This was a truly disappointing end to a series that had already left much to be desired.

"It's all too... vague," remarks Jane at one point, right at the start of yet another random adventure. Sadly, this sentiment holds true for the entire The Dark Is Rising sequence.

I'm at a loss as to where to begin my critique. So, I'll start with the same issues I had with the other four books. There's no proper explanation about how all the magic functions, and there's an overuse of capitalized words that seem to signify nothing. In this book, Will gives a little speech at the beginning about the Old Magic, Wild Magic, and High Magic, as well as the two "poles" (the Light and the Dark) and how the Old Ones are there to keep the Dark at bay. But this is more of a summing up than a comprehensive explanation. There's no in-depth exploration of the countless things they can or cannot do, which seems to be dictated solely by what the plot requires. There doesn't appear to be any set rules governing all this magic, and any new magic is introduced haphazardly to fit the plot and is never really revisited.

I have an abundance of questions that I now know will never be answered. For instance, what does it mean when Will's scar burns? Why do Will and Merriman shout at each other in loud situations when they can easily communicate telepathically? Why does Will have trouble learning Welsh in "The Grey King" when in "Silver on the Tree" it's stated that learning a new language (in this case Latin) "came without effort to an Old One, as did any language of the world..."? Why do bunches of twigs from 7 different trees make magic grenades? If the Drew kids are so crucial to the whole world-saving adventure, why are they constantly kept in the dark about what's happening?

There are so many other questions too. Why is the Lady so weak throughout the series, yet appears perfectly fine when the Dark issues a challenge to the High Magic court of law? Why would there be a courtroom scene right in the middle of the buildup to the end battle? Why do the Dark and the Light follow what the High Magic court says when Will himself earlier said "No other power orders them"? Why was there a slight rewrite about what happened when the six Signs were joined? Why would the revealing of a "mole" be shocking here when the character was barely introduced in this volume and exists for only a few pages of the entire saga? Why would anyone think this is as good or better than Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Narnia, or His Dark Materials?

I could continue, but my point is clear. The writing and descriptions are well done, and the story is imaginative. However, it's all in vain if the details are lacking and the plot is weak. Even the philosophical underpinnings are contradictory and muddled. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone above the age of 12. There are far better thought-out and sophisticated books and series out there than the simplistic approach of The Dark Is Rising to everything.

Finished the whole series today.

The end of Silver On The Tree is truly very moving. I find that Susan Cooper has astutely echoed what is happening in this world today. The "evil" that humans inflict upon each other is a sad reality. It makes one wonder how it is up to our children and their children to make this world a better place and to "save" it from the brink of destruction, which is often a result of our own activities.

I was particularly struck by where Merriman says, "The future cannot blame the present, just as the present cannot blame the past." This is a line that is truly worth thinking about and reflecting on what it means to each of us.

One can't help but wonder if Susan Cooper knew something about future events that we didn't when she wrote this last book.

My copy is part of "The Dark Is Rising Sequence". I have discovered that when reading a "series" like this (for example, the Harry Potter series), it is best to read something else in between to break them up a little. This is something I must do when I venture into The Lord Of The Rings sometime in the future.

The final book in the series is indeed still a great read. However, for me, it is the weakest among them.

I truly love the moment when all the protagonists of the series come together at last. But unfortunately, the book separates them for long periods. Will and Bran are engaged in magical quest things, while the Drews are on a different journey.

As an adult reader, for the first time, I felt a lack of urgency in Will and Bran's quest through the Lost Land. The writing is beautifully done, but things occur in a dreamlike manner, as if they don't require much effort on the part of the characters.

Perhaps this is a departure from the earlier books in the series, which had a more palpable sense of excitement and adventure. Nevertheless, the final book still has its charm and offers some interesting insights into the characters and their world.

Overall, while it may not be my favorite in the series, it is still a worthy addition and a must-read for fans of the Chronicles of Prydain.

Cooper's prose, as always, is truly gorgeous. Her remarkable flair for vivid imagery is nothing short of enviable. However, this final volume in the Dark is Rising sequence disappoints as a novel. The first four volumes were all about buildup, and unfortunately, this one is too, until just five pages from the end.

Like books two, three, and four, there are random time-traveling scenes. But here, instead of advancing the plot, they muddle it.

