Book 7: The Sweet Far Thing

TITLE: The Sweet Far Thing
AUTHOR: Libba Bray
STARTED: February 4, 2008
FINISHED: February 19, 2008
PAGES: 819
GENRE: Juvenile / Fantasy

FIRST SENTENCE: The night was cold and dismal, and out on the Thames, the river men cursed their luck.

SUMMARY: [From barnesandnoble.com] It has been a year of change since Gemma Doyle arrived at the foreboding Spence Academy. Her mother murdered, her father a laudanum addict, Gemma has relied on an unsuspected strength and has discovered an ability to travel to an enchanted world called the realms, where dark magic runs wild. Despite certain peril, Gemma has bound the magic to herself and forged unlikely new alliances. Now, as Gemma approaches her London debut, the time has come to test these bonds.

The Order - the mysterious group her mother was once part of - is grappling for control of the realms, as is the Rakshana. Spence's burned East Wing is being rebuilt, but why now? Gemma and her friends see Pippa, but she is not the same. And their friendship faces its gravest trial as Gemma must decide once and for all what role she is meant for.

THOUGHTS: It was not until the end of this book that I felt the urge to just sit and read for hours. I don't know if I was expecting more or if I was expecting something different. I enjoyed the first two books in this series, but this final entry felt uneven and stuffed with unnecessary characters and plot lines.

What I liked about this book:
1. I enjoyed how Bray paralleled the events in "real life" with what was occurring in the realms. Bray writes Gemma's life as a complete event. The real world is not an area of safety - the realms and reality intertwine.

2. Yeah Kartik! I'm glad he came back and I agree with his fate. I can't say too much without giving the ending away, but it was right. Even if I did see his plot line coming, it was the right thing to do.

3. Pippa being evil = awesome. There was no other way for her character to be an integral part of the book. Also, kudos to Bray for making Pippa evil while managing to keep her a sympathetic character.

What I disliked about this book:
1. Where did this character and/or plot line come from? I found myself saying that A LOT while reading. This book clocks in at over 800 pages. I'm all for long books, but this novel could have lost 300 pages and still be good. In fact, I think it would be better. I think Bray had these characters and/or plots in her head since the inception of the story, but, instead of editing herself where editing was needed, she threw in all her ides in the conclusion to the trilogy.

2. Kartik and Simon should have been in the novel more. They're not only important characters, they were two of the best ones in the series. I kind of wanted to see a scene between the two of them toward the end.

3. The ever present feeling of "Huh?" I felt while reading. As opposed to the first two books, I felt like the writing and plotting in this novel was sloppy. There was a number of times I felt lost and had to re-read pages.

All in all, this was a good ending to what could have been a great juvenile, fantasy series. I think "The Sweet Far Thing" was in desperate need of editing, but the novel was still enjoyable.

RATING: 7/10 [Very Good]