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Demon Road #3
American Monsters
Bigger, meaner, stronger.
Amber closes in on her murderous parents as they make one last desperate play for power. Her own last hopes of salvation, however, rest beyond vengeance, beyond the abominable killers - living and dead - that she and Milo will have to face.
For Amber's future lies in her family's past, in the brother and sister she never knew, and the horrors beyond imagining that befell them.
Amber closes in on her murderous parents as they make one last desperate play for power. Her own last hopes of salvation, however, rest beyond vengeance, beyond the abominable killers - living and dead - that she and Milo will have to face.
For Amber's future lies in her family's past, in the brother and sister she never knew, and the horrors beyond imagining that befell them.
364 pages, Hardcover
First published August 25, 2016
64 people are currently reading
1648 people want to read
About the author
Derek Landy
256 books5,294 followersDerek Landy is an Irish writer and screenwriter. In addition to the bestselling children's/YA series of Skulduggery Pleasant books, a supernatural mystery series starring Skulduggery Pleasant, a skeleton detective, and Valkyrie Cain, a young female magician, he has written two screenplays that have been made into films: the IFTA award winning "Dead Bodies" and the IFTA nominated "Boy Eats Girl". Landy himself was nominated for an IFTA for Best Script.
He doesn’t like to brag about all the awards he’s won, such as the Irish Book of the Decade, or the Red House in the UK, or all the other awards that he humbly displays on his mantelpiece. He is also far too modest to mention things like the first book being a Publisher’s Weekly Best Book of the Year, but would like to extend an invitation to Oprah to pop around one day for tea, in thanks for selecting his book for the Oprah’s Book Club Kids Reading List.
Derek plays too many video games, reads too many comics, and watches too many movies. He lives in Ireland with too many cats. Occasionally he talks to real people, but only when he absolutely has to.
He doesn’t like to brag about all the awards he’s won, such as the Irish Book of the Decade, or the Red House in the UK, or all the other awards that he humbly displays on his mantelpiece. He is also far too modest to mention things like the first book being a Publisher’s Weekly Best Book of the Year, but would like to extend an invitation to Oprah to pop around one day for tea, in thanks for selecting his book for the Oprah’s Book Club Kids Reading List.
Derek plays too many video games, reads too many comics, and watches too many movies. He lives in Ireland with too many cats. Occasionally he talks to real people, but only when he absolutely has to.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 236 reviews
August 23, 2016
I would like to thank HarperCollins UK, Children's & Derek Landy for my copy of the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I've loved The Demon Road Trilogy it has been an awesome series, I just don't know how I feel about the last book. Yeah, it was good but it took me a while to get into it and I found some of it to be pretty boring which made feel detached from it so for that I give it 3.5 stars.
It follows on from the last book Amber now being The Shinning Demons Representative and looks like she has lost Kelly in the process, things are looking pretty grim. Milo still has her back running her round the whole country trying to help her with her new job but also for to track down her parents but every time she gets close Mr Shinning has her go after another of his Demons. She heads to the Dark Places convention to meet a friend off a forum (uhh sorry I can't remember her name I read the book over a week ago my minds blank) but gets a nasty shock in the process. Will she ever get back at her parents?!
I really loved some parts of this story, Amber starts dreaming about her brother & sisters lives and what happened to them letting her get a better idea of what they were like. I loved how her brother had a romance it is adorable! Sometimes the plot was a bit flakey and I wasn't sure why some things were happening, yeah I do like when books are pretty random but it felt out of place at bits. Also, I find it hard to remember some of the characters names nevertheless I still enjoyed it.
Ambers an amazing leading lady I have loved watching her grow and it has been the first book with a lesbian love interest in it that I have liked, usually I'm not so into it because they become a bit too graphic but this was just nice and not pushed! You now see her making her own decisions and being completely confident in them. She also starts to love her human side and starts to like the way she looks which I thought was great. Not all we ladies are a size 6 will model looks and perfect hair, especially not as a teen either so I love how Landy shows that it doesn't matter what you look like you still kick ass and are hot!
Kelly and the Gang are back on the book which I was looking really forward to as I loved them in the second one, my heart was ripped into a million pieces with the storyline but hey the show must go on! I find Amber's parents absolutely hilarious they are so crazy yet don't give a rats ass and still demand respect. The whole Milo thing had me in shock for a few days that's why it's taken me so long to write the review I just couldn't do it.
Last but not least Glens back!! He is my favourite character and I find him so funny he has me giggling like mad, it was good to see him in the story and finding out what was happening with him and I loved the trouble Amber goes to make him himself again (well not completely himself if he goes in the sun then it's buh bye!). He has his funny one-liners back and his cracking personality and just makes the book.
I would recommend this series it is really good and it is the first I have ever read any of Derek Landy's books but I will definitely be picking up more of his stuff.
Check out my blog! www.amandaminnockx.tumblr.com
"I was a creature of the night, Amber. I can't be held responsible for what I did or didn't do when I was a creature of the night."
I've loved The Demon Road Trilogy it has been an awesome series, I just don't know how I feel about the last book. Yeah, it was good but it took me a while to get into it and I found some of it to be pretty boring which made feel detached from it so for that I give it 3.5 stars.
It follows on from the last book Amber now being The Shinning Demons Representative and looks like she has lost Kelly in the process, things are looking pretty grim. Milo still has her back running her round the whole country trying to help her with her new job but also for to track down her parents but every time she gets close Mr Shinning has her go after another of his Demons. She heads to the Dark Places convention to meet a friend off a forum (uhh sorry I can't remember her name I read the book over a week ago my minds blank) but gets a nasty shock in the process. Will she ever get back at her parents?!
I really loved some parts of this story, Amber starts dreaming about her brother & sisters lives and what happened to them letting her get a better idea of what they were like. I loved how her brother had a romance it is adorable! Sometimes the plot was a bit flakey and I wasn't sure why some things were happening, yeah I do like when books are pretty random but it felt out of place at bits. Also, I find it hard to remember some of the characters names nevertheless I still enjoyed it.
Ambers an amazing leading lady I have loved watching her grow and it has been the first book with a lesbian love interest in it that I have liked, usually I'm not so into it because they become a bit too graphic but this was just nice and not pushed! You now see her making her own decisions and being completely confident in them. She also starts to love her human side and starts to like the way she looks which I thought was great. Not all we ladies are a size 6 will model looks and perfect hair, especially not as a teen either so I love how Landy shows that it doesn't matter what you look like you still kick ass and are hot!
Kelly and the Gang are back on the book which I was looking really forward to as I loved them in the second one, my heart was ripped into a million pieces with the storyline but hey the show must go on! I find Amber's parents absolutely hilarious they are so crazy yet don't give a rats ass and still demand respect. The whole Milo thing had me in shock for a few days that's why it's taken me so long to write the review I just couldn't do it.
Last but not least Glens back!! He is my favourite character and I find him so funny he has me giggling like mad, it was good to see him in the story and finding out what was happening with him and I loved the trouble Amber goes to make him himself again (well not completely himself if he goes in the sun then it's buh bye!). He has his funny one-liners back and his cracking personality and just makes the book.
I would recommend this series it is really good and it is the first I have ever read any of Derek Landy's books but I will definitely be picking up more of his stuff.
Check out my blog! www.amandaminnockx.tumblr.com
"I was a creature of the night, Amber. I can't be held responsible for what I did or didn't do when I was a creature of the night."
March 13, 2018
Das wird eine etwas ungewöhnliche Rezension für mich - denn obwohl mir die Rahmenhandlung um die dämonische Amber, ihren Begleiter Milo und die teuflischen Gegenspieler auf ihre rasante Art super gefällt, hat Derek Landy viele Botschaften in seiner Geschichte, die mir wirklich wichtig sind und mir aus dem Herzen sprechen. Deshalb möchte ich euch hier zeigen, dass man auch in so einer bissigen, actiongeladenen und auch brutalen Unterhaltungsreihe sehr viel Tiefgang finden kann!
Den Klappentext spare ich mir hier, um Nichtkennern der Reihe Spoiler zu ersparen.
Worum es geht: wie der Originaltitel schon sagt, um "American Monsters", um Dämonen, um Höllenfürsten und die mittlerweile 17jährige Amber, die auf Rache aus ist. Aber eben nicht nur um das offensichtlich Böse, sondern auch um die kleinen oder auch größeren dunklen Seiten, die jeder in uns trägt, und wie damit umzugehen ist.
