changeablelandscape's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
My favourite of the trilogy!
aknapp82's review
4.0
This is definitely the best book in the series! It's nice to see the story unfold through the eyes of more than just Laura and Ted and to see more of this world. There were still moments when I had a hard time staying focused on the story. Sometimes it's hard to follow or just drops off in spots. The Green magic, red magic, blue magic stuff gets a little muddled for me. But for the most part, it's a solid conclusion to the story. I feel like there are still some things unresolved, and I'm not entirely sure I like the ending. But I love the idea of this world, and this is the most exciting book of the trilogy.
valhecka's review
5.0
Pitch-perfect and gorgeous until, like, the last five pages which just completely screwed up everything ever. But the rest is still awesome.
silvernfire's review
3.0
I thought this was the best book of the trilogy, although it still frustrated me in many ways. The best way I can put is it that through the trilogy, Dean made the characters more substantial, but the Secret Country still seems threadbare. That's appropriate for a world that may have been created in a children's let's-pretend game, but by this point, we're supposed to be thinking that the Secret Country is real—and there's just not enough there to feel real. But yes, I did like that we get to know the characters better (most of them, anyway; Patrick falls by the wayside in this book). Where we once only saw the story through Ted and Laura's points-of-view, we now also see the story through Ellen and Ruth's eyes. The story's end leaves some questions unanswered and is a bit pat, but it does feel like a conclusion. Plus, there's a twist to the end that I haven't seen in other travel-to-a-magical-land books, and I appreciate originality!
eowyn's review
4.0
i love these books (third in the Secret Country series), but i always feel like i miss something while reading them (this is probably my third read). I feel i've missed a subtle plot point or some nuance that explained a bunch of things, which is why i give it 4 stars instead of 5. but they're great, original, fun fantasies.
bngchip55's review
5.0
Every fantasy lover should read this series. It is has one of the best-written plots I have ever encountered and keeps your mind turning constantly. I have never seen a book mix "the real world" with fantasy in such an intriguing and thought provoking way. This is the kind of book that makes you love the writer's art.
manwithanagenda's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
March 2021:
The Carrolls survived the battle, but were afraid to see their all-to-real game through to the end. They retrieved the magic swords of Melanie and Shan and found their way to their homes. Almost immediately, however, Ted and Laura are beckoned by a cardinal and brought to another mysterious house. There a man in red convinces them that they must go back to the Hidden Land and see the story through, or everything they were afraid of would come true.
This volume brings everything out into the open. Dean handles the Carrolls revealing themselves to Fence and Randolph well, as well as the truth of what happened to the real royal children. 'The Whim of the Dragon' is overstuffed with even more dense narration and quotations from Shakespeare and other antique poets. I have no idea how a young reader would take all of this, because for adult me it was a little overwhelming. However, I still enjoyed the action of the series and seeing the whole grand scheme behind the trilogy laid bare. In my review for 'The Secret Country' I mentioned giving these, with several others, to my young nephew. It will be an interesting conversation.
June 2010:
The conclusion to 'The Secret Country' trilogy is satisfying, but seems to lack the easy magic of the first installment. What I had enjoyed most about 'The Secret Country' had been the natural way Patrick, Ted, Ellen, Ruth and Lucy had talked and bickered with each other, along with the indignation of finding things different then what they had imagined.
Of course, by this point the children are veterans of living in the fantasy kingdom and have accepted the differences, but nothing substantial seems to have taken that banter's place. The conclusion was unexpected, but exactly right in solving the question of what happens to the children after they leave the magical kingdom. Business-as-Usual always seemed to be a bit far-fetched.
All in all, the book is a satisfying end and ties up all the loose ends and makes 'The Secret County' a good children's fantasy that doesn't quite add up to Narnian heights, but what can?
The Secret Country
Next: 'The Dubious Hills' (A companion volume)
Previous: 'The Hidden Land'
The Carrolls survived the battle, but were afraid to see their all-to-real game through to the end. They retrieved the magic swords of Melanie and Shan and found their way to their homes. Almost immediately, however, Ted and Laura are beckoned by a cardinal and brought to another mysterious house. There a man in red convinces them that they must go back to the Hidden Land and see the story through, or everything they were afraid of would come true.
