The last book of the saga and it's not a very good ending.

I was reading it as I managed to get them in second-hand bookshops, so I'm missing one after Brujaverde and before this one, but still I understood the story well.

It's well written and has very good ideas, but it fails in many things. The main one: the lack of action that this saga has and how it fails to create the atmosphere of tension and the sense of danger, that is to say: that the heroes can fail or there is a real threat.

The bad guys are harmless, they never do anything more than intimidate with their presence, it's like they have swords but you'll never see them use them, they prefer only to talk to demotivate them and disappear. Quite disappointing.

It's a book about the journey of the heroes of the light to fulfill a prophecy, in a race against evil which only appears to tell them that they won't be able to and nothing more interesting.

I would define it as a book that falls short with a whole bunch of questions that you might overlook when reading it as a child, but still you would be very bored if you had to read it at that age because in general it's not such a light book as Harry Potter or Narnia.

An excellent finale for a smashing series. I truly appreciated how the chapters alternated between the magical duo Will & Bran and the resolutely "normal" Drew children, vividly showing their differing reactions to the Rising. Everything comes together beautifully in the end. A special shout-out goes to a superb new villain: The White Rider! *swoon* Yes, I'm swooning for an infernal, chaos-loving, completely dastardly Lord of the Dark. The White Rider gave me some wonderful chills, especially during the train ride reveal.

For me, the ranking of the books is as follows: The Dark Is Rising > The Grey King > Silver on the Tree > Greenwitch > Over Sea, Under Stone. Different books have different ratings, but overall the series is a solid 5 stars. It's a favorite among all the series I've read. I found that upon my 2nd and sometimes 3rd reread, my feelings about the individual novels have pretty much remained the same.

There are already plenty of excellent reviews out there for this book, so I'm not sure I have much more to add. However, there is one thing in response to my friend Alex who made a comment on an earlier book's review thread. The comment basically shared their dislike of a scene in this book where Will and members of his family stick up for a bullied Indian child and then face off against the bully's smiling racist father. The dislike is understandable as Alex felt it was yet another example of white people rescuing poor little brown people.

But this brown person (tan, really) begs to differ! These scenes are far from being condescending throwaway moments created only to illustrate the Stanton family's essential goodness. In many ways, these scenes are the heart and the point of the whole series. Specifically, what is causing The Dark to rise at this point in human history?

We've had hints in prior books about a previous Rising, and in this book we get the whole story: that Rising was the brutal incursion of Vikings and the wholesale slaughter of those they came across; the whispers of The Dark are behind those invasions, making those particular incursions different from other such atrocities. In that first Rising, the idea is that humans have become inured to slaughtering other humans, and The Dark has taken advantage of that tendency and turned it into a blank apathy or a mindless cruelty, a disinterest in anything besides slaughter.

This modern Rising is different, except for its basic mindlessness and blankness, cruelty and apathy. Those things are not necessarily transformed into atrocity. Instead, that mindless apathy and blank cruelty become a new sort of tool and weapon for The Dark: namely, the complacent and knee-jerk rejection of difference - as embodied by attitudes towards immigrants from exploited former colonial territories - and the tendency to reject that difference without empathy or any attempt to understand those immigrants' context and England's role in creating that context. This is a political point and a comment on human nature that Cooper is explicitly making. It is crucial to recognize this point if the reader truly wants to understand what Cooper is describing as a modern evil. Indeed, this evil is the very source of how the dark is able to spread and rise.

Sorta relevant for today's world too, eh?

Susan Cooper weaves in some truly captivating history and mythology throughout this entire series, and it is especially prominent here.

We encounter figures such as Owen Glyndŵr and Taliesin, which adds a rich and interesting layer to the story.

Although I'm not overly fond of the ending, it (albeit grudgingly) seems like the appropriate choice.

Now that I've finally completed this series, I'm making a promise to myself that I'll return and give it a proper binge-watch at some point in the future.

This way, I can fully immerse myself in the world that Cooper has created and appreciate all the details and nuances that I may have missed the first time around.

I'm looking forward to experiencing the series again and delving deeper into the fascinating history and mythology that it presents.

The finale has come!

It's truly a remarkable example of a "signs and mystical Arthurian legendary artifacts" type of series. It bravely combines ancient and wild magic with everyday English characters within a small territory, all for high stakes.

That being said, I have always had a preference for reading about Will's adventures. I quickly warmed up to Brom as well, while the normal children seemed rather mediocre to me.

Although I do appreciate the concept of having so much Arthurian and older English imagery scattered throughout these books, especially the last one, my more mature self found it a bit clumsy and even slightly absurd by the end. It always comes down to arbitrary decisions made by extremely powerful beings who then choose to offer a choice to the least significant mortals.

