Light

Gone #6

by Michael Grant

It’s been more than a year since every person over the age of fifteen disappeared from the town of Perdido Beach, California. In that time, countless battles have been fought: Battles against hunger and lies and plagues and worse, battles of good against evil, and kid against kid. Allegiances have been won, lost, betrayed, and won again; ideologies have been shattered and created anew, and the kids of the FAYZ have begun to believe that their new society is the only life they’ll ever know. But now that the Darkness has found a way to be reborn, the tenuous existence they‘ve established is likely to be shattered for good. Will the kids of Perdido Beach even survive?

Light, the sixth and final book in the New York Times bestselling Gone series (which has spanned more than 3,000 pages!) asks as many profound and provocative questions as it answers, while bestselling mastermind and author Michael Grant creates an unforgettable, arresting conclusion that readers won’t able to stop talking about.

Genres: Young Adult, Dystopia, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Fiction, Horror, Paranormal

435 pages, Paperback

First published April 2, 2013

About the author

Co-author with Katherine Applegate of Ocean City, Making Out, Summer, Animorphs, Everworld, Remnants, Eve and Adam.

Pseudonymous coauthor with KA of Christy (the TV spin-off books), Sweet Valley Twins, Girl Talk and various Disney spin-offs.

Pseudonymous author of Barf-O-Rama.

Author of Gone, BZRK, The Magnificent 12, Messenger of Fear, Front Lines, Monster and A Sudden Death in Cyprus.

AKA Michael Robinson (restaurant reviews and newspaper features).

AKA Michael Reynolds (legal name) political media producer. (Team Blue).

Reviews

[Jessica (Goldenfurpro) · Rating 5 out of 5]

AFTER READING:
This series was the first book obsession I had in high school, and I believe that it actually made me more interested in books.

And now I must say goodbye to this amazing series :'(

BEFORE READING:
WHY?
WHY MUST THIS BOOK COME OUT AFTER THE WORLD ENDS?
WHY?
*Cries*

EDIT:
Okay! FALSE ALARM!!
The world didn't end!

[Sabrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don’t fight it, Nemesis. The end is the best part of any story. The end.

Diana: I’m sorry for hurting you. I know I did. I’m most likely dead now, and I guess if there’s any kind of fairness in the afterlife I’m probably in hell getting roasted. But if that’s where I am, I want you to know, I still love you. Always did. Love, Caine



-------------------------CONTAINS SPOILERS-----------------------------

I remember back when the first Gone book came out, I was walking around the library when it caught my eye. I was hesitant at first, I didn't expect it to be good. I was wrong, and from then on I grew in love with the Gone series, enough to even re-read them which is a odd occurrence for me. So now that its over, I can honestly say my heart is broken. I don't think I'll even find a book that I'll like as much as these! As far as the book itself, its stellar. Amazing. I wish it was longer though, each character only got a few parts, unlike the other books. This book honestly broke my heart, I wanted to crawl into a hole when it ended. All because my favorite character didn't get the HEA. I felt like Caine really deserved it. Especially his character growth.

A couple months ago, I came upon a spoiler from Michael Grant saying that one of the main four would die. (Astrid, Sam, Caine or Diana) Michael Grant must have known Caine and Diana are probably preferred over Sam and Astrid and he probably wanted to go out with a bang. So deep down, I knew. I knew Caine or Diana would be on the chopping block. I seriously was hoping it was Diana over Caine, just because I wanted to see Caine and Connie meet.




“My mother sensed Caine’s connection to the gaiaphage. But not mine. We had the same connection. We had the same DNA. But Caine grew up without . . . you know. Without . . .” “Without love,” Astrid said. “All of his life.”



REALLY.
REALLY.

And don't even get me started on Jack, Orc, Brianna. It really hurt! They were all so close to getting out.


I just can't believe it's over! I've spent years reading these books and they're done! One of my main questions are... what about Sanjit and Lana's relationship? The "Aftermath" part should have been a lot longer, their are still some loose ends that needed tied up.
Overall, it was a fantastic book and a fantastic way to end the series. I guess I'll be off to find my newest obsession series!

[emily_oriley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Raise your hand if you opened this book and did not put it down until you got to the last page? *raises both hands*

Holy crap and a half, Batman. Michael Grant, I applaud you, good sir. A perfect ending to a nail-biting series. I laughed, I cried, I screamed, I cried, I threw my Nook in angst, I cried some more, I cheered, I cried and I cried and I cried.

And.....my favorite character.......DID NOT DIE!!!!!!! ^.^

And thank you, thank you, thank you, for adding in the Aftermath Chapters -I would have driven myself nuts wondering what happened when that dome finally fell.

"You are now free to leave the FAYZ"

[Baba · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gone, book 6: In the formerly mysteriously (to most) cut-off and domed part of San Francisco known as the FAYZ, something remarkable has happened. With the possibility, or should I say potential, for the kids to exit the FAYZ comes the realisation that this is the end game for the survivors. Having survived the adults being gone, hunger, lies, plague and everlasting fear, the one thing that kids never expected to face at this juncture, was the devil itself!

An absorbing series comes to a pretty dark ad grisly end as the dark power that has been involved in all previous books, comes to the fore, with the sole intention of wiping out everybody in the FAYZ! Michael Grant's super realistic portrayal of super powered and non-powered children in an enclosed unreachable landscape makes this last chapter that more dark and deadly. The cherry on top is that Grant also gives us a real and well thought out conclusion. Thank you. 9 out of 12.

[Emily May · Rating 4 out of 5]

And so the Gone series has come to an end. I'm obviously not going to post any spoilers for the ending and I see no real point in reviewing just this book because you're probably going to base your decision of whether or not to read Light on your experience with the previous books. So I thought I'd do something of a series review here, for those who haven't picked up this series and are maybe considering it. Or those who haven't heard of the Gone series before and find themselves randomly on this page with clueless curiosity. Welcome. Have a seat and make yourself comfortable. Because I'm going to tell you why you need to step inside a world of teenage mutants, with powers ranging from mind control to fiery laser beams and from super speed to gravity suspension.

