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A review by apollo0325
Empty Smiles by Katherine Arden
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
A really lukewarm and rushed end to what started as a really stellar horror middle grade series. I would still definitely recommend it to middle grade readers especially if they enjoy the frights and horrors of Goosebumps or other horror series.
I had really high hopes for this final volume since the last one felt the most rushed and especially with the cliffhanger ending. I don't think we spent enough time with Coco and especially Brian as well as Phil, who felt really underdeveloped over all (why was he constantly comparing himself to Ollie??). We spend most of the novel with the kids constantly talking about their fear of the Smiling Man and hope for Ollie as well as them trying to convince their parents for the "final confrontation" to be resolved in two chapters? That's insane to me. Out of the entire series, this one was the most rushed and this series could have capped at 3 books rather than 4. We don't even get a resolution on the dolled people nor Ruth and Tim.
I still enjoyed the writing and overall horror elements, but I wish there had been more development of the plot and characters and less of a rushed ending.
I had really high hopes for this final volume since the last one felt the most rushed and especially with the cliffhanger ending. I don't think we spent enough time with Coco and especially Brian as well as Phil, who felt really underdeveloped over all (why was he constantly comparing himself to Ollie??).
I still enjoyed the writing and overall horror elements, but I wish there had been more development of the plot and characters and less of a rushed ending.