Reviewed by Andrew S. Cohen for TeensReadToo.com

In the fourth book of Ember, we enter with the newly unified town of Sparks preparing for the winter, a few months after the city of Ember's emergence from underground. Supplies are growing sparse and sickness becomes abundant in this town, as they question their sustainability for the harsh cold of wintertime.

Protagonists Doon and Lina set off on another adventure, based on a prophecy from a book stating their is something left "for the people of Ember" that will aid them through the winter. They venture back to their old town of Ember to seek out supplies that their old community has left behind, where they meet an unlikely foe and seek out this mysterious, perhaps magical device to "bring light to a dark world."

Through the motif of hope, DuPrau illustrates an exciting page-turner that had me up all night so I could finish. Though lacking as much thought and depth as the initial book in the series, the author creates an interesting storyline along with introducing peculiar side characters such as Washton Trogg.

The end of the book seems a bit anticlimactic, as their adventure ends sort of to a nothingness, with DuPrau feeling a look to the future as sufficient hope for the success of mankind and their moral triumphs. Otherwise, THE DIAMOND OF DARKHOLD should not disappoint avid readers of the series. In order to grasp full meaning of the story, I would highly suggest reading at least books one and two (three is a prequel to the first and has little overlap).

Overall, Duprau succeeds in this installment and I would recommend it to those who have enjoyed the first of her books. ( )

This book continues the story of the people of Ember, unlike the third book in the series, The Prophet of Yonwood. Doon and Lina are back together as a team and go to Ember to see if there are any supplies left to help Sparks get through the winter. They wind up making an invaluable discovery that saves Sparks and potentially human civilization.
Good addition to the series, felt like it went with it well, unlike the third book. It finished the story and gave a happy ending. ( )

This was a very great book. In the book, Doon and Linda goes on another adventure. When an unusual roamer comes into the village, Doon bought a torn out book. Because the book was used to start fires, only 8 pages was left of it. However, the cover of the book said," For the People of Em". Due to this unusual discovery, Doon and Lina are persuaded that something was left behind by the builders that was meant for them. So off they go, on another interesting adventure as they go back to the City of Ember. They both had unforgetable events such as kidnapping, sprained ankles, and even hungry wolves.
All in all, this is a book that some one should definetly read. ( )

This book is the fourth and final book in the City of Ember series. It falls most appropraitely into the science fiction genre because it addresses the issue of renewable energy sources, and how that is really the way to sustain a community. While this entire series is somewhat political, most of what children will get out of it is the importance of people working together and building friendships. This book resolves a lot of the issues that are raised in previous books and ends with a sense of both hope and justice. While the people and places in this book are completely fictional, one will find the same scenarios and issues present in our world today, making this a very important and applicable book for students to read. ( )

If this is the end of the 'Ember' series, 'Diamond of Darkhold' is a fitting end indeed to the four-book series. I really hope it's not, though.

It returns to the point where we left off at the end of the second book (the third being a prequel), and it goes and wraps everything up in a nice, neat package. It doesn't give quite a happy ending, but it gives the closest it can to a...content ending, a realistic ending.

(I'm trying to make this as least spoilery as possible, so...more If this is the end of the 'Ember' series, 'Diamond of Darkhold' is a fitting end indeed to the four-book series. I really hope it's not, though.

It returns to the point where we left off at the end of the second book (the third being a prequel), and it goes and wraps everything up in a nice, neat package. It doesn't give quite a happy ending, but it gives the closest it can to a...content ending, a realistic ending.

(I'm trying to make this as least spoilery as possible, so if it seems I'm being vague, it's most definitely on purpose.)

It doesn't answer all of the questions (for instance, more about the Builders and the crises that led up to the Disaster), which would be good material for more of the series, but it does a good job of tying things together.

I still want more, though. ( )