Manche vergleichen die Geschichte ein bisschen mit der Serie "Supernatural" und es gibt auch einge Grundzüge, die ähnlich sind, denn Amber ist mit dem kampferprobten Milo in einem Dodge Charger auf den Straßen Amerikas unterwegs, um Dämonen zu jagen - zumindest war es bisher so. Doch Amber musste ihre Prioritäten mehr als einmal umschmeißen und sich den Gegebenheiten anpassen, denn nicht alles läuft immer so, wie man es sich vorstellt.
Es geht um Dämonen: dabei wird es brutal und mit gewalttätigen Szenen spart Derek Landy hier wahrhaftig nicht. Gerade im ersten Drittel ging es nicht viel um Handlung, sondern um das brachiale Leben, dass Amber mittlerweile sozusagen in Fleisch und Blut übergegangen ist. Natürlich wie immer gewürzt mit den genialen trockenen und sarkastischen Dialogen zwischen Milo und ihr, die mir immer wieder ein sardonisches Grinsen ins Gesicht zaubern :D
Trotz der vielen Action und der "Hau drauf" Mentalität baut Derek Landy aber viele Fragen und Probleme mit ein, die er zwar direkt anspricht, aber vielleicht in dem ganzen Spektakel um Ambers Vergeltungsmaßnahmen untergehen könnten, mir aber immer wieder ins Auge gesprungen sind. Sie hat sich ja mittlerweile an ihr neues Dasein angepasst und genießt nach wie vor ihre "Böse Seite", ihr dämonisches Aussehen, dass sie schöner macht, begehrenswert und die Blicke auf sich zieht. Ganz anders als das Bild, dass sie als "normales Mädchen" von sich hat: zu unauffällig, zu dick und einfach unscheinbar.
Ich denke, dass es vielen Mädchen und Frauen so geht, gerade durch die geschönten Bilder und Fotos aus der Presse, wie "Frau" heutzutage aussehen soll und ja auch aussehen kann, wenn man nur alles dafür tun würde - ah ja ... Aber auch die Gefahren durch das Internet, in dem verglichen wird und auf den Fotos viele so retouchiert sind, dass man sie kaum wiedererkennt.
Für Amber ist diese dämonische Ader also sowas wie ein Geschenk, sie verwandelt sich in etwas besseres, schöneres, das Aufmerksamkeit verdient - und wie scheinbar einfach ist es, diese Maske aufzusetzen, sich zu verkleiden, zu tarnen und "die Sau rauszulassen", ohne an die Konsequenzen zu denken. Dabei werden alle schwächenden Gefühle überdeckt, versteckt und wie leicht scheint es auf einmal, sich stark und frei zu fühlen, eine Macht, die man nicht so gerne aufgeben möchte.
Derek Landy zeigt hier sehr gut, wie schnell Amber dabei vergisst, dass das alles nur Show ist, ein Traum, der natürlich Spaß macht und geträumt werden darf, und wie ernüchternd es ist, wenn er tatsächlich real wird!
Gerade das was man verstecken möchte ist das, was einen als Persönlichkeit ausmacht und was andere an einem schätzen, ja liebenswert finden; meist ohne dass man selbst es merkt!
Aber es ist auch eine Gratwanderung, denn manchmal muss man sich auch schützen, muss Stärke zeigen um sich nicht unterkriegen zu lassen, und da kann solche eine "Rüstung auch ein gutes Werkzeug" sein für schwierige Situationen. Nur sollte man diesen Panzer auch wieder ablegen können!
"Reue ist ein Werkzeug, Amber. Sie ist da, um dir zu helfen. Sie setzt sich in deinem Kopf fest und du wirst sie nicht mehr los. [...] Damit du ein besserer Mensch wirst", entgegnete er. "Du wirst weiter Fehler machen. Vielleicht wirst du Menschen weiter wehtun. Und jedes Mal, wenn du bereust, sticht wieder ein spitzer Stachel in dein Gehirn und verändert dich und die Art und Weise, wie du Dinge angehst." S. 200
Man darf Fehler machen - wichtig ist, Entscheidungen zu treffen! Jeder Mensch macht Fehler, manche deuten da sehr gerne drauf, andere wiederum sehen die Fehler immer nur bei sich selbst - aber das ganze Leben besteht daraus, denn niemand kann immer alle Folgen absehen über das, wofür man sich entscheidet und nur so kann man daraus lernen. Und ja, man darf seine Meinung im Laufe des Lebens auch ändern und neue Wege gehen, das ist nicht launisch oder inkonsequent, sondern zeugt von Offenheit und der Fähigkeit, dazulernen zu können.
Es gibt auch sehr schwerwiegende Entscheidungen, zum Glück nicht oft, aber auch diese müssen getroffen werden, manchmal auf Kosten anderer, manchmal muss man das ganz Schlimme gegen das weniger Schlimme abwägen, aber auch hier gilt: mit dem Herzen entscheiden. Denn auch wenn es vielleicht nicht zu dem Ziel führt, das man wollte, hat man zumindest aus der Sicht entschieden, die vom Gefühl her die richtige war.
So, das waren meine individuellen Eindrücke, die mich durch diese Reihe begleitet haben. Auch wenn Derek Landy nicht so in die Tiefe geht schneidet er das alles mit seiner Thematik sehr wohl an, was gerade bei diesem Genre sicher nicht so einfach war, authentisch rüberzubringen.
Große Action, triefender Sarkasmus, teuflische Grausamkeiten, auch das alles gibt es bei dieser rasanten Trilogie, die mich durchweg begeistert hat!
Fazit: 4.5 Sterne
© Aleshanee
Weltenwanderer
Den Klappentext spare ich mir hier, um Nichtkennern der Reihe Spoiler zu ersparen.
Worum es geht: wie der Originaltitel schon sagt, um "American Monsters", um Dämonen, um Höllenfürsten und die mittlerweile 17jährige Amber, die auf Rache aus ist. Aber eben nicht nur um das offensichtlich Böse, sondern auch um die kleinen oder auch größeren dunklen Seiten, die jeder in uns trägt, und wie damit umzugehen ist.
Manche vergleichen die Geschichte ein bisschen mit der Serie "Supernatural" und es gibt auch einge Grundzüge, die ähnlich sind, denn Amber ist mit dem kampferprobten Milo in einem Dodge Charger auf den Straßen Amerikas unterwegs, um Dämonen zu jagen - zumindest war es bisher so. Doch Amber musste ihre Prioritäten mehr als einmal umschmeißen und sich den Gegebenheiten anpassen, denn nicht alles läuft immer so, wie man es sich vorstellt.
Es geht um Dämonen: dabei wird es brutal und mit gewalttätigen Szenen spart Derek Landy hier wahrhaftig nicht. Gerade im ersten Drittel ging es nicht viel um Handlung, sondern um das brachiale Leben, dass Amber mittlerweile sozusagen in Fleisch und Blut übergegangen ist. Natürlich wie immer gewürzt mit den genialen trockenen und sarkastischen Dialogen zwischen Milo und ihr, die mir immer wieder ein sardonisches Grinsen ins Gesicht zaubern :D
Trotz der vielen Action und der "Hau drauf" Mentalität baut Derek Landy aber viele Fragen und Probleme mit ein, die er zwar direkt anspricht, aber vielleicht in dem ganzen Spektakel um Ambers Vergeltungsmaßnahmen untergehen könnten, mir aber immer wieder ins Auge gesprungen sind. Sie hat sich ja mittlerweile an ihr neues Dasein angepasst und genießt nach wie vor ihre "Böse Seite", ihr dämonisches Aussehen, dass sie schöner macht, begehrenswert und die Blicke auf sich zieht. Ganz anders als das Bild, dass sie als "normales Mädchen" von sich hat: zu unauffällig, zu dick und einfach unscheinbar.
Ich denke, dass es vielen Mädchen und Frauen so geht, gerade durch die geschönten Bilder und Fotos aus der Presse, wie "Frau" heutzutage aussehen soll und ja auch aussehen kann, wenn man nur alles dafür tun würde - ah ja ... Aber auch die Gefahren durch das Internet, in dem verglichen wird und auf den Fotos viele so retouchiert sind, dass man sie kaum wiedererkennt.
