The Sweet Far Thing (Gemma Doyle, Book 3)
The gripping conclusion to the critically acclaimed New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestselling Gemma Doyle trilogy, an exhilarating and haunting saga from the author of The Diviners series and Going Bovine.
It has been a year of change since Gemma Doyle arrived at the foreboding Spence Academy. Her mother murdered, her father alaudanum addict, Gemma has relied on an unsuspected strength and has discovered an ability to travel to an enchanted world called the realms, where dark magic runs wild. Despite certain peril, Gemma has bound the magic to herself and forged unlikely new alliances. Now, as Gemma approaches her London debut, the time has come to test these bonds. The Order--the mysterious group her mother was once part of--is grappling for control of the realms, as is the Rakshana. Spence's burned East Wing is being rebuilt, but why now? Gemma and her friends see Pippa, but she is not the same. And their friendship faces its gravest trial as Gemma must decide once and for all what role she is meant for. "A rare treat . . . beautifully crafted" --People "A huge work of massive ambition." --Publishers Weekly, Starred Review A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the YearA #1 Book Sense Bestseller
A New York Times Bestseller
A Publishers Weekly Bestseller
A USA Today Bestseller
A 2008 New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age
CCBC Choice (Cooperative Children's Book Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison)
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Community Reviews
Once again Libba Bray comes through with such creative world building! I did think the book slowed down halfway through, but the plot itself was complex enough to need more time to build upon. I loved getting Felicity's reveal and was satisfied with everyone's individual endings.
The 3rd and final book in the Realms trilogy. It's been so long since I read Rebel Angels that I'd forgotten what was going on. I quickly remembered and sped through this book. So good. A clean wrap up, although sad in some spots.
Gemma Doyle is the worst kind of unreliable narrator. It's not that she herself is untrustworthy, but that throughout this trilogy, she can't figure out who to trust. As a result, the reader never knows who to trust, or what the rules are for "realms" or for the magic that inhabits them. This is problematic if one agrees (which I do) with the general rule for fantasy writing that the rules for the world that the author has created must be clear and consistent. If neither the reader nor the narrator know the rules or who to trust, the story doesn't hang together very well. At least, it doesn't in this case. Some of the people we initially think are friends become enemies, and then some become friends again, and it is never through actual shifting loyalties, but because Gemma doesn't ask the right questions and rarely takes the time to think things through the reader is never quite sure who's on what side. So although she's the only clearly identified "good guy" in the story, I couldn't help but wish she acted more like the heroine she's supposed to be.
The Sweet Far Thing, I must admit, is by far the darkest installment of The Gemma Doyle Trilogy. That being said, I really appreciated and relished in this dark turn; Libba Bray really chose to explore the previously unknown parts of the realms, a risky choice that does pay off in the end. Libba Bray, being the master author that she is, does, however, end Gemma's story in a way that shocked me... It was a conclusion that I still hate to love/loved to hate! The only reason I am not giving a full 5 out of 5 stars on this book is honestly due to personal preference. I loved the length of the book, but at parts it became a little dense for me to continue with, as well as the fact that I wished to see Gemma's epic tale end a little... happier, despite Gemma's hope at the book's close.
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