I'm not going to lie in the blissful aftermath of the final book and tell you this series is perfect. I've spent plenty of time talking about the problems I have with it and, while I do think many of these problems were resolved towards the end, I still think it's important to point out that in the first few books I felt the female characters were weak compared to the males. I was glad that someone was writing a book that could easily be enjoyed by both male and female teenagers, but I couldn't fathom why the mutations had far more impressive and powerful results in the male characters. Later, Grant gives these female characters greater development and you could argue that their ability to be tough without the strongest powers shows that their strength goes beyond supernatural abilities. And there's Brianna, of course, who kicks ass.

The story is about a town in California where suddenly, in the space of a millisecond, everybody over the age of fourteen disappears. Every single adult is gone. No doctors or police or parents. The remaining children must try to get by the best they can but, in a world without adults, bullies are free to reign. Rules can no longer be enforced. There is no way to call for help and no one to hear you anyway. And in this Lord of the Flies-style scenario comes an even bigger threat - some of the kids find themselves inexplicably developing powers. Mutant powers.

I think this series takes an excellent look at power, the abuse of it and the dark side of human nature. I wish I'd saved the quote from this book so I could share it but it says something about how quick we are to be outraged at the behaviour of others in certain situations when we cannot fully understand what it's like to be in those circumstances. How we are all capable of doing unthinkable things when we reach breaking point but no one wants to admit it. I liked how Grant looks into the background of each character and shows you why he or she could behave in a certain way - it reminded me a little of Battle Royale - and how their experience is unique because of who they are. For a series that has such a huge cast of characters, they are incredibly different, well-developed and memorable.

This completely unrealistic situation is given some realism by the variety of characters that Grant brings into the story. This series is one of the most multicultural I've ever read with many different races, personalities and beliefs; rich kids and poor kids and kids dealing with their developing sexuality. Also, I liked the exploration of relationships and the honest depiction of sex. This book is an excellent safe sex campaign even to the point of being over-the-top. The good guys use condoms and all is good, the bad guys don't use condoms and it leads to an evil alien pregnancy. Well, I'm sure there's a good message in there somewhere.

Another thing I really enjoyed was the way Grant handled religion. When something crazy like this happens, it is realistic to assume the characters will question their current religious beliefs, or sceptics will turn to religion and the guidance it offers. Certain characters move through cycles of belief, questioning, doubt and disbelief, others discover a new meaning in religion, devout Christians see themselves turning their backs on the belief they'd always put above all else. I liked all of this. I thought Grant told it in a realistic manner and the changes to each character made sense to me. Throughout the series as a whole, Grant gets that perfect balance between religion and scepticism, in my opinion. I read an excellent review of Plague by Paul over at Cuddlebuggery and he was concerned about the rejection of religion in the fourth book - something which I had noticed too. However, I feel that Grant restores the balance in the final book coming full circle to stand somewhere between religious belief and religious criticism.

While I think the story was fascinating and well-developed, I still think there was some untapped potential. For me, the gaiaphage could have been explored in even more depth - especially because the last book is 437 pages (UK edition) which is the shortest of the series; Fear having 549, Plague - 522 and Hunger a whopping 661. There was certainly plenty of room for more detail. But, despite the large amount of action scenes, I think Grant's series is primarily about the characters: how they cope and learn and survive. I love looking back on a series and realising just how much the characters have grown from the first installment to the last.

The resolution was as satisfying as the end of a six-book journey can be. I can't say I loved everything but I doubt it would have been possible to write a good ending that pleased everyone. One thing I do know is that I will definitely be returning to the series for re-reads in the future to experience this wild journey again and again.

[Paul]

So I haven't started it quite yet. I'd like to finish my current reads before tackling this one, I think.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Update 7/28/2013.
Well it's kind of a bitter sweet feeling that this series is now over. I really enjoyed this series probably more then any other series I have ever read. It's very rare that I love every book in a series and in this series, I can't pick my favorite simply because they were all amazing. The only reason I'm giving this book 4 stars is because he killed Breeze. Fuck you Michael. That was legit the only person I wasn't going to be okay with dying and you killed her. I literally started crying for 5 minutes. (probably has to do with more the fact that I'm hormonal right now but whatever) Any ways great ending to a great series, was never disappointed with anything about this series. (Well Astrid is a pain in the ass but I think that's what he was going for and did a really good job of making me not like her through out the majority of the series.) Big round of applause for you Mr. Michael Grant. Great Job. Keep on writing and I'll see you in the future.

[Braiden · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you haven’t yet begun this series I urge you not to continue, or even are at least finished Fear.

BEWARE OF EMOTIONAL OUTBURSTS, TOO.

Originally published at Book Probe Reviews.

‘Turn out the light, Sam.’
Sam reached for the switch and turned out the light.

For the past four years I’ve followed Michael Grant’s Gone series. I’ll admit I came to this party almost three years late. One day browsing Borders I stumbled upon this book with blue-edged pages. That book was, of course, the UK hardcover of Lies, the third book in the series, which had just been released. On impulse, and being ignorant of the fact that it was the third in a series, I bought it. I liked the blue. But I had no idea that that impulse buy, sheerly on the colour and design of the book, would introduce me to a series of impressively written teenage characters, many whom to fall in love with, a series to follow and be apart of until the end in years to come (e.g., now), and a series to call one of my favourites.

This series also made me a fan of Michael Grant, an author who consistently pushes the boundaries of reality, of fiction for teens and young adult, producing a world such as the FAYZ that could very well happen, and a diverse range of characters, of young people, that could very well attend your school, or even be in your class, with crippling secrets and haunting pasts, with feelings and fears and desires that you would otherwise never had known they possessed if you did not take the chance to meet them, follow their stories, experience what they experienced, how they changed, for the better or for the worst. For the past six years, six books, three thousand pages, from Gone all the way to Light, that is exactly what we, the readers, did. We took a chance and met Michael Grant’s characters – Sam, Caine, Astrid, Diana, Pete, Quinn, Edilio, Lana, Brianna, Jack and all those others. Even Drake and Brittany and the gaiaphage/Gaia. We took the plunge into Michael Grant’s story, followed it from beginning to end, because we found something special within it, grew an attachment to it – whatever ‘it’ was. For me it definitely was the characters, their struggles and triumphs, their fears and doubts, their beginnings and ends, that made me keep returning. After reading the conclusion, the finale, the endgame, it was sad to say goodbye. It truly was.

