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_cassidyreads_'s review
2.0
I'm quite sad,
While Carmodys' completely awe-inspiring imagination continued to delight me at points in this novel, I felt as if the book was full of insignificant words and sometimes, pages. I did not think the habitat/dome place with the cryogenic sleepers was interesting enough or important enough to warrant 483 pages ( The amount could have easily been cut in half and contain the same amount of VALUABLE content)
I was irritated that Elspeth (Being the intelligent Seeker we all know her to be) often, could not draw conclusions from obvious clues and also seemed to take a long time to ponder things. Whilst her 'gnawing' is a cherished and somewhat vital aspect of her character I felt that it was used as a way to put more words and less content into the story.
I enjoyed Daemons, Swallow and Ana's character development thoroughly, though I thought that Dragons' character development took a backwards twist, I felt that I got more development from Tash (the speci character we met in habitat) than from the Red Queen herself.
The exciting part of the book.....the conclusion also felt drawn out in all the wrong areas! It seems it takes Elspeth forever wandering around looking for Dragon, meeting new people...falling asleep... and doing all sorts of boring things before being catapulted into action, this part ran smoothly and I was intrigued by Carmodys' construction of Sentinal (and machines in general) being conscious and of having feelings.
I felt extremely disgruntled at the conclusion which left me with a sort of empty feeling - partially from the fact that this fantastic series has finished - but also because there was absolutely no reason for Elspeth to leave her friends and home behind!! I found it almost rude that she would be taken to Eden (thinking that she HAD to go) when her being there served no purpose to freeing the beasts, as to it being a gift........WHYYYYYYYY... what exactly made this a gift? Not all of the animals went to Eden and therefore Gahltha and Maruman could have easily stayed behind aswell?
I would have much more enjoyed the prophesy to be 'wrong' or even better!!! : That in order to complete her mission as the seeker Elspeth simply had to 'think' that she would never return (another reason for her to dislike futuretellers!) and if she had to leave, why not make her vital to freeing the beasts? or maybe Ruston was bitten by an animal that had the same disease as Miryum and he thus had to be taken with them to Eden?? I don't know, it simply felt way too long in places that didn't need to be long and then rushed in areas that I was genuinely drawn into.
I can't help but wonder if Elspeth is angry at being taken to Eden in this manner and is cursing Maryon and her prophesies.
I hate that this sounds like a rant because although there are many aspects of this book that bored me and made me feel really really irritated, I do absolutely love Carmodys' stories and endlessly love the world that began with Obernewtyn, but I hope desperately that this isn't the last we see of our characters because I would love to see how the rest of their lives played out!
Do Matthew/Dragon reconcile and maybe even state their feelings to one another??
Dragon in general!! I want to hear more of her time as Queen!!
What does Miryum do after she is cured?
Does Dameon find someone? What does he end up doing? He's my favourite character and I feel as if he was burdened constantly not only by the emotions of others, his own feeling of inadequacy due to his blindness and his passionate unrequited love for Elspeth who leaves and is never to return!? I want him to have a life that he deserves!
Does Lidge recover?
What happens to Brydda?
Does sentinel recover communication with Ines thus making it possible to communicate (haha Skype??) with Dell and the others?
I also want to know Ruston and Elspeths' story, what kind of place do they live in now? Do they have children? Do they learn how to contact their friends via the dream trails more efficiently now that the destroyer no longer seeks them?
What was the reaction of the freed beasts in Eden?
I love this world. I am sad that it feels so incomplete and pray to Lud that there will be a spinoff to satisfy the endless turmoil of questions that we were left with at the end of this series!!!!!
While Carmodys' completely awe-inspiring imagination continued to delight me at points in this novel, I felt as if the book was full of insignificant words and sometimes, pages. I did not think the habitat/dome place with the cryogenic sleepers was interesting enough or important enough to warrant 483 pages ( The amount could have easily been cut in half and contain the same amount of VALUABLE content)
I was irritated that Elspeth (Being the intelligent Seeker we all know her to be) often, could not draw conclusions from obvious clues and also seemed to take a long time to ponder things. Whilst her 'gnawing' is a cherished and somewhat vital aspect of her character I felt that it was used as a way to put more words and less content into the story.
