REVIEW: The Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray
By Jia • Feb 11th, 2008 • Category: A Review Category, A- Reviews, Reviews • •Dear Ms. Bray,
Jane is right. The hardest reviews to write are those for the books you love. How can I capture the strengths of an 800-plus page book in only a few hundred words? The task is daunting and I’d be lying if I said I’m not overwhelmed by the thought. There’s so much good here that I can’t possibly address it all.
The Sweet Far Thing concludes the trilogy started by A Great and Terrible Beauty, following the adventures of Gemma Doyle, the last inheritor of a power beyond imagining. This book picks up where Rebel Angels left off, where Gemma defeated Circe, enemy of the Order and the woman responsible for her mother’s death, and sealed away the magic of the Realms, a sort of otherworld dimension. But those events were not without consequence: Gemma has since been unable to return to the Realms and her magic has deserted her.
When she does find a way to access both the Realms and her magic, Gemma learns everyone wants a piece of her: the Order, the Rakshana, the creatures of the Realms. Even her friends at Spence Academy, Felicity and Ann, appear to want Gemma’s magic more than they do Gemma the girl. The responsibility of controlling all the magic weighs heavily and she puts off the decision about who to share it with as long as possible.
I can’t blame her; none of the options are attractive. The all-female Order wants to regain their previous glory. Tired of their servitude to the Order, the all-male Rakshana wants to seize the power for themselves. The various creatures of the Realms are fed up with humans controlling the magic and fight amongst themselves about which tribe will control it. All of them think they know best, and none of them want to share it with anyone else.
I admit Gemma’s dithering initially annoyed me. It’s obvious she needs to make a choice and the more she puts it off, the more disaster looms. Then I stopped and put myself in her place. Gemma is nearly seventeen years old, soon to make her debut in proper London society, but she’s spent most of her life being ordinary. She’s not beautiful like Pippa. She’s not charismatic like Felicity. She’s not talented like Ann. The only thing she has that’s extraordinary, that sets her apart, is her magic, and now she has control of it all — including the ability to bestow it upon who she chooses and to withhold it from those she wishes to punish. It’s a heady feeling, and I can’t blame her for stalling. What teenage girl doesn’t want to feel special, powerful, and in control of her own destiny?
Themes of power run throughout the book. How power corrupts those who have it. How the pursuit of power leads to ruin. How the struggle for power turns people against one another. On the flip side, we also have the theme of peace. Peace is not something that comes easily and without a fight. You must fight to win it and you must fight to maintain it. It’s the failure to do the latter that resulted in the mess that is the Realms, and it’s the one thing Gemma struggles most to achieve.
Gemma’s friendships with Felicity and Ann both delight and frustrate me. They capture how tumultuous the friendships of teenage girls can be and yet, I felt they were using Gemma for her magical powers. When Gemma can’t access the Realms, they’re disappointed. When Gemma won’t give them her magic, they’re angry. When they get a little magic of their own and can access the Realms without her, they cast Gemma aside. I realize this was an extension of the power theme, but it frustrated me all the same. I wanted Gemma to admit what they were doing and stand up to them, and part of me was disappointed she never truly did.
At its heart, though, The Sweet Far Thing is a tragedy. The numerous references to Macbeth warn us, as does the clearly marked five act structure. I’ve adored the relationship between Gemma and Kartik since the first book but could not for the life of me figure out how their love could ever work out. Even if you ignore the race and class issues separating them, Kartik adheres too much to the idea of predetermined fate while Gemma believes in free will. You could have taken the easy way out, giving us the ending that’s almost expected to the point of cliché, but you didn’t and frankly, now I can’t see how it could have ended any other way. Everything has a price, even peace, and the struggle for the Realms and its magic drove that point home.
While I felt Gemma’s decision post-debut came out of left field, I loved how this book touched on issues of race, class, gender, and sexuality. It’s a rare story that keeps me guessing and this book did until the very end, and I can’t help but love it for that. A-
My regards,
Jia
This book can be purchased in hardcover or ebook format.
Jia is an avid reader who loves the fantasy genre. Her favorite authors are George R.R. Martin and Jacqueline Carey. Lately, she's been enjoying urban fantasies and paranormal romances and in those subgenres, she loves Rob Thurman, Colleen Gleason, and Ilona Andrews. She also adores young adult novels and loves the works of Libba Bray and Justina Chen Headley. Jia's on the hunt for new paranormal YA authors who write along the lines of Annette Curtis Klause, Christopher Pike, and L.J. Smith. Email her with recommendations!
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[...] The Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray [...]
I have to say that this series surprised me. I have been reading it from the beginning and have put this book off because I don’t want it to end. After reading this review I guess I will need to bite the bullet and wrap the trilogy. You are right Jia this is a group of books that I would highly recommend to readers of all ages.
Sarai: If it makes you feel better (or maybe not), I alternated between speeding through this book to find out what happened next, consciously slowing down so I could savor every word, and purposely putting it down so I could do something else, just so I could put off the ending a little bit longer.
