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tiffym's review against another edition
3.0
I was actually disappointed. After the awesome action-packed adventures of the first three books, I was expecting another. Even though the supporting characters have changed, they seem like a replica of the crew in the previous books. Peter's interactions with his old friends are simply awkward because time has aged them and he remain the same. Yet, the new friends seem like strangers throughout the story. It didn't feel like an adventure to me. It was more like Peter running an errand, which happened to ask him to risk his life. The humor and flair of the previous books is lost in this one. Still, it was a good leisure read. There's just nothing special or exciting about it.
jewellspring's review against another edition
3.0
Finally! This was a read-aloud for the 12yo and it took us forever! Over 500 pages! A decent enough adventure story, written by the man known for his wit and descriptions. But not gripping. It went on and on and on. A fair summer distraction and the 12yo has enjoyed the series. Glad it's over, though, and I'll think twice before volunteering to read aloud something similar again. Part of the reason it took us so long is because while the 12yo would ask for it when he remembered, it wasn't as if we were left gripped with wondering what would happen next. Sometimes an entire week would go by before we picked it up again.
rosiecotton_dancing's review against another edition
2.0
I think the main problem that I have with #4 is this: Peter's back story is fully revealed now. This is hardly a prequel. 'Sword of Mercy' lacks those 'OH!' moments, in which you are delightedly piecing together Peter Pan's life as it relates to J.M. Barrie's play.
Instead we're left slogging through a 'meh' plot involving boring locations and recycled villains. I mean, really? How the heck did Ombra survive AGAIN? And where did the Skeleton come from? Where do his horrible powers come from?
The second thing that bothered me about this book was its lack of emotion. Peter and his old pals haven't seen each other for over 20 YEARS. You'd think there'd be a beautiful, happy reunion, but no. Peter exchanges a few flat words with James and Ted each, and that's it.
And Molly. What happened to Molly? She completely ignored Peter after he'd rescued her! There were no bittersweet recollections, and, on Peter's part, no sad reflections on the fact that she's grown up and left him a child.
All in all, the definite weak link of the series. I really enjoyed the first three, though, and will probably read them again in the near future.
Instead we're left slogging through a 'meh' plot involving boring locations and recycled villains. I mean, really? How the heck did Ombra survive AGAIN? And where did the Skeleton come from? Where do his horrible powers come from?
The second thing that bothered me about this book was its lack of emotion. Peter and his old pals haven't seen each other for over 20 YEARS. You'd think there'd be a beautiful, happy reunion, but no. Peter exchanges a few flat words with James and Ted each, and that's it.
And Molly. What happened to Molly? She completely ignored Peter after he'd rescued her! There were no bittersweet recollections, and, on Peter's part, no sad reflections on the fact that she's grown up and left him a child.
All in all, the definite weak link of the series. I really enjoyed the first three, though, and will probably read them again in the near future.
shaekin's review against another edition
2.0
I was about halfway through this book when I realized I wasn't enjoying it. It's the same problem all the other books have had. It's far longer than it needs to be, it takes forever for anything to happen, and the characters aren't interesting. If this book was a third of the size I would probably love it. As it is, I'm just not willing to keep picking it up.
blainembentley's review against another edition
3.0
Another fun adventure with Peter. It was a quick and an enjoyable read. Though as these books continue to progress, I feel we get further and further away from the Peter Pan story/lore.
This book takes place 20 years after the previous books. I felt that this time skip for some non-neverland characters was very inconsistent. There was one character that it felt like it was more of a 40 year time jump. I had a hard time believing that this character was only 20 years older, but it felt like they made the character older because of plot reasons. I also had a hard time imagining that where the Starcatcher organization went in the 20 years wasn’t very realistic either.
The other thing that I struggled with in this book was that I felt it undermined the original Peter Pan story. These books feel like they serve as a Peter Pan prequel story, telling the story of how Peter Pan and Neverland came to be. However, after reading this book I cannot see how the Peter Pan story could have taken place prior to this book, and would guess it takes place after the end of the book. But on that note, there are things in this book that feel like they undermined the original story.
I did really enjoy what they did historically with this book. There were times when I would look things up on the internet (facts or things they listed that I didn’t know) and found out to be true. It was really fun to see how they took history and historical artifacts and tied them into their story. Overall this series has been a fun read, but a read geared towards a younger audience.
martialia's review against another edition
5.0
This series is hands down one of my favorite read-alouds. These two authors work fabulously together to take a classic and familiar story and make it something special. There is non-stop adventure, with inventive and loyal children leading the way right to the end of each story. I'm so sad that this is it for the Starcatchers as I know them...the next book goes modern day...but am so pleased this book came about after fans talked Barry and Ridley into another! Brilliant work!
captainatl's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
3.75
nesskempton's review against another edition
3.0
It completely surprised me when I saw this book in the store. The way they left off the third book, it seemed as if there would be no more additions. Silly me. However, excited as I was, it was not as enjoyable as I would have liked. A bit predictable, though still original, I think it could have used a bit more tweaking. I did like that this story was about Peter and Wendy though, and the ending does leave you wanting more. Rather enjoyable but not thrilling.