I enjoyed Daemons, Swallow and Ana's character development thoroughly, though I thought that Dragons' character development took a backwards twist, I felt that I got more development from Tash (the speci character we met in habitat) than from the Red Queen herself.
The exciting part of the book.....the conclusion also felt drawn out in all the wrong areas! It seems it takes Elspeth forever wandering around looking for Dragon, meeting new people...falling asleep... and doing all sorts of boring things before being catapulted into action, this part ran smoothly and I was intrigued by Carmodys' construction of Sentinal (and machines in general) being conscious and of having feelings.
I felt extremely disgruntled at the conclusion which left me with a sort of empty feeling - partially from the fact that this fantastic series has finished - but also because there was absolutely no reason for Elspeth to leave her friends and home behind!! I found it almost rude that she would be taken to Eden (thinking that she HAD to go) when her being there served no purpose to freeing the beasts, as to it being a gift........WHYYYYYYYY... what exactly made this a gift? Not all of the animals went to Eden and therefore Gahltha and Maruman could have easily stayed behind aswell?
I would have much more enjoyed the prophesy to be 'wrong' or even better!!! : That in order to complete her mission as the seeker Elspeth simply had to 'think' that she would never return (another reason for her to dislike futuretellers!) and if she had to leave, why not make her vital to freeing the beasts? or maybe Ruston was bitten by an animal that had the same disease as Miryum and he thus had to be taken with them to Eden?? I don't know, it simply felt way too long in places that didn't need to be long and then rushed in areas that I was genuinely drawn into.
I can't help but wonder if Elspeth is angry at being taken to Eden in this manner and is cursing Maryon and her prophesies.
I hate that this sounds like a rant because although there are many aspects of this book that bored me and made me feel really really irritated, I do absolutely love Carmodys' stories and endlessly love the world that began with Obernewtyn, but I hope desperately that this isn't the last we see of our characters because I would love to see how the rest of their lives played out!
Do Matthew/Dragon reconcile and maybe even state their feelings to one another??
Dragon in general!! I want to hear more of her time as Queen!!
What does Miryum do after she is cured?
Does Dameon find someone? What does he end up doing? He's my favourite character and I feel as if he was burdened constantly not only by the emotions of others, his own feeling of inadequacy due to his blindness and his passionate unrequited love for Elspeth who leaves and is never to return!? I want him to have a life that he deserves!
Does Lidge recover?
What happens to Brydda?
Does sentinel recover communication with Ines thus making it possible to communicate (haha Skype??) with Dell and the others?
I also want to know Ruston and Elspeths' story, what kind of place do they live in now? Do they have children? Do they learn how to contact their friends via the dream trails more efficiently now that the destroyer no longer seeks them?
What was the reaction of the freed beasts in Eden?
I love this world. I am sad that it feels so incomplete and pray to Lud that there will be a spinoff to satisfy the endless turmoil of questions that we were left with at the end of this series!!!!!
emz2702's review against another edition
5.0
A great finale to a lovely series. Really liked the pacing of this book, which is important for a 40 hour audiobook
fushmush's review
3.0
*** spoilers ***
3.5 stars
I'm actually a bit sad about finishing this book. For the most part of my life (25 years!) I knew that there were more stories with these characters coming. It's finally over.
The book itself is a bit weak. At the start of this book there was still such a long way for Elspeth to go to finish her quest. I think Carmody (or maybe her publishers) wanted it to finish with this book so Carmody just squeezed it all in. In this novel, we are introduced to Habitat, The Red Land, The Gadfians and the White Faced Lords. There are lengthy explanations on how each of these cultures work. I would find myself glazing over because it was just too much to remember. I think sometimes I just used the skim and absorb method. I know that this was supposed to be the last novel but I really think it should have been spread over two.
