When I saw there was a new, ninth, and final (for now) instalment of the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series, 11-year-old me leapt for joy. I loved these books so much during my peak reading years of ages 9-13, and their magic has stayed with me ever since.

It was wonderful to return to the world of Torak, Renn and Wolf, and the pre-historic world of northern Europe that they inhabit. The characters are a little bit older (it’s very strange to read my childhood favourites discuss whether or not they should have children), and they’ve all come a long way since the very first book, but the magic and adventure are still as strong as ever.

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As an adult I’ve read some of Michelle Paver’s other books, and even though I enjoyed some more than others, she can always be relied upon to write a thrilling story, so immersive that it feels like the characters are real and the story is a contemporary one that has been passed down through time.

I won’t go into plot details here for two reasons: the first is that this is the ninth and final book in the series, so to say more than the bare minimum would be spoilers. The second is that, as wonderful as Ian McKellan’s narration is, his voice is perhaps slightly too soothing and I’ll admit I retained at most 70% of the plot (and even that is a stretch). Even so, I struggled not to get emotional at some of the most moving passages, which were not only important moments in this book but in the series as a whole.

One day, I’ll read the whole series again from start to finish, and revisit this brilliant series. It’s a sign of any good children’s book, that the children who love it grow into adults who love it, and the adults who love it can point to it and say “that’s a great book.”

I received a free copy of the audiobook for review. All opinions are my own.