So thank you Michael Grant. For this series. For these characters. For a story and message(s) that will linger, forever, deep within, and whenever I look upon my shelf and see those books I will remember what they hold: the power to choose – the power to choose good, be good, wield good. To not be afraid. To be someone that chooses wisely, someone who uses their power – whatever that power may be – for good in changing and making the world a much better place to live in. Every teenager that reads these books will understand, despite whatever they’re battling – depression, illness, failure, suicide, heartbreak, loss, addiction, sexuality, among others – that the power lies in their hands, and we can only hope that they discover that power and use it to emit light, guidance, strength – a future to look forward to. And just like what I deduced from Fear, it’s up to ourselves to transcend our deepest and darkest fears.

Michael Grant understands his readers, the modern teenager, and enhances his stories with this understanding. After all, we need to battle through darkness to discover a world of light. Adults censoring or banning such works like Michael Grant’s from their children could learn a thing or two, with the adults doing much more harm to those their “protecting” than these books could ever do: none and quite the opposite.

It’s not easy ending a series and Michael Grant ended it with integrity and intrepidity, both of those things I love to see in what I read. There was a lot of horror and pain, torment and loss in Light – all of that belongs to be in the book, rightfully, dutifully. Because, after all, we are human; there’s good and evil in each and every one of us, chances for redemption and atonement if we allow ourselves change in our lives, a chance to love and respect, a chance to live and survive. We have that right if we choose to accept it. There are other times when we are far beyond being given the right to choose, clouded too heavily in darkness. That the choice, if there ever was one, was made without us even knowing, subconsciously, predetermined. This was the case with Drake. He was predetermined to take on a dark role within the FAYZ, and there really was no change in him since the first book other than physically and in his thirst for more power.

Read on for more spoilery stuff, you know, to do with Light.

Drake barked out a laugh. ‘Do you have any idea how many shrinks have tried their words on me? You think you can do better? It has to be some sickness, some syndrome, right? Put a label on it and everything will be better.’ He laughed at the idea. ‘Are you as clueless as the rest of them, Astrid? It’s simple. Here it is, here’s the answer, Astrid the Genius: it’s fun to hurt people. It’s such… it’s such joy, Astrid. Such joy realising that all that power is yours, and all the fear and pain is right there, in your victim. Come on, smart girl, you know what it’s called. You know the word for it. Come on, say it.’ He cupped his hand to his ear, waiting for the word.
‘Evil,’ Astrid said.
Draked laughed, threw up his hand wide, and nodded his head. ‘Evil! There you go. Good for you. Evil. It’s in all of us. You know that, too. It was in you. I saw it in your eyes as you looked down in that cooler. Evil, hah. We all want to have someone powerless beneath us while we stand over them.’ His voice had grown husky. ‘We all want that. We all want that.’

Interspersed throughout the goings-on within the dome is a few scenes of Connie Temple attempting to communicate with the kids inside the FAYZ in order to reach Sam. During that she encounters Drake’s grandfather, and their conversation ends with Grandfather Merwin talking about Drake. He says that Drake was always a troubled kid after the death of his father, and although it is not said or even glimpsed at, Drake’s “young” stepfather may have further shaped Drake to be who he became to be, before and even during the FAYZ. But that’s not stated and instead has Merwin saying he doesn’t know what has happened to Drake.

‘What happens when we do know?’ she asked in a small voice.
‘I suppose we’ll behave like a bunch of holier-than-thou hypocrites. Because the alternative is to look at ourselves in the mirror and know that we are capable of dark and terrible things.’

The conversation ends with Merwin saying, ‘Dark and terrible things. And the joys they bring.’ Merwin shares a story of his time during the Vietnam War and it presents Merwin as someone that reflects directly in Drake. Merwin said that he would pull the trigger again on a helpless Vietnamese prisoner if it needed to be done again because he took pleasure in the revenge. Drake has exactly the same principles. And throughout Light we see Drake consistently trying to get revenge on those that have annoyed him, tried to kill him, witnessing his psychopathic tendencies and the pleasure he gets out of what he does.

Where one fails, another succeeds. Drake was always one of the bad guys since the beginning; he had no intention to do good whatsoever. Then you have Caine who although was seen as a bad guy for most of the series, he never truly was (depending on how you decide to see him). We understood Caine and why he has always had the urge to control, to be on the top. He never really did anything as evil as what Drake did. But he still progressed and changed slowly as the series progressed. It is in Light where Caine truly shines. Fear forced Caine into a vulnerable state after what Penny did, but he still had his dignity and the objective to rise above everyone despite being stripped of the control he worked so hard to get. Light is where he learns that he was doing it wrong all along, and decides to atone for everything he has done in the FAYZ. And I won’t spoil it because that was one of the major twists of this book that had me speechless, at how much a character could change in my eyes in six books. Diana wants Caine to say that he loves her but Caine believes there’s no point in saying that as it’s all going to end, and the following quote has not a person such as Penny making him vulnerable, but rather the realisation of powerlessness when the FAYZ barrier comes down, as well as losing the love he has with Diana after not having such a sense of devotion in his life at all.

‘What’s the point?’ he pleaded. ‘I’m running away. I’m saving myself and leaving you behind. I’m a rat deserting the sinking ship. I’m a coward holding on to his pathetic life for and extra hour or two. I’m scared to death; I can’t stand up to it any more. I’m done. Why do you want me to say it?’

Where Caine is an example of atonement, Charles – or more widely known as Orc – is a fine example of redemption. Redemption not only within the people around him, from a bully to a near hero, but redemption in himself for overcoming his excessive alcohol drinking and addiction. His transformation internally reflects in his transformation externally from back in Gone, from when he turned into some being composed of rocks and stone and gravel. He went from being in a weak state to someone strong, a rock for other people if I may say. Orc deserved his ending. But did Caine deserve his?