It's the "chosen-one" theme in different guise, and by the very end, it's even arbitrarily chosen. Yes, I can understand the point that this makes it rise above the expected results, gives it subtlety, and provides an opportunity for readers to reread it for more signs and omens. However, to me, it reminds me of countless heavy-handed Christian fictions. Given that this is post-Narnia, perhaps I'm a bit sensitive.

Nevertheless, I still liked this book and the entire series. It's good YA literature with a great atmosphere, and if you're interested, there are a vast number of symbols to consider.

I really wanted to like this book. The Drew kids were back, along with Bran, and they were expected to overshadow Will Stanton's somewhat unlikable qualities. However, ironically, Will Stanton actually has more relatable moments in this installment than he has had in a long time. To balance things out, Bran basically loses all sense of self and sleepwalks through his destiny. And what about the Drew kids? They BARELY do anything at all.

Susan Cooper's poor pacing persists. We start with random racism that is supposed to symbolize the Dark's hold on humanity or something. Then there's some magic stuff, followed by random domestic drama. And now we have some English and Welsh history thrown in LIKE I CARE. After that, Will and Bran go to the Lost Lands and go through a mirror maze or something, while the Drew kids are on a train for no apparent reason. Seriously, I just gave up trying to pay attention about halfway through the book. This series is not about the characters taking action. It's about little props fulfilling a rhyming prophecy by doing what they're supposed to do without any real conflict or danger. Rarely is any actual thought or insight required; they just know what they're supposed to know because they're supposed to know it. And when the final battle between the Light and Dark takes place, it's...basically a bunch of incomprehensible mumbo-jumbo and magic nonsense.

There are a few good aspects of the book. Thankfully, the Drew kids ARE still the Drew kids, and they have their shining moments, especially a scene between Jane and the Lady. John Rowlands faces some interesting dilemmas as an emissary for humanity. Bran has a dramatic choice to make. The White Rider was cool and sinister.

But the ending actually made me so angry that I was cursing the book out loud. Everyone but Will fucking Stanton FORGETS EVERYTHING?? Fuck you, book. Fuck you.

And so, my headlong, occasionally giddy, somewhat breathless rampage through The Dark is Rising sequence comes to an end.

It ends here, with this book of almost breathless bigness and Breugel/Dali/Escher-esque overtones.

This is one heck of a series, huge and madly inventive. It doesn't feel as if it's invented; rather, it feels real, as though Cooper has just lifted the lid of something and allowed us to look inside. Reading all of them in a gleeful, greedy rush is one heck of a reading experience.

So, Silver on the Tree is about the coming together of things. It features Will Stanton, Bran, the Drew Children, Merriman, and others, all brought together to play their parts in the right space and time(s). There are moments in this book where Cooper gets a little too internalized, a little too lost in the vision of her world(s). To me, it still needed some clarification in places and bringing back to the reader. But that's really selfish, and I do read selfishly at times because in books like this, I want it all to make sense. I want to know everything. And in this sequence, I've come to realize I know so very little, and every time I finish them, I've hungered, somewhat blindly, for more.

And there is no more of this. This is it, and this is the end. It is stunning, bold, and so very, very big. Cooper soars, and the writing soars. The endings and the resolution of things are soaring, stomach-turning, and big, big, big.

I did it. I read a series that I think, with my content smugness of having finally read them, should be obligatory. It is not without failure (then again, not many narratives are), but it is replete with victories so huge, so scopey, and world-changing in nature that it is an outstanding achievement and a reality-shifting read.

Finished the series!

I have to say that this last book is my least favourite.

There are indeed moments within it that are utterly breathtaking, capable of taking one's breath away and leaving them in awe.

However, a significant portion of the happenings seem a bit too dreamlike and disparate for my personal taste.

They lack a certain coherence and connection that I would have preferred.

But I'm sure that when I look back on this series, I'm only going to remember the bits that are extraordinary.

Those moments that stand out and leave a lasting impression.

And of course, the final line is absolute perfection.

It ties everything together in the most beautiful and satisfying way, leaving me with a sense of closure and wonder.

Despite my reservations about some aspects of the book, that final line alone makes it all worthwhile.

What the fuck! This kind of expression is often used to convey strong emotions such as surprise, anger, or frustration. It can be a rather vulgar and impolite way of speaking.

However, in some situations, people might use it unconsciously or in a more casual context among friends. But we should still be aware of the impact our words have on others and try to communicate in a more respectful and appropriate manner.

