Northern Lights got an overwhelmingly positive review from me. Even after all these years since I last read it I felt like I got to explore this world all over again for the first time. The whimsy and the adventure, the world-building and characters, I loved all of it. But what about the second book, which I never got to before? I finally got a copy, so let's see how The Subtle Knife does! Spoilers ahead.
Lyra, now having traveled into the rip between worlds, soon meets a boy named Will, who is looking for his father. Lyra and he soon form an alliance, while armies seem to be gathering for a war that could end life as we know it. And in the center of it all is a mysterious dagger.
At first, I got a fairly negative impression of this book. It just didn't capture the spirit and same epicness the first book had for me. There's no Gyptians, no armored bears, a lot of characters of the first book are gone, as are quite a few of the fantasy elements, with this book partially taking place in our universe.
However, that's also partially my nostalgia speaking. The first His Dark Materials book holds an enormous significance to me, being one of the first books to introduce me to fantasy, especially the more steampunk-esque type. And yes, this book does feel vastly different from the first. But does that make it bad?
At first I thought the world traveling was going to be a huge deal, but after a while Lyra and Will get dimension-hopping pretty quickly. At first this was another turnoff for me, but I figure that, especially once they have the Knife, they would make use of it.
The focus is notably less on Lyra and Pantalaimon in this book. Will takes center stage quite a few times. Again, it took me some time to warm up to his character. I don't think he's as defined or unique as Lyra, but I do still like him. I root for him and want him to succeed.
The villains were at first a bit of a letdown for me. We meet a man in cahoots with Mrs. Coulter as one of our central antagonists, but he's by no means as significant as her or the Magisterium. Marisa does show up, but it's honestly pretty late into the book.
While I did list some negative elements here, there are also some positives. For example, I quite like the world of the Subtle Knife. It's interesting to see a world where most adults have been wiped out and gangs of children are the most active inhabitants, especially with these Spectres. The whole Knife itself also was interesting, and I enjoyed actually learning about Dust and the physics of it.
Some good characters (aside from Lyra and Pantalaimon) also return, such as Serafina Pekkala (who is more elaborated on in this book) and Lee Scoresby.
While this wasn't quite the sequel I'd anticipated, I'll still say that it's a solid installment in the series, and I definitely am looking forward to the third. I am just very nostalgic for the first book, so no matter what comes of the second or third, I'll always hold Northern Lights closest to my heart.
Rating: 4/5
No comments:
Post a Comment