Astrid smiled at him. ‘You have become one of the good guys, Charles. If there was ever an example of redemption, it’s you.’
She hesitated only a moment out of fear of touching him, but then gave him a hug. How strange he felt. How alien.

Quite a few moments in Light the characters think about life directly after and well beyond the FAYZ. Would any of them be charged with murder, sent to prison? Would any of them see each other again? That all they have gone through will mean nothing in the eyes of the people on the outside, that it was all just a game and they can all just go home and live happy and normal lives. What rights do teens really have in the real world, where their fantasies are almost non-existent? Where what they had in the FAYZ they would not have in the outside. Where what is wanted or desired is overpowered by parents’ and society’s expectations and authority. What reward will they really get for surviving the FAYZ? Was the FAYZ perfect after all? That even within a bleak and disastrous world such as the FAYZ there was still happiness and comfort to revel in. Early on in the book, at page 12 (of the uncorrected proof at least), has Astrid thinking about her relationship with Sam and what it means for them in the future.

My God: she was happy.
The very idea that she should be happy was absurd. It was almost a crime. Things were desperate, but then they had been for a long time. Desperate had long since became the new normal.
If the barrier really did come down… if this really was the endgame… They were fifteen. Out there, out in the world, they had no legal right to be together.
They’d been through hell. They’d been through a whole series of hells, and they were still together. But none of that would mean anything in the eyes of the law. Her parents, or his mother, could snap their fingers and break what Sam and Astrid had built.
It was not the first time Astrid had had the thought that maybe liberation from the FAYZ would be no such thing.

Each book has had their various villains – or not quite villains, just confused individuals. Drake/Brittney has been a force to reckon with throughout the series, never being able to be killed as their body melds itself back together again no matter how many times Brianna slices them in pieces and scatters them across Perdido Beach. But the real villain, the ultimate villain of the FAYZ, the thing that started it all fifteen years ago was the Gaiaphage, the Darkness, some entity that hit Perdido Beach’s Nuclear Power Plant riding a meteorite. At the end of Fear the Gaiaphage slips into the body of Diana’s and Caine’s baby so he can carry on with his plan of “world domination”. In Light he is now known as Gaia, a child growing with speed as every day goes by, becoming more powerful. Gaia possesses the abilities of those who are still alive in the FAYZ. So when she kills one she loses their power. But Sam’s power is something the Darkness desired from the start, so the teen who can stop Gaia is someone Gaia cannot destroy. Gaia is a vicious, demonic creature, and in Light it is pretty obvious that he/she is not of this world, something that only cares for its own succession. And in the end, Gaia truly doesn’t understand humans; you must understand humans in order to defeat them, you must know the chink in their armour.

‘I realised, when I saw the forest burning, how fascinating the firelight is. It’s beautiful, and people stare at it, don’t they? It destroys things and kills people, but humans love it. Is it because they crave their own destruction, Sam? I want to understand your kind. I am going out into the wider world, and I must learn. But first things first. First, to escape this shell, this egg in which I have gestated, all eyes will be on the fire, all eyes blinded by the smoke, and when I walk out of here, out into your large world with its billions, no one will even see. It’s the beauty of light, don’t you see, Sam? It reveals, but it also distracts and blinds. It’s even better than darkness.’

The title of this conclusion is perfect. Light. So many meanings and interpretations taken from one word. That’s what each book title had. They not only meant their literal meanings but metaphorically, too. In Light there was truth, revelations, clarity, in addition to that visual “light at the end of the tunnel” saying. Each character had their defining moments to shine. I couldn’t have expected anything less from Michael Grant, and this series was ended with perfection, a blazing heavenly fire lit across the sky to signal a well-fought victory. You can bet I’ll be going back to the beginning, where it all began to read from start to finish. And even by the time I reach the Aftermath chapters of Light the second time round, the lives of the characters will continue to prosper long after the final page, no matter how many times I return to this book, and this series.

(I may still add more onto this… just… because… I need this review to be perfect.)

A mega huge thanks to Jen at Hardie Grant Egmont for sending me an uncorrected proof to review and cry over. I pestered her for months on end and I think she deserves some hugs of thanks.

[Carrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't wait! Although, not to criticize, but come on. Gone. Hunger. Lies, Plague, Fear. And now LIGHT? Really? Maybe the title should have been a LITTLE less positive. It's making me worried that it will have a cruddy, cliche happy ending, like the FAYZ wall comes down, and everyone's happy and it's all virtual reality and the dead kids aren't really dead. I'm crossing my fingers that this amazing series won't end in an annoying way!

[Deena Beena · Rating 5 out of 5]

So I started reading this the night before school, I told myself that it was going to be very emotional for me and that I was going to cry a lot. So the next day I continued reading at school, and as I was reading, I thought "Ha, this isn't that bad after all, I don't even feel remotely upset", only to get half way through the book and find tears streaming down my cheeks and goosebumps on my arms, several times I had to stop reading because I seriously couldn't control my emotions, even now, writing this review, I haven't stopped crying.

"You are free to leave the FAYZ" Michael Grant's last line in his acknowledgement, and at that, the waterworks were irreversible, many beloved characters die, but they also redeemed themselves, regained their honour, or die fighting, die heroes. I sound really cheesy but many of you must understand how traumatised I am. It's not sinking in, even as I'm crying I can't believe that they're over, I've become so used to waiting annually for each sequel to come out, and now I don't get that tradition next year.

I loved these series and its characters. I feel like an era has ended. The FAYZ will actually be missed, so will the coyotes, the Gaiaphage/Gaia, Edilio, Caine, Quinn, Sam, Astrid, Diana, Dekka, Brianna (The Breeze), Jack, Orc, Howard, Albert, E.Z, Duck Zhang, Lana, Taylor, Dhara, Zil and even DRAKE and PENNY. ALL OF THEM! Without them The GONE series wouldn't have been what they are.
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[Brendan · Rating 5 out of 5]

All right...so does anybody else think that the Gone kids should have a massive battle with freaky mutant alpacapillars to free themselves from the FAYZ?



