The third book in the marvelous Stravaganza series, Sky's adventures in the land of Talia contain even more intrigue than ever.

This is the third book in the Stravaganza series. Sky joins Nicholas and Georgia in Giglia, the city of flowers, where the family rivalries are more and more deadly and vicious. The story seemed a little strained to me.

This is third in the series and Hoffman had every character from every book involved in this one. It was a little confusing, but a fast read. Intended for middle grade readers, I've enjoyed the series. The kids travel, or stravagate, from modern England to Renaissance Italy city-states. It's fascinating. The author researched the crap out of the area, explaining in the afterward that she stayed a block down the road from one of the cathedrals in this book. You can tell. I feel like I know a lot more about the time period. This is one of those strange books where the setting is the winning point for me. The characters were okay, the rapier fighting was cool, but the setting and revenge play the major roles in this ya novel. ( )

I love the Stravaganza series, about kids who find talismans who take them to an alternate renaissance world called Talia. In this one they are caught up in a feud. ( )

This was definitely a great end to the trilogy. It kept me hooked all the way through. The events of the weddings was extremely well written, I felt quite horrified at the situation and it certainly got to me. I think it was all wrapped up quite nicely, if a bit quickly, but I was still left wanting more. Mary Hoffman has created a great world here, I would love to read more of it. ( )