Using such language might not only cause discomfort to those around us but also give a negative impression of ourselves. It's important to choose our words carefully and express our feelings in a way that is both clear and civilized.

So, the next time we feel the urge to blurt out "What the fuck!", we should take a moment to think and consider if there is a better way to convey our message.

I initiated this series way back in 2016. At that time, I had no inkling that it would consume such a long period to reach its conclusion. In fact, I wasn't even certain if I would be able to complete it. My experience of reading these books has been rather tumultuous, with its fair share of highs and lows.

I'm not entirely sure what it was about this particular installment that didn't fully engage me. There were moments when I found it a bit challenging to keep track of the unfolding events. I struggled to determine where the characters were, who was present, and even how a particular scene fit into the overall narrative. Now, I do recognize that some of this was likely intentional to create an air of mystery and intrigue. However, at other times, I was simply left confused.

Despite these difficulties, there were some truly outstanding moments. Certain scenes were so vivid that they seemed to leap off the page, even if they delved into the realm of the mystical. So, I find myself in a bit of a quandary as to why I could understand and be captivated by the story at times, yet be completely lost at others.

Overall, this book isn't my favorite in the series. Nevertheless, it did manage to evoke some powerful emotions within me. Oh my! Series finales often have that effect, and it most definitely occurred here. And with that... one more series has come to an end!

Ok, so I decided to read this series after seeing a list of the best 100 scifi/fantasy books. The second book in the series, The Dark is Rising, was on that list. I thought it wouldn't be right to start with the second book, so I began from the beginning. As it turns out, the recommended second book was indeed the best among the series, but still, it didn't manage to make it to my top anything.

Now, I'm not really the target audience for this series. A colleague of mine read it when she was around 10 and loved it, so maybe that's where my issue lies. Overall, I found the series to be rather plodding and slow, and a bit boring. It's a battle between light and dark, with a series of quests that the light must win to obtain special objects that will aid in winning the final battle. Each book represents one of these quests, and the light keeps winning. So, it's unclear to me if the dark has any chance of winning once the light acquires a few of these objects.

Anyway, overall, this is like a King Arthur type of thing. It can be quite preachy at times, especially towards the end. And it becomes pretty obvious that the light is going to win every battle. There's no real tension or even a threat to any of the main characters. Among the characters, Will is the most interesting. The three kids in the first novel are rather annoying. I felt like I was really working hard just to get through the last book and was finally relieved when I finished.

I'm in the minority with my review here. Again, this series wasn't really intended for me. But I read a lot of fantasy and YA, and this series didn't measure up on either count.

SO... I have a friend who is truly passionate about Elf-Chess. It's an annual performance by highly skilled actors at the Renaissance Faire. The game involves two wizards who use string, pottery, or an egg and transform them into magical incantations to foil each other's plans, all in front of an inquisitive crowd of onlookers. The game has no fixed rules, and no one knows the outcome until it is declared by one of the actors. As I was reading this final Susan Cooper book, I had a realization:

The Dark is Rising is essentially a game of Elf-Chess.

Admittedly, Susan Cooper is an outstanding writer. Her choice of words is exquisite, and that alone is a good reason to enjoy the books. But is she a great icon of fantasy? In Tolkien's works, you know the goal: Bilbo must retrieve the treasure from Smaug, and Frodo's fellowship must destroy the Ring. In C.S. Lewis' stories, the characters must defeat the White Witch or uncover the fate of the seven banished lords. Even in David Gemmell's somewhat loosely defined magic, there is a comprehensible framework for sorcery. However, Cooper's construction of the powers of light and darkness seems to mean whatever she wants it to in her books. That's, well, a bit of a problem.

I don't want to give away any spoilers, so let me just say that if the protagonist, Will Stanton, defeats the forces of darkness in this book - and I'm not saying he does - you'd never know it unless he and/or Merriman tells you. There are so many moments like "we can't escape this terrifying monster unless some leaves fall from the trees, and then - lo and behold - the leaves fall," with no clear connection to anything. The random cause-and-effect isn't always the case, but it is throughout the book series, especially in this finale. Cooper still manages to make some scenes poignant with her language and unexpected twists, but - please! Even at the climax of this last book, I was hoping to know where the characters were headed, what they would be facing, what their strategy was, or why I should care that everyone was getting nervous. And then things happen that seem completely unrelated to anything introduced in the previous four books, and then...

