Reviews

The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman

charlibirb's review against another edition

5.0

One of the greatest series of books on the planet. Definitely held up under another read, and as an adult, I got a lot more out of it. A carefully crafted piece of genius.

And out of the 4 categories,
Great writing, great characters, great world, great plot. 4/4!

ksteinbauer47's review against another edition

4.0

Great end to the series! To me it got a little slow in the middle of the book. But after that you can’t put the book down!

axelsmarin's review against another edition

adventurous emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A

4.0

lydiahousley's review against another edition

4.0

Took me longer to get through than the first two, wasn't all that convinced about it at first, the action seemed to be moving quite fast and very random things were happening. All made sense by the end of course and the explainations of all the questions raised in the first two were wonderful. An incredible fantasy world all in all. Hugely excited to see the BBC adaptation of the third book.

mrssundaylover's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

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

4.0

t8zzyuk's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.25

melodictus's review against another edition

5.0

The Subtle Knife was so good I didn’t think this one would be better, you know what I mean ? Well, I WAS WRONG.

I love these books with every fiber of my being but this one destroyed my little heart somehow...
I found the land of the dead a very interesting place and not at all as I pictured it. All those people not at peace for centuries was heartbreaking. Not to mention how Lyra had to left Pan behind (I’m so emotional).

It is definitely one of the best journeys I have ever read. I wish my friend had lend me the books as promised when we were kids, or I wish I had bought them instead haha!

Now let me find my own dæmon and sit on the bench at the Oxford Botanic Garden to grieve some more.

eva_jean's review against another edition

5.0

edit: 4/24/23
my third time reading, and still this makes me weep like a little baby. i think i am who i am because of hdm. i think it showed me how desperately i want to live. and to love.

Ok, this book changed my view on reading FOREVER. It is so heartbreaking and beautiful. This is a book that everyone should read at least once in their life. I know, the first book is a little boring at times, but keep reading!!!! You will love it. This book is life changing.

em_garl1's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

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

4.75

wordvomit777's review against another edition

4.0

-3.5 stars- This trilogy is incredibly unique and is unlike any other series I’ve read. I liked most of the characters and I thought the storyline was quite interesting. The only thing that kept me from giving it a full four stars is the fact that the series as a whole feels very dense and slow to read. While I did find it interesting, reading this book (and its two predecessors) made me quite bored, and that doesn’t really help with the fact that I’ve finished this at a time where I’m extremely stressed out. Wouldn’t recommend for people with short attention spans.