Thanks for the review, Jia. I really enjoyed the first two books in this series. But I did read the first two stories back to back in early 2006, so I admit I had an awful lot of mental oh yeah’s and hmm’s while reading your review. I hope the characters and plot come back to me when I read The Sweet Far Thing. Two years between series book releases is too long for me, I think. But since this is trilogy, and I truly enjoyed Ms. Bray’s storytelling, I will still read the final installment. I wonder about Ms. Bray’s intended target audience, though. Do you think that the average young adult who started reading this series from the beginning with A Great and Terrible Beauty in 2003 is still anticipating this final novel? Maybe I underestimate the YA audience, but five years is an awfully long time to hold a young adult’s attention, don’t you think?
Thanks for this great review! I loved this book so much. It’s the book series I’m always recommending to the teens at my library after they finish the Twilight series (which is far inferior to Libba Bray’s writing and storytelling, in my opinion.)
Oh, ditto. This is why, as much as the book made me cry, I was never truly upset about what happened. Because I was never sure that things could work out between them in the first place. I’m just glad that the ending worked, in the sense that it didn’t make me feel betrayed or upset. (Unlike, say, Meredith Ann Pierce’s Darkangel series, which I still have bitter feelings about.) In fact, like you, I really appreciate that Bray didn’t take the easy way out. I’m not sure I would have bought an HEA had there been one.
Anyway, have you been reading Libba Bray’s LiveJournal? She discusses the free will vs. destiny issue there.
Christine - I hadn’t read the first two books since late 2005, but chapter four provides a good recap of what happened. And I do think a lot of teens were anticipating this novel. Bray’s LiveJournal is popular, the first two books are still popular, and teens these days are sticking with YA longer than they have in the past since there are more YA books published for older teens now. Plus, I think the series being published over the last half of the Harry Potter years helps. Maybe fewer teens who picked up A Great and Terrible Beauty when it first came out will have stuck around for The Sweet Far Thing than the ratio of those who have been Harry Potter fans since 1998, or whenever HP1 came out, and read HP7 last year, but I think HP proved that folks will continue to buy and read books in a series they began as teens even though they’re now older teens or no longer in their teens. Especially since there were a finite number of volumes; it would be easier to stop reading the series if it continued indefinitely like Gossip Girl or something, with its various spinoffs. But I’m pretty sure most fans have known from the beginning that there would be three books, and only three books, which makes it a lot easier to commit to finishing a series that began 5 years ago.
Christine: In addition to what trisha said, I think we sometimes underestimate young adults and their attention spans. I know there’s all this noise about videogames, TV, movies, etc competing for their attention but when they love a series, they love a series and will come back for more. I also think age plays a factor. I’ve always considered the Gemma Doyle books to be upper YA, meaning that their target audience tends to be in the older teen range.
trisha: I, too, still feel bitter about how the Darkangel trilogy ended. I loved the first book but that third one… Talk about feeling betrayed.
I bought this and can’t wait to start this series. One day soon.
Oh, man, did I love this book! ITA about Kartik/ Gemma. As I read all three books, I kept thinking that I wanted them to be together, but I would be pissed if she did some sort of cop-out ending for them, like if they’d tried to live in The Realms, or find another place to live that would accept them. Having said this, I have NEVER cried so much at the end of a book. And this is coming from a gal who did her master’s thesis on Thomas Hardy. I know sad books. But there was something about that ending that just…excuse me, I need a Kleenex.
Anyway, I also loved the idea that sometimes great sacrifices have to be made to achieve great things. I thought it was interesting, too, that Libba Bray commented on her blog about how many girls left her comments that said things like, “Kartik was the best part!” or “Gemma can’t live without Kartik!” She was pretty disturbed by that, and so was I. The whole point is that Gemma can live without him. It hurts and it’s hard, but that what makes her strong.
Rachel: I visited Libba Bray’s LiveJournal after trisha linked it above and I agree. Those reactions are disturbing. I can understand where they’re coming from, but I don’t think that was the sort of story Bray set out to write. To spend three books chronicling Gemma’s growth into a strong, independent woman in full control of her own destiny and then to suggest she could never have lived without Kartik? That misses the point entirely.
Ok, you all are worrying me. I like happy endings but I know I must be prepared for a sad end to this trilogy. So noted. Thanks.
Trisha and Jia: Thanks for your responses. It is reassuring that both of you think my concerns over Ms. Bray’s audience are most likely unnecessary. It would be a shame for young adult readers to have missed out on the denouement of this skillfully written series. Currently, my experience with young adult readers is predominately with middle school aged children, who seem to be so flighty in their interests and focus levels. I’m hopeful they will grow to become passionate readers who will pick up and stick with series such as Ms. Bray’s trilogy.
I have to say I’m glad to learn about the recap of sorts in chapter four of The Sweet Far Thing. I’m a bit less daunted now about forgetting some key details from the previous books.
I’ve read the first two books in this trilogy, but haven’t seen this book in the shops here yet! I can’t wait to finally get to read it, even though I know that I am going to be sad to be ending the trilogy, and by the sound of it even sadder at some of the events in the book!