Für Amber ist diese dämonische Ader also sowas wie ein Geschenk, sie verwandelt sich in etwas besseres, schöneres, das Aufmerksamkeit verdient - und wie scheinbar einfach ist es, diese Maske aufzusetzen, sich zu verkleiden, zu tarnen und "die Sau rauszulassen", ohne an die Konsequenzen zu denken. Dabei werden alle schwächenden Gefühle überdeckt, versteckt und wie leicht scheint es auf einmal, sich stark und frei zu fühlen, eine Macht, die man nicht so gerne aufgeben möchte.
Derek Landy zeigt hier sehr gut, wie schnell Amber dabei vergisst, dass das alles nur Show ist, ein Traum, der natürlich Spaß macht und geträumt werden darf, und wie ernüchternd es ist, wenn er tatsächlich real wird!
Gerade das was man verstecken möchte ist das, was einen als Persönlichkeit ausmacht und was andere an einem schätzen, ja liebenswert finden; meist ohne dass man selbst es merkt!
Aber es ist auch eine Gratwanderung, denn manchmal muss man sich auch schützen, muss Stärke zeigen um sich nicht unterkriegen zu lassen, und da kann solche eine "Rüstung auch ein gutes Werkzeug" sein für schwierige Situationen. Nur sollte man diesen Panzer auch wieder ablegen können!
"Reue ist ein Werkzeug, Amber. Sie ist da, um dir zu helfen. Sie setzt sich in deinem Kopf fest und du wirst sie nicht mehr los. [...] Damit du ein besserer Mensch wirst", entgegnete er. "Du wirst weiter Fehler machen. Vielleicht wirst du Menschen weiter wehtun. Und jedes Mal, wenn du bereust, sticht wieder ein spitzer Stachel in dein Gehirn und verändert dich und die Art und Weise, wie du Dinge angehst." S. 200
Man darf Fehler machen - wichtig ist, Entscheidungen zu treffen! Jeder Mensch macht Fehler, manche deuten da sehr gerne drauf, andere wiederum sehen die Fehler immer nur bei sich selbst - aber das ganze Leben besteht daraus, denn niemand kann immer alle Folgen absehen über das, wofür man sich entscheidet und nur so kann man daraus lernen. Und ja, man darf seine Meinung im Laufe des Lebens auch ändern und neue Wege gehen, das ist nicht launisch oder inkonsequent, sondern zeugt von Offenheit und der Fähigkeit, dazulernen zu können.
Es gibt auch sehr schwerwiegende Entscheidungen, zum Glück nicht oft, aber auch diese müssen getroffen werden, manchmal auf Kosten anderer, manchmal muss man das ganz Schlimme gegen das weniger Schlimme abwägen, aber auch hier gilt: mit dem Herzen entscheiden. Denn auch wenn es vielleicht nicht zu dem Ziel führt, das man wollte, hat man zumindest aus der Sicht entschieden, die vom Gefühl her die richtige war.
So, das waren meine individuellen Eindrücke, die mich durch diese Reihe begleitet haben. Auch wenn Derek Landy nicht so in die Tiefe geht schneidet er das alles mit seiner Thematik sehr wohl an, was gerade bei diesem Genre sicher nicht so einfach war, authentisch rüberzubringen.
Große Action, triefender Sarkasmus, teuflische Grausamkeiten, auch das alles gibt es bei dieser rasanten Trilogie, die mich durchweg begeistert hat!
Fazit: 4.5 Sterne
© Aleshanee
Weltenwanderer
February 6, 2017
-_- dissappointing. This series had so much potential but it just completely failed. The first book was great but the other 2 have just lacked in comparison.
May 15, 2018
The last book of the Trilogy *sigh* I hate when a series comes to an end, especially when i've enjoyed the books so much, i'm always left wanting more than i've been given. Travelled along with these characters was such a fun, wild fast paced ride, and i literally dont know what im going to do now thats its come to an end.
Starting off where the last book finished, Amber is now the Shining demons representative. Her connection with Kelly has broken down due to her new job, and Milo is still by her side, taking on demons and trying to track down the parents that wronged her, and by wronged on course i mean who tried to kill her. Maybe wrong isn't the right word here? The closer she gets to her parents, her new boss sends her off fighting demons.
The closer she gets, the more she learns about her former brother and sister, who suffered at the teeth of her parents. With the story coming to an end, who will win? Amber, or her demon parents?
And what about the Shining Demon, what becomes of him?
I really enjoyed this book. Learning more about Amber's brother and sister really added to the story and i enjoyed the relationship side of things as well. We got Glen back! WOOOO! I missed his personality and his wit so much. Unfortunately some parts were a little eh for me, like i understand why they were added but they felt a bit flat in my opinion.
The growth of the characters from the start of the series till now was amazing. Amber, Milo and Glen, were the most prominent being the main characters throughout the series. But even Ambers parents has some growth, in their own way.
Amber was a strong female protagonist, and her journey was one i think many will enjoy. Starting as the self conscious loner girl, she has grown into this strong, smart, self assured demon girl who will do anything for those she cares about, even if those people aren't necessarily her family.
The only thing i didn't really enjoy, and im nitpicking here but the fact that Amber became more loving towards herself because Kelly liked her, yeah im not really a fan of that. It fits the story, and the characters to a point, but i feel like we need to encourage people to find love in themselves without someone else 'loving' them first.
Overall, i liked the series. I enjoyed how things progressed and that overall it kept a fast pace, with twists and turns all throughout that kept you on the edge of your seat. The character development for all the characters was well shown, and the banter will keep you giggling throughout this dark story. Some parts of the story weren't the strongest, but as a whole this is a fantastic series that i will look forward to reading again.
To think i picked up the first book because of the cover, i'm glad my decision making when picking books is pretty relaxed, as this turned out to be a great series.
Recommended for : Fantasy/ YA / Horror
Starting off where the last book finished, Amber is now the Shining demons representative. Her connection with Kelly has broken down due to her new job, and Milo is still by her side, taking on demons and trying to track down the parents that wronged her, and by wronged on course i mean who tried to kill her. Maybe wrong isn't the right word here? The closer she gets to her parents, her new boss sends her off fighting demons.
The closer she gets, the more she learns about her former brother and sister, who suffered at the teeth of her parents. With the story coming to an end, who will win? Amber, or her demon parents?
And what about the Shining Demon, what becomes of him?
I really enjoyed this book. Learning more about Amber's brother and sister really added to the story and i enjoyed the relationship side of things as well. We got Glen back! WOOOO! I missed his personality and his wit so much. Unfortunately some parts were a little eh for me, like i understand why they were added but they felt a bit flat in my opinion.
The growth of the characters from the start of the series till now was amazing. Amber, Milo and Glen, were the most prominent being the main characters throughout the series. But even Ambers parents has some growth, in their own way.
Amber was a strong female protagonist, and her journey was one i think many will enjoy. Starting as the self conscious loner girl, she has grown into this strong, smart, self assured demon girl who will do anything for those she cares about, even if those people aren't necessarily her family.
The only thing i didn't really enjoy, and im nitpicking here but the fact that Amber became more loving towards herself because Kelly liked her, yeah im not really a fan of that. It fits the story, and the characters to a point, but i feel like we need to encourage people to find love in themselves without someone else 'loving' them first.
Overall, i liked the series. I enjoyed how things progressed and that overall it kept a fast pace, with twists and turns all throughout that kept you on the edge of your seat. The character development for all the characters was well shown, and the banter will keep you giggling throughout this dark story. Some parts of the story weren't the strongest, but as a whole this is a fantastic series that i will look forward to reading again.
To think i picked up the first book because of the cover, i'm glad my decision making when picking books is pretty relaxed, as this turned out to be a great series.
Recommended for : Fantasy/ YA / Horror
March 19, 2018
This is probably more like a 4,5 stars. I really enjoyed the series and I actually liked the third book the most, which is something that usually never happens. But I honestly enjoyed the characters so much more in this one, because I feel like especially Amber has grown so much and I liked her a lot more than I did in the previous books.
I also feel like Derek Landy has finally managed to break away from Skulduggery Pleasant a bit. You know I really tried to go into this series without comparing it to Skulduggery Pleasant, but that was kinda hard, especially in the first book, because Milo, Amber and Glen were literally Skulduggery, Valkyrie and Fletcher. So A LOT of it is pretty similar, especially the character constellation and personalities, but the story can totally stand on its own. And in the third book the characters have grown a lot and the dynamic between them has kind of changed, so the similarity to Skulduggery Pleasant is not as apparent as it used to be. So I really enjoyed that aspect.
