Unlike the others in this series the last novel stays mainly in Paradise. There are no crazy journeys that take you across the bush or across state lines. There are no wars involved or epic battle scenes. It's a lot of wrapping up of the Bonner clan and I loved every second of it.It was a lot of home life and it was interesting to see how the Bonner children grew up and what choices they made with their life. I will say that I was super confused for a bit about who was who because there are SO MANY characters and names and I didn't read all six of the books one after another.I enjoyed this last one a lot more than I enjoyed most of the series simply because it did stay put in Paradise and there were more disasters at home that kept them there instead of driving them off to other places.And if you know me, you know I'm a sucker for historical fiction no matter what happens. hahahh I first purchased the first two books in this series about two years ago. I read "Into the Wilderness" and enjoyed it but didn't read "Dawn on a Distant Shore" until last week and then decided I must re-read the first book before I tackled the complete series.So, during the past week, I have completed the series and must say that some of the primary characters in these novels are great and you just want to keep reading because the people have become so real to you. Throughout the series, some questions are never completely answered - at least not to my satisfaction. There are often scenes that are simply looked back upon with very little detail about the happenings.This book does answer a few of the questions, yet it was still quite a let-down. So much time was spent on Jemima Wilde and the concerns of the Bonner Family related to her evil nature that it came close to ruining the book for me. Couldn't the author have had Nathaniel push her over a cliff or something? I would have preferred learning a little bit about what made Ethan tick - the series never explored his character in depth, except for his penchant for building. Or, how about some details about Gabriel and his romance with Annie? Or even, some romantic interludes between Hannah and sexy Ben. Basically zilch, zero, nada! Even letting Lily up off her couch might have helped this book along.Yes, some loose ends were tied up and it was great to have the joy of Daniel's and Martha's relationship detailed. Additionally, Birdie was a great little character and so much fun, she deserves a series all her own.I agree with some other reviewers who thought the epilogue as it was written was a wrong move. I would have been happier thinking about all the Bonners (or, if you prefer - "Bonner's" as they were so often referred to when used in the plural sense - wrong! Someone needed additional assistance in editing through much of this series) as they were at the end of the book, without an epilogue that shows when and where many of them. died. Suggestion: if you read the book, skip the epilogue.
What do You think about The Endless Forest (2010)?
I am very sad to have gotten to the end of this series. I got so attached to the characters.
—Svetlana
Breathtaking. I love the people in this series and the story they told.
—candy
Sad that this series came to an end. I really enjoyed escaping to it!
—Javi
I enjoyed this book. It was a good conclusion to the series.
—prodjb