None of the characters possess particularly vivid personalities. The Drew siblings, especially Jane, always seemed more real than Will or Bran. Will has no distinct personality, and Bran just wanders over the mountains sulking, except when the plot forces him to act noble, basically a pubescent, Welsh Mr. Rochester. Naturally, the bulk of the book follows Will and Bran doing big important hero things, while the lowly Drews are shut out.

This is a pet peeve of mine in fantasy literature. The magical elite, fully or partially, shut ordinary people out of the conflict, "for their own protection," even when they are owed an honest and complete explanation for all the scary things happening around them. At least Bran, Will, and Merriman have the decency not to look down on the Drews or John Rowlands, which is more than can be said of their literary descendants like Jace and the Lightwoods in The Mortal Instruments, Annabeth in Percy Jackson, and pretty much everybody in Harry Potter. Lewis and Tolkien had neither taste nor tolerance for this fantastic gnosticism, which must inevitably lead to fantastic racism. More on them later.

The book also assumes a great deal of previous knowledge of Welsh mythology and history. One can tell there is some sort of deep unspoken significance in every person, place, and thing in this story. But good luck deducing what they mean unless you're an expert on Arthuriana and/or Wales. Not that these plot devices are bad per se. Lewis and Lemony Snicket both employ a lot of literary and classical references that go straight over most kids' heads. But in both those cases, the story can still be enjoyed on a surface level without understanding those references. That's not the case with TDiR. I was confused for most of the book. Here are some things that confused me:

- The Lady calling Jane "Juno." The Lady, full stop. Is she supposed to be some kind of goddess or "sacred feminine" archetype? If so, is Jane meant to be some sort of avatar? And why bother establishing this psychic bond between the two when Jane is allowed such a small role in the story?

- Mrs. Rowlands was the White Rider all along. Um, how? And why?

- What is the Lost Land? The timelessness of it suggests Camelot, but most of the details would then be wrong.

Other flaws:

- The whole Lost Land episode does nothing for the plot, and everything important that happened in it could have been covered in one chapter.

- The scene with King Gwyddno is almost a rip-off of King Theoden's redemption in The Lord of the Rings. Not nearly as spectacular, though. Later I'll elaborate on why I think that's the case.

- Taliesin - or Gwion, whatever - was portrayed a lot better in A String in the Harp. Here he does nothing and adds nothing.

- The Drews are literally only there to fill the number of people from the prophecy. In fairness, Jane gets to talk to the Lady because she's a girl, and Barney gets kidnapped. (Barney gets kidnapped in every book he appears in). Simon might as well have been on holiday.

- I've shipped Will/Jane since Greenwitch, and that went nowhere. There's a few hints here of Bran/Jane, but that doesn't go anywhere either, because both boys have far too much Very Important Marty Stu business to attend to.

- There is literally no humor in this book. Actually, after some light touches in Over Sea, Under Stone, there's no humor in the entire series.

- I HATE the "convenient memory wipe" device wherever and whenever it appears...which leads me to my final point...

Susan Cooper has been compared to J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, not necessarily for her prose (which is great indeed) but for her "moral vision" of the "sweeping conflict of good and evil" (Psychology Today). I would dispute this claim.

In fact, Cooper doesn't even well-define the difference between the Light and the Dark. One is good and the other evil mostly because they say so. The Light is marginally more ethical than the Dark, but both sides lie and trick people and wipe people's memories and keep secrets from those people even when those people are in great danger and have every right to know exactly what is going on.

The good guys in Middle-earth and Narnia do not deal in these kinds of shenanigans. They don't use deceit, even when we'd all forgive them for it. Everybody - even apparently powerless people like the hobbits and the Pevensie kids - are kept well-informed. And they are allowed to keep their memories, even the scary ones.

The idea that there's a High Magic above and beyond good and evil would be deeply repellent to either Jack or Tollers, but Cooper uses it.

There is no Illuvatar or Aslan here, in case you were wondering.

The reason for the difference:

Tolkien and Lewis wrote from a deeply believed Christian worldview. Christianity believes that good is actually much more powerful than evil, and that simple people - mortals, children, and hobbits, if you will - have just as much a right to participate in history as the learned, powerful, and great.

