The Borribles: Across the Dark Metropolis

Dark metropolis, indeed. This would be an apt title for the entire trilogy, as each volume moves into darker, more dangerous, more repellent realms of London. The place names are all familiar, but this is the underbelly, where the abandoned dwell in great number. The same characters return, including Inspector Sussworth and Sergeant Hanks, the primary but not only villains of the story. Sussworth, the Hitlerian lookalike, and Hanks who enthusiastically picks his nose in pretty much every time he appears. These caricatures are an uninteresting here as in The Borribles Go For Broke. Fortunately, just as the star supporting actor in the previous book was the tramp Ben, a female version, the Queen Mum, stands out here. As before, there are show more several extended periods of incarceration, many brutal battles -- this time between Borribles and circus dwarves -- and two major violent set pieces.

This series in the end succeeds by remaining committed to a misanthropic vision of an urban wasteland existing in the dark times and places of a large city. show less

This final installment of the Borribles trilogy does not disappoint - it is instead the most action-filled, scariest, funniest, and, on occasion, saddest of the lot. In a final push to get Sam the horse to safety, our band of Borribles set out yet again across London and with a little bit of help from other Borrible groups, they aim to beat the SBG and the horrible Inspector Sussworth once and for all. With stakes mile-high and a neck-break speed, de Larrabeiti finishes off one of the most original series I've ever read, and, although the ending may be a little sad, there's a cool twist that I think any Borrible-fan will love! (MAYBE-SORT-OF-SPOILER: Who is Knocker really?)