I also loved that Derek Landy kinda used Ambers demonic form and her development as a person to point out the importance of self-acceptance and how you should never try to be someone else, that you should always love yourself the way you are and that you are good enough even if you don't have any special powers. So I really appreciated how that aspect was integrated into the story.
The ending tho. The ending was not necessary Mr. Landy. I repeat, that damn ending was not necessary at all. Now excuse me while I go cry in a corner.
I also feel like Derek Landy has finally managed to break away from Skulduggery Pleasant a bit. You know I really tried to go into this series without comparing it to Skulduggery Pleasant, but that was kinda hard, especially in the first book, because Milo, Amber and Glen were literally Skulduggery, Valkyrie and Fletcher. So A LOT of it is pretty similar, especially the character constellation and personalities, but the story can totally stand on its own. And in the third book the characters have grown a lot and the dynamic between them has kind of changed, so the similarity to Skulduggery Pleasant is not as apparent as it used to be. So I really enjoyed that aspect.
I also loved that Derek Landy kinda used Ambers demonic form and her development as a person to point out the importance of self-acceptance and how you should never try to be someone else, that you should always love yourself the way you are and that you are good enough even if you don't have any special powers. So I really appreciated how that aspect was integrated into the story.
The ending tho. The ending was not necessary Mr. Landy. I repeat, that damn ending was not necessary at all. Now excuse me while I go cry in a corner.
December 31, 2024
И тази серия, подобно на Скълдъгъри, не успя да спечели безрезервно зажаднялата ми за благи ужайсийки душа. Екшънът и хорърът доста пъти ми идваха насилени и самоцелни, а хореографията на битките си остана все така дървеняшка: той я удари, тя го удари, той я бутна, тя го бутна, той я метна, тя го метна…; продължих да не усещам и нищо Хамериканско в описанията на местата, напук на заглавието… При все споменатите кусури, доволно се забавлявах с приключенията на Амбър и Майло, а тъй като това е последната ми прочетена книга за 2024, ще бъда и благосклонен в крайната си оценка - 4/5.
January 27, 2018
Oh, boy was this a let-down.
I liked Demon Road. I thought Desolation was pretty great. But this book was veeeery bad.
The whole thing felt pretty rushed. It also felt like Derek had tried to cram in EVERY PLOT POINT POSSIBLE into what is actually a fairly short book, and it didn't work. Dozens of new subplots cropped up, diverted the story for a few dozen pages and then were resolved, which meant that the main plot - catching Amber's parents and somehow getting out of her contract with Astaroth - was sorely neglected. Now I think about it, it kind of followed the format of a TV show - lots of smaller events that wind up to the main plot at the end of the season. Unfortunately that doesn't work so well for books.
Another issue I had was that this book seemed to be trying to pander to basically everyone. Like, 'LOOK AT ME, I'M #RELATABLE!!' I like that Amber is a lesbian. That works well, it's nice to see a trilogy with a lesbian main character. If only Derek had left it at that.
There are a lot of nods to fandom culture in this series, which fall a bit flat because while I appreciate the idea of Amber being lonely and turning to fandom to fill the hole, I never got the impression that she was...actually that invested in her fandom? The fandom thing seemed kind of like a character trait that was supposed to make people like her, but she showed very little evidence of actually caring about her show. Obviously the whole demonic representative, running for your life thing would kind of take priority over fandom but I just never felt like she cared enough - not even when she went to an ACTUAL CONVENTION for the show and met the author of the books. Also the weird segue to the fanfiction ghost plot which was... something.
There is also the fact that Derek Landy tries to diversify his books. That's great! I never like to berate an author for trying to be inclusive, but the trouble is that he often does it so CLUMSILY. Amber being gay - that was done well, and I appreciated it. But the weird conversation between Amber and Glen where Glen compares vampirism to queerness and says he now understands what it's like to be oppressed - that was so cringey and inorganic. The whole thing reminded me somewhat of Never from Resurrection - probably the most universally hated Skulduggery Pleasant character EVER. Never is genderfluid. Never is also a prick. I get many comments on my Youtube videos from annoying people who despise Never because 'wah wah, special snowflake, boo hoo.' I want to make this very clear - I don't dislike Never because they're genderfluid, I dislike them because they are a bad character with no redeeming personality traits. Anyway, my point here is that Derek Landy tries really hard to be inclusive, but very rarely does it well. Gold star for effort, but oh my god, PLEASE STOP PUTTING AWFUL SOCIAL JUSTICE STUFF IN YOUR BOOKS. Or at least be more subtle about it.
There were also a bunch of weird things that were not resolved to my satisfaction
I will admit that my investment in this series has dwindled because it's taken me so long to finish it - but this book let me down. I felt as though I was being distracted with shiny subplots which could easily have been removed and made the book a lot more concise. The resolution of the main plot was actually tied up very nicely, I just fail to see why we needed to take so long to get there.
On the whole, I think this series is fairly mediocre, and I was disappointed by this last instalment. I'd give the series as a whole three stars.
January 10, 2021
In general, I was very disappointed in this trilogy. Milo was no Skulduggery and Amber was no Valkyrie. There were moments where I laughed, but they happened few and far in between. It kind of felt like Landy has lost his sense of humor or something. It was just okay, not spectacular about it.
February 20, 2017
I don't know, I still really like Amber and Milo, and the action and humor is still fucking perfect, but so much of the story was wasted on Amber being unnecessarily nasty to Milo (and everyone else). Plus, the plot felt really fragmented with a lot of stuff that were great on their own but just didn't fit the story or didn't work when put together, and a lot of the "shocking" reveals and death didn't work at all (I am legitimately angry angry about some of the deaths in this book).
Full review in Swedish here
Full review in Swedish here
September 4, 2016
***4.5 STARS***
Derek Landy always comes out with something new and original, never fails at his stories, always keeps on coming out with the best and only the best. His characters are flawless, I love the stories and the dialogue. Oh, and the plot of this series, the plots, are just amazing and I love them. Milo Sebastian is such a great character, showing the good and bad in every character and showing that there are some redeeming qualities to make up for the bad things that he has done with his time as the Ghost of the Highway.
This particular installment was not as good as the first two, but I still enjoyed it nonetheless. It had a good rollercoaster of emotions, plus the amount of action within it (for a conclusion in a trilogy) was splendidly done. I really appreciate when authors put the effort in to make sure that the final installment is explosive and not lacking within the action department. The solidness of this trilogy is firm and intact, unlike Skulduggery Pleasant which explodes everywhere with the world-building and such, but they're two different plots and that is perfectly understandable. I love the both of them for their own reasons.
I absolutely cannot wait for book 10 of Skulduggery Pleasant! ^_^
Derek Landy always comes out with something new and original, never fails at his stories, always keeps on coming out with the best and only the best. His characters are flawless, I love the stories and the dialogue. Oh, and the plot of this series, the plots, are just amazing and I love them. Milo Sebastian is such a great character, showing the good and bad in every character and showing that there are some redeeming qualities to make up for the bad things that he has done with his time as the Ghost of the Highway.
This particular installment was not as good as the first two, but I still enjoyed it nonetheless. It had a good rollercoaster of emotions, plus the amount of action within it (for a conclusion in a trilogy) was splendidly done. I really appreciate when authors put the effort in to make sure that the final installment is explosive and not lacking within the action department. The solidness of this trilogy is firm and intact, unlike Skulduggery Pleasant which explodes everywhere with the world-building and such, but they're two different plots and that is perfectly understandable. I love the both of them for their own reasons.
I absolutely cannot wait for book 10 of Skulduggery Pleasant! ^_^
March 4, 2018
... I don't know what to say. The perfect ending but not without its cruelty. Derek Landy is both a God and a horrible Goddamn demon.
The story is absolutely fantastic, character development and interaction entertaining and thrilling just as the last two. I do think this one is my favourite in the trilogy, incredible. The ending leaves you wanting more though, and I am just going to impatiently wait here until more is announced to come because you cannot leave me there.
There were parts I had originally thought predictable, trust me, the feeling doesn't last. And it HURTS!!!
I don't think I'm going to recover from this book anytime soon, wish me luck.
The story is absolutely fantastic, character development and interaction entertaining and thrilling just as the last two. I do think this one is my favourite in the trilogy, incredible. The ending leaves you wanting more though, and I am just going to impatiently wait here until more is announced to come because you cannot leave me there.
There were parts I had originally thought predictable, trust me, the feeling doesn't last. And it HURTS!!!
I don't think I'm going to recover from this book anytime soon, wish me luck.
