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A review by celia_thebookishhufflepuff
The After-Room by Maile Meloy
3.0
I don't know why it's taken me this long to finally get around to finishing these series. I read the first two books like ten years ago, and I think the series was a lot more engaging then. This time around, I found a lot of flaws with the second book, so I didn't have high hopes for [b:The After-Room|24611743|The After-Room (The Apothecary, #3)|Maile Meloy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1448290826l/24611743._SY75_.jpg|44222873].
I felt like [b:The After-Room|24611743|The After-Room (The Apothecary, #3)|Maile Meloy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1448290826l/24611743._SY75_.jpg|44222873] was kind of just a repeat of [b:The Apprentices|16101156|The Apprentices (The Apothecary, #2)|Maile Meloy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1363583039l/16101156._SY75_.jpg|21911457] but with even more bad decisions. The magic has kind of worn off in this one and it just becomes a bunch of people who don't listen to each other and have no idea what each other are doing.
[b:The After-Room|24611743|The After-Room (The Apothecary, #3)|Maile Meloy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1448290826l/24611743._SY75_.jpg|44222873] was a lot more confusing than I remember either of the other two being. It seemed to skip around too much and most of the plot points came out of nowhere. I don't usually have a problem with far-fetchedness in fantasy or magical realism, but somehow [b:The After-Room|24611743|The After-Room (The Apothecary, #3)|Maile Meloy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1448290826l/24611743._SY75_.jpg|44222873] was more annoying. Everything was just sudden, but not in a shocking plot twist kind of way, more in a "really? kind of way.
I did like Jin Lo's story (as always) even though it was really hard to follow too. It seemed like she was doing a lot more of the work that had been going on in the first two books. Maybe if Janie and Benjamin had been more involved in that, it would have been better. As it was, it seemed like the goals weren't aligned. Unfortunately, I didn't like the way her story ended. It was too flat; wrapped up too neatly, and Janie and Benjamin were barely part of it. I do, however, like that she ended up happy.
I will say I did like that Janie and Benjamin are starting to lead a normal life. I liked their friends, and their ending was a good one. The surprise communication from an old friend whose story didn't completely wrap up in the first book was nice too. It's fun to imagine their reunion and all the couples staying together and being happy.
I'm glad I finally finished this series that I've been hoping to finish since middle school. I think I would still recommend it to young adult readers, but I just don't love it any more. I'll be happy to donate or sell the first two books and move on.
I felt like [b:The After-Room|24611743|The After-Room (The Apothecary, #3)|Maile Meloy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1448290826l/24611743._SY75_.jpg|44222873] was kind of just a repeat of [b:The Apprentices|16101156|The Apprentices (The Apothecary, #2)|Maile Meloy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1363583039l/16101156._SY75_.jpg|21911457] but with even more bad decisions. The magic has kind of worn off in this one and it just becomes a bunch of people who don't listen to each other and have no idea what each other are doing.
[b:The After-Room|24611743|The After-Room (The Apothecary, #3)|Maile Meloy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1448290826l/24611743._SY75_.jpg|44222873] was a lot more confusing than I remember either of the other two being. It seemed to skip around too much and most of the plot points came out of nowhere. I don't usually have a problem with far-fetchedness in fantasy or magical realism, but somehow [b:The After-Room|24611743|The After-Room (The Apothecary, #3)|Maile Meloy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1448290826l/24611743._SY75_.jpg|44222873] was more annoying. Everything was just sudden, but not in a shocking plot twist kind of way, more in a "really? kind of way.
I did like Jin Lo's story (as always) even though it was really hard to follow too. It seemed like she was doing a lot more of the work that had been going on in the first two books. Maybe if Janie and Benjamin had been more involved in that, it would have been better. As it was, it seemed like the goals weren't aligned. Unfortunately, I didn't like the way her story ended. It was too flat; wrapped up too neatly, and Janie and Benjamin were barely part of it. I do, however, like that she ended up happy.
I will say I did like that Janie and Benjamin are starting to lead a normal life. I liked their friends, and their ending was a good one. The surprise communication from an old friend whose story didn't completely wrap up in the first book was nice too. It's fun to imagine their reunion and all the couples staying together and being happy.
I'm glad I finally finished this series that I've been hoping to finish since middle school. I think I would still recommend it to young adult readers, but I just don't love it any more. I'll be happy to donate or sell the first two books and move on.