Reviews

Never and Forever by Cressida Cowell

abergland7's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted 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

ticha_bugalho's review against another edition

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4.5

 This series earns an extra star solely for David Tennant's exceptional narration. With a multitude of voices, songs, and emotions, Tennant's performance truly shines, showcasing the artistry of proper audiobook narration. The story and characters are so engaging that I'll miss them now that the series is done. It´s a sweet, entertaining, funny and exciting tale; although the ending and epilogue left me with mixed feelings. Nonetheless, it's undeniably creative. 

foundinthebookaisle's review against another edition

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adventurous fast-paced

3.75

timberwolf's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

dinnureads's review against another edition

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4.0

This book got my hands dirty as it has dark drawings that remind newpapers... Reading a few pages was quite the work without getting hands grey...

sindri_inn_arsaeli's review

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4.0

Still in love, but this has been the very first Cressida Cowell book that I have been a little disappointed with. The climax built up so big and so successful, I was actually a little let down by the end. It dragged out a little longer than some of her others, trying to wrap up and yet extend so many stories being told in one series. And the link to future stories felt sudden and a little strained. This does not mean that I didn't still thoroughly enjoy the book, and I will absolutely still continue to buy up anything Ms Cowell writes, but it probably could have been about 30 pages shorter and would have had a tighter and more solid ending.

myleejmiller's review

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adventurous funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

In the final installment of The Wizards of Once quadrilogy, Never And Forever follows Xar and Wish as they go on one last adventure in order to destroy the Kingwitch and the Droods who have aligned with him. Trained by Perdita and attempting to infiltrate the Mine of Happiness, they will face their deepest fears to succeed: whether that be a witch-stain or a lack of control over some magnificent power.

I was excited to get into the final book of The Wizards Of Once by Cressida Cowell after reading the fourth. However, I will admit, the novel was less exciting than I expected based on its predecessor. There were some good bits, and those are what I will start with noting, but I found the fantastic pieces too evenly matched with the lower spectrum-writing to give it more than three stars.

The first thing I will say is that Cressida Cowell is a phenomenal author in terms of word-choice. She has a distinct, eloquent voice and any reader could easily tell when they picked up one of her books by writing style alone. She is phenomenal at creating unique worlds and unique plots. Too often, we see vampires or mermaids or elven versus human rivalries in everyday fiction, but the Wizards VS Warriors conflict is an original twist on the mundane. Other things I enjoyed thoroughly in this story was how easy it is to read the book. Where Cowell's words flow, readers will want to follow.

As for the things I disliked about the novel, I would start with the finale. I don't mean the climax, but rather the denouement. It went on for a long time after the climax happened (approx. 60 pages) to the point that I found myself rolling my eyes. The moral themes of the story were also explicitly stated throughout the end of the narrative, which left much less room for reader interpretation. I found that the transition from this story into hints of another were crudely done and it made the original premise of The Wizards Of Once feel much less original. There were other things, as well, but this list stood out most to me.

Overall, this book is a three-star for my overall experience.

auscaz's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

combiyu's review

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad 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

jenlouisegallant's review against another edition

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4.0

The spoon was my favourite character throughout the entire series.