The Sweet Far Thing (The Gemma Doyle Trilogy) | Libba Bray | The Sweet Far Thing is the best in...

The Sweet Far Thing (The Gemma Doyle Trilogy) | Libba Bray | Bittersweet - But Beautiful...

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The Sweet Far Thin...

	The Sweet Far Thing (The Gemma Doyle Trilogy) Libba Bray Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 2007 - 832 pages average customer review:based on 121 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The Sweet Far Thing is the best in the Gemma Doyle Trilogy...

I've read many fictional, fantasy books because of my sister. Libba Bray has outdone herself by far in this book. After reading twilight, I never thought that i would find another book that would come close to twilight. This book is the one of two other series that I find a 10 on a scale of 1-10. It is by far the best book in the whole Gemma Doyle trilogy...it is filled with the twists that everyone will enjoy. The romance is not overdone, as it is in some books. Gemma is still stuggling with the magic and believing in herself. In additon to all of this, Pippa doesn't seem to have the ability to do what she must, for some reason or other. Kartik also returns, and thus, the plot twist. I Loved IT! I RECOMMEND IT FOR ANYONE who loves reading fantasy books. I am more of a vampire/werewolf/crime/action kind of bookworm, but The Sweet Far Thing totally surpassed my expectations.

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Bittersweet - But Beautiful...

The grand finale in this amazing trilogy!
Beautifully written with an awesome climax involving a clash between the darker creatures of The Realms and the inhabitants of Spence Academy for Young Ladies; `The Sweet Far Thing' is probably the best in the Gemma Doyle Trilogy.
An emotional ride; `The Sweet Far Thing' inspires both joy and aching sadness.
There's more than one surprise wrapped up in this intoxicating story. It's truthful and at times, heartbreaking. For this very reason some people may feel unsatisfied with the book - but I found it simply incredible (after I recovered from the shock that the series was over!)
This series is a journey of four young women searching for their place in the world and the magic inside themselves. They suffer the same hopes, dreams, fears and insecurities as the modern teen.
Filled with mystery, romance and all that delicious school girl naughtiness, this is a book not to miss.
A tale that touches the heart, it fails in only one aspect - it leaves you longing for more!
Note: If you haven't read the first two books in this series ('A Great and Terrible Beauty' and 'Rebel Angels') then do so RIGHT NOW! Don't read 'The Sweet Far Thing' first!

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Didn't really expect that...

This finale I thought was going to be spectacular. Yet in the beginning it was very repetitive and I felt no one or anything was progressing forward until about page 500 or so. It frustrated me that so many new people were coming into play and more situations/events were arising and it seemed the book was coming to and end.

I didn't like the ending. I loved the action parts when it did speed up. Once it did get started it was amazing...and then the ending. I just didn't really like anything about it. I was so confused at what Libba Bray was trying to get at with the whole tree at the end...I may have to re-read it a couple times to 'get it'(which is rare for me to do and I don't think should be nessacary). We definately needed more Kartik...I'll end my review at that.

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TOO LONG!

I think that Libba Bray did an amazing job with the first two novels in this series A GREAT AND TERRIBLE BEAUTY and REBEL ANGELS. I am sure that both of those books were probably this long but were trimmed down for the sake of time and progression of story. Unfortunately, this book needed the same kind of editing. I can totally overlook the feminism in these books which wouldn't have been allowed by such young women during this time period but I cannot overlook the repetition. A great deal of the book could have just been left out altogether (okay that's obviously just my opinion) but it is a fact that the same things are stated over and over again.

The second half of the book is literally amazing. The first 400 pages should have been told in less than 200. I think it would have helped the book a lot.

These may seem petty, but the series has just been exemplary and I was disappointed with this ending. Gemma and her friends deserved better!

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A Little Over the Top on the Feminism

I have enjoyed this series from the beginning with "A Great and Terrible Beauty" and "Rebel Angels," and for the most part, I enjoyed this last part of the trilogy as well. I got what I expected in terms of light reading that is mostly plot-driven. It was fun and quite exciting at times. And for this genre of literature, the author has surprisingly moving prose at times.

However, she has a tendancy to tell the reader how they should feel about the situation a little to often. And there were some clichés that would have been better left aside. I'd say what bothered me most about the novel and why I only gave it three stars is the overt feminist and anti-religious messages being sent. I am a feminist, and I don't mind when books are anti-religion, but Ms. Bray is far too blatant about it. The last seventy five pages read somewhat like a Feminist manifesto and it is unrealistic for the time period. There was also (spoiler coming) a scene that seemed to resemble far too closely the eucharist ceremony of the Catholic Church and to make a mockery of it. I think, for young adult literature, this is risky. But then, maybe Ms. Bray doesn't consider this book for young adults.

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