Specials
I have to admit that the conclusion to this trilogy felt a little flat to me. There were definitely some good things, and I still think the series as a whole is good and tackles interesting questions with some good nuance. I even liked the actual ending of the story. But so much of this book felt like a rehash of the second one that I felt a little bored by the end of it.
Once again, Tally has had her brain rewired, and once again she sets out into the wilderness where he solitude helps her figure out what she actually wants. The love triangle sort of fizzles out and the stakes are revealed to be not nearly as high as it seemed. What felt like a worldwide conspiracy is mostly confined to one city, and Tally's role shifts. She does help save the world, but it's more about preventing a war than ushering a grand revolution.
Which isn't to say that the revolution doesn't happen. But it's not the complete overthrow of society that the rebels wanted. And that's probably for the best. The world shrinks in this book, or Tally's perspective expands, and it turns out that she was never as important as she thought she was.
The thing I liked most was the ending, which was ambiguous and frustrating but fitting. It reminded me of Helen Oyeyemi's White is for Witching, where one character asks for a story about a girl who escapes. That's what Tally does. She escapes. And maybe that's enough.
There is one more book in this series, told from the point of view of a completely different character. I'll probably get around to reading it one of these days if I find it in a used book store. But it doesn't feel essential right now. The story, for better or worse, feels over.
Once again, Tally has had her brain rewired, and once again she sets out into the wilderness where he solitude helps her figure out what she actually wants. The love triangle sort of fizzles out and the stakes are revealed to be not nearly as high as it seemed. What felt like a worldwide conspiracy is mostly confined to one city, and Tally's role shifts. She does help save the world, but it's more about preventing a war than ushering a grand revolution.
Which isn't to say that the revolution doesn't happen. But it's not the complete overthrow of society that the rebels wanted. And that's probably for the best. The world shrinks in this book, or Tally's perspective expands, and it turns out that she was never as important as she thought she was.
The thing I liked most was the ending, which was ambiguous and frustrating but fitting. It reminded me of Helen Oyeyemi's White is for Witching, where one character asks for a story about a girl who escapes. That's what Tally does. She escapes. And maybe that's enough.
There is one more book in this series, told from the point of view of a completely different character. I'll probably get around to reading it one of these days if I find it in a used book store. But it doesn't feel essential right now. The story, for better or worse, feels over.
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