Science Fiction and Fantasy Books

I'm very picky with buying manga I'm not familiar with, and I haven't seen the entire series so I was skeptical about picking this up. But this is not a purchase that will be regretted. This excels the show in some areas. It takes its time to focus closely on the characters and their development, it stretches out few episodes to go into great deatail. Along with the terrific storytelling is the art. The art in here is superb, definetely one of the best in manga. At the end, it also has articles about evangelion from various people. The two aspects of manga, art and storytelling, are the highlights of this book, so it should defeintely be picked up.

SO far, I've read Evangelion books 1-3 and loved them all. The story is just great, action sequneeces are just so suspense full, I literally couldn't put the book down. Besides that, the art work is great. I didn't thing they couuld fit huge mechs into a comic book, but they did a great job of it. This is one of the best Manga epics I've ever read. I suggest all the books to everybody.

Neon Genesis Evangelion is far most the best manga/anime i have ever seen and read. The plot of the story gives it real life and deals with very much sci-fi and mecha. It also revolves around a world where our world could probably end up being. The characters are very vivid and interesting and my knowledge of Eva is far more than what i am writing here. If anyone would like to email feel free to!

out of all the neon genisis mangas, I like the third the best but you can't get to the third without the second. this was a realy cool book though. there was fewer battle scenes than in the first book but they were still great. shinji is more rebelius in this one, he refuses to follow misatos orders and fights the angel to the end. some cool new weponds and charactors await you as shinji takes on another dreaded angel and an angry misato afterwards. the art is incredibale and the characters are still great in NEON GENESIS EVANGELION vol.2 (p.s. the only reason I gave it 4 stars is beacause they don't have a 4 and a half star rating.)

How to do justice to Neon Genesis Evangelion? I'm not entirely sure it's possible to describe this book with words. Yes, it's a comic book--but not in the sense most Westerners will think of them, or even the style of most manga.

Neon Genesis Evangelion (Japanese "Shinseki Ebangerion") was one of the most controversial manga in Japan for the very reason it's so enjoyable. Unlike most comics, which are focused on action and little else, Evangelion involves heavy character development. The story centers around the introverted, socially inept 15-year-old Shinji Ikari. He works (so to speak) for NERV, a government agency devoted to repelling the attacks of the Angels--mechanical beasts seemingly bent on destroying humanity.

With Shinji is the First Child Rei Ayanami. Together, they pilot huge robots known as Evas (short for Artificial Human Evangelion). Close to Shinji is Misato Katsuragi, his 20-something commanding officer, whom he also lives with, not having anywhere else to stay.

Do not be fooled, Evangelion doesn't skimp on the action. But where this story really shines is the characters--per traditional manga, each one has deep character flaws. But they interact somehow much more naturally than most characters in such stories seem to. Each has his or her own set of confounding problems to deal with.

This volume in particular deals with Shinji's conflicting concepts of who he is and who he is told to be, and his more outward battles both with the Angels and with schoolyard bully Toji Suzuhara. The entire feel of Evangelion is enrapturing: the world is a dark reflection of our own situation, and despite the abnormal circumstances under which Shinji exists he still manages to come across as a very human character, something which can at times be almost frightening.

I reiterate, it is difficult to put in words how compelling this manga is. Whether or not you normally look at comics, Evangelion is more than worth the time and money.

~Kei

GO to the page with the bucket full of Phallic imagery, I mean rainbows.....

I came across this book over 10 years ago and have been continually looking for it until I found it at Amazon tonight. I haven't read it since then but still I remember the playful artwork and the touching story about being happy with who you are. It's a wonderful book for children of all ages. Too bad that it is out of print. :-(

I bought this book in San Francisco and read it to my children for years. I wanted to purchase a new book as a gift for a friend's grandchild and am disappointed that it is not available new. It is such a great story about accepting yourself, a must read for parents and children.

