I finished this book yesterday and don't feel like I have a lot to say about it, which is weird. I think part of my issue is that this really just felt like the second half of a book as opposed to a book on its own. The second volume in this series, Lirael, ended abruptly, and I feel like the reader would've been better served for some of Lirael to be cut and the rest to be merged into this volume. There may be some spoilers for the previous books in here.
But this is a review of Abhorsen, book 3, not of Lirael or of the whole series. As such, I did enjoy this book. That is not surprising -- most of the action and conflict was packed into the second half of this story, or in other words, into this volume. So the pacing was fast, there was lots of action and danger, there were some clever endings to confrontations, etc. I think that is why I finished it in about two days, despite it being the middle of the week and me having to go to work and such. Finishing a book that quickly is a good sign for me; it indicates the book kept my interest pretty much all the way through.
If you are new to this series, go back and start with Sabriel, the first book. It introduces you to the world of the Old Kingdom and some of the magic system. And then even though I feel book 2 is a bit weaker, you'll need it because the plot of this book is set up there. At that point, you'll be familiar with the world, the creatures, the characters, etc. They don't really change. There are aspects of this book that you've seen in other volumes (some of the types of Dead creatures, people leaving their bodies and traveling into Death to accomplish a goal, etc.). One could argue they're repetitive, but I feel that the surrounding circumstances are different enough, and the magical system of this world is set up such that you couldn't really do something new and different to get out of a difficult situation. The tactics have been set. It would be worse if the author started introducing completely new concepts that didn't have support in the previous books. (There was a new ability, that of "Remembrancer," set up in book two, but I felt that was a logical extension of the abilities of the Abhorsens and Clayr, and just the sort of thing that might pop up were those two bloodlines to cross.)
For reference, these are YA books. That doesn't bother me; good YA writing should stand on its own (that is, being YA is not an excuse for being simplistic or bad) and I do read some YA fiction on occasion. So yes, the primary characters are young (about 17-19 in age) and they are still learning and finding their places in the world. I feel that Prince Sameth and Lirael are decent proxies for the reader; Sameth has spent a good part of his youth at school outside of the Old Kingdom, so there are a few things he doesn't know, while Lirael has been boxed up in the Clayr glacier, not fully included in the Clayr life because of her inability to See. (There are also a few scenes with Nick, Sameth's school friend, who is from across the Wall and who has never been to the Old Kingdom before and who doesn't believe in magic, etc., and I think the author writes from his perspective quite well). In other words, you don't get characters who should know something like the back of their hands explaining it via internal monologue. I actually feel like there was very little unnecessary description and explanation here.
I don't know that there was a ton of character development (I actually thought there was much more of that in Lirael) but character development is hard to carry through when you've been with the same folks for more than a book or two. Writing is much the same as in previous books, but it *seems* better because there is less focus on whiny teenagers here since the situation is dire for most of the book.
In the end, if you have read the series up to this point, definitely see it through. I feel that this is an improvement on book 2 although not quite as good as book 1. I have continued on with book 4 in the series already!
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A wonderful conclusion to the series! If you have not yet read Sabriel and Lirael, purchase those too and read them first for a full helping of this gigantic adventure.
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Fettler
It just gets better and better as the breadth of the story and depth of the characters develop.
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A good end to a great story.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 25, 2019StevenJ
An excellent conclusion to an excellent series
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 8, 2014emolga
... me to read these because she said they were good and I have read them all
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Three read at once
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