An absolute gem! I adore this series. And I honestly think I like listening to it better than reading it. Valente's imagination combined with her voice and personality in the audio version can't be beat. This final book in the series was as enjoyable as the first and brings the series to a satisfactory conclusion.
Tag - Young Adult Fantasy
The third book, The Eye of Zoltar, turned out to be another fun listen on the daily commute. This is not quite as good as the first two but I have enjoyed this series. This one ended on quite the cliffhanger so I guess we wait for the next book.
I enjoyed finishing up this series via audio book. I thought Ness really wrestled with some interesting aspects; ideas like the tension between the quest for peace and the requirements of leadership and self-defense; and issues of trust and betrayal (and the related issue of whether people can truly change).
I am not a big fan of dystopian fiction, and I still found some of the writing over the top and disjointed, but I enjoyed the suspense and ambiguity more in this second volume; even as Mayor/President Prentiss seems to turn even darker and more maniacal. I am not a big fan of dystopian fiction, and I still found some of the writing over the top and disjointed, but I enjoyed the suspense and ambiguity more in this volume; even as Mayor/President Prentiss seems to turn even darker and more...
Wherein I start exploring this very popular series via audio book, wrestle with the accents, language and style, but ultimately persevere and like it enough to stick with the series. I found enough world building, creativity and interesting characters to keep going.
Overall, the series was interesting but in the end just not my genre or style. I thought the plot dragged quite a bit in places. It really only seemed to pick up some pace and drive in the final fourth of the book. Then I felt like things were coming together and the resolution was satisfying even if a little corny.
I really enjoyed listening to this second book in the car. A creative, witty, and fun series. Can't wait to listen to or read the third book.
It wasn't laugh out loud funny, at least to me, but it was witty and droll. With a number of interesting characters this first in a series was entertaining enough to make me want to continue on to book number two.
It wasn't laugh out loud funny, at least to me, but it was witty and droll. With a number of interesting characters this first in a series was entertaining enough to make me want to continue on to book number two.
