Reviews

Out of Oz by Gregory Maguire

sammilynnebob's review

adventurous challenging hopeful mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

jlswitchblades's review

adventurous hopeful mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

something has changed within me....

well! im finally done with reading the wicked years. wicked and son of a witch have more of a nostalgia factor for me, so books three and four can be quite slow at times. the characters are quite interesting but god their arcs are generally depressing/hit a slump at some point, which is! well! i know im not reading a fairy tale, but it gets old and a little sad. there is a cheeky reference to the musical and it made me feel quite sentimental. happy to have finished this read, but will probably only go back to reread the first two books in the future.

tbd24's review

adventurous challenging dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I really loved the very beginning, the way it reads almost like a horror/thriller. Then the next 200 pages feel like they can be summed up in a few sentences, and then finally once the plot starts properly it gets good again.  tbh i didn’t even mind all the childhood and traveling parts, but

Dorothy’s trial

just really dragged and felt like every little detail was mentioned and not to the benefit of the audience. However, again, I loved Rain and I loved getting to see Liir again and the conclusion was satisfying enough. The prose was lovely as always

katraff94's review

5.0

I really loved this conclusion. It is everything that I thought it would be and there was few surprises as well

chelseamh98's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

nicoleyu's review

adventurous emotional inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

3.75

xrogue23's review

dark reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

mr_sosotris's review

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Ultimately, this book does reach a satisfying conclusion with all the pathos and revelations therein, but I found the first two sections to drag on far longer than was needed. Once Dorothy arrives, the story picks up, and I did like seeing how the story blends with the events of the second Oz book, The Marvellous Land of Oz, with some nods to the film Return to Oz as well, and it was great seeing where all the characters end up. This series is ultimately still a favourite of mine, but there are long stretches that you really need to slog through. 

I’m excited to read the sequel trilogy after the open-ended final scene.

_wmjb_'s review

4.0

I read this book much slower that I usually read, wanting to make it last. While I did indeed love it, it was somewhat uneven. There were parts when I couldn't put it down and others where it dragged. The end was very confusing and a little too philosophical. I am glad that the series had an ending. I have read other series (Outlander, Clan of the Cave Bear) that went on so long that I couldn't read them after about the fourth book. The Wicked series will remain one of my all time favorites and someday in my senior years I'll start over from the beginning.

maddustkitties's review

4.0

I enjoyed this book, although I did have my moments when I was going to put it down. I was glad I kept reading because it did get better.

Wicked (the first book in the series) set the bar so high, but I did enjoy this. The overall story and the years that all the books covered was wonderful!

I know this is supposed to be the last book in the series, but I felt the ending left enough openings to continue on. I hope he decides to!