I’ve had this book since it was released, but I was reading something else and set it aside. Now I’m up at college & my sister “borrowed” (read: stole) my copy. Your review makes me want to steal it back from her to see how everything ends! Damn school, it never gives me any time to do fun reading.
i just finished this book yesterday and i cried for hours. The book is fanominal! I didn’t want it to end. I really wish that Libba would continue the story. This trilogy has captured my heart like no other that I have ever read. I am satisfied but still want more!!! I vote for a fourth and final installment instead of a third. Three is not always a magic number. Beware readers! You won’t be able to put this one down. And you will probably cry too. I’m still recovering.
i just finsihed reading the book today and i cried SO much and i am still thinking of other ways how Kartik and Gemma could’ve been together.
However I am a little bit confused about how Kartik died.
Do you mind explaning to me a little bit?
This book SUCKED! I have trugged my way through this trilogy just so I could see Gemma and Kartik end up together and then he DIES???!!!!
Not to metion that these books are a HORRIBLE piece of literature and should NOT grace the shelves of noted bookstores. You can bash me all you want but cannot change my mind.
(1) to say that Gemma is a strong, independent woman is ridiculous. Even though she may disagree with the standards of society, she still conforms in her own way by still needing the approval of others!
(2) Gemma’s choice of Felicity and Ann as ‘friends’ :
-Ann is the only one who redeems herself at the end by following her dreams, although she is NOT a good role-model for girls because she harms herself and we never know if she stops this behavior…(?)
-Felicity is mean and selfish and is only kind to Gemma when she wants something or when she herself is pleased with what is going on. She also makes mean-spirited comments and doesn’t appologize
To conclude, even though Gemma didn’t deserve Kartik, I’m appauled that Libba Bray would end her triology with his death!
i cried so hard. This book touched every subject in life for Me. It hurts to lose someone and i know that and i didnt enjoy the end it made me mad because they were each others match- i want a fourth >.< but i dont think it would fit just rigghttm well we will never know - i think Libba could pull it off my thoughts personally.
I loved this series SOOOOOO much, and the ending just was so sad! I wanted Kartik and Gemma to run away and get married, instead of him turning into the Tree of All Souls! I cried so hard! I suggest this to any girl at all! I totally want a fourth book so BAD!!!!!!!!!!!
Indeed this was a very fine book, but I can’t shake off the fact of what happened at the end. This book has make me cry like no other. I was bawling on my bed and screaming “Why… WHY?” to that book while my mom came in and just slowly… very slowly… backed off thinking I was a lunatic. I thought so much that this would be one of those books that I would say to my friends it’s a must-read, and you won’t regret you read it. I have come to hate this book dearingly (Meaning I hate it so much that I adore it) and I am still recovering from the fact that Kartik dies. I’m now in love with every Indian guy that passes me with wide eyes, curly hair and perfect features. Dear me, Libba Bray, why have you thrown upon me this misery??
While I loved this book and absolutely adore this series, I was disappointed in the ending. I felt it pushed the theme of independance too far. In reality, no one is an island and we need others, not only to have complete and fulfilling lives, but to survive. Human beings are social creatures and we are not meant to be alone in life. That doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy periods of solitude (I certainly do - I’m an introvert through and through); however, while the development of independance and self-discovery are essential to a fulfilling life, compansionship is key to our survival. I base this on the fact that babies die without affection and physical touch, people grow sick and don’t live as long without friends and loved ones. Companionship comes in various forms, friendship being one of them, but I’d argue that romance is a deeper drive - it appeals both to our need for companionship AND our drive to perpetuate the species, regardless of whether or not you choose to.
My biggest issue with both this and the Twilight series is that they give exaggerated messages in the opposite directions. In Twilight, the main character can’t live without her man (not in any meaningful sense). In this series, (WARNING SPOILER) Gemma is so strong and independant that she ends up alone in another country without Kartik because he’s dead. Unlike Twilight’s Bella, Gemma is determined to make something of her life and while that’s a wonderful message, why on earth does Kartik need to die in order for it to be achieved?
Why can’t there be balance? Why can’t a woman be independant AND be with the love of her life? Why would it have been a cop out for Gemma and Kartik to end up together (as someone else suggested)? In my opinion, the cop out was killing Kartik because supposedly they could never have been together in this world. How convenient to have him die so that they never really had to face the issue of racism.
I understand that Libba Bray may have been dismayed by the reaction of her readers who said things like “Kartik was the best part” and “Gemma can’t live without Kartik” but we need to read between the lines here. What these girls are saying is that the romance between Kartik and Gemma was their favorite part of the story and it disappointed them to have it end the way it did. The reason it was their favorite part of the story is because, as human beings, companionship is a more powerful drive than solitude.
I loved this series. It is one of my favorites. I was very upset by the ending, with Kartik’s death and all, though. I know that a happy ending may have been pushing things, but I couldn’t help but hope, anyway.
PS- I resent that comment about Stephenie Meyer’s books being inferior to Libba Bray’s. They are both wonderful book series, and I think I like them the same. I dread the Twilight movie, however. Movies ALWAYS mess up EVERYTHING.