July 18, 2019
"We're not heroes, Amber. We don't have that luxury."
I'm in tears. I had totally forgotten about that ending...
What an awesome finale for an awesome trilogy!
The more I read, the more I sometimes thought I was reading about Valkyrie and Skulduggery because Amber and Milo are kinda the same with their bickering and sarcasm. I loved the fast pacing of this and it definetly leaves a door open for more stories on the Dark Highway. Awesome!
April 5, 2019
And so Landy's love-letter to the TV show Supernatural comes to an end - rather abruptly! Some of it is predictable, most of it not. It's an amusing read.
June 9, 2021
Мрачната, кървава и експлозивна сага за Амбър е към своя край. „Американски чудовища” е последната глава! Дали трилогията „Демон шосе” ще ни отведе още по-далеч по адската магистрала или ще се озовем в задънена улица? Дерек Ланди трябва да докаже, че може да конкурира сам себе си, поднасяйки нещо също толкова грабващо и наелектризиращо, както приключенията на свръхестествения детектив Скълдъгъри Плезънт. А небезизвестният жив скелет не е лесна летва за надскачане... Прочетете ревюто на „Книжни Криле”: https://knijnikrile.wordpress.com/202...
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June 30, 2017Review to come.
May 24, 2024
Gelungenes Finale!
May 20, 2017
Video review (including a spoiler discussion!): https://youtu.be/YROIZpOJVsM
Thank you to the publishers and author to allow me to read this in exchange for an honest review, via Netgalley.
American Monsters was brilliant and a fantastic end to the Demon Road trilogy! The books got better and better as they went on, with the first being a 4 star read for me, the second a 4.5 star and the final a 5 star read. These books have been amazing!
Amber was so kick arse in this final book but we see she's slowly losing herself as her demon self overpowers her. It was really scary how evil some of her actions became over a few months, especially when it came to dishing out the punishments by request from the Shinning Demon. Despite that, she was still a goofy mess in front of Kelly. I loved the diversity of relationships Landy explored further in this books... That club scene... Woah! Oh, and I was glad at least one confrontation didn't end in a bloody battle! It was nice to see the softer side of Amber again; soft yes, but not weak. I've got to say though, I have no idea how she found the time to make her witty speeches before a fight! Some of the time I was just thinking "fight already!".
The humour was hilarious and again felt more adult than some of Landy's other books, but I really enjoyed that. There were a lot of times where I was literally laughing out loud and gasping from humour and shock!
There was a bit of talk during Brewers' scene concerning body shaming. I will say it was powerful but it was so totally out of the blue and confusing at the same time. It was scary how much the character in question invested in fictional characters and how far she went to try and keep them pure to only her. It makes some fandoms seem so crazy though! I hope that wasn't the intention, haha!
I got my heart broken way too many times in this book and that was mostly due to the plenty of deaths we bore witness to, but what shocked me more was that it was the deaths of newer characters that got me all sad too! I started dreading the arrival of new characters after one particular sudden, intense and brutal scene.
In terms of structure, I found this one to be a bit weird. Some of the sentences I felt should have been split into a second sentence or phrased in a way that made it read better. I wouldn't have minded that type of structure every now and then but it was constantly. Chapter 42 had a unique layout though. It tended to have a page of a short passage, followed by a page with a short sentence. I think it added haste to what was happening and gave the situation a type of urgency, but at the same time it unfortunately made what was happening look too easy! Aside from that, I did like it.
Those Bogles at the beginning were nuts! They were definitely like the Gremlins, but they added some great entertainment! I just wished they were in it a bit longer.
I have one big problem... How had I never before noticed the way Fool was described? A paraphrased example of one of the descriptions was "a thing without gender". I know Fool is literally a monster but when talking about gender, those words in that sentence surrounded by the context it was in, just sounded terrible.
Aside from that minor poor choice in words I found this to be an awesome final installment in the Demon Road trilogy. I devoured it in 2 days- it was amazing!
Pick it up, give it a go and enjoy! >(^_^)<
Gén
Thank you to the publishers and author to allow me to read this in exchange for an honest review, via Netgalley.
American Monsters was brilliant and a fantastic end to the Demon Road trilogy! The books got better and better as they went on, with the first being a 4 star read for me, the second a 4.5 star and the final a 5 star read. These books have been amazing!
Amber was so kick arse in this final book but we see she's slowly losing herself as her demon self overpowers her. It was really scary how evil some of her actions became over a few months, especially when it came to dishing out the punishments by request from the Shinning Demon. Despite that, she was still a goofy mess in front of Kelly. I loved the diversity of relationships Landy explored further in this books... That club scene... Woah! Oh, and I was glad at least one confrontation didn't end in a bloody battle! It was nice to see the softer side of Amber again; soft yes, but not weak. I've got to say though, I have no idea how she found the time to make her witty speeches before a fight! Some of the time I was just thinking "fight already!".
The humour was hilarious and again felt more adult than some of Landy's other books, but I really enjoyed that. There were a lot of times where I was literally laughing out loud and gasping from humour and shock!
There was a bit of talk during Brewers' scene concerning body shaming. I will say it was powerful but it was so totally out of the blue and confusing at the same time. It was scary how much the character in question invested in fictional characters and how far she went to try and keep them pure to only her. It makes some fandoms seem so crazy though! I hope that wasn't the intention, haha!
I got my heart broken way too many times in this book and that was mostly due to the plenty of deaths we bore witness to, but what shocked me more was that it was the deaths of newer characters that got me all sad too! I started dreading the arrival of new characters after one particular sudden, intense and brutal scene.
In terms of structure, I found this one to be a bit weird. Some of the sentences I felt should have been split into a second sentence or phrased in a way that made it read better. I wouldn't have minded that type of structure every now and then but it was constantly. Chapter 42 had a unique layout though. It tended to have a page of a short passage, followed by a page with a short sentence. I think it added haste to what was happening and gave the situation a type of urgency, but at the same time it unfortunately made what was happening look too easy! Aside from that, I did like it.
Those Bogles at the beginning were nuts! They were definitely like the Gremlins, but they added some great entertainment! I just wished they were in it a bit longer.
I have one big problem... How had I never before noticed the way Fool was described? A paraphrased example of one of the descriptions was "a thing without gender". I know Fool is literally a monster but when talking about gender, those words in that sentence surrounded by the context it was in, just sounded terrible.
Aside from that minor poor choice in words I found this to be an awesome final installment in the Demon Road trilogy. I devoured it in 2 days- it was amazing!
Pick it up, give it a go and enjoy! >(^_^)<
Gén
September 21, 2016
I honestly can’t remember when I’ve last read a trilogy (or series) of books so close together. The only reason I didn’t read the whole Demon Road trilogy in one go was because American Monsters wasn’t published when I started Demon Road.
So what’s the conclusion like? Well I preferred American Monsters to Desolation. The focus of the story has returned to Amber, the narration not shifting to other characters. For me, I think this works better. Amber’s character has grown a lot since Demon Road and in this book the demon-side vs human-side struggles are centre stage. Another plus for American Monsters is that one of my favourite characters returns to take more of a prominent role.
If you haven’t read the previous two books then I think you’d struggle to follow American Monsters. Plus I really recommend Demon Road, it’s one of my favourite reads this year and such a good series opener.
I enjoyed American Monsters and think it’s a good conclusion to the trilogy. It has some pretty great highlights, twists, characters you’ve grown to care about and just when you think it’s over. . .
So what’s the conclusion like? Well I preferred American Monsters to Desolation. The focus of the story has returned to Amber, the narration not shifting to other characters. For me, I think this works better. Amber’s character has grown a lot since Demon Road and in this book the demon-side vs human-side struggles are centre stage. Another plus for American Monsters is that one of my favourite characters returns to take more of a prominent role.
If you haven’t read the previous two books then I think you’d struggle to follow American Monsters. Plus I really recommend Demon Road, it’s one of my favourite reads this year and such a good series opener.
I enjoyed American Monsters and think it’s a good conclusion to the trilogy. It has some pretty great highlights, twists, characters you’ve grown to care about and just when you think it’s over. . .
November 19, 2022
The last of the Demon Road series narrated by Kathryn Griffiths. This was a good and fairly uncomplicated series and a large part of that is attributed to Griffiths' stellar narration. I don't think the story would've been as enjoyable if I had read the books myself.