I am sorry to see that Jasper Tomkins does not have any books to purchase, I hope they print another edition soon.

I can remembering meeting the author at a Young Authors convention 15 years ago and being impressed with books like Nimby and the Catalog.

I hope that we see more of his books in print soon.

I agree that the publisher needs to get the presses rolling again. I am 52 years old and I still love this book. I was crushed when I came to buy a copy for a friend's child and I could not get one.

I completely loved this story and did the first time I read it when it was originally published. The quality of the book sent to me was as good as if I'd bought it as a new release in a book store. Tanya Huff is an author that draws you into the world she's created with well written characters and a storyline with a completely fleshed background including religious dogma and a belief system that is believable.

I didn't think it was possible for Tanya Huff to write a book better than Fifth Quarter. Boy, was I wrong. This book was outstanding. End of story. Buy it, read it, enjoy it, read it again! The thing I like best about this book and Tanya Huff's style in general is that her characters are always well developed and very believable. And they all grow. Vree and Gyhard's relationship really develops in this book and by the end you are very satisfied. Don't, of course, read No Quarter until you've read Fifth Quarter, which is equally compelling.

Loved it, loved it, loved it. My favorite out of the Shkoder series - and the rest of the series is equally good. My only complaint - what's with the cover art? Vree looks like Pat Benetar on one of her early album covers. Normally I love this particular artist, but . . . blech.

I love the character development and the changing relationships between the characters. Tanya Huff gives us a lot of action, suspense, and different forms of love: romantic, sibling-love, friendship, and love twisted by madness & bitterness. The writing is deep without being overtly philosophical. No Quarter is a fast-paced, edgy story about Gyhard, a man without a body of his own, sharing the flesh of Vree, the woman he loves. Vree is a former assassin, pursued by her brother, who wishes them to return to the army--and who wishes to kill Gyhard. And in the middle of this turmoil, an ancient, insane murderer walks, raising the dead around him. The old man still loves Gyhard, but the only way he could get Gyhard to stay with him would be to kill Gyhard and Sing his living kigh back into his dead body...

A truly excellent read.

This book picks up almost where it's predecessor ("Fifth Quarter") left off. Vree and Gyhard have left the Empire and traveled to Shkoder in the hopes that a young and promising healer named Magda can find Gyhard a body without killing someone to claim it. If Gyhard ever kills again he will immediately come up under charges and be executed. Our initial conflict comes with with a jealous and emotionally wounded Bannon who will go through any length to steal back the life he and Vree shared up until Gov. Aralt's appearance.

"No Quarter" finally intermingles the plot lines of the characters from "Sing the Four Quarters" and those of "Fifth Quarter" as we meet a grown up Gerek and his little sister, Magda who are charged of taking care of a homesick Vree and a nervous Gyhard. Gerek has grown up to be a dashing romantic, while Magda inherited an iron will and streak of independence not uncommon in her family.

While the bards of Shkoder are marveling over Vree and Gyhard's "two kigh in one body" news comes in that points toward a reemergence of the walking dead, and therefore of Kars. Vree/Gyhard and Magda go off to finally put a stop to him, but they're not alone as Bannon and Gerek are quickly sent off to retrieve them.

All in all this book was so much fun to read! It may have used a well-worn plot line (oops we didn't kill *insert problem character here* the first time, but we'll get 'em now!), but the bits and pieces that Huff added to it to make it her own completely distance it from anything approaching banality. Huff's story is lively and engaging. I found Bannon's immature reactions in "Fifth Quarter" annoying at best, and downright painful to read at others. Luckily Vree/Gyhard are the main characters in this story, and Bannon gets to grow up a little towards the end. Huff chose wisely when she made the semi-romantic couple the lead characters for this book as they both have interesting backstories to deal with and plenty of room and need to grow as people.

