No review in the world could do this book justice. It is amazing, noteworthy, brilliant, fantastic, and every other positive adjective you could think of! Philip Reeve is a genius! I love his writing style, and the ability to crack a joke during the middle of a tense battle scene and still have it come off wonderfully!This time around, the whole world seems harsher, grittier, and darker. The action picks up six months after the events of "Infernal Devices", with Tom and Wren on the bird roads, Theo back home, and Hester and Grike surfing the deserts. Tom's heart is weakening at an alarming rate and he refuses to tell his daughter. He quietly swallows his little green pills and hopes that they'll keep him alive longer than the three months the doctor gave him. Wren meanwhile doesn't think her father is dying and is keen on having a grand adventure and maybe going to see Theo (She can't stop thinking about the kiss they shared just before he left -- he can't stop thinking about it either). The one thing they both agree on is forgetting Hester. Or at least trying to. Wolf Kobald is a mayor's son who is charge of a hunter suburb. He strongly believes that parts of London survived the MEDUSA explosion, and that they're building something spectacular. He convinces Tom and Wren to fly him to the ruins of London. When they arrive they discover something bigger than they ever expected waiting for them...Meanwhile Theo has been living an idealic life in Zagwa with his family. He still doesn't seem to fit in, but at least he's alive. When Lady Naga comes on a peace mission, he's bound and determined to stay out of sight. But when he sees (what he thinks are) traction city bombers, he does everything in his power to stop them. At the end of the day he's a hometown hero and Lady Naga convinces him to act as a sort-of bodyguard for her as she attempts to cross through hostile territory and return to her home behind the Green Storm’s static settlement line. Along the way she’s betrayed, kidnapped, and ransomed with Theo in tow. It’s only thanks to Hester and Grike that she doesn’t end up executed by followers of Municipal Darwinism.Hester is drawn to Theo but is afraid to care for him. She grudgingly agrees to help him, Lady Naga, and Pennyroyal (who keeps turning up like a bad penny – pun totally intended). Grike has become more and more like a brother/father figure to Hester since she left Tom, and he’s instrumental in helping make moral decisions.Remember Fishcake? Well he and his re-resurrected Stalker Fang / Anna have slowly crept across the great Hunting Grounds and are determined to activate ODIN. Or at least that’s what Stalker Fang wants. Fishcake just likes to be around someone who takes care of him and tells him what to do. Anna’s personality and memories are starting to surface and she and Stalker Fang are starting to fight for control of their single body.When all the threads come together it makes for an amazing clash of epic proportions! Philip Reeve has done an amazing job weaving all the storylines into a single plot and he beautifully ties up every loose end he created throughout the entire series. My only regrets is that Freya and Caul don’t make a reappearance. However, it does make perfect sense why none of the Anchorage-in-Vineland characters make a reappearance. My only other comment/concern about this book is that it really is for older teens. I have heard of some mature twelve year olds loving (and understanding) this book, but between the body count and darker nature of this book, I don’t recommend it to those under 13. Even then, you have to read the other three to understand this one. While I’m always sad to see the end of a good book (or series), this one ends perfectly! There is no need for any sort of sequel and one doesn’t seem to want one. Every time I read this book I end up crying (even some of the males I’ve asked about this book will admit to getting misty-eyed). It is sad and perfect. One of the best book I’ve ever read.