It also annoys me when Elspeth, who is supposed to be this amazing, resourceful and clever heroine, is particularly thick about something. I think I guessed it was Lidgebaby causing the block as soon as she encountered it in the Red Land. She's also particularly dense about emotional matters. Her emotional stupidity was then explained away at the end as something her brother had done to her when her parents were killed.
I also feel like there wasn't enough Matthew in this book. Matthew has been missing for so long. It seemed like he and Elspeth hardly spent any time together in this book.
There is also a lot of unnecessary repetition. I can't count how many times we were told that Dragon seemed child like one moment and then almost a woman the next. I think it was mentioned in every scene with Dragon.
So i guess I'm conflicted. Sad because that's the last I'll hear of these characters. Characters who I've known since childhood. Unhappy because I feel like it could have been better. But also happy that it's all wrapped up with a mostly satisfying conclusion.
3.5 stars
I'm actually a bit sad about finishing this book. For the most part of my life (25 years!) I knew that there were more stories with these characters coming. It's finally over.
The book itself is a bit weak. At the start of this book there was still such a long way for Elspeth to go to finish her quest. I think Carmody (or maybe her publishers) wanted it to finish with this book so Carmody just squeezed it all in. In this novel, we are introduced to Habitat, The Red Land, The Gadfians and the White Faced Lords. There are lengthy explanations on how each of these cultures work. I would find myself glazing over because it was just too much to remember. I think sometimes I just used the skim and absorb method. I know that this was supposed to be the last novel but I really think it should have been spread over two.
It also annoys me when Elspeth, who is supposed to be this amazing, resourceful and clever heroine, is particularly thick about something. I think I guessed it was Lidgebaby causing the block as soon as she encountered it in the Red Land. She's also particularly dense about emotional matters. Her emotional stupidity was then explained away at the end as something her brother had done to her when her parents were killed.
I also feel like there wasn't enough Matthew in this book. Matthew has been missing for so long. It seemed like he and Elspeth hardly spent any time together in this book.
There is also a lot of unnecessary repetition. I can't count how many times we were told that Dragon seemed child like one moment and then almost a woman the next. I think it was mentioned in every scene with Dragon.
So i guess I'm conflicted. Sad because that's the last I'll hear of these characters. Characters who I've known since childhood. Unhappy because I feel like it could have been better. But also happy that it's all wrapped up with a mostly satisfying conclusion.
jessillyem's review
2.0
Mightily disappointed, with what was an absolutely unreasonable amount of time to wait. The professionalism on behalf of Isobelle Carmody and penguin publishing company in consideration of this book is deplorable!
Where was the story? There was none. The last three books where not worthy of the first four. I had been looking forward to this so much. I gave the two stars because I still love Elspeth, her character is one of my favourites, and there where two scenes in this book that did make me feel something, out of all of the dribble, and the most pathetic epilogue I've ever read! Why even write one?
(SPOILERS
The scene with daemon on the Glide, had my breath catching, I always wanted him to express his love for Elspeth, i thought he owed it to himself! And the scene at the end where swallow goes to his death willingly and knowingly! And Elspeth who watches horrified, but determined, SPOILERS )
However despite these scenes it didn't leave me feeling satisfied and I think that is what disappointed me the most, about what was such a long wait to the end of a series. The first four books helped me fall in love with reading.
I cried! From disappointment!
Where was the story? There was none. The last three books where not worthy of the first four. I had been looking forward to this so much. I gave the two stars because I still love Elspeth, her character is one of my favourites, and there where two scenes in this book that did make me feel something, out of all of the dribble, and the most pathetic epilogue I've ever read! Why even write one?
