aprildiamond's reviews
144 reviews

First off, I totally love time-skip sequels like this one. I love there being an extended break and then coming back to see the same characters and how they've grown and changed. It automatically gives the work more hype. So I really enjoyed this finale.

What I loved:
Tai. Honestly, I was worried when I read in the synopsis that there was going to be a new character added to the society because I didn't want the dynamic we all know and love to be messed up. But I didn't have to worry. Tai was honestly the CUTEST. Yeah that's it, basically just Tai is really cute and great.

The emotional depth. This book hit really hard emotionally. As someone who grew up with series like this one, reading this last book years later when the characters are also older made it easy to relate. The fear of things changing and losing something great is very real. And I think that it impacted the characters well and they all dealt with it in ways that were also on-brand with their characters (like Kate refusing to be sad, for example.) The part where they were all basically yelling at each other because of underlying tensions was also pretty funny but acted as a good emotional climax.

Random things I enjoyed for no reason:
Kate's first scene
The fact that Tai showed up and Kate and Reynie were literal parents/good at dealing with kids and Sticky and Constance were like "what is this thing idk what to do"
When Crawlings was like "wow george got handsome but don't worry reynie we can't all be models" I DIED why did he have to do him like that LMAO
Kate's struggle to drive the speed limit
THE TEA when Constance said

that everyone in the group had liked someone else at some point

I always seem to pick a favorite scene so I'm just gonna make it an official thing.
Golden Scene:
This time, I would have to give it to the street fair scene when Kate fights the Ten Men. Motorcycle tricks plus collapsing an ice cream truck are too good to ignore. Honorable mention to the scene in Mr. Curtain's security suite and also the one where Constance and Kate have to deal with the Ten Men (again).

The one thing:
I really did like this book. But I kinda felt like something was missing. Maybe it was the fact that the setting was the same as in the first book (not completely, but enough that it didn't feel fully original.) Maybe the stakes needed to be higher. Not totally sure what it was, but I think it needed more hype overall. Like I said earlier, since this was a time-skip book, it already was hype, but you can't rely on only that aspect. The plot has to add to it too. It's kind of hard to describe, but basically I never felt the level of excitement that I did for the second book in the series.

The best way I can put it is that this SHOULD have felt like when you go to the theater and see a trailer for a movie sequel that you were excited for, but weren't expecting to see right then. That type of "OH MY GOD WHAT this is going to be amazing." Unfortunately this book didn't quite get there.

4/5 overall!

Between the betrayals, faked deaths, and second-hand embarrassment, this installment gets so wild and it's great.

I was originally thinking this was more of a 4.5 stars but then a scene actually made me cry so here we are.

This book manages to be reminiscent of the best parts of the Percy Jackson series, while also carving out its own, unique identity. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I love stories based on mythology and this one is no exception. It's here that this book sets itself apart - just like with Percy Jackson, the god/goddess characters all have distinct personalities that flesh them out, but they are different and completely their own. (High John is the best don't @ me).

Tristan was an incredibly complex protagonist. His emotions were so valid and real in regards to what he was going through and what he had already gone through. I didn't expect to relate to Tristan as much as I did, and my story is completely different from his. That's how well he was written. And his long journey towards becoming a hero is somehow more remarkable than if he had just accepted it and gone with the flow.

I already mentioned that this book made me cry, but it also cracked me up numerous times. So much of the dialogue was laugh-out-loud funny, which I wasn't expecting, and Tristan's inner monologue kept me well-entertained, even during serious parts.

The secondary cast of characters were also very cool, and I hope that in future books we get to see more of them/their backgrounds and stories (hopefully speaking it into existence here!)

Plotwise, the book isn't completely new (the characters are on a quest to save the world) but the world itself is, and that's what matters. For example, storytelling having so much power. That was incredible. The way that Tristan told stories was SO HYPE for no reason and became one of my favorite parts of the book.
Let's also take a moment to appreciate the twist at the end there. I had one realization, thought I had figured it out, and then had ANOTHER one after that. I was shook twice.

Final thoughts: this book is so important in terms of representation in middle-grade books and it's also a really strong story all around. Definitely recommend.
(Can't wait for the sequel/sequels!)

I remember reading this book a long, long time back, but I forgot pretty much the entire plot as well as a few major characters, and I ended up not continuing the series. I tended to read over things too quickly when I was younger, and in this case I'm majorly regretting it because I think I would have been obsessed with this series back then.

This book is quirky. That's the best way I can describe it. Quirky in a good way. Like how the author takes you on these little writing tangents, such as from the perspective of a bug or a minor passing character. Just for a few paragraphs or so, but there's usually a funny moment or thoughtful remark that's made in just those small bits. They don't distract from the story but rather make the whole world created here more interesting.

Not that the story isn't interesting on its own. This is a fairly long read, but I never felt bored during it. It overall turns out to be really wholesome while also having fantasy elements like princesses (it's a queendom yeehaw), magyk (ha get it), and defeating bad guys. Not to mention the anti-wizard authoritarian regime which was impressively not made heavy enough that it would be too much for a middle-grade book.