...because I do.

[Rachel Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

For more of my reviews, go to www.rachelefisher.com

Title: Light (Final book in the Gone Series)
Author: Michael Grant
Rating: 5 Stars

Amazon Summary - It's been over a year since all the adults disappeared. Gone.

In the time since every person over the age of fourteen disappeared from the town of Perdido Beach, California, countless battles have been fought: battles against hunger and lies and plague, and epic battles of good against evil. And now, the gaiaphage has been reborn as Diana's malicious mutant daughter, Gaia. Gaia is endlessly hungry for destruction. She yearns to conquer her Nemesis, Little Pete, and then bend the entire world to her warped will. As long-standing enemies become allies, secrets are revealed and unexpected sacrifices are made. Will their attempts to save themselves and one another matter in the end, or will the kids of Perdido Beach perish in this final power struggle?

Light, the sixth and final book in the New York Times bestselling Gone series by Michael Grant, creates a masterful, arresting conclusion to life in the FAYZ.

My Review - No MAJOR Spoilers. Some minor ones...

Ok, so I JUST finished this story and I am tempted to just babble, "I loved it" repeatedly like a lunatic. But the truth is, I LOVED it. Perfect, perfect, perfect ending.

I absolutely absorbed this book, and I knew I would. I've been on this ride with Mr. Grant for a while now and I have a lot invested in this story. Having *just* set the release date for the end of my own trilogy, I have a new and sustaining respect for anyone who attempts to bring an epic story to a satisfactory close.

And the GONE series is EPIC. I love it. Ironically, the "world" is a small space, but it's an entirely different universe, no different from Middle Earth in its need for world-building. I love the "truth" of being teenagers forced to face adult issues. I love the "truth" of duality: good and evil, bravery and cowardice, life and death.

In the end (though I tend to say this too often about this series) Grant is BRAVE. You know why I think so? Let me break it into categories for you. (And you thought I was going to be brief. HA!)

Social Issues:

Grant is brave because he's willing to muck about in religious waters that often scare authors, particularly ya authors. He has characters that had faith that lose it and others that gain it. He has characters that have no idea what they believe, but who feel the pull of ritual, the desire the make sense of it all. But none of it is a simple, trite, easy answer.

Grant is brave because he's not afraid to write about 15 year olds having sex with *gasp, heaven-forbid* a few details thrown in, KNOWING that this is authentic to his story and that the characters are essentially ADULTS given their situation. Still, people are terrified of this in ya. (Bravo for showing a loving, mutual relationship in Sam and Astrid, as well.)

Grant is brave because he deals in all those real-life issues of race and prejudice. Like Albert. He's the "businessman" but he's African-American, and characters are wary of him in this role at first (until they realize they're hungry). And Edilio, often referenced as the "wetback" by the nastier or more ignorant characters. The way that Grant addresses those issues and turns them on their ear without sounding preachy is excellent and gives a lot of DEPTH to a story for and about teens that one would not associate with "superhero" kind of stuff. (ie - Most adults who don't appreciate graphic novels and comics don't realize these media can include serious discussion topics)

Writing:

Grant is brave because he wasn't afraid to write it his way, with a kabillion shifting POVs, sometimes that last for only a few sentences at a time! No fear of HEAD-HOPPING here.

Grant is brave because he wrote a sprawling epic that has WAY too many words to be MARKETABLE, right?

Grant is brave because he's not afraid to take on a modern-day "Lord of the Flies" in a time when we've become increasingly uncomfortable with precocious youth.
BACK TO "LIGHT" IN PARTICULAR

This may be one of my favorite endings to an epic tale ever. It had exactly the right amount of tragic loss, gut-wrenching, heart-stopping loss, AND heroism, and triumph, and sacrifice and REDEMPTION. In the end, that is what this story is about, I think: redemption.

I never expected anything that Caine ever said to anyone, especially Diana, to make me cry. But it did. And it was perfect.

And I never expected a kiss between Astrid and Sam to feel like the last gasp of a marathon when you feel the tape snap across your chest, but it did. I practically pumped my fist in the air! (Ok, I did pump my fist in the air.)

And I never expected to be so moved, so entertained, and so enthralled by such an odd, personal, and utterly genre-breaking story as the Gone Series. But I was.
Go out. Buy it. Read it. May I be so fortunate as to write something that makes people say the same.

[tags] Gone, Light, Michael Grant, epic, Science-fiction, fantasy, ya, Rachel E. Fisher, Eden's Root, Seeds of War, Emergence [/tags]

[Ayesha {Heir of Bookdom} · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Sam’s probably out there somewhere being his usual heroic self,” Caine said. “I can’t let that boy save the world all alone. I’d never live it down.”

WARNING: this review may contain spoilers, and a LOT of incoherent rambling
Yeah, ok, so um.. *takes deep breath* *shrieks*

Yeah this was pretty much the endgame the dying of the FAYZ, blah blah...

To me, it was just a punch in the face.
ME? Crying? nooooo thats just THE FRIKKIN BLOOD OF 15 YEAR OLD CHILDREN IN MY EYES.

All severe sentimentality aside, (easier said than done btw) this book, the whole series in fact, was bloody brilliant, quite literally.

What i especially LOVED? character development! And the fact that the author uses all his characters as collateral damage to fulfil his story line? RUTHLESS? yes.
HEART BREAKING? you better believe it.
FANTASTIC? HELL YEAH

If none of the above made sense to you, which is VERY likely, give this series a read.

[Cecilia · Rating 5 out of 5]

¡¡Hace pocos días terminé con la sexta y última entrega de esta maravillosa saga!! Decir que me ha encantado queda corto, para esta distopía creada por Grant.

La trama del libro sigue siendo la misma de los anteriores pero esta vez ya se acerca el final donde por fin se develaran todas las tramas, y el porqué de lo qué sucedió en Perdido Beach.