October 13, 2016
~I received a copy from HarperCollins NZ in exchange for an honest review~
Amber Lamont takes complicated to a whole new level as she becomes the Shining Demon, Astaroth's representative, and together with her companion Milo Sebastian and her ghost of a friend Glen she takes up her most dangerous quest yet as she seeks a way to defeat her parents once and for all, double-cross the Shining Demon, and escape alive.
American Monsters certainly isn't uninteresting, but I think there's a lot more room for adventure and excitement. I didn't get bored while reading it, Amber's 'daily life' had a certain degree of interest. However, I felt that a lot of the 'adventures' ended with the heroes escaping with very little consequence. In my opinion the ending is rushed, and the book in general is void of anything super exciting until two thirds through.
In this book, Amber changes a lot, especially when compared to the original Amber Lamont of book one, Demon Road. This is a necessary change backed by character development, which I liked. She learns a lot more skills and with the help of Milo gains control of her demon self.
I liked the final chapter, but some of it's preceding chapters weren't to my taste. Maybe it's just my expectations, but besides a few vicious fights there appears to be little double crossing from anyone other than Amber. I mean, surely someone would've found out about her plans and hatched something to stop her. American Monsters is a relaxing, gentle read, and I recommend it if you don't mind books with less action and adventure.
Amber Lamont takes complicated to a whole new level as she becomes the Shining Demon, Astaroth's representative, and together with her companion Milo Sebastian and her ghost of a friend Glen she takes up her most dangerous quest yet as she seeks a way to defeat her parents once and for all, double-cross the Shining Demon, and escape alive.
American Monsters certainly isn't uninteresting, but I think there's a lot more room for adventure and excitement. I didn't get bored while reading it, Amber's 'daily life' had a certain degree of interest. However, I felt that a lot of the 'adventures' ended with the heroes escaping with very little consequence. In my opinion the ending is rushed, and the book in general is void of anything super exciting until two thirds through.
In this book, Amber changes a lot, especially when compared to the original Amber Lamont of book one, Demon Road. This is a necessary change backed by character development, which I liked. She learns a lot more skills and with the help of Milo gains control of her demon self.
I liked the final chapter, but some of it's preceding chapters weren't to my taste. Maybe it's just my expectations, but besides a few vicious fights there appears to be little double crossing from anyone other than Amber. I mean, surely someone would've found out about her plans and hatched something to stop her. American Monsters is a relaxing, gentle read, and I recommend it if you don't mind books with less action and adventure.
September 4, 2016
Ok. My immediate thought after finishing this was 'that's it?'. So many things seemed to be completely unresolved by the end of this trilogy. It all felt so rushed. I understand there was a tight deadline for completing this book, but it really shows.
Amber went from hating her image to liking it, simply because Kelly fancies her. Amber's character felt completely random in this, and so different to how she previously was in Demon Road. She's suddenly treating everybody like dirt.
Too many character deaths. So many people died needlessly, simply for shock value. We never learnt Milo's full backstory and we got two second cameos from characters that had previously been fairly important. The Glen issue was resolved, which was nice, but other than that there were so many loose ends which I felt were never properly tied up.
There were exciting and fast-paced parts, but also downright torture-porn and gross parts. I just feel pretty disappointed, in all honesty. Desolation had its problems, but I felt it was stronger in plot. Like I said, this was just so rushed.
So that's the end of the Demon Road trilogy. All I can hope for is that the new Skulduggery book will more than make up for it.
Amber went from hating her image to liking it, simply because Kelly fancies her. Amber's character felt completely random in this, and so different to how she previously was in Demon Road. She's suddenly treating everybody like dirt.
Too many character deaths. So many people died needlessly, simply for shock value. We never learnt Milo's full backstory and we got two second cameos from characters that had previously been fairly important. The Glen issue was resolved, which was nice, but other than that there were so many loose ends which I felt were never properly tied up.
There were exciting and fast-paced parts, but also downright torture-porn and gross parts. I just feel pretty disappointed, in all honesty. Desolation had its problems, but I felt it was stronger in plot. Like I said, this was just so rushed.
So that's the end of the Demon Road trilogy. All I can hope for is that the new Skulduggery book will more than make up for it.
November 11, 2016
Full review to come but lets have some closing comments shall we?
As the final book in the Demon Road Trilogy I was ready to finish this story, although I was worried, as I had mixed feelings about Desolation but American Monsters was amazing!
The characters were amazing and the story was finished perfectly. I will admit that I cried like a child near the end during my lunch break at work ( that was embarrassing!) but everything was mostly tied up.
there are a few things that aren't resolved but even then they are mentioned and that is good enough for me!
all my babies are amazing and the sass between Amber and Milo is perfection!
I will also add chapter 42 is my favorite, don't ask me why, I just loved it!
I loved this book and even though the second book was abit meh for me I enjoyed this Trilogy.
As the final book in the Demon Road Trilogy I was ready to finish this story, although I was worried, as I had mixed feelings about Desolation but American Monsters was amazing!
The characters were amazing and the story was finished perfectly. I will admit that I cried like a child near the end during my lunch break at work ( that was embarrassing!) but everything was mostly tied up.
there are a few things that aren't resolved but even then they are mentioned and that is good enough for me!
all my babies are amazing and the sass between Amber and Milo is perfection!
I will also add chapter 42 is my favorite, don't ask me why, I just loved it!
I loved this book and even though the second book was abit meh for me I enjoyed this Trilogy.
February 10, 2017
I never thought it possible, but Derek Landy has let me down. This whole book felt so rushed, and the ending was very anticlimactic.
Don't get me wrong, a lot of stuff happened, but I just found myself.. not caring. The story jumped all over the place a bit with so many different little story arcs, but somehow Derek managed to tie them all together, albeit somewhat messily. I just have so many unanswered questions!!
I in no way disliked this book. I admire Derek Landy. He is to me what J.K. Rowling is for most, so I think I deserve to feel let down that this book didn't live up to my expectations.
Don't get me wrong, a lot of stuff happened, but I just found myself.. not caring. The story jumped all over the place a bit with so many different little story arcs, but somehow Derek managed to tie them all together, albeit somewhat messily. I just have so many unanswered questions!!
I in no way disliked this book. I admire Derek Landy. He is to me what J.K. Rowling is for most, so I think I deserve to feel let down that this book didn't live up to my expectations.
August 29, 2016
Now THAT was a road trip!
& it was my kind of a road trip. You know. One with demons, vampires, monsters and with a nice mix of horror and gore...and a touch of humor. What a great trilogy!
& it was my kind of a road trip. You know. One with demons, vampires, monsters and with a nice mix of horror and gore...and a touch of humor. What a great trilogy!
January 30, 2018
All i'm gonna say?; Cheap ending. Cheap god damn ending
April 12, 2023
Quite good but at the end they randomly killed off one of my favourite characters! Dissatisfying ending to a good trilogy.
January 4, 2021
— • 4.5 • —
I started writing this review straight after finishing this book at like 3am so apologies if I get carried away with words at some points because I was in the moment. It did take me about a week to finish this review though as the more I thought about it, the more things I would come up with to add. And I would just keep on coming back without finding a way to end it. I did however decide to add a summery of the whole series at the end so well done if you make it all the way down to that.
So first things first, I was quite concerned when I first saw the size of the book since it is probably over 100 pages shorter than the previous two books and probably the length of a couple chapters of Game of Thrones (ha), which I finished just before. I thought this was weird for a final book in a trilogy, you would expect it to be bigger right? and so I was worried Derek Landy had kinda gotten fed up with the series (probably since it didn’t take off in popularity like Skulduggery did) and so just wanted to wrap everything up as quick as he could and get back to the Skeleton Detective. I think while writing this review I will work out if this was the case or not.
Now as expected this book was fast paced as hell from start to finish, and when I say fast paced I really mean it. There wasn’t many times where you could take a breath from all the action, and whenever you thought you could there would be even more action. Conversations were quick and simple to follow and there wasn’t ever any heavy descriptions. Everything felt like a smooth well oiled machine with only one goal in mind, ditch the unessesary and speed through this story. Which is contrary to a complaint I made on the previous book, that we’d occasionally be bogged down by side plots with characters that didn’t interest us as much as Amber and Milo. But here it seems Derek heard my call from the future because now we get the story from Ambers POV all the way through, and any sidetracks that do go on add to the story and more importantly, still involves the main characters. This makes the journey a great thrill with lots of memorable moments to pick out, reminiscent to what I said was so special about the first Demon Road book.
Throughout I could feel myself being pulled towards the finale. We get to reunite with characters good and bad from the previous books, (though it doesn’t end well for many of them...) and we got our resolution with Glen that I was so desperate for at the end of Desolation.