WARNING: This diatribe contains potential spoilers and rude language. It is also long. Proceed with caution.Dear Philip Reeve: I really enjoy the books in your Hungry City Chronicles. They are fine stories with creative and compelling plots, often amusing dialog and interesting characters. You are, however, starting to piss me off. I'm on page 61 of the fourth book and I come to the following passage:"Lady Naga made a horrible gurgling noise, like the last of the bathwater heading down the plughole. Theo took a step forward and waved the axe, but he was too gentle to use it, and he knew Cynthia knew it. Remembering the girl's vanity, he said, 'You look different....'"Now what *my* reader may not know is that Cynthia, who has already been established as one of the 'bad guys,' is in the process of strangling Lady Naga, whom Theo is escorting and theoretically protecting. Call me nuts, call me violent, call me a psycho with anger management issues, but if I see someone who has already attempted to kill me strangling someone I like or am expected to protect, and I happen to have the good fortune to find myself holding an axe, I am pretty certain I will hit them with the fucking axe. I might not be so far gone that I will definitely use the blade-- the flat side or blunt end or even using the handle are all options-- but I repeat, I will hit them with the fucking axe. The only possible dialogue I can imagine engaging in would be something along the lines of, "Stop strangling -------, or I will hit you with the fucking axe."Ahem.This is an incomplete review. I will add to it when I'm finished with the book. My current questions are:Why is the good, kind and handsome hero always so goddam useless in a crisis?Why are the women who are the strong ones or the ones willing to "get the job done" either ugly & slightly nuts, or attractive & completely nuts?There seems to be no middle ground here. There was one character who was strong, capable, kind AND neither gorgeous nor particularly ugly...but she's 'dead' and is being used in disturbing ways.**********UPDATE**********"It is complete now; two ends of time are neatly tied..." (finish that lyric...no cheating).I have to admit I liked the ending/epilogue of this book (and series), but getting there was occasionally an irritation. At times it was like an old radio serial: the heroes seem to be in a safe place where they just might get a breather, BUT WAIT! Unbeknownst to our heroes: ninjas, Dr. Klaw, Lex Luthor AND The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu are all hiding in a trunk; meanwhile, a stray bullet/crossbow bolt/ICBM/woodpecker has pierced the balloon and the airship is now sinking toward the Ancient & Scary Field of Rusty Razor Blades and Other Sharp, Dangerous & Unpleasant Things!I exaggerate only a little.My previously stated complaints still stand (though at one point Theo DID actually hit someone with the flat side of an axe, so, yay). It seemed like somewhere along the line Mr. Reeve decided that happy endings are just SO recherché and he'll be damned if he gives us one. I do not require a happy ending (unless back rubs are involved--boomchickaWAWwaw), but when it feels like the author is trying too hard to avoid a cliché ending, the ensuing machinations to guarantee unhappiness feel contrived. And the semi-subtle moralizing-- good people don't hurt/kill under ANY circumstances, and I'm going to put my characters through hell to prove it-- just plain got tired. Then I end up writing long, cranky reviews which sound as if I liked these books a lot less than I did. I guess my real disappointment with the Hungry City Chronicles is that they are good books that could have been great.Done now. No, really.
What do You think about A Darkling Plain (2007)?
A Darkling Plain is the longest of the Hungry City books, by a fairly large margin. But there is, after all, a lot going on here. There's hardly any padding, so it earns it's 500+ pages honestly. Thinking about the book, I suspect that I wouldn't have liked it so much, or been so glued to it, if I hadn't already been deeply invested in these characters from previous books. Tom and Hester especially, who see their story draw to what is probably its unavoidable close. The ending is fantastic, emotionally satisfying and almost overwhelmingly bittersweet. Wren remained the character I was most likely to sigh at in exasperation, but Theo really gave her a run for the title. Then again, his missteps seem to fit into what I guess is one of Reeve's takeaways for the series: nice guys may not finish last, but they sure can be dumb sometimes.
—Sesana
Ok, where to start?I love these books with a passion. I picked up Mortal Engines expecting to dislike it, but I was completely blown away, and I devoured everything else by this author. Predator's Gold was amazing, but Infernal Devices wasn't so great - I hated Wren and it just didn't have the same depth as his other books, which was a problem I had with the Fever Crumb series as well. But I was dying to know what happened after the end of Infernal Devices. And I was not disappointed. For everyone who was disappointed in Infernal Devices, read on. It's worth it. Also, that ending. PERFECT.
—The Book Queen
Wow. This book was 200 pages longer than any of the first three and felt like it, dramatic, depressing, creative, and ultimately moving for me. This series features amazingly creative and interesting plotting and amazing characters, which is all credit to the author, but teh author also cannot quite write an the same skill level that he can plot. I know that's vague, but there's just a little something missing from the narration and characterization in the series, even though I really enjoyed it.Hester Shaw is his best character, despite being so often being unlikable and messed up. My heart hurt for both her and Tom, for Anna Fang, for Zero and Naga, for Wolf's dad, for Shrike, and especially for poor Fishcake. His character arc was so hard for me to read even though it was powerful. I have trouble with unloved little kids. They break my heart. Anyway, the ending--well basically the whole plot--was kind of clunky and herky-jerky, but it all came together to make you care about new places and people. The author makes seemingly minor characters in one book major focuses in the next. You care about a lot of people even though the author's jumps between different characters' points of view in the middle of the page with no warning can be jarringly weird. I sat and felt heart ache and hope when I finished. I'm pretty sure I'm weird on this one, but I really did reflect on love, humanity, and the meaning of life because of the funky ending. It's not my favorite series, and I think it may be a little too violent and sad in places for some of my Goodreads friends, but I responded emotionally to this one.
—Patrick