De escritura ágil y lectura rápida; con una gran dosis de acción que te mantiene siempre alerta a los acontecimientos, además de estar narrada desde el punto de vista de varios personajes principales por lo que quieres saber qué está pasando con ellos. Tiene muchos giros inesperados y bastante escenas de violencia y sangre, lo cual se llega a entender debido a las circunstancias extremas (organización, vulnerabilidad, hambre, miedo, etc) en las que se encuentran los personajes.

En fin, me ha gustado el final... quizás un tanto simple para todo lo que han sufrido, pero para mí ha estado bien; me gusto que el desenlace haya tenido redención y felicidad.

Y tal como escribe el autor: “gracias de parte de Sam, Astrid, Caine, Diana, Quinn, Edilio, Lana, Dekka, Brianna, Jack el del ordenador, Orc, Hunter, el pequeño Pete y todos los demás (Drake incluido).
Ahora ya son libres de abandonar la ERA”

Los echaré de menos 😢

[Sal]

I NEED THIS BOOK. NOW. Grrr :(

AH THE COVER.

[Ricky · Rating 5 out of 5]

REVIEW AND RECAP, TO BE COMPLETED AFTER THIS CAN'T-WAIT-FOR-IT-TO-SAVE-MY-EVER-LOVING-LIFE NOVEL IS IN MY HANDS NEXT SPRING...

More than a year ago, Perdido Beach, CA, was cut off from the world by an impenetrable force field twenty miles in diameter. All the children age 14 and under remained, while everyone else vanished, resulting in what was called the Fallout Alley Youth Zone or FAYZ. Some of the kids developed powers. All sorts of powers.

More than eight months ago, the food started to run out, and the Darkness in the wilderness began to grow.

More than five months ago, the Darkness tried to convince the kids of the FAYZ to kill themselves in order to make it through to the other side.

More than four months ago, two different plagues, a freakishly mutated flu and an even more freakishly mutated variety of insectoid parasiste. So much body horror.

Once upon a time, not so long ago, the FAYZ wall started to go dark, and the Darkness tried once again to work its evil on the land around it, by trying once again to insert itself into a helpless host body. Then the wall turned transparent as glass - just in time for the whole world to see the unthinkable. Sam Temple. School Bus Sam himself. Burning. A. Baby. As promised, Grant wrote a story so dark he had to resist his editor's request to tone it down, to the satisfaction of his devoted readers.

Now, the story will conclude...but how? How? They say it's always darkest before the...Light. But how can there possibly be a bright, light, even remotely happy ending to this wild series that has followed me from high school to college?

There is. But it takes a very long time to get there. And yes, it's darker than dark and freakier than freaky. Especially when Gaia comes into play. Good God, she's scary. And it's a more than satisfying ending to the series. Short and sweet, if slightly bogged down by Ending Fatigue. But everything you could ask for and more. If you haven't started this series yet, do it now, and don't take six years to read very single book. Do it in six days if you can. Trust me, you'll thank me later.

[May R · Rating 4 out of 5]

He acabado esta saga fantástica y ahora me siento vacía

No sabría por dónde empezar a hablar de esta saga. Habéis seguido mis comentarios por esta red social y sabréis que me han fascinado todos los libros en general. Este último cierra a la perfección la historia que llevaba siguiendo desde hacía tres semanas. Es impredecible, atrapa desde el principio y da un final merecedor a una trama tan completa y redonda.
Recomiendo leer esta saga porque tiene personajes que atrapan y evolucionan, está repleta de giros inesperados y os mantendrá enganchadas y sin querer dejar de leer.

[Josie J · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so happy to get this series done. I enjoyed my time with it and I'm happy with how the author wrapped it up. I was never relaxed while reading this, I was consistently worried about what was about to happen. If things would calm down for a little bit the next couple of pages action would start right back up. I think the characters grew so much, I especially proud of Quinn. I really hated him and by the end of the series he had really stepped up and became a good person. I read this series because of my boyfriend and I'm so glad he recommended this to me because I had so much fun with this, would recommend to anyone.

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't believe it is over.
Goodbye, Astrid. Your suffering was not in vain. Thank you for loving Sam.
Goodbye, Caine. Your obsession with power broke my heart. Thank you for loving Diana.
Goodbye, Diana. I know you. Thank you for loving Caine.
Goodbye, Sam. Your reluctant hero was never a stereotype. Thank you for loving Astrid.
Goodbye Edilio, Lana, Patrick, Breeze, Dekka,Orc, Quinn, Albert, Little Pete, and all FAYZ citizens. This has been an amazing journey.
Thank you, Michael Grant for sharing this.

[Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

If there's one series that captures my teenage years, it's this one. I picked up Gone five years ago at the age of 13 maybe because Sam was cute, not like I knew I was into guys at the time and five books later I've finished the series, now as an adult. I have so much history with this series, and I doubt any sleeping aid would give me back the hours I've spent reading it late into the night.

If you haven't read Light yet or the books preceding it, I'd recommend skipping this paragraph and catching up right now. Otherwise, the central story line of the last installment in Michael Grant's epic series revolves around Gaia and her (its?) plan to destroy all who inhabit the FAYZ... and eventually, all outside of it, too. Every character joins in for the fight no matter his or her previous wounds or scars. The question remains: will it be enough to defeat the darkness once and for all?

As always, Grant's plot grabbed me from the get go. The exposition of Light builds tension and suspense while the rest of the book brings it all out into the open with action scene after action scene. This must be my sixth time trying to describe Grant's storytelling ability, and it really hasn't changed that much. He captivates with every shot of light from Gaia or Sam's hands, every backstabbing piece of dialogue, and every little horrible detail that goes into the characters' deaths or near-fatal encounters.

Yes, characters die. Maybe more than you would expect, but if you're a pessimist, maybe less. Irrespective of their mortality characters reach their peak in Light, evaluating not only their actions but their religious beliefs, sexualities, abuses of power, family histories, etc. Grant has not only changed his characters from the somewhat flat archetypes they were at the very beginning to developed young adults with unique desires, he also incorporates a laudable amount of diversity. He delves into the essence of his characters and pushes them to the finale, an impressive feat with such a wide ensemble.

