disastrouspenguin's review against another edition
4.0
This book could have gotten a 5 if it had addressed some more of the unanswered questions that were present throughout the series.
Nothing against a little mystery, but I think that they left some stories untold that had a lot of potential to add to the overall story.
Nothing against a little mystery, but I think that they left some stories untold that had a lot of potential to add to the overall story.
iamkarla's review against another edition
2.0
Eh. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ it was fine. As a series, people who love classic fantasy will likely enjoy it. I did come to love one character, I really wish the others would’ve been that engaging. Most were...fine, I guess.
As the end to this very long series, they certainly tied together all of the strings but it still lacked depth. The villains were flat and uninteresting, just doing what they’ve always done. The protagonists were a bit better and multi-dimensional.
Overall though, I won’t go raving about this any time soon.
As the end to this very long series, they certainly tied together all of the strings but it still lacked depth. The villains were flat and uninteresting, just doing what they’ve always done. The protagonists were a bit better and multi-dimensional.
Overall though, I won’t go raving about this any time soon.
losgiraffee's review against another edition
4.0
Overall this series was really good. Very entertaining. Ending it almost feels like leaving good friends now that I have spent over a month in their world. There was love, there was some irritation, there was vastly differing styles per book...my security blanket is now gone and I will have to go find new friends and a new world to explore and leave everything I've known behind.
There was a few things I don't feel were buttoned up and I was left feeling a mildly cheated on the grande finale. It's really the reason I gave it 4 stars and not 5, because the storytelling was still pretty solid. The scope has been so large and has encompassed 4 different worlds, so I think it must be fairly difficult to wrap everything up in one last book that was a good 100 pages shorter than the ones that came before it. ehhh..... I kinda signed up for more than that. Whatever, I can still dig it.
Zifnab became my favorite character for sure. His first appearance as comedic relief fell a little flat for me because I wasn't the biggest fan of the second book or the characters in it, but the more he showed up, the more I appreciated him and the funnier he got. Haplo and Alfred obviously set aside their differences and were better together than they were alone. The good guys triumph, the bad guys get what's coming to them, yadda yadda yadda.
There was an epic battle that took place in the seventh gate that was super awesome. I thought the way it described all possible outcomes happening at once was pretty gripping and it keeps the pages turning all the way to the end. They could have used the missing 100 pages to finish up a few other story lines, but I'm fairly satisfied all the same. :) Good stuff.
There was a few things I don't feel were buttoned up and I was left feeling a mildly cheated on the grande finale. It's really the reason I gave it 4 stars and not 5, because the storytelling was still pretty solid. The scope has been so large and has encompassed 4 different worlds, so I think it must be fairly difficult to wrap everything up in one last book that was a good 100 pages shorter than the ones that came before it.
Spoiler
The idea that it's pushed that this higher power that everyone felt in that room existed but we just get the "the evil and good is inside of each one of you and it's up to you to do the right thing" spielZifnab became my favorite character for sure. His first appearance as comedic relief fell a little flat for me because I wasn't the biggest fan of the second book or the characters in it, but the more he showed up, the more I appreciated him and the funnier he got. Haplo and Alfred obviously set aside their differences and were better together than they were alone. The good guys triumph, the bad guys get what's coming to them, yadda yadda yadda.
There was an epic battle that took place in the seventh gate that was super awesome. I thought the way it described all possible outcomes happening at once was pretty gripping and it keeps the pages turning all the way to the end. They could have used the missing 100 pages to finish up a few other story lines, but I'm fairly satisfied all the same. :) Good stuff.
zoe_vdv's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I just really loved this series! The worldbuilding is done so well and all the details are incredible. Plus, the stories is really interestingz
ellkmtwl's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
mactammonty's review against another edition
3.0
I am sad to finish the series. There is a nice wrap up in the appendix that makes that part a must read.
It may be time to re-read some other favourites by these two authors.
