Avatars, Book Three: Kingdom of Twilight [Library Binding]

Tui T. Sutherland (Author)

Book Description

Series: Avatars | Publication Date: January 1, 2020

"Don't die," Gus whispered.

He reached out and touched her hand. Were there superpowers that could bring her back? Would there be gods in Africa that could help them save her?

"I stayed alive when you ordered me to. Now you return the favor, okay? Just . . . whatever you do, don't die."

Ruthlessly stabbed by a fellow avatar, Diana suddenly finds herself hopelessly wandering through the underworlds, fighting her way past everything and anything vile, struggling to find a way back to life.

Up above, her fellow avatars—Gus, Kali, and Tigre—have set sail to Africa, hoping to find refuge and a healer to bring Diana back from death. Time is racing against the avatars, because once Diana reaches the Greek underworld, Hades, she is gone. Forever.

But that problem pales in comparison to the larger issue at hand—only one avatar can take back the power of the gods and live forever.

Beautifully weaving together myth and realism, Tui T. Sutherland delivers the breath­taking conclusion to a trilogy that places the fate of the world in the outcome of a battle between power-hungry pantheons of gods and four teen avatars.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Readers will reward the saga’s ending with a satisfying round of applause.” (Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA) )

“Threading in revelations, dangerous encounters and tongue-in-cheek comments, Sutherland rounds out her leisurely but ultimately engrossing epic in style.” (Kirkus Reviews )

“Sutherland ’s plot is fast paced...the main characters are particularly appealing, and Sutherland continues to incorporate a lively sense of humor into the story. ” (KLIATT (starred review) ) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Tui T. Sutherland is named after a rather noisy New Zealand bird. She loves lost civilizations and postapocalyptic stories, and she has recurring end-of-the-world dreams (perhaps a side effect of being a Buffy fan!). Tui was born in Caracas, Venezuela, and lived all over the world before ending up in Boston, where she now resides with her husband and her dog, whose superpowers include hiding half-chewed things in the couch and woofing at noises no one else can hear. Tui is also the author of the first two books in the Avatars trilogy as well as This Must Be Love.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Library Binding: 352 pages
• Publisher: Eos (January 1, 2020)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060851503
• ISBN-13: 978-0060851507
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars thrilling conclusion to the Avatars series, March 11, 2011

By 

Mairelon - See all my reviews

This review is from: Avatars, Book Three: Kingdom of Twilight (Hardcover)

The final book in the Avatars trilogy picks up right where the previous book ended. Gus, Diana, Kali, and Tigre are sailing to Africa to escape their pantheons. Diana's spirit wanders through various underworlds trying to find a way back to her body. Meanwhile, the other avatars arrive in Africa to find that the African gods have taken over the continent as their own, coexisting with the few remaining humans. Kali and Tigre set off to track down a god who might be able to tell them how to return to their own time, while Gus walks into death to retrieve Diana's spirit. In between chapters are flashbacks to eighteen years ago where each avatar prepares to be reincarnated as a human.
This book introduces yet more gods and pantheons to the ones we've met in the previous books. Diana wanders through many underworlds, including the Chinese, Polynesian, and Sumerian ones, while Kali and Tigre meet Yoruba gods in Africa.
Kingdom of Twilight wraps up most of the various plotlines, but leaves you wondering how the rest of the avatars' lives, especially Kali and Tigre's, will turn out.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, April 16, 2009

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Avatars, Book Three: Kingdom of Twilight (Hardcover)

The world as they knew it began disintegrating the moment they disappeared on December 21, 2012.

Dropped into a post-apocalyptic aftermath eighty-five years ago, Diana, Gus, Kali, and Tigre have banded together to find a way out of this nightmare created by the gods in their quest to make one from their own pantheon the ultimate ruler. Time is against them as they sail to Africa - the only place safely beyond the gods' reach.

Diana's body hovers on the brink of death, while her soul wanders a vast array of underworlds, full of ruthless and cunning deities, as she tries to make her way back to her friends. Consulting African gods leads to divergent courses for the other three avatars. As Gus fights consumption by the war god forced inside his body and enters the underworld to lead Diana out himself, Kali and Gus team up with the goddess Oya to find Eshu - a crossroads god who may solve the riddle of hows and whys of their entire lives.

I wanted to give this book a Gold Star Award. Tui T. Sutherland has created an amazing, detailed, well-researched world that includes pantheons across the globe; fully-developed, relatable, fallible characters who make the reader care; and an engrossing, fast-paced plot that kept me frantically flipping the pages just so I could find out what happened next. (I also give her bonus points for extending her own story far beyond one rooted in Celtic/Greco-Roman/western European mythology and folklore).

As a general rule, books comprising a trilogy should be capable of standing on their own, but also complete whatever story arcs are established in previous volumes. KINGDOM OF TWILIGHT is a superb book when taken as part of the AVATARS trilogy, but having not read the first and second installments, I found myself somewhat lost throughout the reading, especially with references to characters, circumstances, and events not making an appearance in this book.

Taken as a stand-alone story, KINGDOM OF TWILIGHT leaves a little to be desired. My advice is to check out SO THIS IS HOW IT ENDS and SHADOW FALLING first to get the fullest possible enjoyment from this book, because this trio is definitely worth the time.

Reviewed by: Cat