uninteresting. The only thing saving this from a 1-star rating is the fact that it was not relentlessly horrible.

allthebeans's review against another edition

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

4.25

nacnudkhan's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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? It's complicated

4.0