This volume brings everything out into the open. Dean handles the Carrolls revealing themselves to Fence and Randolph well, as well as the truth of what happened to the real royal children. 'The Whim of the Dragon' is overstuffed with even more dense narration and quotations from Shakespeare and other antique poets. I have no idea how a young reader would take all of this, because for adult me it was a little overwhelming. However, I still enjoyed the action of the series and seeing the whole grand scheme behind the trilogy laid bare. In my review for 'The Secret Country' I mentioned giving these, with several others, to my young nephew. It will be an interesting conversation.
June 2010:
The conclusion to 'The Secret Country' trilogy is satisfying, but seems to lack the easy magic of the first installment. What I had enjoyed most about 'The Secret Country' had been the natural way Patrick, Ted, Ellen, Ruth and Lucy had talked and bickered with each other, along with the indignation of finding things different then what they had imagined.
Of course, by this point the children are veterans of living in the fantasy kingdom and have accepted the differences, but nothing substantial seems to have taken that banter's place. The conclusion was unexpected, but exactly right in solving the question of what happens to the children after they leave the magical kingdom. Business-as-Usual always seemed to be a bit far-fetched.
All in all, the book is a satisfying end and ties up all the loose ends and makes 'The Secret County' a good children's fantasy that doesn't quite add up to Narnian heights, but what can?
The Secret Country
Next: 'The Dubious Hills' (A companion volume)
Previous: 'The Hidden Land'
briarfairchild's review
4.0
I enjoyed this book - the whole series, in fact. The characters were really well drawn and I liked the way it ended. The only problem was that the whole overall-end-of-series-explanation seemed a bit contrived - it was just too complicated and a wee bit unbelievable. Having said that, I still enjoyed the book.
ellenw's review against another edition
4.0
How is it that none of my Goodreads friends have read (or, anyway, rated) this little series, and I've never properly reviewed it? Well, let me remedy the latter, at least.
Ted and Laura, and their cousins Ruth, Patrick, and Ellen, have played together for years at a game they call "the Secret": an imaginary country where they're all princes and princesses and there are banquets, betrayals, and battles aplenty. One day they're magically transported to that country, which they continue for a while to think of as part of their game, but where things are slightly different than they should be.
Without giving too much away, it turns out that their Secret Country is real, and there are real Princes Ted and Patrick and Princesses Ruth, Ellen, and Laura -- who seem to have gone missing. Things play out, some according to their game and some differently, and they discover that playing their Secret, as much as they enjoyed it, was nothing compared to the real thing.
Dean's Tam Lin (perhaps deservedly) gets more attention than this trilogy, which is an odd little creature. The connection between the "real" world and the Secret Country stretches credulity at times, especially if you're a fan of complex worldbuilding in your fantasy. The battles and evil plots get short shrift for the most part, in favor of our five wandering around and experiencing the strangeness of one's imagination come to life.
For all its oddities, though, this series is delightful. It's a little bit of a Narnia for those who don't want Jesus figures in their fantasy. It's also very concerned with the question of whether it's cruel to do to fictional characters all that we do. (Randolph is a particularly interesting study on that subject.)
If you're looking for a YA fantasy that's fun without being frothy, and can put up with some plot meandering if it comes with keen characterization, do you pick up this trilogy as soon as you can.
Ted and Laura, and their cousins Ruth, Patrick, and Ellen, have played together for years at a game they call "the Secret": an imaginary country where they're all princes and princesses and there are banquets, betrayals, and battles aplenty. One day they're magically transported to that country, which they continue for a while to think of as part of their game, but where things are slightly different than they should be.
Without giving too much away, it turns out that their Secret Country is real, and there are real Princes Ted and Patrick and Princesses Ruth, Ellen, and Laura -- who seem to have gone missing. Things play out, some according to their game and some differently, and they discover that playing their Secret, as much as they enjoyed it, was nothing compared to the real thing.
Dean's Tam Lin (perhaps deservedly) gets more attention than this trilogy, which is an odd little creature. The connection between the "real" world and the Secret Country stretches credulity at times, especially if you're a fan of complex worldbuilding in your fantasy. The battles and evil plots get short shrift for the most part, in favor of our five wandering around and experiencing the strangeness of one's imagination come to life.
For all its oddities, though, this series is delightful. It's a little bit of a Narnia for those who don't want Jesus figures in their fantasy. It's also very concerned with the question of whether it's cruel to do to fictional characters all that we do. (Randolph is a particularly interesting study on that subject.)
If you're looking for a YA fantasy that's fun without being frothy, and can put up with some plot meandering if it comes with keen characterization, do you pick up this trilogy as soon as you can.