It may be time to re-read some other favourites by these two authors.
nithou's review against another edition
5.0
Quelle saga ! J'ai commencé curieux, guidé par un ami, un peu étonné par le premier tome, mais je n'ai pas tardé à dévorer les suivants. Bourrée d'humour, de rebondissements, de moments tristes ou attachants, ... Une mythologie assez unique et des mondes variés. Tous les tomes n'étaient pas égaux mais chacun apportait quelque chose au récit et à la profondeur des protagonistes.
Beaucoup d'intérêt pour la relation entre Sartans et Patryns et leurs guerres ancestrales, sur les conséquences de ces luttes sur les différentes races et les différents mondes. Une philosophie sous jacente bien développée et extrêmement intrigante. Et enfin une fin magistrale et parfaitement maitrisée qui boucle presque toutes les intrigues laissées en suspens. Après sept tomes, on se prends à être triste de devoir refermer ces portes de la mort...
Beaucoup d'intérêt pour la relation entre Sartans et Patryns et leurs guerres ancestrales, sur les conséquences de ces luttes sur les différentes races et les différents mondes. Une philosophie sous jacente bien développée et extrêmement intrigante. Et enfin une fin magistrale et parfaitement maitrisée qui boucle presque toutes les intrigues laissées en suspens. Après sept tomes, on se prends à être triste de devoir refermer ces portes de la mort...
faelynn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
vaderbird's review against another edition
4.0
re-read
5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
mackle13's review against another edition
3.0
The finale of the Death Gate cycle, and, ultimately, I'd say it probably went the way I was generally expecting it to go. Which isn't a bad thing, per se.
I did find parts of it a bit weird that were like, "And here's a 5 page reminder of what's happening on other worlds, as addressed in prior books" - but I probably would've found it more useful if I were reading these books years apart, instead of just a month at a time.
Anyway - as with most of the books in the series, I found it to start slower and then pick up as the story progressed. I sort of felt like, though, with this being the last series, and with the cliffhanger ending of the last book, that it should've been a bit more... tense? Exciting?
I just felt kind of flat, in parts, after the ending of the prior book. For me...
Anyway -
I did like the ending, including I continued to be annoyed with the one set of Sartan, lead by Ramah, but I liked Balthazar and company, from the Labyrinth.
I wish we'd seen a little more of the other worlds in this book, though - aside from the recaps. Like, to see how they were reacting to the events happening, instead of just a little aside bit. We got some in the epilogue, but I would've liked to have revisited the group at Celestra, especially, if only briefly.
Overall, I would say that while I enjoyed the series, it also feels a bit dated to me. (And the covers are hysterically perfect for fantasy books of the time period. Oh gods, I love how bad they are... )
But it is an interesting series, and I like the characters and how they develop over time - especially Haplo and Alfred, of course - and also the overall messages about coming together and working together and overcoming prejudices and all that good stuff.
I think this could easily be a 4-star series if the writing was a bit tighter and each book didn't take so long to actually get going...
I did find parts of it a bit weird that were like, "And here's a 5 page reminder of what's happening on other worlds, as addressed in prior books" - but I probably would've found it more useful if I were reading these books years apart, instead of just a month at a time.
Anyway - as with most of the books in the series, I found it to start slower and then pick up as the story progressed. I sort of felt like, though, with this being the last series, and with the cliffhanger ending of the last book, that it should've been a bit more... tense? Exciting?
I just felt kind of flat, in parts, after the ending of the prior book. For me...
Anyway -
I did like the ending, including
Spoiler
Xar's 11th hour bolt of realization that he's a giant asshole and sacrifice.I wish we'd seen a little more of the other worlds in this book, though - aside from the recaps. Like, to see how they were reacting to the events happening, instead of just a little aside bit. We got some in the epilogue, but I would've liked to have revisited the group at Celestra, especially, if only briefly.
Overall, I would say that while I enjoyed the series, it also feels a bit dated to me. (And the covers are hysterically perfect for fantasy books of the time period. Oh gods, I love how bad they are... )
But it is an interesting series, and I like the characters and how they develop over time - especially Haplo and Alfred, of course - and also the overall messages about coming together and working together and overcoming prejudices and all that good stuff.
I think this could easily be a 4-star series if the writing was a bit tighter and each book didn't take so long to actually get going...