Well, Merriman says to Will, it looks like we defeated the powers of darkness. [This is just a hypothetical, as in if Will and Merriman defeat the dark.] Nobody dies. Nobody even gets hurt. It would be charming if Cooper could claim to have carried out her entire series without any bloodshed or violence and also keep her readers informed about how the plot is unfolding, but since she doesn't, it gives me the impression that if you're going to avoid sword-fighting, then you might as well forget about having a clear story arc. Of course, that's not true, but you'd never know it from this series.

C'mon, Bran has a sword that crackles with blue electricity, and there's not a drop of human blood in the entire five books? Maybe this is why the series gets so much praise from moms who want a wholesome and family-friendly vibe. It's well-written, but let's be honest: this is a fantasy series based on an ancient Welsh mythos. It's not a Christian allegory or a modern equivalent of Beowulf, or the best thing to attract Guy Gavriel Kay fans. It's actually quite boring in some places, which is frustrating because she could make her climactic scenes so much more exciting if she would just give the audience a little hint about what's going on before it happens. If your readers are left wondering what the significance of these events is in the epic battle between light and darkness, you're keeping them in the dark, and that's a battle with your readers that you don't want to lose.

Well, here we are, at the end of a very long journey.

I can clearly see now why The Dark is Rising sequence is packaged as a sequence. The individual novels are rather short, with some of them being closer to novellas than full-length novels. The five-book stories actually form a single, continuous story, but when packaged together, they take up nearly 800 pages of very small print. It's an adult-sized story targeted at young adults and children. I imagine the omnibus edition can be quite intimidating. I found it intimidating, which is precisely why I've been reading it one book at a time.

When I initially started reading this series, I was rather dismissive of Susan Cooper's ideas and writing. Over Sea, Under Stone isn't a very well-developed book, and I still stand by the issues I had with its plotting and characterization. In some aspects, these criticisms have never completely gone away. Although the novels steadily improve, my complaints about each of them are, for the most part, very similar. However, I feel a bit handicapped in the sense that I don't think I'm the right audience for these books. I believe that older children and young adults would devour these books without fail, and it's not really fair for me to impose adult sensibilities on such fare.

The last two books, The Grey King and Silver on the Tree, have compelled me to reevaluate Cooper. These are the best books in the series, not least because they contain genuine peril and high stakes. Both adopt a more complex structure, with Cooper using parts as well as chapters to organize everything. Silver on the Tree is the climax and the resolution; the forces of Dark are rising to make one final attempt to take control of our world, and the Light, led by Will Stanton, must stand firm against the Dark.

It's all extremely exciting. However, I'm still uncomfortable with the extent to which Cooper leans on destiny. And this isn't unique to her; it's an issue that many strong fantasy writers seem to grapple with. Relying too much on destiny, prophecy, and "knowledge" obtained through arcane means irks me in a fantasy novel because it spoils some of the mystery of the story. Barring a very depressing ending (which we obviously wouldn't see here), we know the protagonists have to succeed. It's not about whether they win; it's about how. But if so much of it is choreographed by destiny, to the point where our protagonists almost can't fail, then the story becomes a cutscene in a rails shooter, and it starts to lose its appeal.

That's an issue when the two sides are simply called "Light" and "Dark". They are simplistic in a way that appeals to kids and even some adults. But when all the heroes are unwavering in their allegiance to the Light, it gets dull. The most intense parts of these books occur when other characters have to make the choice to side with the Light or the Dark. One such moment happens in Silver on the Tree, when John Rowlands must decide whether Bran belongs in the present time and, thus, is able to assist the Light in pushing back the Dark. Both sides are bound by the Higher Magic, and they mutually empower John as the adjudicator. The Dark tempts John with his wife in a rather heart-wrenching way. And he still chooses the Light – which, again, is not much of a surprise. But hey, at least we had some dramatic tension.

(And then, because the Light is overly paternalistic, after John can't decide whether to keep his memory of these strange events, the Lady decides for him and makes him forget. Why not just make everyone except the Old Ones and Bran forget? Why do Barney, Simon, and Jane need to remember?)

I'm glad I read this series because now I understand what people are talking about when they praise its role in their lives. I've had similar books – for me, the Belgariad was my gateway to epic fantasy in a way that Lord of the Rings never was, even though the latter is arguably better. I am, without a doubt, a literary snob, albeit one who occasionally attempts to reform. And in such a gesture, it's necessary to note that a book doesn't have to be "good" to also be influential (that vampire book ring any bells?). Yet our definition of "good" is always going to vary. I do, in fact, consider The Dark is Rising as a whole a good series, but one with much variation within that category. I can't personally attest to its greatness or claim it has left a significant lasting impression on me. But I can see the potential for it to do so, in another time and another place.

My reviews of The Dark is Rising sequence:
← The Grey King

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