The ending is a bit contrived, but the feeling of resolution it gives makes that small fact easy to overlook. I highly recommend this book as a lively, character driven fantasy novel to enjoy during a weekend read. It's best in one long sitting rather than multiple shorter ones as the sense of urgency is dimmed when you pick it up and put it down over and over.

Olivia Kidney is a first-rate kid in a first-rate book. Everyone feels lonely from time to time but Olivia's got it bad. Her father's job is working as a superintendent for apartment buildings. The problem is he's not very good at fixing things. So they're always moving. And since her mom left, things are especially hard.

Now they've moved to another new place. At her new school, Olivia hasn't made any friends AND she has to go see the school psychiatrist. It couldn't get worse, right? Wrong? When Olivia comes home, she can't find her key. Luckily a neighbor lets her into the building. But she still can't get into her apartment and that's when all the trouble really starts.

The author, Ellen Potter has done an excellent job in creating a wild ride through Olivia's adventure. The characters are fun, funny and bit freaky too. At first, I was a bit trepidacious as Olivia started adventuring from apartment to apartment. But she always landed on her feet, so I felt more comfortable as I suspended belief while Olivia met one character odder than the next. Finally all is well as - with a splash and a buzz - the story is brought full circle with a thoroughly wonderful and satisfying ending.

Olivia Kidney is an exciting book that I would recommend to kids of all ages.
Olivia Kidney is a girl that is constantly moving from apartment to apartment
because of her dad's job as a superintendent at the apartment. She meets this
woman in her apartment that has glass floors and walls, and she can see through
above, beside and below into the other rooms. Then Olivia goes to Master Clive
and he tells her a story. The story is about these ships hearing a beautiful sound.
They follow it and it turns out that its really a trap that lizards set up to kill the
people on the ship and steal all of there money. Olivia, ends up on the island of
lizards and finds the shell. Do the lizards kill her or not?
The setting in this book are very interesting. There are a lot of different
places she goes to. The first one is her new apartment. It has twenty-three floors
and she lives on the fourteenth floor. Everyone is annoyed with her because she is
too loud. The second place is Master Clive's house. She lives in a wooden, kind of
tree house thing. Its really dirty. Last but not least she ends up on the Beach. The
lizards are in charge of the beach.
This is for sure one of the funnest books I have ever read.

I thought this book was really cool and interesting because of all the scenes and problems she had faced. I thought the glass apartment was awesome i even read this book for my book repost for school and made a diarama of the glass apartment.!!! i recommened this book to any adventure lover.

Olivia Kidney


If you lost your apartment keys would you search all over for them? You probably would.
Well it all started one day when this girl named Olivia kidney lost her apartment keys at school. She had just moved into a new apartment and a new school, so as you would expect she didn't know her way around. As she was looking for her keys she ran into many strange things such as talking lizards, a rainforest apartment, ghosts that only she could see, and even an apartment made entirely of glass!!
Olivia Kidney is a shy and open girl, she is ready for anything coming her way as she is looking for her apartment keys she has to face almost death. My favorite character in this book is Olivia. She is an intelligent little girl who is on a mission and nothing can get in the way.
I would defiantly recommend this book to girls. I would also recommend this book to someone who likes adventurous, dramatic, and funny books.

Olivia Kidney is a great book about a girl that needs a friend. She has a good imagination and is a very good listener. She is able in just an ordinary everyday apartment house to use her skills and find herself in her own amazing adventures. She is like a good friend I would have if I knew her in real life! Check it out!

Maya, age 8

Many, many years ago I read this book to my former husband as a bedtime story. The book occasioned one of the few instances in which I laughed so hard I cried. Now I have a new husband and a new copy of the book. Who says you can't go back.

A.A.Milne wrote this fairytale after being in the army during WWI. the story is basically about how easy it is to get into war (and over very stupid reasons), and how no one REALLY wants to hurt every one, but they just want to look out for their own interests. The charecters are not your typical bad-vs-good and each one can be lovable in his or her own way, and there are also wonderful little stories inside the major plot line. one of the BEST books I have ever read.

