Helpful Score: 5
A great ending to the trilogy. This story is magical and not all happiness and sunshine- great drama. I loved it.
Helpful Score: 4
I HIGHLY recommend this entire series (His Dark Materials), although I like the first and third more than the second. They are set in such well-thought-out, intriguing worlds, and I love Pullman's writing style. His plot lines and characters are as phenomenal and well-thought-out as his settings. Lyra is quite possibly my FAVORITE fictional character, which is saying a lot.
Barbara A. (barbwired) reviewed The Amber Spyglass (His Dark Materials, Bk 3) on + 130 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
The Amber Spyglass brings the intrigue of The Golden Compass and The Subtle Knife to a heart-stopping end, marking the final volume of His Dark Materials as the most powerful of the trilogy.
Along with the return of Lyra and other familiar characters from the first two books come a host of new characters: the Mulefa, mysterious wheeled creatures with the power to see Dust; Gallivespian Lord Roke, a hand-high spymaster to Lord Asriel; and Metatron, a fierce and mighty angel. So too come startling revelations: the painful price Lyra must pay to walk through the land of the dead, the haunting power of Dr. Malone's amber spyglass, and the names of who will liveand who will diefor love. And all the while, war rages with the Kingdom of Heaven, a brutal battle thatin its shocking outcomewill uncover the secret of Dust.
Philip Pullman deftly brings the cliffhangers and mysteries of His Dark Materials to an earth-shattering conclusion and confirms his fantasy trilogy as an undoubted and enduring classic.
Along with the return of Lyra and other familiar characters from the first two books come a host of new characters: the Mulefa, mysterious wheeled creatures with the power to see Dust; Gallivespian Lord Roke, a hand-high spymaster to Lord Asriel; and Metatron, a fierce and mighty angel. So too come startling revelations: the painful price Lyra must pay to walk through the land of the dead, the haunting power of Dr. Malone's amber spyglass, and the names of who will liveand who will diefor love. And all the while, war rages with the Kingdom of Heaven, a brutal battle thatin its shocking outcomewill uncover the secret of Dust.
Philip Pullman deftly brings the cliffhangers and mysteries of His Dark Materials to an earth-shattering conclusion and confirms his fantasy trilogy as an undoubted and enduring classic.
Cherie (CheriePie) reviewed The Amber Spyglass (His Dark Materials, Bk 3) on + 149 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
I liked it, though not quite as much as the second book in the trilogy, The Subtle Knife, which was my favorite of the three.
The Amber Spyglass picked up right where The Subtle Knife left off, and having been a couple months since I read that, and 15 other books in between, I kind of forgot some of the finer points of the previous story. I kind of wish I'd had that copy handy for a quick refresher before starting on this one. I was able to get back up to speed quickly enough, but there were still some references to previous minor events that happened, and I found myself having to work back through memory or hoping that they'd expand if it was really important to the story. An example that kept being referred to is how Will was arguing with his father at the time he died in book 2. Well, unfortunately, I couldn't recall the circumstances surrounding Will's father's death clearly enough in my head to know if what they were arguing about at the time was significant to the story, and I didn't even know how he'd died until that detail was eluded to in a later conversation.
I don't think this was as much of an issue between the first and second books because more of the minor plots and events were wrapped up before the end, while of course the big plot that spans the entire trilogy is left open... but you don't usually forget the major plotline anyway, just some of the details of the minor ones.
So I always like to give an objective statement or review about the book as well as my opinions on it. And that said, I thought the entire trilogy overall was very good and well written. Though I was both pleased and disappointed in the way everything was resolved. How can that be?
WARNING! SPOILER ALERT.
You must highlight the text below in order to read it.
Well, I didn't like that Lord Asriel died, and I didn't like that Lyra and Will couldn't be together after all they'd went through. I guess both those points added a note of sadness to the ending. Of course, all the events that had transpired thus far lead up to the final resolution, and I enjoyed seeing the way everything fit together nicely.
The Amber Spyglass picked up right where The Subtle Knife left off, and having been a couple months since I read that, and 15 other books in between, I kind of forgot some of the finer points of the previous story. I kind of wish I'd had that copy handy for a quick refresher before starting on this one. I was able to get back up to speed quickly enough, but there were still some references to previous minor events that happened, and I found myself having to work back through memory or hoping that they'd expand if it was really important to the story. An example that kept being referred to is how Will was arguing with his father at the time he died in book 2. Well, unfortunately, I couldn't recall the circumstances surrounding Will's father's death clearly enough in my head to know if what they were arguing about at the time was significant to the story, and I didn't even know how he'd died until that detail was eluded to in a later conversation.
I don't think this was as much of an issue between the first and second books because more of the minor plots and events were wrapped up before the end, while of course the big plot that spans the entire trilogy is left open... but you don't usually forget the major plotline anyway, just some of the details of the minor ones.
So I always like to give an objective statement or review about the book as well as my opinions on it. And that said, I thought the entire trilogy overall was very good and well written. Though I was both pleased and disappointed in the way everything was resolved. How can that be?
WARNING! SPOILER ALERT.
You must highlight the text below in order to read it.
Well, I didn't like that Lord Asriel died, and I didn't like that Lyra and Will couldn't be together after all they'd went through. I guess both those points added a note of sadness to the ending. Of course, all the events that had transpired thus far lead up to the final resolution, and I enjoyed seeing the way everything fit together nicely.
Helpful Score: 2
This brings the His Dark Materials trilogy to a grand and emotional conclusion. I loved it, and couldn't get it out of my head!
