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Tal and Milla are only one step from death and evil is only one step from triumph. An old war is revived and the key to everything is the Seventh Tower.Tags
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Good plotting, satisfying series conclusion
- Some trouble with zip, continuity
The last in the series. A fine conclusion to a generally well-conceived and well-executed children's fantasy series. It's still a little puzzling why a series called "the Seventh Tower" has only six books, but I will live with the mystery. In this concluding volume, Tal and Milla again converge, both symbolically as each learns how to use the violet keystone and proximately as their paths converge. The Freefolk Crow adds a nice unknown element, and the sequence of revelations over the last few books here reaches its logical conclusion.
Though I enjoyed this book and found it satisfying, there were several points I wish had been more fully explored--how the show more Forgetting was first broken, for example, and the implications of the present conflict for relations between Aenir and Chosen. The shutdown of the Veil and several other points that ought to have been climactic were disappointingly brief, under-emphatic, and vague. In addition, this book had several typos and a couple of minor continuity problems that suggest a rush to print. Still, this was an enjoyable and well-written series and I look forward to more Garth Nix. show less
- Some trouble with zip, continuity
The last in the series. A fine conclusion to a generally well-conceived and well-executed children's fantasy series. It's still a little puzzling why a series called "the Seventh Tower" has only six books, but I will live with the mystery. In this concluding volume, Tal and Milla again converge, both symbolically as each learns how to use the violet keystone and proximately as their paths converge. The Freefolk Crow adds a nice unknown element, and the sequence of revelations over the last few books here reaches its logical conclusion.
Though I enjoyed this book and found it satisfying, there were several points I wish had been more fully explored--how the show more Forgetting was first broken, for example, and the implications of the present conflict for relations between Aenir and Chosen. The shutdown of the Veil and several other points that ought to have been climactic were disappointingly brief, under-emphatic, and vague. In addition, this book had several typos and a couple of minor continuity problems that suggest a rush to print. Still, this was an enjoyable and well-written series and I look forward to more Garth Nix. show less
One of the elements of writing in this genre that Nix is particularly gifted at is creating original fantasies and worlds. This series is no exception. However, in comparison to some of his other works, especially The Abhorsen Trilogy, the exploration of this world and the characters within is weak at best. The story is interesting because Nix presents the audience with a new mythology, but he rushes through the plot, circumnavigating what could be some really amazing explorations of the world he’s created. As a result, it’s more difficult to imagine this parallel universe and its characters and creatures, and it doesn’t draw the reader in nearly as much as it could.This series breaks one large story into several books, and since show more each of these is easily around the high 100s and low 200s in page length, Nix could have spent more time giving description, metaphors, and poetic/aesthetic language to flush this world out. This would make everything significantly more engaging for the readers, and ultimately, foster growth and interest in the books, the fantasy, the world, and the characters therein. Ultimately, there’s just nothing to bite into.-Lindsey Miller, www.lindseyslibrary.com show less
Honestly I think this series has been overlooked by most, and that's a shame. I absolutely adored it when I was younger. Nix creates a unique and fantastic world. Alone, each book is relatively short and not especially satisfying, but the entire series is a wonderful adventure.
Looking back at this series from some distance (it's months since I read this volume and years since I started the series) it feels very much like an author learning his trade; the contrast in writing quality between first and last volumes is large. Perhaps the best aspect of the series is the imagination on display, which certainly intimates what Nix would prove capable of in later works, particularly the Old Kingdom and Keys to the Kingdom series.
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THIS REVIEW HAS BEEN CURTAILED IN PROTEST AT GOODREADS' CENSORSHIP POLICY
See the complete review here:
http://arbieroo.booklikes.com/post/544753/the-violet-keystone
The first in the series is by far the best. By the end I was just hoping to get it over with already!
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Author Information
119+ Works 72,391 Members
Garth Nix was born in Melbourne, Australia on July 19, 1963. He graduated from the University of Canberra in 1986 and worked various jobs within the publishing industry until 1994. After a stint in public relations, he returned to books and took up writing as a career. He is the author of Blood Ties, Clariel, Newt's Emerald, the Old Kingdom show more series, The Seventh Tower series, and The Keys to the Kingdom series. In 1999, he received a Golden Duck Award for Australian Contribution to Children's Science Fiction. To Hold the Bridge was named Best Collection by the 2015 Aurealis Awards. His novella, By Frogsled and Lizardback to Outcast Venusian Lepers, was named Best Science Fiction Novella by the 2015 Aurealis Awards. In 2018, he won the 2017 Aurealis Award for the Best science-fiction short story. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Violet Keystone
- Original publication date
- 2001
- People/Characters
- Tal; Milla
- Dedication
- THE SEVENTH TOWER sequence is dedicated to the many people at Scholastic and Lucasfilm, in all departments, who have worked so hard; and to the booksellers who have so enthusiastically put THE SEVENTH TOWER books into the ... (show all)hands of readers.
This last book is particularly dedicated to the three people who were essential to the books getting written at all. To my wife Anna McFarlane, my agent Jill Grinberg; and to David Levithan, an editor of the highest level of Violet. - First words
- Tal returned to consciousness in slow stages.
- Quotations
- "So much had happened, and so much lay ahead"
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)For Tal Graile-Rerem was finally going home, and he had a Sunstone.
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- Reviews
- 6
- Rating
- (3.81)
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- 5 — Czech, English, German, Portuguese, Swedish
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 14
- UPCs
- 1
- ASINs
- 1