This book is a wonderful story about a king, princess and an "evil" countess. The king, King Merriwig of Euralia, is in love with the Countess Belvane. Belvane has her sights set on becoming queen of Euralia. However, Princess Hyacinth is suspicious of how the countess acts. So the Princess enlists the help of Prince Udo from Araby. When Belvane finds out, she wishes for something humorous to happen to the prince on his journey - and it does! Now, Hyacinth must stop Belvane, help the prince all while keeping him from falling in love with the countess!

A. A. Milne has done it again with this story of pure fantasy. He did not write this book for children, as he states in his introduction, yet it is fun and exciting for all ages. If you need a great bedtime story, check this book out. Would you care for some light reading? "Once On A Time" is the book for you. I recommend this book with a happy heart and hope you will feel the same way too!

Okay, before you read too far into this review, keep in mind that I am only 13, and haven't read as many books as some of the other reviewers on this page, but I have read enough to know that I love this book. It's a fantasy lover's book. If you like E. Nesbit, C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and other books by A. A. Milne, you will certainly enjoy this book as well. With a exciting plot, and humerous but loveable characters, this book is a must have.

Okay, before you read too far into this review, keep in mind that I am only 13, and haven't read as many books as some of the other reviewers on this page, but I have read enough to know that I love this book. It's a fantasy lover's book. If you like E. Nesbit, C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and other books by A. A. Milne, you will certainly enjoy this book as well. With a exciting plot, and humerous but loveable characters, this book is a must have.

Palace of Laughter is a fable for our times. It is beautifully written, filled with hard wisdom and packed with radiant visual imagery. I think it would make a superb anime...the use of light reminded me of the best moments in Ghost in the Shell: Part II and Spirited Away.

The story line was interesting and something new to young adult readers, however, the way the author started EVERY chapter with "Miles Wednesday . . ." followed by a goofy description of the current situation drove me absolutely INSANE!

just purchased this book from amazon and enjoyed it very much. it's a gift for my neice but the cover intrigued me so much i had to read it first. right away i preordered tiger egg #2 of wednesday tale, palace of laughter which comes out first week in september 2007. can't wait.

The "Palace of Laughter" by Jon Berkley is truly an amazing book! The thrils and advendtures that Little and Miles take you through make you actually feel that you are really there! There is so much action and ups and downs in the book you really feel like you are one of the characters! Jon Berkley is an incredible author! You would really enjoy this book!

At the suggestions of a much respected librarian, I recently started seeking out more advanced books to use at bedtime reading with my six year old daughter. While I fully intend to rely on the classics I loved, such as Charlotte's Web, Stuart Little, the Oz and Narnia books, I wanted to include some new items as well. My daughter has really wanted books with pictures - and fought moving away from that format. This novel is the second 'modern' book I've brought to the bedside and the one with the least illustrations at all. My daughter has yet to complain. The very visual language has helped her make the transition from pictures on the page and pictures in her imagination.

I have to disagree with the author of the book description in Amazon, the fact that every chapter starts with a defined description of Miles really helps set the tone for the start of the chapter. It reminds those of reading where we've been and how Miles feels as his adventure continues. The florid language is also a great vocabulary builder. There are times I have to stop and explain somethings - but that doesn't ruin the story in the least. As a matter of fact, both of us laughed when Miles thought to himself that he didn't understand a thing Little or Mrs. Partridge had said, and neither had my daughter. At least my daughter got an explanation.

This is a fun, thought-provoking novel that should hold up to re-reading as my daughter ages and as a reminder of the adventure before reading the next in the series - whenever it is forthcoming.

In this story the fairies are not facing monsters. The fairies and other magical beings have to face their own faults and personality defects (greed, fear, etc...) and overcome stereotypes and prejudices. I didn't expect a book about fairies to be quite so philosophical and relevant. This is a very clever children's book that adults might do well to read and take notice of.