Some random moments that stood out for me was when we discover why Amber kept taking selfies now and again without any explanation, I thought it was a really bizarre thing to do at the time, but finding out why was awesome and clever writing. I also peaked during the final fight when I literally shouted (in my head of course) ‘USE THE HORN’ and boom she used the horn. It was at that moment I knew I was connected with Derek Landy on a deep creative level...
Talking about Derek, he really outdid himself with the damn shocks and cliffhangers in this book. I mean you would think by now that I would have grown to expect that something crazy might happen at any point. It is the way of the Derek Landy. It’s something I’ve grown accustomed to in the Skulduggery books. You would think. But no, he still manages to catch me off guard. A reminder that he is in full control of this story, and these characters and my emotions and nobody is safe. And that leads me on to the ending... we’re into big spoilers here... Just when you thought everything had been resolved and that we got the ending we all wanted, just when you thought you were safe... Heartbreak. It’s not often that a book makes you physically sit up saying ‘no no no’... I had barely forgiven Derek for the gruesome shock earlier on in the book that left me gobsmacked to the point I had my head in my hands. But this... This was just Derek laughing at our poor souls. This was just unfair.
Now from here my review turns into a bit of rant... because hindsight 20/20. Now what I keep asking myself is, was the fast pacing and the small size of this book a good thing or not? Part of me liked it because as described earlier, it’s a page-turner and so I wanted to see what happens next and get to the end as fast possible... But on the other hand you lose sooo much depth by speeding through a story. I feel like we definitely could have gotten much more, more meaningful character interactions and more explanations. There was room to do so. But instead we’re left filling in the gaps with our own presumptions.
I would have liked there to be more development between Amber and her Demon self. Yes it’s alluded she won’t be consumed by her because in their last conversation it’s said that if she drinks the last vial she will lose control, and she never does. So Amber no longer see’s her? I mean I presume not, because it was the blood that was bringing on those hallucinations in the first place and now there isn’t any. But it’s still part of her. Yes we see her beginning to accept herself as Amber, but I would have liked to see how she’s come to terms with her Demon self too. Also her dreams of her brother and sister, what was the overall purpose of that? Reading the blurb ‘her future lies in her families past...’ But did it though? Sure it was a nice touch but for something so intriguing I was expecting it to accumulate to something more exciting than what we did ultimately find out. It wasn’t anything super crazy. Idk maybe I skimmed through an important part too quickly and missed it.
The building to the end is also worth discussing. I usually quite enjoy when Derek gets creative with his structure, like giving us cliffhangers followed by a 2 word chapter just to really mess with us. And I could see the purpose of this short chapter jumping as it built up the pace even more towards the grand finale we were all eagerly waiting for. You often see scenes like these in movies and it’s an interesting touch to wrap up loose ends in a simple manner. But part of me feels like this was a bit of a cop out. Like he couldn’t be bothered to go into these parts because he thought we wouldn’t be bothered with them. Some of the characters I couldn’t even remember who they’re were, and we had a longer conversation with one of them at the start of the book then at the end during their actual death scene. In this case it all happened a bit too quickly and the fact that we had basically empty pages was a bit suspect when the book is already tiny as it is. I could see that I didn’t have much of the book left so I felt like I was loosing pages that should have been used for a more fulfilling ending.
Now for the ending (pre-shock). It was an great ending but I was expecting more for a finale to a trilogy. Everything started feeling like the last season of Game of Thrones where even though some parts are really epic, it just doesn’t hit the spot. Firstly I really couldn’t really be bothered with these ‘Foundation of Light’ people. Their reveal at the end just felt like a teaser scene you get after the credits of a film. All of the sudden they’re not cops hunting her and they’ve been ‘good guys’ all along?... doing basically the same job as the the group of Scooby Doo guys in the previous book just more authoritatively? The family relations part of it was interesting but we didn’t really gain anything from finding that out other than it conveniently helping during the final fight. There’s also the whole final charade of Amber fooling her parents and completely confusing me in the process. I get that Derek was leaving us out of the loop/plan so that the double cross/triple cross, idk how many crosses there were, would surprise us as much as the characters, and it did. But there was 2 points where I actually had to stop and go back to see if I had missed a chapter or some important detail I might have skimmed over. I’d have liked more info on Clarissa too and before I forget, which I almost did, the reveal of who the Priest is....? I mean how are you gonna drop that surprise on us with no explanation at all. Nothing. It was epic, don’t get me wrong, but I want to know more! Why was he there to meet her before? Was this his goal all along or is he just cleaning up the mess? Why does he show kindness towards Amber? It just leaves us with more questions than answers.
Then we return to the heartbreaking shock that I mentioned earlier. I won’t say his name, though you’ll probably be able to guess who it is, but like jokes aside... He did not deserve to die. (Okay yes I get that he kinda did because of all the bad things he has done in the past) but no, you do not give us that character development, the fact that he was now free to live a normal life and find some sort of happiness and meaning, just for you to kill him like that. Out of nowhere. By a side character that I didn’t even care to care about. And how dare you put us through the pain of not being able to save him. He was twice the character Amber is.
The subsequent Epilogue was a ‘nice ending’ for the characters that remain but it was overshadowed by what had just happened before it. We didn’t get any time to grieve and we didn’t get to hear any of the characters thoughts. Nothing about how Amber felt after her loss, nothing about how important their friendship was or how she will cope without him. It was just oof he dead, here’s 1 year later where they’re just living their best life now like nothing happened. The ending just left me heartbroken instead of fulfilled.
Look, this wouldn’t be the first time that my rant reviews make a book look terrible when in reality it was still very enjoyable. I just like being critical. Now it’s all over I just wish those conversations were a few pages longer, or those descriptions a little more detailed. Because I was really into it, the world and the characters, and of course if something’s awesome you want more of it! It’s just a shame it has come to an end because I feel like there’s a whole lot more to offer with this series.
I honestly thought the first book was one of the best books I read last year and I would gladly pick it up again some time. It had the Derek Landy charm that I was used to but in a new world with new characters, a story that had so many memorable moments and most importantly a lot of depth to it. I only have good things to say about it which is why I rated it so highly. The second, struggled from the classic issues of a sequel. It was detailed and action packed but simply not as good as the first. Then here, the third and final book gave us a no nonsense race to climax that everything had culminated to. I guess we got what we came for.
I loved the series as a whole but the problem is it’s always going to be compared to Skulduggery Pleasant. Firstly because it’s the only other thing Dereks written but also because he’s made them so similar. - A teenage, female, main character who has to fight her powerful inner demons, with a wiser partner who is ‘magical’ in some way and shows her the ropes, with a 3rd sidekick who’s a bit of a goofball. Even down to the fact that both main characters in each series come out as bisexual! At this point Valkyrie and Amber are practically the same person, as though Derek just couldn’t escape his beloved characters and the tried and tested formula he’s already created. That’s where the problem lies because side by side this trilogy expectedly isn’t as good as Skulduggery. It lacks the depth, it lacks the level of character chemistry that you get after 12 books, and even though it’s supposed to be darker and more gruesome, you’ve still got the same witty storytelling that Derek is accustomed to.
For these reasons l would rate the overall series a 4 or maybe even 4.5 stars and I’d strongly recommend it to anyone I know. It really was a mad ride down the Demon Road.
I started writing this review straight after finishing this book at like 3am so apologies if I get carried away with words at some points because I was in the moment. It did take me about a week to finish this review though as the more I thought about it, the more things I would come up with to add. And I would just keep on coming back without finding a way to end it. I did however decide to add a summery of the whole series at the end so well done if you make it all the way down to that.
So first things first, I was quite concerned when I first saw the size of the book since it is probably over 100 pages shorter than the previous two books and probably the length of a couple chapters of Game of Thrones (ha), which I finished just before. I thought this was weird for a final book in a trilogy, you would expect it to be bigger right? and so I was worried Derek Landy had kinda gotten fed up with the series (probably since it didn’t take off in popularity like Skulduggery did) and so just wanted to wrap everything up as quick as he could and get back to the Skeleton Detective. I think while writing this review I will work out if this was the case or not.
