A review by imaginefishes
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

The book starts out in a serious manner you'd think it would be an average (boring) adult book, but remember that it's Neil Gaiman who wrote this book. Via a flashback, the readers are thrown back into the main character's childhood, filled with myths and tales of fantasy. The characters are strong, especially
Ursula Monkton/Skarthatch of the Keep
, who manages to effectively creep and scare and bring high stakes to the main character's story. I found his relationship with
Lettie
to be especially real, vulnerable, and somewhat cute. All in all, I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys soft fantasy worlds where things exist without explanation and strange things happen as though they were normal.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings