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952 reviews by:
nitroglycerin
3.5
I loved the story, that alone deserves a 4-5 star rating, but the overly obvious religiousness drops it for me. Yes Aslan is God. East or the End of the World is Heaven, but dear me it was dragged out and overly emphasised. I always new Narnia had a huge religious undertone, but this was more of an overtone. Hopefully the next two installments reign it in a bit.
I loved the story, that alone deserves a 4-5 star rating, but the overly obvious religiousness drops it for me. Yes Aslan is God. East or the End of the World is Heaven, but dear me it was dragged out and overly emphasised. I always new Narnia had a huge religious undertone, but this was more of an overtone. Hopefully the next two installments reign it in a bit.
This is one of those books where my anticipation and expectation were higher than the experience.
This is not a 'bad book'. In fact it is a reasonably good book.
What I Liked:
The descriptive narrative. You could truly visualize yourself at The Loney or in the Moorings. You got a great sense of atmosphere and eeriness about the place.
Sympathy to Andrew (Hanny) shown in both the MC/Narrator and Father Bernard. Both felt that there was no reason to change Hanny and accepted him as is.
The characters are all well developed, from the main family and all those who accompany them on the pilgrimage, to minor characters, the villagers.
What I didn't like:
The pace was too slow. That's not always a bad thing in a 'spooky' read but my mind would wander and I struggled to stay focused since there was a lot of nothing much going on. There could have been a lot cut out without losing a lot and the story would have progressed better.
I didn't realise how big a focus Religion was going to be! The blurb on the back mentions a shrine, but immediately I discovered that the families (especially Mummers) Catholicism is very prominent. The detail that the Author goes into is probably way more than necessary, and an example of where some pruning to the story could have been done.
Far too many unexplained plot points. Too many threads left dangling.
I find it hard to give this book more than 3 stars. The ending was brilliant, and I even stayed up to read the last few chapters, but the first two thirds of the book could have been better.
This is not a 'bad book'. In fact it is a reasonably good book.
What I Liked:
The descriptive narrative. You could truly visualize yourself at The Loney or in the Moorings. You got a great sense of atmosphere and eeriness about the place.
Sympathy to Andrew (Hanny) shown in both the MC/Narrator and Father Bernard. Both felt that there was no reason to change Hanny and accepted him as is.
The characters are all well developed, from the main family and all those who accompany them on the pilgrimage, to minor characters, the villagers.
What I didn't like:
The pace was too slow. That's not always a bad thing in a 'spooky' read but my mind would wander and I struggled to stay focused since there was a lot of nothing much going on. There could have been a lot cut out without losing a lot and the story would have progressed better.
I didn't realise how big a focus Religion was going to be! The blurb on the back mentions a shrine, but immediately I discovered that the families (especially Mummers) Catholicism is very prominent. The detail that the Author goes into is probably way more than necessary, and an example of where some pruning to the story could have been done.
Far too many unexplained plot points. Too many threads left dangling.
I find it hard to give this book more than 3 stars. The ending was brilliant, and I even stayed up to read the last few chapters, but the first two thirds of the book could have been better.
I recommend to anyone in their late twenties/early thirties who has been wronged by shit men and hasn't found their path in life. So many life lessons. So many lols. "Inspirational!" They cry.
