My loan for the book kept ending, so I ended up reading it over the course of a few months. I don't think this is the ideal way to experience this particular book as there are numerous intricate details and strange circumstances that might have been better grasped if read more closely together or perhaps not as an audiobook. That being said, I found myself with some thoughts and observations.

I really don't quite understand the role of the Drew kids in this installment. In "Over Sea, Under Stone", they truly shone as we saw the world exclusively from their perspective, with the typical "normal kids getting thrown into the supernatural" trope playing out. And in "Greenwitch", they also had significant roles. However, in this book, I really had no idea what they were doing until their small role at the very end, which could have been accomplished by anyone. They all proved in the first book that they are intelligent and brave kids, so it seems they could have been given more substantial tasks to do. This entire book was pretty much carried by Will and Bran.

Speaking of which, without giving away too much, Bran kind of got a raw deal at the end. He was really coming into his own throughout this whole book, and it appears that he won't be able to carry that momentum forward in the future.

Finally, let's talk about Will. His arc and role are by far the best handled throughout the series. It's rather strange that the Drew kids are the first ones we meet, making it seem as if they are the main characters, when in reality, Will is basically the main character of the entire series. This is further emphasized by the fact that his solo book, "The Dark is Rising", is easily the best in the series. The atmosphere, tension, characters, and worldbuilding in that one are so exceptionally well done that I was constantly thinking about it for the remainder of the series. It did an excellent job of making me attached to him, and he continued to grow throughout the series. I do think he took a bit of a backseat in this particular book to allow Bran to shine, but I'm okay with that because Bran hasn't had a lot of page time up until now!

All in all, this series tackled a great deal, and while some elements seem to have been left behind, it is still well executed overall!

Great book! I love the "train" they take to the tree. It's really sad that it is the last book in the series.

2018 Review
The last book in the Dark is Rising Sequence, Silver on the Tree, is perhaps the most adventurous one. All of the characters from the previous novels are reunited in the battle against the rising forces of the Dark. This final novel is a fitting end to a wonderful series.

Will Stanton is back again in Wales with his friend Bran. They are soon joined by Simon, Jane and Barney Drew. Everyone has an important role to play in this ultimate battle with the Dark. Jane must be courageous when faced with the afanc, a terrible monster, in order to pass along a message from the Lady to Will and Bran. Will and Bran travel to the Lost Land to seek Eirias, a sword fashioned by a great craftsman for the Light. Along the way, they are threatened not only by the Dark, but also by the Wild Magic of the Lost Land. The final confrontation between the Dark and the Light is magical and fitting.

I think I read these books over and over again because they don't limit themselves to just a magical tale of a boy's adventure. These books can be read as a study of the human heart. In every book, characters are faced with choices: to take the easy way, the most comfortable way, the way that may lead to hatred and fear, or the difficult choice that may cause pain and grief, but is, in the end, more caring and humane? While the novels are framed as a supernatural battle between supernatural beings, the bigger story is about humanity and our own battles against fear and hatred. There's a scene quite early in the book when Stephen Stanton comes to the rescue of a small Indian boy being chased by two English boys. Later, the father of the leader of the bullies visits the Stantons to discuss what happened. This book was published in the mid-1970s, but every word that the father says could have come from a modern-day bigot. After calling them "coloureds," he says he has nothing against them personally, that he even thinks some of them are intelligent. (At which point Barbara, one of the older Stanton kids, says "I expect even some of your best friends are Indians and Pakistanis." Snerk.) The bigot continues to base his bigotry on the same reasons we've all heard before: they take jobs from good English people, you allow one in and next thing you know there's twenty, they live in the country for free and suck up all the country's resources. When Stephen wants to call the man nasty names, his father stops him: "Don't say it…don't say it! You know how many there are. You can't convince them and you can't kill'em. You can only do your best in the opposite direction—which you did" (52-54). This is why I think the books hold up so well over time: the overarching theme is still relevant and probably (unfortunately) will always be relevant. Cooper uses the magical battles between Dark and Light as merely a way of introducing the real story: humanity's battle against its own tendency to turn towards the dark.

Even with such a serious message, the magic of the novel is still pretty magical. Wales is a mystical and lovely country steeped in history and battles and myths of great heroes. Cooper uses these myths to introduce the legend of King Arthur, the afanc, and the mari llwyd: "It was the skeleton of a giant horse, staring with the blind eye-sockets of a skull, running and leaping and prancing on legs of bone driven by ghostly muscles long rotted away. It caught them almost at once…Silently it overtook them, head turned, grinning, an impossible horror. The white bones of its rib-cage glittered in the sun. It tossed its dreadful silent head, and red ribbons dangled and fluttered like long banners from the grinning lower jaw" (175). Bran and Will's journey to the Lost Land is my favorite adventure of the whole series. They travel to the beautiful City, make their way through a maze of mirrors to the Empty Palace, confront the mari llwyd in the Country and finally arrive at the Castle, where they are faced with an enemy more insidious than all the others come before: hopelessness, uncertainty and fear. Gwion, their guide through the Lost Land, explains:

"So the Dark did a simple thing," he said. "They showed the maker of the sword his own uncertainty and fear. Fear of having done the wrong thing—fear that having done this one great thing, he would never again be able to accomplish anything of great worth—fear of age, of insufficiency, of unmet promise. All such endless fears, that are the doom of people given the gift of making, and lie always somewhere in their minds. And gradually, he was put into despair. Fear grew in him, and he escaped from it into lethargy—and so hope died, and a terrible paralyzing melancholy took its place. He is held by it now, he is held captive by his own mind. He, and the sword Eirias that he made, with him. Despair holds him prisoner, despair, the most terrible creation of all" (166)

When reading this, I can't help but think that the author was perhaps addressing her own fears regarding writing, and the universal fears we all face.

What I've noticed from this latest reading of the novel is how sad it is and how the series as a whole is about loss. The battles between the Dark and the Light are rarely physical; they are rather intellectual and spiritual. Every victory of the Light is paired with a loss. Many of these losses affect the humans in the novel much more than the supernatural beings of the Light. John Rowlands is probably my favorite character of all of the books. When dealing with betrayal and great loss, he is called upon to make an important judgment in the war between Light and Dark. His judgment is based on his feelings that humans are free to make their own choices, and sometimes those choices are motivated by love, and sometimes by hate. In the end, when the Light wins and the Dark is cast outside of Time forever (because, really, this is not a spoiler. Of course the Light wins), there are no celebrations. The victory is bittersweet not just because it is a time of permanent goodbyes but also because the world's fate is now fully in the hands of man. Merriman delivers a speech to Jane telling her this: "For remember, that it is your world now. You and all the rest. We have delivered you from evil, but the evil that is inside men is at the last a matter for men to control. The responsibility and the hope and the promise are in your hands—your hands and the hands of the children of all men on this earth…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" (272). The word choices in this speech are very curious as they are loaded with religious meaning. Susan Cooper is a gifted writer so I'm pretty sure those words were a deliberate choice. Someone, somewhere has probably written an essay on it.

Silver on the Tree is a magical book that can be interpreted on many levels. I like the author's blending of fact and myth to create the other-worldly setting of Wales. In all of her books, Cooper shows glimpses of people running in fear from the savages that sweep across Great Britain. This fictionalized image of historical events fits in perfectly with the other book I was reading at the same time: How the Irish Saved Civilization by Thomas Cahill. Cahill depicts the civilized Roman empire falling to the savage Germanic tribes, and then later, when Ireland has restored literacy and reason to parts of Europe, civilization falls again to another wave of savages—the Angles, the Saxons, the Danes. Cooper incorporates the historic invasions of Great Britain into the novels. Despite their savagery, the invaders are mortals, but they bring the Dark with them.

The Dark is Rising series is not full of loud battle scenes and triumphant victories, but poses more philosophical and spiritual challenges for the characters and its readers. They are excellent books for not just young adult readers, but also for grown-ups.

I truly have no idea what it is regarding this series that makes me less than eager to read it.

I just about managed to get through this, the final book. In fact, I wound up skimming a significant portion of the second half and only tuning back in for the final battle.

Throughout the entire series, the story has suffered from a detached and distant point of view. As a result, I never felt anxious, sad, or happy about anything that occurred.

The bad guys weren't really all that bad - they adhered to all the rules! There was even a moment in this book where the Dark attempted to halt the Light by bringing up what was essentially a minor legal issue... as if the entire battle could be won simply because someone broke the rules along the way!

I mean, the bad guys are supposed to be bad precisely because they do whatever they please, right? It's simply not menacing at all if they follow all the rules.

I could continue to list everything that bothered me, but I'll just state that I could never become engaged in the story. I would probably only recommend this for younger children, who would find comfort in the adherence to rules rather than being bored by it.

All of the characters from the previous four books in Susan Cooper's marvelous Dark Is Rising Sequence—the three Drew siblings, Will Stanton, Bran Davies, Merriman, John Rowlands, the Black Rider of the Dark—come together in this fifth and final title.

As events lead on to the final rising of the Dark, and the Light's great battle to defeat it for all time, the story unfolds. Set in the same area of Wales as \\n  The Grey King\\n, the book follows the children.

They search for a sign from the Lady, and then Will and Bran set out on a journey through the Lost Land to seek the fabled crystal sword—the last Thing of Power needed to defeat the Dark. The final section of the book is devoted to a train ride through time to the Midsummer Tree, where the final battle rages.

I adored Susan Cooper's series as a child, reading and rereading it countless times. While Silver On the Tree has never been my favorite of the five books—an honor belonging to \\n  The Dark Is Rising\\n, although \\n  Greenwitch\\n and \\n  The Grey King\\n are also marvelous—I do think it is very good.

I have always enjoyed the various story strands here, from Jane being the conduit for the Lady's message to Will and Bran's trek across the Lost Land, guided by Gwion (AKA Taliesin). I have also greatly appreciated certain specific episodes, from the meeting with Owain Glyndŵr to the heartbreaking revelations about Mrs. Rowlands and her true identity.

That being said, I've never felt that the various pieces of story here fit together quite as well as they could, and the final confrontation has always felt a little lacking. All of these feelings and impressions were confirmed on this latest reread. I don't want to overstate the case, of course. This is still a wonderfully engaging work of fantasy fiction for children, full of Susan Cooper's rich blend of folkloric allusions and her powerful evocation of place. Although not my favorite, I do strongly recommend it to all readers who have read the previous installments of the series.

Well, this was exceedingly disappointing.

Silver on the Tree encapsulates and highlights every single thing that was frustrating about the series as a whole. The plot is so vague that it's hard to follow. There's a complete lack of any real sense of danger, even though the Dark is Rising. The quests are not genuine quests but rather more like stumbling upon things. There's an overwhelming feeling that everything is pre-ordained, despite all the talk about free will. There's no character development to speak of, and there's a romantic obsession with King Arthur that seems out of place.

Actually, I'm still not really sure what exactly the Dark is. How is it Rising? What would happen if they did? I understand the concept of evil in theory, but it wasn't translated well onto the pages. It almost feels like the author is relying on the reader's pre-existing knowledge of tropes and ideas, and as a result, a lot of the world-building, if we can even call it that, is just glossed over.

Speaking of the Dark and Evil, there's one particular moment in this book that gave me cause for pause. The Drews witness a young boy being attacked because he is Indian. It's a very in-your-face moment that is later revealed to be a sign that the Dark is indeed rising. But this implies that racism is a result of magical evil rather than a social construct. Does this mean that now that the Dark has not risen, there will no longer be racism in the world? I don't think that's the intention, as the idea that humans can be both good and bad and have free will is reinforced throughout the series. But then, what is the point of the Dark? Either racism is a result of the dark rising or it's a human thing. This series has no internal logic, guys.

Stuff happens because it must. Tasks and quests are undertaken by rota, and challenges are faced in the most anticlimactic way. The main characters remember things they already know "deep inside" or recite poems and sing to overcome obstacles. We're told over and over again that the main characters are protected and nothing will happen to them, so any sense of real menace is completely taken away. Everybody, both Dark and Light, just follows these rules, and it's just so, SO boring. The Drew siblings are brought back because they have an essential role to play, and that role is... to hold a Sign? It was hinted throughout that Barney is special, but that went nowhere. Worst of all, this is the last book in the series, and after a long build-up to the Dark Rising, the ending comes and it's anticlimactic to the extreme. Did I get it right that the Dark would Rise only if they got a mistletoe from a tree? Did that really happen?

An example of the interaction between Light, Dark, and Humans: Dark dramatically rides into the scene and challenges the Light. The Light simply says OK. I perk up, thinking this is finally going to get good. But then the Dark challenges the Light to a parley and they start talking about a boy named Bran. They ask a human guy what he thinks, and he says Bran belongs there because he doesn't speak Latin. Everybody agrees and says fine, let him play. I'm left wondering, what just happened?

And what about the female characters? There are very few of them, and of the three with bigger roles, one turns out to be a villain, Jane spends most of the book having "strange feelings" about things, and the Lady, whom we were promised had an important role to play in the end, comes back to give Jane a message?

And then, we have that insufferable ending where everybody, all humans, are made to forget everything. Even though they're supposed to have free will, they don't because no one chooses this. I can see the intention behind this, as I'm sure the point is that humans should go on living without knowledge of magic. But then, what is the point of this series?

Silver on the Tree is not only an unsatisfactory end to a series but also, I dare say, not a very good book at all. Now that it's all read and done, I'm ultimately glad I gave the series a chance and read it, but I can't really say I found it especially good or interesting. I know this is a nostalgic childhood favorite for many people, and I do wonder if I had read it as a child when YA was not such a strong presence in bookstores, if I would have felt differently.

I remember adoring these books during my childhood. However, I had forgotten just how much I had skipped over. Re-reading childhood favorites can be a perilous endeavor, and in the case of the Dark Is Rising books, it's truly something you might want to think twice about.

What I cherished were the Drew children. Stone Over Sea is an excellent book, and I couldn't stop reading to learn more about them. But everything related to Will Stanton was incredibly irritating. I almost didn't finish the fifth book, Silver on the Tree. Goodness gracious! He magically acquires all these extraordinary powers without any effort. Then, he's this rarified Old One and crucial for the survival of the world.

First of all, I despise it when characters obtain superpowers without any代价. Second, Will is simply dull. He just is. He doesn't have to struggle for anything. Third, his powers are either overly convenient or inconvenient, and that's just annoying. Every E. Nesbit book is far more meticulous when it comes to powers, rules, and costs compared to these books.

Silver On the Tree was the worst offender, closely followed by The Dark Is Rising, as they were filled with convoluted and nonsensical challenges and mysterious labyrinths of guesswork. About fifty pages of Silver on the Tree, the part in the Lost Lands, could have been omitted without any noticeable loss.

I went back to read these books because of my own writing in the YA genre, and I确实 learned a great deal. But I never expected so much of it to be about what not to do! I learned an enormous amount about writing terror for children. Stone Over Sea is completely terrifying, with Barney, Jane, and Simon constantly in situations far beyond their comprehension or capabilities. But that is nearly always human danger, danger from recognizable human sources, even when those are driven by the Dark.

When the danger is exaggerated and silly, it becomes impossible to grasp, like the absurd Tethys and the bellowing Greenwitch, who just become strange and almost laughable in Greenwitch, after a very promising start with an extremely frightening figure made of branches and leaves. Whereas by far the most terrifying thing for me in the entire series was the farmer who shot Bran's beautiful dog. I'm still in shock from that.

So when I write YA with supernatural elements, I want to ensure that my evil and danger are firmly rooted in the human. The supernatural is always a metaphor, isn't it? The supernatural Dark should represent the darkness within us, not the other way around.

A truly stunning end to the series! It was such a remarkable conclusion that left me completely in awe. I found myself completely immersed in the story from start to finish, and before I knew it, the final page had arrived. I really didn't want this book to end! The characters had become so real to me, and their adventures had taken me on an unforgettable journey. The author's writing was so engaging and vivid that I could picture every scene in my mind's eye. I will definitely be recommending this series to all of my friends. It's a must-read for anyone who loves a great story with well-developed characters and a thrilling plot. I can't wait to see what the author comes up with next!

I'm feeling rather conflicted about the final volume of the Dark is Rising series.

The penultimate book brought together all the characters from the previous installments to ultimately defeat the Dark. Silver on the Tree had the beautiful descriptions and allusions to Celtic mythology and Arthurian legend that were the highlights of the earlier volumes. I truly relished the final quests and the bits of time travel.

There were parts that would be appropriately spooky for the kids reading it, and also some very adult themes regarding love and loss. However, I was a bit let down by how the series was concluded and how the ending affected the main characters, particularly Bran and the Drew children.

What follows are some spoiler-laden comments...read at your own risk. I'm aware they might seem a little harsh, but I believe these remarks are fair.

I began the series with Over Sea, Under Stone, which many consider more of a prequel. Anyhow, I became very attached to the Drew children. As the series advanced, they outgrew their childish ways and started showing signs of the adults they would become, all while still partaking in a fantastical journey with the wonder only a child can experience. In the last volume, instead of being able to demonstrate how they'd grown, things simply happened to them, or they were told what to do by Merriman or Will. Jane had to be rescued, Barney had to be rescued, and Simon did a lot of just standing around. And then, after the final victory, their memories were wiped!!!! They got the Donna Noble treatment!!!! UGH, THAT IS THE WORST. Especially since, right before erasing their memories, Merriman gave them a great speech about free will and that we can't wait for any saviors, that we have to take care of each other. They helped save the world (granted with the aid of magic) and he took that away from them!!!! I protest.