Of course this book - and this series as a whole - will not please everyone. The writing does not scream of sophistication even though it serves its purpose. Some of the philosophical implications of the characters' actions and the dystopian setting do not get that much attention due to the sheer size of the plot. A few of the events near the ending occur almost too easily or without explanation. However, none of these qualms come even close to detracting from the overall fabulous quality of this series. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants a dark, thrilling story with strong characters and consistent writing.

*review cross-posted on my blog, the quiet voice.

[Peanut Butter Jelly Time · Rating 5 out of 5]

If Sam dies, I think I will also die a little inside.

EDIT: MARCH 3: Holy f***. Holy f***. Holy shit. What the f***. How the f*** am I supposed to live now? This was the best book of the year for me, so far, and that's a lot since I'm mainly a romance reader and this is not a... typical romance.

But OMG. It was so badass, you guys, the end was so badass. Like you would not believe. You will laugh, you will cry, you will gasp, your heart will wrench and break and then break again and then shatter and then put itself together and finally evaporate.
Michael Grant is one of those authors, that a budding writer like myself, looks up to as a writing GOD. He is so awesome, he tied everything up, the characters are amazing, and he is one of the few that knows how a teenager talks like, and I'm gushing, and I don't care...

And it occurred to me, in the ending hours of the FAYZ; it occurred to me, as I was sneering at the outside worlds' ignorance of the FAYZ, that if this happened in the world we live in today, we would probably have the same reaction.

Don't scoff, now. Don't say, no i wouldn't! i would know there are good people in there!

What if we didn't have the inside scoop, we didn't know the situation, or what they were thinking, or what the consequences were, all we knew was what they

did?

And that was all we knew? Would we really be so kind? I don't think all of us would be.

I think one of the greatest messages of this book was just that, that there are shades between evil and good, and it's not always easy to pick. And it's never easy to decide to do something that general society considers immoral. We need to try and understand why people do things rather than just jumping to conclusions all the time. We shouldn't be all holier-than thou, turn up your nose and assume shit. And really, we should understand that all we can do is try our best, do what we hope is right, and if it ends up not being right, we shouldn't judge them for it. Because we're not perfect.

We're only human, after all.

[Alexis]

I really hope this nook shows them adjusting to life outside the FAYZ. Personally, i think it will. In Gone, everyone was gone from the start. In Hunger, there was hunger from the start, ext. I think at the end of fear the wall will come down, allowing the kids back into the outside world. Then light will explain how their lives changed. And hopefully an explantion about sam and caine and the whole adoption thing.

[Andye.Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

LIGHT was absolutely amazing and I'm so sad that it's over. What a fantastically satisfying conclusion to one of my favorite series ever!

Watch me babble incoherently about it on my video mini-review on the blog
here

-Kit

(Also, we're giving away the books on the blog! Giveaway)

[Sigh. · Rating 5 out of 5]

332 kids between the age of one month and fourteen years are confined within the FAYZ.

196 eventually emerged.

136 lay dead.

Dead and buried in the town plaza.

Dead and floating in the lake or its shores.

Dead in the desert. In the fields.

Michael Grant takes us to place where all adults are Gone

Hunger is breaking them apart.

They have told Lies

Everyone is dying from the Plauge

They are all living in Fear

In this book, the FAYZ wall is a glass. Adults CAN see the horror that is happening, but can only watch as it goes. But soon, they will see Light

This is the final Battle between Gaia and the Darkness.

Together Sam, Caine, Dekka, Lena, Little Pete and the others will fight against Gaia.

To me, this is what the fight looked like:



Highly recommended to all!

Here's a sneak peek

" Hey, Alex, you need to start talking" said Caine "What do you mean you fell through?"
"The goddess...she drew me through the barrier so that I might feed her" He clenched his remaining fist, but the expression on his face was almost reverential."
Enjoy!

[amelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

-------------------------------------------SPOILER ALERT-------------------------------------------------

I wouldn't read this review unless you have read all of the series.

I'm going to review the whole series (pretty much) on here, I think it would be difficult to review the books individually as they are so interlinked; even though they are different books they may as well be one, you couldn't read them as stand alone books.

So two years ago, I picked up a book called Gone out of the library, and took it on holiday with me, except I wasn't really on holiday because my head was stuck in said book the whole time so I didn't really participate in 'holiday activities'. As soon as I got home from the weekend away I sprinted to WHSmiths, (it's a stationery/book shop, do you have it in the US?) and bought Hunger, Lies and Plague (obviously Fear and Light weren't out yet) all at once. After a wait which seemed endless, Fear was released and once again I sprinted to WHSmiths and bought Fear, for only £10, which is excellent considering how good it was. Three days ago (I think) Light was released in the UK and I sprinted, not to WHSmiths but to Waterstones (cause they had signed copies, yay!) and bought Light. Two days later I was crying hysterically in my bed after finishing my favourite series of all-time.

I'm not going to do a summary of the series as hopefully anyone who reads this will have taken heed of my spoiler alert and not read it until they had finished the series.

First off, the concept. This is what grabbed me at first. 'A world without adults, where normal has crashed and burned.' It sounded really exciting, a book I've always dreamed of seeing on the shelves. The cover drew me in as well, (I'm not sure you can get the covers with people on in the UK but I don't care cause I much prefer the coloured writing ones anyway) it was black and green, so simple. I loved how Michael Grant didn't faff, he cut to the chase, on the first page, the adults disappear and you are thrown into the FAYZ, not to return until the series is finished. And I love mutant powers. They are the coolest things ever. I'm very much an X-Men girl, and any books with mutant powers I will try to read. I would be telekinetic like Caine if I had a power, then I wouldn't have to get up to change the channel ;)

I also love Michael's writing style. He deals with difficult topics such as homosexuality in a very good way, very realistic I think, not singling the characters out and not making it into a big thing, which I was very impressed by. He is also funny! At the end of Light when Caine signs his letter 'King of the FAYZ' and when Lana laughs for five minutes about cutting herself when peeling carrots it was so special, because I laughed and then cried. I love how he slips humour in, especially when there seems to be no hope, then Lana makes a snarky comment, or Caine bigs himself up, or Diana is sarcastic, and the mood is lightened and we can all breathe a small sigh of relief. The author is also very to the point. I made a mistake of reading a bit of Light to my six year old brother, (he is obsessed my the covers and so always wants me to tell him about the books) and I read 'she ate some of his thigh' and my brother is just looking at me like 'What?' :)
But I like how to the point it is, no waffling. The books are perfect length as well, if he waffled around they would be too long.

