The Books Of Beginning

A little while ago, I mentioned that I had finally got hold of The Black Reckoning a book I have wanted to read for ages. It is part of a trilogy called the Books Of Beginning. I have read it now and I think it is the perfect conclusion to the series.

At first, I wasn't that impressed with the Black Reckoning. The first half was good, but not as good as the first book in the series, The Emerald Atlas. However, as the story reached the climax, the book became much more gripping and the ending couldn't have been any better.The theme of love is important throughout the series, but this became as important as the books themselves at the end.

Many critics say that the author, John Stephens, got all the ideas for the series from other books. For most of the series, this is very true. The idea in the first book of them growing up in an array of terrible homes is very similar to A Series Of Unfortunate Events (another favourite of mine) and there are many other ideas that have come from Phillip Pulman books. However, the simple theme of love is used in a way that I have never come across before. It makes you think about the world in a different way.

I would definitely recommend this series, especially to fans of Phillip Pulman's Dark Materials series, also known as the Golden Compass series.