Review of "The Amber Spyglass" by Phillip Pullman

The Amber Spyglass is the exciting and subversive conclusion to Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials… trilogy.  Lyra and Will having been turned loose in the multiverse described in Northern Lights (The Golden Compass - US) and The Subtle Knife, the time has come to draw their plight to a close—and does the author ever do it in dramatic, fantastical fashion.  But given the wealth of symbolism and subtle digs at contemporary dogma embedded in the underlying narrative of the trilogy, the conclusion is delivered in anything but standard fantasy style.

Of the three books in the series, The Amber Spyglass is the most jam-packed with story.  The action detailed and steady from the first page onward, the wheels of event and character never cease revolving.  The book opens with Will deciding whether to start a rescue action of Lyra, who was kidnapped by Mrs. Coulture and the golden monkey at the end of The Subtle Knife.  But angels visit and try to convince Will to bring the subtle knife to Lord Asriel instead, joining him in his fight with the Authority.  Only at a temporary loss for direction, Will soon enough makes a choice and is on his way, marching toward an inevitable climax.  Where he goes and who he goes with, not to mention Lyra’s fate, are for the reader to find out.  Suffice to say, it’s not always of this world, sees a major revolution unfolding in ways nobody planned, and has moments of happiness and heartbreak to soften the hardest heart.  

Review of "The Subtle Knife" by Phillip Pullman

The Subtle Knife is the second book in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials… trilogy.  Picking up events loosely where Northern Lights/The Golden Compass left off, the novel expands upon the first to include a variety of other worlds.  It also focuses on a new pillar in the series: the boy Will.  While style and theme remain consistent with the first book, readers will find whole new worlds and characters to enjoy.

The Subtle Knife opens with Lyra, having followed Lord Asriel into the gateway he created by killing Roger, entering a place called Citigazze.  Citigazze a strange and eerie city in ruins, Lyra soon stumbles upon a young boy her age named Will Parry. Will, a stranger to the world as well, is seeking a way back to his own world, in addition to his long-lost father.  Husks of human bodies laying about the desolate city, Will and Lyra come upon strange creatures called spectres and are immediately chased, fleeing for their lives.  Coming into the possession of a strange, ultra-sharp knife in the process, the duo soon learn that many more places exist than just Aurora, Citigazze, and Will’s Earth, a father lost among them.