I also thought that Boy 412's character development throughout the book was really well done.

But to do my younger self justice, I'm not just going to talk about normal things like plot and characterization. I'm getting fully invested for the rest of the series.

And on that front let me talk about Marcia, who is hands-down the best character of this whole thing. She is my iconic powerful wizard queen and after only 1 book I feel like I would be her best friend. When I read this book the first time I can't believe that I forgot about her because she is my favorite character and I love her. Anyway enough about how I'm in love with Marcia yikes


On to book 2 yeet

3.5 stars.

What really threw me off this book at first was the beginning, starting after we meet Zane. Zane was a cool main character and for the most part I liked him and enjoyed hearing the story from his point of view. But it was the next third? fourth? of the book that tanked for me. Everything progressed incredibly slowly, from Zane getting attacked by demons to walking through the volcano to letting Ah-Puch out. This was a small part, but at the time it seemed like most of the book.
It was mostly the character of Brooks that limited the potential of the beginning, though. She just seemed off. I don't think we as readers got enough time to connect with her. Which was bad, because she was basically the second most important character. Zane makes a deal

with Ah-Puch to save her life early on, and in turn has to promise to become a slave of the underworld.

But I barely felt like I knew Brooks, so that part didn't have any emotional meaning. The only things I knew about Brooks were: Zane thinks she's cute and she's definitely super shady. Which was another problem, because when Brooks was presented as someone with a bunch of secrets, I was thinking "ok she's gonna betray them later" and this also prevented me from connecting with her.
It was only much later that I was able to start warming up to her, but I think it would have been beneficial if she was made more meaningful/someone we could sympathize with in the start. Overall the lack of this solid characterization was what prevented the book from being as good.

From the part where Zane, Brooks, and Hondo start their quest all the way to the end, I didn't have any problems with the story. It was a lot of fun, had good twists (when Zane stuck his hand in the water?!), and there were interesting loose ends for future books.
I actually do have a best scene for this book! (but it's a spoiler)
Best Scene Award:

Honestly I think it has to go to the scene in Xib'alb'a right after Zane finishes writing about everything and Ixtab is like "oh hey by the way I'm actually super cool and not evil. be safe and have fun on this island that I'm giving you!"

Also interesting to note that this book gets really similar to Percy Jackson sometimes. Not that it's a bad thing, just interesting how I saw so many details that felt familiar.

Wow. Where do I even start?

I opened this book and barely two pages in someone was already punching a locker and I was like


And then not even 2 pages later a DEAD CHICKEN makes an appearance and I just got progressively more shook.


That really hyped me up and kind of encapsulated what the book was going to be like. What caught my attention right away was the narration. Sal is funny and immediately engaging. And the book was funny. And when we meet Gabi, she is incredible. The two main characters basically jump off the pages, because they're so full of life and written amazingly well.

I normally go for plot-driven books as opposed to character-driven. Like, even if I don't totally care for the characters, I'm still able to enjoy books with good plots. Vice versa, not really. But this one is definitely an exception. The sci-fi plot isn't the main focus here - it's what the characters are going through. It's about life, and learning, and growing, and the connections we make with other people. And it's all told through 2 kids who are living and trying their best. Because Sal and Gabi are so real and imperfectly perfect, their story is compelling to me even though I wouldn't really go for this type of book otherwise.

The book was funny, but I also cried more than once. It just hits different so many times. (honestly near the end I nearly rioted when

I thought Iggy was going to die. I was almost devastated.

)

Some more stuff I loved:
-Gabi dads!! omg (the whole book was very inclusive yay)
-their SCHOOL??? it sounded so cool I wanted to go there
-the fact that Sal didn't hate/dislike his stepmom (his family was so cute)
-the ending at the hospital :)))
-hilarious dialogue
-it's just very wholesome.

"I know that's not how you treat people, especially not people who are trying to do better."

like period!

Best Scene Award:
This was so hard to pick but I think it has to be the scene in class where Gabi brings out her LIE DETECTOR in front of EVERYONE to make Sal tell the truth. The RIVALRY. The SHOWMANSHIP. The whole thing was just *chef's kiss*
Runner up is definitely Gabi's introduction. When Yasmany said "My lawyer is coming" as he's sitting in the principal's office? absolutely nothing could have prepared me for that iconic moment.

I would recommend this for anyone. beautiful and entertaining :)

3.5 stars. Not my favorite of the series, but some parts were still bops

Another classic series, one that I wish had gotten more attention. Don't get me wrong, the Artemis Fowl series has fans, but it's nowhere near, like, Harry Potter level. And I think it deserves a higher level of acknowledgement.

The concept is so good. The main character/protagonist is NOT the hero of the story, which is itself really interesting. And Artemis's character development is impeccable. But more on that later, since we only get a glimpse in this book.