I really appreciate that because I read aloud to little ones. When my 9-yr-old daughter picked this to read aloud to our 4-yr-old twins, I said no at first. When she assured me the cave was not scary and the adventure was really a lot of fun, I did. We all loved the story. I appreciate that this is not too grown-up of a book because some fairy tales are dark and scary. This is not. It is just interesting and fun. We liked the trolls best, and we put golden raisins on our grocery list because we all want to try them now.

This book is not so much about battle-bravery courage as it is about stepping out of a comfort zone to work together effectively. If this was an adult-geared book, it would be about surviving and getting along in the workplace. I think my kids really learned--or were at least inspired--from this, as far as getting along, being kind, and accepting others for who they are.

My daughter learned to write haiku poetry from one of the books in this series. Spiderwort and the Princess of Haiku (The Fairy Chronicles)
I am so proud of her.

She wrote this haiku about Periwinkle and the Cave of Courage:
"The fairies found more
than courage when they traveled
through a shrinking door."

She wrote this one too:
"Haiku is easy
when you know the secret of
counting syllables."

This book has a really fun mix of magical characters and the adventure through the cave really held my daughter's interest.

I went to a birthday party last week. We got to ride on a pony and played games. We got a book to take home and this is my book.
It takes courage to go into a cave. There is a treasure in the cave but they don't take it out. Cinnabar rides on a snake to get a key.That takes courage. The brownies help the fairies.
Annie gave her prize to everyone in the end. I like this book.

As a Players Guided in General this is a good product. I also like it cause it gives me some thing to let my players read seanse most the Planescape Products our really only worte for the DM.

[English]
The Planewalker's handbook is an invaluable resource for those enthusiasts who want to play or mastering PlaneScape. It describe and unveils so many details and aspects about characters creation not previously mentioned in the basic box.. besides show new concepts, races, environments, intrigues, opportunities, adventures hooks and magic. This book together with Factol's Manifesto and the basic box ARE the ELEMENTAL tools to understand, perceive and feel in the right way the multiverse.

[Spanish]
The Planewalker's handbook es un complemento indispensable para quienes quieran arbitrar o jugar PlaneScape, menciona y esclarece muchos detalles respecto de la creación de personajes que antes no habian sido mencionados (en la caja básica) e introduce nuevos conceptos, articulos, magia y razas. Este libro junto con The Factol Manifesto y el Set box (la caja básica) constituyen las herramientas elementales para empezar a entender correctamente el multiverso.

I am a budding DM for AD&D, and really needed some help with getting the Planescape campaign started. I bought this book, and it helped me incredibly. All the spells I thought the players should have, and new items, and options! If you ever intend to play Planescape, get this book. Sooner or later, you are going to need it!

It's the book with the usefullness of the Player's Handbook. It's informative, beautiful and for the Player and DM. It's got charts, new spells, kits, a guide to the races, planes and factions. Tips for DMs and Players and some new magic items. Plus, all-book (almost) illustrations from DiTerlizzi. A highly reccomended book.

Besides being a very beautiful book (marvelous drawings in full color by DiTerlizzi), it is the perfect complement for the Campaign Setting. I would say the 3 basic things you need to run a planescape campaign are the setting, a monstrous compendium (preferably the first one) and the planewalker's handbook. Among other useful information, it explains the "dark" of portals, gates, vortices, conduits, pools,etc. on a chapter that deals exclusively with planetraveling. Maybe they should have called it The Complete Book of Planescape.

Back from the death. With these main theme, the sequel of Mortal Engines rises up, better than before.

After the destruction of London, Tom and Hester built their own business on air. But that is before they meet Prof. Pennyroyal, the famous adventurer and writer. Everything starts to go astray and they end up at Anchorage, an almost decayed traction city ruled by a spoilt Margravine.

