Reviews

I loved this book. The writing was quick paced and memorable, the characters perfectly flawed, the situations unbelievable, but still credible enough to make you think. I’m hopeful that the rest of the series will be equally well written as I also adored The Golden Compass and each following book less and less. Fingers crossed!

sas02948's review against another edition

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adventurous inspiring mysterious fast-paced

3.75

bbrassfield's review against another edition

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4.0

The return to Lyra's world doesn't disappoint. Pullman's first in a new series based on events earlier in the His Dark Materials timeline feature a baby Lyra and mostly a very heroic lad named Malcolm and equally awesome heroine Alice, who are responsible for saving Lyra from the CCD, seeing her through a flood of the century to the safety of academic sanctuary (with Lord Asriel's help) at Jordan College. They are pursued by the nasty Bonneville and his fucked up daemon, a three-legged hyena who will lose another leg as the story progresses.
All of this has to do with Dust and prophecies regarding Lyra, much like we see in the original stories, but here these developments are in their infancy, much like Lyra. The affection Malcolm has for Lyra when she is a babe being cared for by the nuns is truly heartwarming. Philip Pullman is a skilled writer and nothing in the story feels out of place, especially when he's hinting at the horrors that can come with fervent religious belief in the supernatural. Well done sir. I am looking forward to the next installment later this year.