Other than that, it's just a really fun story.

Best Scene Award:
When Holly punches Artemis in the face and then 5 minutes later he says "I don't like lollipops." Incredible.

From the first time I read this I loved it. 3 kids trying to solve a cipher hidden throughout New York in order to save their home sounded like a lot of fun. And then I read it and it was fun, but I also got so much more.

Here's what I liked at face-value:
Setting: I know a book is good when it inspires me to learn more about it. The York series did this. I visited New York for the first time after I had read the first two books, and I was having a great time locating different places the characters visited on a map and sometimes doing the same things they did. I've read other things set in New York but none of them made me feel as excited about the city as this one did, so that was really cool.

Characters: I loved all three of the main cast. Laura Ruby writes real characters, with flaws, varied personalities, and their own struggles/hopes. They all interacted with each other incredibly well, making the story as much about them as it is about the plot. Even the secondary characters are great (Aunt Esther and Cricket, I'm looking at you). And there's representation! I've read books that tried to convince me that only white people lived in New York City, which is kind of funny. Glad we didn't get that here. And not just in race, but also in that one of the main characters has anxiety.

Ciphers/Plot: I'm a giant cryptology fan, so the premise was already exciting. That being said, even though the clues shifted away from being actual ciphers, I didn't mind, because they were interesting anyway. In the scheme of things, the cipher wasn't the important part of the plot, it was the fact that the kids were going to lose their home and they were doing anything they could to stop it. That was really powerful to me. (Of course, with the ending the motives have changed but that's for book 2!)

Writing: I normally don't talk about the writing unless it's super bad or super good. This was the latter. The writing was different in a good way. Sometimes the narration is unexpectedly funny. The metaphors are strange in the way that demands a second to think about their meaning. Sometimes things are described not by how they look, but how they make you feel. But it never feels pretentious, just interesting. Like when the characters are flying on the solarship and Ruby describes the smell of the air. It made me feel things, but not any emotion I could really pinpoint.

However, this book (and series) is always operating on a deeper level. Every time I've reread this, I've found something new that I hadn't noticed before. This time it was that the dictionary Theo lost was found by Cricket, a connection that I missed numerous times. There are so many hidden meanings, especially after reading the 2nd book and coming back here (the foreshadowing is so real...).
Throughout the book, we find out that not everything is exactly normal with this cipher, we see that machines seem to have their own motives, we know that something is coming, but we have no idea what yet. It goes from kids trying to solve clues to something much, much bigger, and I LOVE stories like that.
Alternate timelines are so cool. The first time I read this, it didn't hit me that this wasn't our New York until the Statue of Liberty was described as its original copper color and I did, like, a triple take.
There's also this underlying message about history and the people/things that are forgotten/lost because they aren't part of the story history is trying to tell, which is also giving me vibes that it's gonna connect later on, so a lot of good things here.

Best Scene Award:
Tied between the train scene (that was so intense wtf) and the tunnel scene (no spoilers but that had me SHOOK the first time I read it)

Overall, wow.

I love the first book. But this one surpasses it.

Everything that I put in my review for the first book still applies, so I'm not gonna repeat everything I said. I'll just list the new stuff.

The additional emotional depth:
The first book never lacked in this. But new levels were reached here. Jaime is dealing with some pretty heavy stuff like discrimination/racism, Theo is having a growing crisis as he finds out that everything he thought he knew isn't so black and white, and Tess. I get so sad (sometimes I cry ok) when

Nine gets taken away. :(((

But her emotional journey is so important because of it. Everyone is just in that perpetual state of self-doubt, which is only increased by the crazy things happening around them.

The extra POV's:
There weren't too many that it made it confusing, and instead added to the overall story. Very tastefully done (Karl's were great lmao).

Characters!
Apart from the main three (who are incredible obviously), there are more scenes with the best of the supporting cast (Cricket, Aunt Esther, the Cipherists, and Ono (HE IS SO CUTE I LOVE HIM)). And I'm definitely not forgetting about out resident mystery woman and iconic queen (yes, we know who she is but no spoilers).

The plot thickens...
I am so, so invested in this plot. I mean, there are more questions and virtually no answers and I love it. What's with the 'wiggle worms'? What's happening on that island? What about the scientist? Jaime's drawings? The eagles? And most importantly, DEFINITELY most importantly,

THE ENDING:
Every other review is talking about this and rightfully so. WHAT? WAS?? THAT??? ENDING????
Even the buildup is great:
The Junk Trunk is just a complete surprise. Slaps you right in the face. THEN, the 'mystery woman'???? MA'AM HOW?? And right when you think things are slowing down, BAM! The real ending, the photo, the entire thing crashes down on your head. And to top it off, the epilogue clears up absolutely nothing (even the dates??), is super emotional, and somehow manages to increase the suspense. Suspense that doesn't get resolved until A YEAR LATER.

I've been waiting a year for book 3. Can't believe the wait is almost over.

~Could not recommend this series more.~