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4.1 AVERAGE
4.1 AVERAGE
I’m very happy with the final installment in this series. Perfection.
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
slow-paced
Not quite the triumphant return to form I'd hoped for, but miles ahead of the second book.
I don't care a lick about Penny, Shepherd, or Agatha, and frankly, neither does the story. For the amount of screen time they're given, there's nothing in their arcs that's of consequence and I was bored making my way through them to whatever Simon and Baz were up to.
Penny spends the entire time helping Shepherd get rid of his curse and developing a romance, and at the end you're like, "Ok, but why did that matter?". It didn't. We're given this plotline as if we're invested in Penny and Shepherd as strongly as Simon and Baz, but I doubt anyone is.
Agatha is also developing a romance and "saving" some goats. We're told how important these goats are, but it in no way plays into the climax of the story. Apparently normals can see the school near the end, so that could be because of the goats, but it's also suggested that it's due to the primary antagonist? And we see that Agatha is becoming the new groundskeeper, but why does it matter? She even admits that she is unsure if she's friends with Simon and Baz anymore, so why is she being given all of this spotlight?
Touching back on the primary antagonist, the new chosen one is SUCH a weak villain. His plan ends up being filled with loads of gaps, the primary one being: EVERYONE WILL KNOW HE'S NOT THE CHOSEN ONE ONCE IT'S REALIZED HIS SPELL DOESN'T WORK LIKE HE'S ADVERTISING. His explanation is literally, "by then, it will be too late." How? Surely all the OTHER people he hasn't made use up their magic would nullify him immediately. You know, all of the strong magicians he's leaving untouched? It would've been more insidious if he were siphoning their power, but the most insidious thing he does is have a mute girl bound in a basement.
What does work is that we finally have some development in Simon and Baz's relationship, and we FINALLY see teenage boys acting with each other like normal teenage boys would. There's romance, and there's fear of that romance (apparently all the feelings in the first book had to be mitigated to create a conflict for the second, all so they could be mended in the third, but I digress). Their relationship feels real, and it's a welcome change from Wayward Son.
That said, Rainbow Rowell really seems to be grasping at straws attempting to continue this series. Instead of having all of these diverging narratives with plots that are boring, inconsequential, and don't contribute to the overall narrative, focus on developing a solid central plotline and have the ensemble resume their previous roles: being necessary physical and emotional support for Simon and Baz.
I don't care a lick about Penny, Shepherd, or Agatha, and frankly, neither does the story. For the amount of screen time they're given, there's nothing in their arcs that's of consequence and I was bored making my way through them to whatever Simon and Baz were up to.
Penny spends the entire time helping Shepherd get rid of his curse and developing a romance, and at the end you're like, "Ok, but why did that matter?". It didn't. We're given this plotline as if we're invested in Penny and Shepherd as strongly as Simon and Baz, but I doubt anyone is.
Agatha is also developing a romance and "saving" some goats. We're told how important these goats are, but it in no way plays into the climax of the story. Apparently normals can see the school near the end, so that could be because of the goats, but it's also suggested that it's due to the primary antagonist? And we see that Agatha is becoming the new groundskeeper, but why does it matter? She even admits that she is unsure if she's friends with Simon and Baz anymore, so why is she being given all of this spotlight?
Touching back on the primary antagonist, the new chosen one is SUCH a weak villain. His plan ends up being filled with loads of gaps, the primary one being: EVERYONE WILL KNOW HE'S NOT THE CHOSEN ONE ONCE IT'S REALIZED HIS SPELL DOESN'T WORK LIKE HE'S ADVERTISING. His explanation is literally, "by then, it will be too late." How? Surely all the OTHER people he hasn't made use up their magic would nullify him immediately. You know, all of the strong magicians he's leaving untouched? It would've been more insidious if he were siphoning their power, but the most insidious thing he does is have a mute girl bound in a basement.
What does work is that we finally have some development in Simon and Baz's relationship, and we FINALLY see teenage boys acting with each other like normal teenage boys would. There's romance, and there's fear of that romance (apparently all the feelings in the first book had to be mitigated to create a conflict for the second, all so they could be mended in the third, but I digress). Their relationship feels real, and it's a welcome change from Wayward Son.
That said, Rainbow Rowell really seems to be grasping at straws attempting to continue this series. Instead of having all of these diverging narratives with plots that are boring, inconsequential, and don't contribute to the overall narrative, focus on developing a solid central plotline and have the ensemble resume their previous roles: being necessary physical and emotional support for Simon and Baz.
four stars almost exclusively for relationship + character development and snowbaz fluff
this was kinda a clusterf*ck but not that awful, still there are some things about this book that bother me. some even have nothing to do with the book, but are related to me, as a reader.
I want to start positive. Here are the things that I liked:
1. Demon engagement subplot - funny
2. Agatha wasnt (that) annoying.
3. Could relate to a main character again
Things that really dont butter my bread:
1.Im not the targeted demographic anymore, im old - i firstly read Carry On when I was around 15 (i think) and reading 3rd Simon book is a quite different experience as a 20 year old.
2. Im kinda bothered that every main character got a GF/BF by the end of the book, like the one with Penny felt unnecessary and the one with Aghatha didnt make sense at all. Lemme not get started on Simon and Baz drama
3. The weird family plot twist at the end that didnt even have sence?? Like I see the potential but the execution was ????
4. Wtf is that One Year Later "chapter"?
This book feels like it really need some more polish.