While Tom is dealing the ghosts on Anchorage and Hester is burned by jealousy, an extremest group tried to ressurect their dead heroine and an unknown net of information is unfolding. With Anchorage going to the Death Continent, it is 'almost' true that "Nobody returns from the Sunless Country, Mr Scabious." But a body sure can be returned... although without its soul...

Anyway, It is better to read it from Mortal Engines to grasp the whole thing. Next, Internal Devices.

It had been a while since I'd read Philip Reeve's first installment in the "Hungry Cities" quartet, and so my memories of the events that happened in "Mortal Engines" were a little hazy. However, nothing could make me forget the imaginative post-apocalyptic world that Reeve had created, in which massive Traction-Cities trundled across the wastelands according to the laws of Municipal Darwinism; eating any smaller city that crossed their paths. There was a massive death-toll by the end of the book, in which many of the principal characters had been killed (to the point of desensitisation), but our protagonists Tom and Hester managed to ride off into the sunset in the battered old airship "Jenny Haniver".

"Predator's Gold" is set several years later, where we find that Tom and the horribly-scarred Hester are still together, taking on passengers and cargo to make a living. One such passenger is Professor Pennyroyal, a pompous explorer and adventurer with a penance for stretching the truth (think Gilderoy Lockhart) who join the couple as they flee to the Ice Wastes and are saved by the Traction City of Anchorage. The city is ruled over by the young Freya Rasmussen who makes a radical decision to return to the Dead Continent in the hopes of escaping the dual threats of both predatory Traction Cities and the Anti-Traction League.

Unbeknownst to her, her city is being discreetly ransacked by a trio of `Lost Boys' who answer to the mysterious thief-lord Uncle (who as another reviewer pointed out, deliberately bears less resemblance to the carefree boys of "Peter Pan" than to the wretches of "Oliver Twist" under the tyranny of Fagin) a man who has his own game to play in the rising tensions. But when Hester witnesses a foolish kiss between Tom and Freya she makes an equally foolish decision to betray the city. From here the action keeps rolling: escapes, intrigue, kidnapping, betrayals, battles... you name it and its here. As an adventure story, I would be hard-pressed to recommend anything more exciting than this. If you loved the adventure and atmosphere of Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy or Garth Nix's "Old Kingdom" trilogy (Sabriel, Lirael, Abhorsen) then Reeves's series is a must-have.

Most interesting is Reeves use of political agendas and intrigue. The world is roughly translated into two groups: the Traction Cities and the Static Communities, who are bitterly at odds. The Static communities (headed by the Anti-Traction League) despise the parasitical scavenging cities, whilst the roaming Cities are arrogantly casual about their allegiance to Darwinism and their right to any prey that comes their way. Naturally, one would expect to be on the Anti-Traction League's side (after all, the thought of consuming smaller cities sounds barbaric to our contemporary ears), and yet the fact that Tom is a citizen of a Traction City and Reeves's deliberate admiration for their roving spirit throws the whole scenario into a hefty shade of grey.

Plus, if we really analysis the situation, is there really a difference between the Traction Cities and the phenomena of the Western world's colonisation across the rest of the world (and its current insistence on globalisation)? Add to the fact that a branch of the Anti-Traction League - the Green Storm - is undoubtedly a terrorist network whose members wear "the shiny, smug expressions of people who know they are right", and the book suddenly takes on a level of depth and allusion that you would never expect in what appears to be a simple adventure story.

Neither the Traction Cities nor the Static Communities are right (in fact most of the time they are very much in the wrong), and the conflict of the book is not which side wins, but whether Tom and Hester can survive the conflict that goes on between them, living long enough to make a decent life for themselves. This is a great set of books: read them!

