The first three books were amazing, but then i felt like the fourth book ...
597303
The first three books were amazing, but then i felt like the fourth book wasn't that great, the ironwood tree. Still a good series, just didn't really enjoy the ironwood tree.
1874410
There are an order to the series but each book can technically be a standalone. Some characters may have been introduced in a previous book though, so I do suggest reading them in order. As much as I was liking the series, it feel apart at the end. I loved the first 3. After that, I finished strictly because I felt like I owed it to the series since I had enjoyed the first couple so well.  One good thing is I didn't have to pay for them due to kindle unlimited.
2338809
On one hand, I didn't feel like this book was as good as the first two. On the other hand, I read this book in a day. I couldn't put it down and couldn't pull away without thinking about the story in the back of my mind. After finishing this book, I cried. Selfishly, this was mainly because I knew there wasn't going to be a continuation and I feel so attached to the characters and their lives that I didn't want to stop our journey. At times, the book was hard to follow, but that's honestly expected giving the various conditions of the characters. Wow. Great series!
2061931
I really enjoyed the first four books....but 3.99 for only 225 pages seems a steep price to pay...i'd love to read it but i am finding it hard to justify it at that price...
2487788
I wasn't as impressed by Book 3 as I was with the first two books. It's almost as if Book 3 was written for a more juvenile audience and I struggled to finish.
1999583
I bought these books for my kindle and started reading them on Tuesday afternoon when I had some free time.  I finished the series last night (Thursday).  I had trouble putting the books down, I just wanted to know what happened to everyone, but especially Even and Emma.  I thought these were a great read and I would definitely read them again, but I am not sure I could recommend them to friends.  I would want to, but there is so much sex in the third that I wouldn't feel comfortable with telling my friends/family to read it.  I definitely wouldn't want my teenage daughter reading about it.  I think the author could have approached it In a different way and was upset that she approached it in the way she did.  She could have written these books even with all the same things happening, sex included without making them this way (why do you think so many authors like Nicholas Sparks are popular).  Also there was a lot of swearing in the third book, which was disappointing because I didn't notice it too much in the first two.  By the third I was hooked and wanted to find out the conclusion but was annoyed at the thought that these wealthy/ well educated young people would swear so much all of a sudden.  Just saying.  The books deal with lots of issues and do a great job  helping people understand what those kinds traumas can do to a person.  Emma was not just a flawed person, but a broken one, and that made these books such a great read.  To see all she went through and come out at the end, you can't help but feel something.
1194258
It has all the elements for good reading and then It left me anxious to get into the third book.
1785339
Son is the final book in the series and, as much as I enjoyed this series, this book left me with mixed feelings.  There were new characters and old, which led to both new story lines and resolutions to existing ones.  But some of the messages in this one struck me as a little off.

This book is split into three sections, following several years in the life of Claire.  The first part takes us back to places we have been before, going back in time a bit to about the time when Jonas' story began.  As a mother, her story in this section touched me, heart and soul.  The second part of the story takes place in a new society, a society in which Claire is almost as a child.  It is the story of Jonas, had we been with him in his time of transition from the world that he left in The Giver until we met him again in Messenger.  The third part of the story is the one that ties all of the various story lines of the series together. In this part, we remeet a lot of the characters from other books and many of the subplots are brought to the foreground.

The first three books showed us three very different utopian/dystopian worlds, worlds with different values, priorities, and issues.  As someone obsessed with cultural anthopology, I loved this premise.  I loved that it made me question my own thoughts and beliefs.  But I felt like that was greatly lacking in this book.  The society from the second section wasn't really created like the others; it was just sort of there, like a place filler.  By the time she made it to the society that we first met in Messenger, that group was largely healed.  There was little conflict to be seen.  That came from an outside force that needed to be battled in the traditional good versus evil battle.  But none of this happened until very late in the book, making the entire thing feel a bit rushed.  And the conclusion itself really left me feeling a bit unfulfilled.  The previous books were deep, full of questions about human nature, choices, sacrifice, priorities, and values.  The conclusion just seemed rather anticlimatic and a little banal in comparison.

The other thing I had hoped for was answers.  I wanted to know what happened to the other societies.  Did they change?  Did they get worse or better?  The only one that we ever really saw any transformation in was the one of Messenger and the last portion of Son, the society of outcasts.

Things to love...

  --Revisiting places and characters.
  --Getting answers to some of the questions from other books.