THE CHARACTERS! This is the real reason that I love the Gone series (and the mutant powers). I've read other reviews saying 'blah, blah, too many characters, blah' but I completely disagree. Often I read books with about four developed characters in, I'm really picky when it comes to characters (they have to be realistic, with faults and good parts, you'd be surprised how many books fail to meet these requirements and are put back on the shelf) and so the fact that in the Gone series there were so many characters helped loads, especially as I didn't like Sam an awful lot and Astrid was so annoying in the first four books. But Caine Soren. He is the perfect character, he has lots of flaws and does lots of bad things but he is a good person deep down. His love for Diana is beautiful and I love their relationship so much. Caine is my favourite character ever. Period (is that what you say in America? We say full stop) ;) I also love Brianna, Edilio, Quinn, Lana, (even Drake a little, especially in Hunger, when he's just an evil psychopath, not a gaiaphage-possessed lunatic). And of course Diana, I feel so sorry for her at the end. The only thing I think is sad is how many died, CAINE :'(, Jack, Brianna, Orc, all these people who were so close to getting out. It's really heartbreaking when Caine and Diana have their last moments together. (How did Patrick survive and not the Breeze, I do love Patrick though, but he's a dog!) I wish not so many people had died, even though I know that it's realistic.

These books have made me so happy and so sad at the same time, what am I actually going to do with my life now it's all over?! Oh wait, there's still the sequels to BZRK :) (psst, go buy BZRK as well, it's almost as good)

Sorry this review is so long and contains so many boring anecdotes and love for Caine. WHY DID HE DIE? WHY?

Thank you Michael Grant, you deserve a medal for being one of the best authors ever.

[Alayne Emmett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet another good book from Michael Grant. This book continues on from book 5 and escalates into fireballs and monsters. It was brilliant!!! I raced through this even though it was a re-read for me.
Previously I always felt sad that this wonderful series had come to an end...not this time as there are 3 more books after this, excellent!!!

[Maria Krasowska · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ta seria mnie zniszczyła. 5⭐️, polecam wszystkim

[Sleepless Dreamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I read this book years ago but I also reread it today because hey, what better think to do on study breaks than read about a bunch of unstable teens.

Man, I grew up on this series and I still feel like this ending holds up, this ending is everything you could want from such a series. And sure, this series has many problems but ultimately, the characters are so good.

That ending still makes me tear up because it's just so so sad and such an iconic moment, such a beautiful conclusion, it wraps it up exactly how it should.

I do have to get back to studying because finishing this entire thing today may have not been the best idea.

Anyway, does anyone else want to complain about how Lana and Sanjit don't get their closure but my god, Diana is perfect and I am so here for Roger and Edilio living happily.

[Belle · Rating 5 out of 5]

NOTE: This review used to be predictions, but since I have read it now I am writing an ACTUAL review here.

So... one of my all time favorite series is over. It is actually the first time I have had to part with a favorite so far. I'm lucky that way, though the ending for those are close too. So I gave this book five stars, but I have a few VERY small complaints. This said, I ALMOST decided to give it four stars, but obviously I decided against it. I understand that when you are a writer it is hard to remember to conclude absolutely EVERYTHING, especially when the series it six books long and they are each HUGE. I get that and I am happy that Michael Grant did conclude pretty much everything.

Complaints (containing very minor spoilers):

1) What up with the power of Astrid's that you introduced in Gone and then completely ignored? I really though you would not forget Michael Grant. I had faith in you :(

2) Lana and Sanjit? What happened there?

3) Quinn? Where are you, I thought you would have a bigger role...

4) The Gaia/Petey thing at the end went by SO fast!

5) Taylor, what happened to you? You came back and then you just sort of left the story at the end. They mention at the end that someone saw her (or was that a joke...), but we don't really know EXACTLY what happened.

6)Ummm...Ii think that's it, but I WILL be back if I remember anything else

(WARNING THERE ARE SOME SPOILERS IN THIS PART OF REVIEW)
So even though I have some complaints, they are very minor and as endings of series go, is was very good and pretty darn satisfying. It was repulsive as always. Gotta love a grown man's arm getting ripped off. It grosses me out, but that is just the way this books are and I except that. I had my problems with Astrid in this series, but I kind of liked her in this one. There were a lot of sad deaths, but the worst for me was Orc. At least Dekka lived, I love her. Everything wrapped up nicely and there was much, much action. (that was totally a sentence with good grammar...) I ABSOLUTELY LOVED how Michael Grant put in the death count and everything before the Aftermath chapters. It was smart of him, it added a nice depressing and dramatic feeling after everything. The acknowledgements at the end were well done. So, even though it was not perfect, it was a good ending. It will be interesting to go back and read them again some day knowing what happens. I am very sad to let it go...

Well, as Michael Grant put it, "[We] are now free to leave the FAYZ."

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here are some of the things bouncing around my head right now, about this book:

1.) I expected people to die. They did.
2.) I also expected people I liked to die. They did. (Only two of the major characters die. Guess who?)

And that's...really pretty much what happened. Not huge shockers in this one - most of the plot twist and FAYZ revelations happen in the earlier books of the series. Well, almost all of them. There aren't too many plot twists, or unexpected results here, which is part of what bugged me.

But, I will say that MG packaged this last one up perfectly, so it will satisfy most readers of the series. The relationship developments in this one are almost spot-on.

I'll admit, though - Caine surprised me.