Cooper's worldview, going by these books, is Manichean and Gnostic. Manicheanism is the belief that good and evil are equally matched and equally ruthless. Gnosticism is the belief that only super-special-snowflake people deserve to know the whole truth of things, and the stupid uninitiated are better off unenlightened.

This worldview can also be found, in varying degrees, in most children's and YA fantasy of the last few decades - obviously and obnoxiously in the works of Philip Pullman, J.K. Rowling, Stephanie Meyer, Christopher Paolini, Rick Riordan, and Cassandra Clare, all of whom use it in much more offensive ways than Cooper. It is amusingly turned on its head by Terry Pratchett in the Tiffany Aching novels, and deconstructed by Jonathan Stroud in the Bartimaeus Sequence.

So why is this Manicheanism/Gnosticism a problem? Because it subliminally tells kids that they have to be part of a secret, glamorous elite in order to be successful or even worthwhile. That to be ordinary is to be a loser. That simplicity is bad.

Pound this idea repeatedly into a young, impressionable mind and it can create all kinds of problems - most of which are related to narcissism.

I'll stick with Lewis and Tolkien, thanks. I'm on Aslan's side even if there's no Aslan to lead it.

Well, that's that. At last.

When these books first came out, I devoured them hungrily, without pausing for a moment. I adored them. But then, in about 18 months' time, my life underwent a radical transformation. I left the small town where I grew up, along with its library and indeed its entire continent, to start a new life elsewhere. From time to time, I thought affectionately about this series. So, when I had the opportunity to re-read it, I was eager to do so.

Oh dear.

Those who follow my reviews will know that it has been one disappointment after another. 80% of this is because I am a completely different person in my 50s than I was at 15. My core beliefs are now totally different from those of the girl I was then. But even so, Cooper carelessly mixes the Arthurian cycle with bits and pieces taken from Tolkien, Norse mythology, "A Wrinkle in Time", and goodness knows what else. One moment, human love is the strongest force in the world, and the next, it means nothing compared to Cooper's many magicks. Many of the quest clues make no sense. For example, what do mirrors have to do with a womb? What was the deal with the weasels or minks or whatever they were? They were so "important" in the opening chapters and then simply vanished. Who or what is the Lady? She seems to be a figure like the Blessed Virgin Mary, with her white tunic and blue cloak, but why should an immortal be depleted if she cannot age past a certain point or be killed even by poison? Britain is crucial in saving the world from the Dark, and the World Tree Yggdrasil is transplanted from Asgard to the Chiltern Hills!

Strewth. And that's just the beginning.

But then, of course, Cooper was born under the Empire, so perhaps in her mindset, it makes sense that Britain will save the day for the whole earth, including Micronesia (for example). There are so many strange things in these books that have little to do with the actual quest story itself. There is too much time-slip, and too many people on both sides of the fractures are aware of it for it to be believable (even within the context of the story), especially since it's all predetermined anyway. What would be the point of all this slipping around from one century to another?

Oh, well, the "point" appears in the last twenty pages or so, where the author preaches to the reader her strange concept of "free will" and says at one point, "You may not (in the sense of must not) be idly expecting the second coming of anybody now... it's up to you." Again, it's not enough for her to create her own alternate history/theory of "magics" etc., she has to denigrate Christianity whenever she can (and so much for it being an allegory!). In every single book, Cooper felt the need to emphasize the idea that the Cross is ineffective by replacing it with her own symbol of circle-quartered, by showing that a Christian rite is powerless against the Dark, that Christianity is merely going through the motions to make oneself feel better.

Sucks to you, Susie.

The parts I most enjoyed were when Cooper is describing the normal family interactions between the Stantons, even the part where they deal with an obnoxious, racist (ginger-haired) neighbor and his nasty (ginger-haired) kid. This time around, I noticed that most of her bad guys in most of the books have red or chestnut hair; obviously, Cooper doesn't like gingers. Will and Bran's friendship also had its moments, but again, Will, the famous Old One, doesn't seem to actually use all those powers he supposedly has; and weren't they given just for this period in history? He blunders around mostly relying on emotions and the reactions of horses and dogs. Some hero. I don't think I actually finished this book the first time I read it. I remembered the conversation between Will and his brother, another truncated thread that goes nowhere because of a time-slip - apparently, when an idea wasn't working out, Cooper would just timeshift to get herself out of the mess. But nothing of what came later left any impression. If it had, I wouldn't have re-read it.