Things I wanted more/less of...

  --More depth to the resolution.
  --More resolution about the other societies.

My Recommendation:  While it may have been my least  favorite of the series, it is still a good read and a relatively satisfying conclusion to the series.  I gave it 4.5 mugs.
1515649
as with the first two books i enjoyed it. but i feel like something is missing sao i am not sure if i will get book four or not
3208128
Let's be honest...books 1-4 were the best. Then J.K. Rowling became too rich and slapped books 5-7 together. Her writing style changed in book five, as if she was just bored and no longer wanted to do it.
704123
3.5 stars -- I've had this book on my TBR pile for YEARS it feels like.  I'd heard good things, and since she's going to be an author at Utopia this year (again), I wanted to read it before then!  I ended up with mixed feelings about this book.  There were aspects that I adored and totally sucked me in, but there were also quite a few aspects that just rubbed me the wrong way....  And even with this higher rating, I highly doubt I will continue on with the series...I just have way too much to read, and so my standards have shifted, you know?

I found Nalena to be very intriguing from the beginning.  I tend to gravitate towards main characters with self-esteem issues (the bullied in this case), and so my heart ached for her and her precarious situation at school brought on by her mother's paper hoarding.  The problem is that she could be hard to get behind all the time.  Sometimes the way she saw her crush on Garrett had me cringing internally, and that's a me problem all the way.  She just flip flopped in her emotions so much it was giving me whiplash.  Now, quite frankly, this is probably pretty accurate for a 17 year old...but I guess I've lost my memories of those times, so it was so hard to empathize with her.  One minute she's agonizing b/c he can't possibly feel the same way, and the next she's reacting with amazing amounts of hope from the slightest grin from him.  It just didn't work for me personally.  It's funny though, b/c I would start to sympathize with her and get a good feel for her and what kind of character I would be reading, and then it just felt like there was a 180, so it probably aggravated me more than it normally would.

Garrett was intriguing.  I kind of loved him and his whole chaotic family.  I loved how happy and smiling he always was.  I loved watching the siblings fight like real siblings would.  I loved just how gregarious they all could be.  I kind of wanted more from the romance department there, but I'm sure I would get more if I continued with the series.

I can't decide how I feel about Nali's mother.  It's such a strange situation that they're in.  Because of who she is and what she does and what her role is in this paranormal world, there is an excuse for the paper hoarding.  But because she kept that all from Nali, she kind of let her unnecessarily suffer for it, you know?  And I kind of get her reasons, but it's hard.  So I'm just a big old ball of conflict when it comes to her.

As for the the paranormal aspects -- it was amazingly unique.  But at times I had a hard time following it and keeping up with all I was being told.  Now maybe it was just that I wasn't in the right mode for such a detailed world, but I still don't really feel like I "got" all of it, you know?  And sometimes the descriptions for what was happening to Nali (like her first description of the bubble I guess) just weren't enough for me.  I just honestly could not picture it in my head.  Again, this could be just me.  I'm not going to lay this at others feet if I just wasn't having good brain time, you know?  I will say I loved Addo Larry though.  He killed me.

So all in all, I was sucked in to the book, but there were just too many moments of confusion to have me clamouring for the next one.  And quite frankly, I just have too many other books to read to keep going on a book that left me feeling downs as well as ups.
803953
I've read all 4.  I was eager for the 4th to come out after reading the 1st 3.
3487153
I am really disappointed with the 5th book. The first 4 were awesome. But the 5th one often made me think that I was loosing my mind because I just could not keep up with everything going on there.
I agree with most comments here. The book is more than just STRANGE.
2772019
The first two books were great, well written with a totally unique story. The third book while pretty good seemed overwritten with too much interpersonal detail filling the story. I enjoyed the series very much.
3362028
I'll echo what others have said.  The first two were great,  the third book started off well but the ending was abrupt and forced.  However,  it's still a worthy read
2619318
I don't know, maybe it's just me but I had a really hard time getting into this book while I found the first two totally engrossing. Don't get me wrong, it was a good read and yet I still find myself mildly disappointed. Maybe it was because this book was so much more technical where the first two were more raw and powerful, they swept you in from the first page and didn't let go. This one I had to force myself to keep reading and every few pages I was rewarded and then it was back to drudgery again.
3889481
Unfortunately I didn't think it was as good as the first two. But still not a bad read