Great Book to Read

This book is the exciting sequel to the novel "Mortal Engines.'' Or, if you prefer, "Predator's Gold.''
Tom and Hester are off once again on the Jenny Haniver, a ship they accommodated after the death of their friend,
Anna Fang.
Their lives were in danger so they decided to settle for the time in a town called Anchorage. Seeing as how these great town moved the margravine made the choice to move the town to the dead continent of America. America had been dead for many years due to the Sixty-Minute War.
Some of the Old-Tech remains such as MEDUSA had destroyed it beyond restoration. Now, Heather embarks on a journey to revive Toms love and save the corruption of people betraying one another. And thus, begins their journey to the so-called dead continent of America.
I liked this book because it just had that sense of adventure in it that made you want to know exactly what happened next. Most of the book was rather exciting although the author could have spiced up some of the less enthusiastic parts of the book.
Reasons why I disliked the book were that one, half the book revolved around Heather and the other half was just them running away from Stalkers and predator cities.

PREDATOR'S GOLD is the second book in the Hungry City Chronicles, an action-packed series set in a "city-eat-city" world. Philip Reeve introduced "Municipal Darwinism" in his first book MORTAL ENGINES, in which traction cities roll about the earth looking for smaller, weaker cities to devour. He also introduced the series' protagonists: Hester, a scavenger who has lived her life largely outside the bounds of the enormous rolling cities, and Tom, an apprentice historian.

PREDATOR'S GOLD follows the continuing adventures of Hester and Tom, who have taken charge of the Jenny Haniver, an airship belonging to legendary aeronaut Anna Fang. They have spent the past few years traveling the "birdroads," taking on passengers and cargo to earn their living.

Their peace is short-lived when a new, radical wing of the Anti-Traction League (a rebel group dedicated to the idea that cities should become stationary again) tries to reclaim the airship for their own uses. Shot down and desperately in need of repairs, Hester and Tom land on the sparsely populated city of Anchorage, which is under the new leadership of Freya, a spoiled margravine whose parents died in an engineered plague. Freya, enamored of the tales of a lush, green paradise, as reported in the preposterous books of Prof. Pennyroyal, has directed her city towards the Dead Continent, across the uncharted ice of the arctic.

Things take a turn for the disastrous when Hester, jealous of Tom's affection for Anchorage and the beautiful, plump margravine, commits an act of betrayal that sets off an explosive series of events. Murder, intrigue and resurrection of the dead steer the book toward an exciting conclusion.

Those who enjoyed MORTAL ENGINES will not be disappointed. Having established "Municipal Darwinism" in his first book, Reeve is now free to explore and expand upon the idea. There is less violence in PREDATOR'S GOLD, but the book remains full of action and has several new imaginative twists. Among them are the "Lost Boys," a group of parasitic thieves who attach themselves to unsuspecting cities and plunder them in secret. Despite a name that suggests Peter Pan's Neverland, the Lost Boys and their greedy Uncle have more in common with Fagin's gang of boy thieves in Oliver Twist, and are ruled by manipulation and cruelty.

Also reappearing are the Resurrection Men, machines made using the bodies of the dead. While these horrifying machine men, and the fact that most cities are dependent upon poorly treated slaves, would suggest a moral agenda, one of the most fascinating aspects of the Hungry City Chronicles is that Reeve does not involve his main characters in politics or rebellion. Hester and Tom find themselves involved in their adventures accidentally, or because of personal reasons. Where most authors would be likely to be sympathetic toward the aims and ends of the Anti-Traction League, Reeve has instead created the militant Green Storm, who will stoop to terrorism to achieve their ends.

The Hungry City Chronicles contains a lot of moral ambiguity and offers some excellent chances to explore the pros and cons of technology, and societal structures. The ending of PREDATOR'S GOLD leaves some intriguing possibilities for the following book in the series, already titled INFERNAL MACHINES. It is set for release in the UK next spring. Sadly, those of us living on the Dead Continent will have to wait another year before we find out what happens next.

--- Reviewed by Sarah A. Wood

For the life of me, I couldn't figure out what year it was supposed to be. Somewhere around the Year 5000. Way back in the 21st or 22nd Century, we had pretty much annihilated ourselves in the 60 Second War. Some centuries later, the technologically challenged offspring survivors have managed to mobilize their cities, thank Quirke (humankind's savior).