Meh. That is all.

All of the books in the sequence were good,

but this particular one stands out as the absolute best!

The story of Light vs. Dark is told in such a captivating way.

It keeps you on the edge of your seat from start to finish.

I'm so glad I decided to re-read these books.

It's like rediscovering a hidden treasure.

The characters are well-developed and the plot is full of twists and turns.

It really makes you think about the power of good and evil.

If you're a fan of this genre, I highly recommend giving this book a try.

You won't be disappointed!

It's a must-read for anyone who loves a great story.

Silver on the Tree combines all the best elements of the other books in the sequence.

There is the magic that enraptures, the genuine moments of terror and alarm that make your heart race, the seamless weaving of legends with the everyday, the mysteries that leave you pondering, and the strong sense of place.

Moreover, it combines both sadness and joy more than any of the others, making it the most adult in the sequence.

I particularly relish little details like Bran getting to meet Owain Glyndŵr. However, one thing I did notice and miss was Barney not having a more pronounced reaction to actually meeting King Arthur, whom he has idolized since before the first page of the first book. This time, it really jarred me.

Also, I recall someone mentioning how much it bothered them that this book plays into the theme of the betrayal of a woman. As in The Dark is Rising, with Maggie Barnes, "a sweet face" used to lure people into the Dark. Thinking about it this time, I understand their point, even though the White Rider is otherwise ambiguously gendered. It's as if women can somehow conceal their allegiance to the Dark behind their womanly charms, while the men are immediately identified.

We do have some wonderful female characters in these books, mainly the Lady and Jane, along with Will's sisters, mother, and aunt and other minor characters. But it's a bit unpleasant that the alluring side of the Dark is rather unambiguously female.

Still, this isn't enough to spoil the books, nor is it suggested that all women could or would do this. It's just something that might bother you, especially if you forget how old these books are.

I think I've ended my reviews of this book with this quotation before, but it still holds true. The book concludes with a call to arms for all of us, to stop relying on others to change the world and to know that we alone are responsible for our own choices.

"For Drake is no longer in his hammock, children, nor is Arthur somewhere sleeping, and you may not lie idly expecting the second coming of anybody now, because the world is yours and it is up to you."

Silver on the Tree is the concluding volume in The Dark is Rising series. This book truly did not disappoint, and I have developed an intense love for this entire series. Oh, how I wish I had discovered it earlier!

The six servants of the light have now reached their final, desperate struggle against the forces of darkness. They are confronted with one last, formidable task: to locate the crystal sword. Their search will take them from their own world to the hauntingly magical Lost Land that lies between the sea and the shore. And before the battle's final moments, each of them will come face to face with death.

Once again, I have been completely swept away into an astonishingly magical and eerie quest. Just like the previous book, this one is set in Wales, which is so close to home for me and provides a sense of comfort. The story is darkly thrilling and filled with anticipation. The characters are incredibly endearing, and I have been cheering for them throughout the entire series. Will Stanton and Merriman have become two of my absolute favorite fictional characters.

I thoroughly enjoyed the structure of this book and believed that the series was brought to a perfect conclusion. It was quite an emotional experience for me, as if I had accompanied these characters on a journey.

This series has become extremely special to me, and I know that I will reread it countless times in the future. I wholeheartedly recommend these books to fans of dark middle grade fantasy.

A satisfactory conclusion is reached in this book, yet it doesn't quite measure up to some of the earlier installments in the series. This volume has a tendency to push the boundaries of the series' reality a little more than the others. However, the final resolution is dealt with in a manner that is good enough such that the reader doesn't have to overly suspend their disbelief. The story unfolds with its own set of twists and turns, keeping the reader engaged throughout. Although it may not be the strongest in the series, it still manages to provide an enjoyable reading experience. The characters are developed to a certain extent, and their interactions add depth to the narrative. Overall, while it may not be a masterpiece, it is a worthy addition to the series.

I think I liked this one the most out of the whole series.

It had a certain charm and excitement that really drew me in. However, I do wish Will, Bran, and Merriman told Jane, Simon, and Barney more about what was going on.