The same goes for Bran. He developed into quite the young man, got to meet his real father, and then BOOM!!! Memory wipe! GRRRRRR. NO FAIR.

Will gets to remember everything. Of course.

My final complaint...there are hints that Bran and Jane might have had some young love type feelings for each other, but that was never explored. I would have them hook up in the fan fic sequel.

What breaks my heart a little bit every time is that they have to forget it happened.

It's truly a tragic aspect. You see, those memories, those experiences that were so profound and life-changing, just have to be wiped away.

Sometimes I think the best ends to stories like this are the bittersweet ones. The adventure happened, you changed the world, but then you must forget and become ordinary once more.

It's as if the universe plays a cruel trick. You are given this amazing opportunity to make a difference, to be extraordinary, and then it's all taken away.

But perhaps that's the nature of such tales. The bittersweetness adds a certain depth and poignancy. It makes us appreciate the moments of adventure and change even more, knowing that they are fleeting.

And yet, it still leaves a pang in the heart, a longing for those memories that have been lost.

Maybe one day, there will be a way to hold onto those precious experiences, to keep the magic alive even after the adventure has ended.

Until then, we can only cherish the bittersweet endings and hope that the lessons learned from those adventures stay with us, even if the memories themselves fade away.

August 2024:

It has been approximately 15 years since I last delved into this book. Back then, the ending truly devastated me. On one hand, it was simply because I couldn't bear for it to come to a close. On the other hand, there was a certain element of dissatisfaction. Essentially, with the exception of one character, everyone forgets all of their thrilling adventures!

I do concede that I now understand the reasoning behind it, and with the passage of time and my increased maturity, I can even perceive the foreshadowing that was present. However, that doesn't mean I have to like it! It's just so sad!

Moreover, if we were to forget all of our own adventures and hardships, how could we ever hope to grow? That being said, this series will always remain a classic in my eyes. There were an abundance of truly awesome moments that I had completely forgotten about! Bran, in particular, stands out as an absolute boss. His character development and actions throughout the series are truly remarkable and add a whole new layer of depth to the story.

Despite my qualms with the ending, I still find myself drawn back to this series time and time again. It has a certain charm and allure that keeps me coming back for more.

There is so much suspense in the first four books - and this is the grand finale? Mm-hmm.

Perhaps the author simply doesn't know how to make readers empathize with the heroes, but all their encounters with the darkness didn't seem either scary or dangerous to me. The plot leaves much to be desired: the Lost land arc seemed completely unnecessary to me.

If you decide to read the books, you can stop after the first book.

It's a pity that the final installment didn't live up to the expectations set by the previous ones. The story could have been more engaging and the characters more developed. Maybe the author was in a hurry to finish the series or simply ran out of ideas.

Nevertheless, the first book was quite promising and had some interesting concepts. It's just a shame that the following books failed to build on that potential and deliver a truly satisfying conclusion.

Overall, I would say that this series had its moments but ultimately fell short of being a great read.

Concluding my seasonal reread of The Dark is Rising, the final and lengthiest book in the series, I find it, somewhat surprisingly, the most challenging to read. You're familiar with that feeling when a book isn't objectively bad or dull, yet your eyes seem to glide off the text? Nevertheless, the story does manage to penetrate, albeit in a fragmented manner. The entire series has had a dreamlike quality - awakening in the middle of the night to discover oneself transported back in time, and so on. But this time, it's a deeper dream, with much of the action shifted from the ordinary world, or even its concealed magical nooks, to the Lost Land, a whole country lost in time. The final battle looms large, as is inevitable. More remarkably, it doesn't disappoint; instead, it gains emotional heft by relying less on the clash of cosmic forces and more on a single, heartbreakingly human decision. And at the end, magic departs from the world, and a story about ancient safeguards and immortal protectors rather clumsily reaches for the moral that humanity must now take care of itself. They remain wonderful books, and I eagerly anticipate sharing them with friends' children once they are a bit older.

*This was perhaps the volume where I most closely paralleled the temporal contours. I initiated my reading on Midsummer's Eve and then read the Midsummer Day chapter at dawn on the Heath during the solstice.