(SPOILERS
The scene with daemon on the Glide, had my breath catching, I always wanted him to express his love for Elspeth, i thought he owed it to himself! And the scene at the end where swallow goes to his death willingly and knowingly! And Elspeth who watches horrified, but determined, SPOILERS )
However despite these scenes it didn't leave me feeling satisfied and I think that is what disappointed me the most, about what was such a long wait to the end of a series. The first four books helped me fall in love with reading.
I cried! From disappointment!
jessie_f_s's review
adventurous
hopeful
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? No
4.25
margaret_adams's review
I started reading this Australian YA series when I was twelve and was compelled to finish it when the last book finally came out. Sometimes I regret the page time I give to nostalgia. This is one of those times. Oh well.
ashklaass's review
3.0
Unfortunately the long awaited conclusion is a massive disappointment. Not only because of the typos on every other page, character names muddled and other errors making this look like the unedited copy; but the pace of the story is tediously slow and rather than picking up pace towards the end it just becomes hasty. Plot twists and reveals felt glossed over or perhaps I was so lulled by the first portion of the book I was not properly attending to it. The writing seemed lazy with the same phrases and remarks appearing over and over so as to seem repetetive and unoriginal.
caityree's review
1.0
Thanks, I hated it.
If I never read the word “bade” again after this series, it will be too soon.
Why did I keep going? I kept hoping that it would get better and instead, the things I hated increased. Like the previous ramble, I felt that this whole book needed tighter editing: there were repeated words which distracted from the story, for example, and whole chapters which just felt sloppy.
If I never read the word “bade” again after this series, it will be too soon.
Why did I keep going? I kept hoping that it would get better and instead, the things I hated increased. Like the previous ramble, I felt that this whole book needed tighter editing: there were repeated words which distracted from the story, for example, and whole chapters which just felt sloppy.
lizbethandthelifeinbetween's review
3.0
3.5
Wow, I still don't know what to think! I'm gonna go with 3.5 stars because of all the typos. Most weren't horrible, but a few had me re-reading phrases. And this is so long! I still don't know whether I'm happy or not about that because it was slightly annoying while I read it but at the same time I was dreading the end of the book yet I just wanted to know what happens.
The book did a great job wrapping up all the loose ends from the series prior, but it also did an amazing job at leaving me with more questions. Now I just want a novella about what happens in Eden and another series on Dragon's rule over the Redlands (a nice long one please, maybe 'till the end of her days?). And a novella on what happens to Myrium (though I guess that could be cover in the series on Dragon's rule) and also I want to know if they ever use the beforetime computermachines to build communications between all the lands, and I also want to know where the white-faced lords came from in relation to the Redlands and such.This is what happens when I'm left with an open ending... At least mostly everyone seemed happy enough or at least they got enough closure for whatever they wanted.
This book did Dragon justice though, and that I'm thankful for. She has always been my favourite character and the one I sympathized the most with.
The ending got me and I feel like it was a bit dramatic and unnecessary for. Sure, it was a reward, but I think she should have and could have stayed.
I believe that's it.
Wow, I still don't know what to think! I'm gonna go with 3.5 stars because of all the typos. Most weren't horrible, but a few had me re-reading phrases. And this is so long! I still don't know whether I'm happy or not about that because it was slightly annoying while I read it but at the same time I was dreading the end of the book yet I just wanted to know what happens.
The book did a great job wrapping up all the loose ends from the series prior, but it also did an amazing job at leaving me with more questions. Now I just want a novella about what happens in Eden and another series on Dragon's rule over the Redlands (a nice long one please, maybe 'till the end of her days?). And a novella on what happens to Myrium (though I guess that could be cover in the series on Dragon's rule) and also I want to know if they ever use the beforetime computermachines to build communications between all the lands, and I also want to know where the white-faced lords came from in relation to the Redlands and such.
This book did Dragon justice though, and that I'm thankful for. She has always been my favourite character and the one I sympathized the most with.
The ending got me and I feel like it was a bit dramatic and unnecessary for
Spoiler
Elspeth not to be able to ever come backI believe that's it.