It seems a bit unfair that they were kept in the dark like that. After all, if they were so important to the Light, they should have been given more information and included in the decision-making process.

I understand that there may have been reasons for keeping them in the dark, but it still made me feel a bit frustrated for the characters.

Overall, though, I still really enjoyed this installment of the series and can't wait to see what happens next.

Loved the ending. It was truly the best of the series.

I would have derived even greater enjoyment from all of the books if the details of the plot had been more exact. After all, it's a mystical world, and the author has the freedom to create the rules. However, they appeared to be very indistinct and random. As a reader, you are certain that The Light will prevail in the end. But the ultimate victory seems to rely on a multitude of ambiguous circumstances occurring and things happening in a rather fortuitous manner. Arbitrary laws seem to form the foundation for everything. This, on one hand, enhances the mystery of the world of the Old Ones, but on the other hand, it diminishes the tension in the story because almost anything - perhaps quite literally anything - can occur.

Apart from the questionable nature of the plot, this series was a great deal of fun. I really like how each book builds upon the previous one, and the way the characters intertwine throughout the five books and all converge in the end. The poem that holds the series together is very reminiscent of Tolkien (which means... it is truly amazing).

This rating/review is for the series. I'm mostly giving it 3 stars out of nostalgia. However, often it dipped into the 2-star arena.

I vividly remember waiting with great anticipation for the final two volumes to come out! And over the years, even as an adult, I've reread this several times and initially felt it held up well. Sadly, that's no longer the case for me.

In the final book, or perhaps the next to last (I'm not entirely sure which), there's a rather horrible little lecture on racism/anti-immigrant feeling. I mean, I assume Cooper means well, but it doesn't seem to have occurred to her to actually make the characters in the books diverse, does it? Or to have more than one female character, or a powerful Old One female for that matter? There's The Lady, but her role is rather vague and she seems quite frail.

I understand that for the sake of these types of books, the kids, especially Will, have to do things on their own (though in the first book Merry seems to save everyone at the last minute). But other than the fact that it's a trope, with the fate of a) England, b) the world, and c) the UNIVERSE FOR SOME REASON DEPENDING ON ENGLAND, why exactly does Will have to do things without any intervention from Merry or any of the Old Ones? I mean, what were the exact rules of magic there? That's what world building is all about, and now that I'm 55 and grown up enough to think about this, I just didn't get what those rules were.

And why exactly was this the last time the dark was going to rise? How did they all know this was the last time the dark could rise? Maybe it was something to do with astrology? I think there might have been a mention of that, but it seemed like a rather flimsy reason to me.

Especially if the previous time it rose was in King Arthur's day. That wasn't very long ago, geologically speaking. You'd think the dark might be, oh I don't know, about 13.8 billion years old, give or take 21 million. It didn't rise again when England was, perhaps, dominating the global slave trade or brutalizing the entire subcontinent of India.

And the Christian overtones, or undertones! Yuck.

And King Arthur. And Guinevere and all that nonsense. I guess I've gone so far beyond that stupid version of the legend that I simply have no patience for it anymore. Anyway. She can't even seem to make up her mind about who the agents of the Dark were in Arthur's day. Weren't they Saxons AND Angles? Therefore, Arthur was no English king. But she seems to slip up a few times and be unable to separate Arthur and Englishness. He was either a Roman or a Celtic warrior, and certainly no king at all.

In any event, he comes across as a pretentious twit here.

But never mind, because here you have a simple dualistic tale of good = light, and bad = dark, and of course the dark agents are almost always ugly and the good almost always beautiful. And by the way, the dark uses rooks and wolves. That always offends me. Rooks and their cousins the crows are highly intelligent and I hate how they get demonized. Don't even get me started on wolves.

Finally. The ending. What a betrayal. I've always thought this, of course. It breaks a cardinal rule of storytelling - it's like the Wizard of Oz betrayal... really? They don't get to remember? Why not? It's horrible. A cheat. Unspeakable.

The Bran parts were the best, so the mindwipe at the end is just terrible.

So, Susan, after all these years, I'm afraid we have to break up. At least Ursula, whose sins were not nearly as numerous, had the grace to admit that her 70s imagination was steeped in the male-dominated milieu of the day, as much as she tried to see beyond it. So, she went back and wrote more enlightened sequels.