I want to start positive. Here are the things that I liked:
1. Demon engagement subplot - funny
2. Agatha wasnt (that) annoying.
3. Could relate to a main character again
Things that really dont butter my bread:
1.Im not the targeted demographic anymore, im old - i firstly read Carry On when I was around 15 (i think) and reading 3rd Simon book is a quite different experience as a 20 year old.
2. Im kinda bothered that every main character got a GF/BF by the end of the book, like the one with Penny felt unnecessary and the one with Aghatha didnt make sense at all. Lemme not get started on Simon and Baz drama
3. The weird family plot twist at the end that didnt even have sence?? Like I see the potential but the execution was ????
4. Wtf is that One Year Later "chapter"?
This book feels like it really need some more polish.
More thoughts to follow once I've processed this a bit but for now: I think this is my favourite book in the trilogy.
Rereading this was so interesting! I don't think it's my favourite of the trilogy at all (obviously Carry On is superior on all ends) but I do see why that was my initial feeling.
Reading this while being in a relationship felt really different from reading this over two years ago. A lot of the scenes with Simon and Baz figuring their shit out hit me so much harder but then I also felt like I could see myself so much more in the soft scenes (like I understand them in a different way somehow). It felt really personal to read in a lot of ways (also the mental health issues on all ends obviously).
I love the concept of this book, of having an entire book dedicated to these characters working through their issues and their traumas and just getting so much space for all their feelings. I also really love how it challenges the characters in such clever ways with their individual difficulties and issues (like confronting Simon with his whole Chosen One past, confronting Baz with his villain past and which of his actions he's truly responsible for, confronting Penny with her relationship to magic and her arrogance).
This book just reads so much like a fanfic. Obviously that's kind of the deal with the entire trilogy but this one feels like a fanfic of the other two and I didn't like that in some parts. I felt like the characters were quite different to before a lot of the time (especially Simon) and so they felt a bit out of character to me.
While I like that Penny and Simon had their own storylines and especially that Penny got a storyline completely of her own, I do wish there had been a bit more on their friendship. So much of this book is about Simon and Baz working through their relationship, I feel like Penny and Simon fell a bit short in comparison.
I'm also always conflicted about Agatha. Obviously a huge win for the lesbians (I will gladly claim her) but I do also wish she had been asexual because everything from the first two books suggested that. But her and Niamh are just such a good match. And I really really love Agatha finding her way back to magic and that she ends up as the new goatherd!
While I do like that Simon finally found out about his parentage and found his family (and I love the storyline with the sword!), it was a bit rushed at the end. I would have liked for him to find out sooner so he could have worked through his feelings a bit more.
Some things about this book that bothered me:
- it should not have taken place in a week??
- some of it felt too constructed, like the whole Pippa storyline
- also really didn't care for Fiona and Nico
- I just really, really dislike the word "cock"
Some other things I loved:
- Simon and his wings and his tail
- Simon finding his family and finding out about the Mage
- Agatha and the goats
- Shepard being engaged to a demon (Shepard was just hilarious to me in this entire book)
- everything about Ruth Salisbury
Anyway, gonna go read Rebel Rebel/Golden Years now, the official other two parts of the Carry On trilogy.
Rereading this was so interesting! I don't think it's my favourite of the trilogy at all (obviously Carry On is superior on all ends) but I do see why that was my initial feeling.
Reading this while being in a relationship felt really different from reading this over two years ago. A lot of the scenes with Simon and Baz figuring their shit out hit me so much harder but then I also felt like I could see myself so much more in the soft scenes (like I understand them in a different way somehow). It felt really personal to read in a lot of ways (also the mental health issues on all ends obviously).
I love the concept of this book, of having an entire book dedicated to these characters working through their issues and their traumas and just getting so much space for all their feelings. I also really love how it challenges the characters in such clever ways with their individual difficulties and issues (like confronting Simon with his whole Chosen One past, confronting Baz with his villain past and which of his actions he's truly responsible for, confronting Penny with her relationship to magic and her arrogance).
This book just reads so much like a fanfic. Obviously that's kind of the deal with the entire trilogy but this one feels like a fanfic of the other two and I didn't like that in some parts. I felt like the characters were quite different to before a lot of the time (especially Simon) and so they felt a bit out of character to me.
While I like that Penny and Simon had their own storylines and especially that Penny got a storyline completely of her own, I do wish there had been a bit more on their friendship. So much of this book is about Simon and Baz working through their relationship, I feel like Penny and Simon fell a bit short in comparison.
I'm also always conflicted about Agatha. Obviously a huge win for the lesbians (I will gladly claim her) but I do also wish she had been asexual because everything from the first two books suggested that. But her and Niamh are just such a good match. And I really really love Agatha finding her way back to magic and that she ends up as the new goatherd!
While I do like that Simon finally found out about his parentage and found his family (and I love the storyline with the sword!), it was a bit rushed at the end. I would have liked for him to find out sooner so he could have worked through his feelings a bit more.
Some things about this book that bothered me:
- it should not have taken place in a week??
- some of it felt too constructed, like the whole Pippa storyline
- also really didn't care for Fiona and Nico
- I just really, really dislike the word "cock"
Some other things I loved:
- Simon and his wings and his tail
- Simon finding his family and finding out about the Mage
- Agatha and the goats
- Shepard being engaged to a demon (Shepard was just hilarious to me in this entire book)
- everything about Ruth Salisbury
Anyway, gonna go read Rebel Rebel/Golden Years now, the official other two parts of the Carry On trilogy.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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
challenging
funny
slow-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
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
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
I think this book was going to have a completely different plot but I am so glad this is what happened instead. Let it be known that I am a sucker for romance and light plot.