There's an orphan boy who idolizes the swashbuckling Valentine, there's an orphan girl disfigured by said Valentine, and there's a lot of big mobile cities gobbling up smaller mobile cities for their resources (Municiple Darwinism).

The books are a bit dark, kind of like Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials. I'd recommend them for anyone 12 and up. There's a bit too much violence for the younger set.

This book was very good, even if the ending wasn't totally perfect. I liked the fact that Nathaniel stopped being a total political stooge at the end. And that Bartimaeus and his essence was preserved. Kitty parts in the story weren't as good as previous and I didn't like the fact that she started to like Nathaniel. I think it would have been better if she had just thought of him as a acquaintance. Also, you get two chapters set in the Other Place, the world of spirits, which was interesting. This book brings the trilogy to a close, and even though I assumed what would happen in the end. A good read for all ages.

This was an excellent book, as was the whole series. I just came on to look for more Jonathan Stroud books and decided to give my first book review! I love Bartimaeus and all the sarcasm. Give it a try if you haven't already.

I was leary when I picked up the first of this series. But the imaginaive scope and the multiple voices were very refreshing. I found myself devouring all three books in rapid succesion. I highly reccomend this series to anyone.

A fantastic last book for a fantastic trilogy. After joining the adventures of Bartimaeus and Nathaniel's (and Kitty's after the second book), it was high time to say goodbye. But this book was more than a goodbye. Every page from the start is full of mystery and agony and finally they come to the climax. This time , we see a softer side of Nathaniel and his try to help others while Kitty decides to follow Ptolemy's dream and complete it. Bartimaeus is again in the middle of a great battle to come but he willfully decides to help without being ordered to. His most important moments of his past are revealed so to understand him deeper and is managable. The last scene takes everyone by surprise but after thinking, it's understandable that it was inevitable and so a great ending to Bartimaeus trilogy. Want to know what happened? Buy the book and discover it!

The final installment makes the whole journey worth it. PTOLEMY'S GATE, the third part of the BARTIMAEUS TRILOGY, wraps things up in a satisfying, exhilarating way that won't leave Jonathan Stroud fans disappointed.

A new character is introduced in this novel. Sure, we've still got Nathaniel -- A.K.A. John Mandrake, youthful magician and Information Minister, Kitty -- outcast rebel of the Resistance, Bartimaeus - fun-loving demon of sarcasm who is stuck as Nathaniel's servant, but now our story jumps back to Alexandria, Egypt in 125 B.C. to weave the necessary backstory of Ptolemy and his legendary gate between the Other Place and Earth. The connection between the past and present is the infamous Bartimaeus.

We soon learn that the relationship Bartimaeus and Ptolemy had was incredibly close, filled with trust and loyalty, something Nathaniel knows nothing about. Kitty, however, has been studying magic with the hope of learning more about Ptolemy. Even though commoners aren't supposed to be able to, she hopes to summon Bartimaeus and learn about Ptolemy's Gate. Her theory is that the Gate is the way to bridge the gap between demons and humans, somehow ending the forced servitude and hatred between them and creating peace and equality.

The tensions really get going in this one. The overseas war with America is going poorly. The Resistance is still at large. A traitor high up in government is plotting an inconceivable takeover of the country. Bartimaeus has been on Earth so long his essence is fading and he's close to death. If Nathaniel doesn't squelch the Resistance, his job and prestige will all be lost. And if Kitty's plan doesn't work, she just might disappear into the spirit world forever like Ptolemy. So much is at stake. And none of the players even know about the "rebellious faction of demons"!

Get ready for an intoxicating end to the ride. What THE AMULET OF SAMARKAND began in the first book, PTOLEMY'S GATE finishes up gloriously. Go Bartimaeus!

--- Reviewed by Jonathan Stephens