Now as expected this book was fast paced as hell from start to finish, and when I say fast paced I really mean it. There wasn’t many times where you could take a breath from all the action, and whenever you thought you could there would be even more action. Conversations were quick and simple to follow and there wasn’t ever any heavy descriptions. Everything felt like a smooth well oiled machine with only one goal in mind, ditch the unessesary and speed through this story. Which is contrary to a complaint I made on the previous book, that we’d occasionally be bogged down by side plots with characters that didn’t interest us as much as Amber and Milo. But here it seems Derek heard my call from the future because now we get the story from Ambers POV all the way through, and any sidetracks that do go on add to the story and more importantly, still involves the main characters. This makes the journey a great thrill with lots of memorable moments to pick out, reminiscent to what I said was so special about the first Demon Road book.
Throughout I could feel myself being pulled towards the finale. We get to reunite with characters good and bad from the previous books, (though it doesn’t end well for many of them...) and we got our resolution with Glen that I was so desperate for at the end of Desolation.
Some random moments that stood out for me was when we discover why Amber kept taking selfies now and again without any explanation, I thought it was a really bizarre thing to do at the time, but finding out why was awesome and clever writing. I also peaked during the final fight when I literally shouted (in my head of course) ‘USE THE HORN’ and boom she used the horn. It was at that moment I knew I was connected with Derek Landy on a deep creative level...
Talking about Derek, he really outdid himself with the damn shocks and cliffhangers in this book. I mean you would think by now that I would have grown to expect that something crazy might happen at any point. It is the way of the Derek Landy. It’s something I’ve grown accustomed to in the Skulduggery books. You would think. But no, he still manages to catch me off guard. A reminder that he is in full control of this story, and these characters and my emotions and nobody is safe. And that leads me on to the ending... we’re into big spoilers here... Just when you thought everything had been resolved and that we got the ending we all wanted, just when you thought you were safe... Heartbreak. It’s not often that a book makes you physically sit up saying ‘no no no’... I had barely forgiven Derek for the gruesome shock earlier on in the book that left me gobsmacked to the point I had my head in my hands. But this... This was just Derek laughing at our poor souls. This was just unfair.
Now from here my review turns into a bit of rant... because hindsight 20/20. Now what I keep asking myself is, was the fast pacing and the small size of this book a good thing or not? Part of me liked it because as described earlier, it’s a page-turner and so I wanted to see what happens next and get to the end as fast possible... But on the other hand you lose sooo much depth by speeding through a story. I feel like we definitely could have gotten much more, more meaningful character interactions and more explanations. There was room to do so. But instead we’re left filling in the gaps with our own presumptions.
I would have liked there to be more development between Amber and her Demon self. Yes it’s alluded she won’t be consumed by her because in their last conversation it’s said that if she drinks the last vial she will lose control, and she never does. So Amber no longer see’s her? I mean I presume not, because it was the blood that was bringing on those hallucinations in the first place and now there isn’t any. But it’s still part of her. Yes we see her beginning to accept herself as Amber, but I would have liked to see how she’s come to terms with her Demon self too. Also her dreams of her brother and sister, what was the overall purpose of that? Reading the blurb ‘her future lies in her families past...’ But did it though? Sure it was a nice touch but for something so intriguing I was expecting it to accumulate to something more exciting than what we did ultimately find out. It wasn’t anything super crazy. Idk maybe I skimmed through an important part too quickly and missed it.
The building to the end is also worth discussing. I usually quite enjoy when Derek gets creative with his structure, like giving us cliffhangers followed by a 2 word chapter just to really mess with us. And I could see the purpose of this short chapter jumping as it built up the pace even more towards the grand finale we were all eagerly waiting for. You often see scenes like these in movies and it’s an interesting touch to wrap up loose ends in a simple manner. But part of me feels like this was a bit of a cop out. Like he couldn’t be bothered to go into these parts because he thought we wouldn’t be bothered with them. Some of the characters I couldn’t even remember who they’re were, and we had a longer conversation with one of them at the start of the book then at the end during their actual death scene. In this case it all happened a bit too quickly and the fact that we had basically empty pages was a bit suspect when the book is already tiny as it is. I could see that I didn’t have much of the book left so I felt like I was loosing pages that should have been used for a more fulfilling ending.
Now for the ending (pre-shock). It was an great ending but I was expecting more for a finale to a trilogy. Everything started feeling like the last season of Game of Thrones where even though some parts are really epic, it just doesn’t hit the spot. Firstly I really couldn’t really be bothered with these ‘Foundation of Light’ people. Their reveal at the end just felt like a teaser scene you get after the credits of a film. All of the sudden they’re not cops hunting her and they’ve been ‘good guys’ all along?... doing basically the same job as the the group of Scooby Doo guys in the previous book just more authoritatively? The family relations part of it was interesting but we didn’t really gain anything from finding that out other than it conveniently helping during the final fight. There’s also the whole final charade of Amber fooling her parents and completely confusing me in the process. I get that Derek was leaving us out of the loop/plan so that the double cross/triple cross, idk how many crosses there were, would surprise us as much as the characters, and it did. But there was 2 points where I actually had to stop and go back to see if I had missed a chapter or some important detail I might have skimmed over. I’d have liked more info on Clarissa too and before I forget, which I almost did, the reveal of who the Priest is....? I mean how are you gonna drop that surprise on us with no explanation at all. Nothing. It was epic, don’t get me wrong, but I want to know more! Why was he there to meet her before? Was this his goal all along or is he just cleaning up the mess? Why does he show kindness towards Amber? It just leaves us with more questions than answers.
Then we return to the heartbreaking shock that I mentioned earlier. I won’t say his name, though you’ll probably be able to guess who it is, but like jokes aside... He did not deserve to die. (Okay yes I get that he kinda did because of all the bad things he has done in the past) but no, you do not give us that character development, the fact that he was now free to live a normal life and find some sort of happiness and meaning, just for you to kill him like that. Out of nowhere. By a side character that I didn’t even care to care about. And how dare you put us through the pain of not being able to save him. He was twice the character Amber is.
The subsequent Epilogue was a ‘nice ending’ for the characters that remain but it was overshadowed by what had just happened before it. We didn’t get any time to grieve and we didn’t get to hear any of the characters thoughts. Nothing about how Amber felt after her loss, nothing about how important their friendship was or how she will cope without him. It was just oof he dead, here’s 1 year later where they’re just living their best life now like nothing happened. The ending just left me heartbroken instead of fulfilled.
Look, this wouldn’t be the first time that my rant reviews make a book look terrible when in reality it was still very enjoyable. I just like being critical. Now it’s all over I just wish those conversations were a few pages longer, or those descriptions a little more detailed. Because I was really into it, the world and the characters, and of course if something’s awesome you want more of it! It’s just a shame it has come to an end because I feel like there’s a whole lot more to offer with this series.
I honestly thought the first book was one of the best books I read last year and I would gladly pick it up again some time. It had the Derek Landy charm that I was used to but in a new world with new characters, a story that had so many memorable moments and most importantly a lot of depth to it. I only have good things to say about it which is why I rated it so highly. The second, struggled from the classic issues of a sequel. It was detailed and action packed but simply not as good as the first. Then here, the third and final book gave us a no nonsense race to climax that everything had culminated to. I guess we got what we came for.
I loved the series as a whole but the problem is it’s always going to be compared to Skulduggery Pleasant. Firstly because it’s the only other thing Dereks written but also because he’s made them so similar. - A teenage, female, main character who has to fight her powerful inner demons, with a wiser partner who is ‘magical’ in some way and shows her the ropes, with a 3rd sidekick who’s a bit of a goofball. Even down to the fact that both main characters in each series come out as bisexual! At this point Valkyrie and Amber are practically the same person, as though Derek just couldn’t escape his beloved characters and the tried and tested formula he’s already created. That’s where the problem lies because side by side this trilogy expectedly isn’t as good as Skulduggery. It lacks the depth, it lacks the level of character chemistry that you get after 12 books, and even though it’s supposed to be darker and more gruesome, you’ve still got the same witty storytelling that Derek is accustomed to.
For these reasons l would rate the overall series a 4 or maybe even 4.5 stars and I’d strongly recommend it to anyone I know. It really was a mad ride down the Demon Road.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 16, 2019
Werbung | Achtung 3. Teil
Inhalt: Wir befinden uns wieder ‚On the Road‘ mit Amber und Milo. Die Situation hat sich dennoch enorm verändert, denn nun ist sie die Stellvertreterin des leuchtenden Dämons. Moralische Bedenken hat sie bei dem Job einige und möchte raus, doch wie?
Art des Buches: Horror & Splatter
Wie fand ich das Buch? Ganz ehrlich? Ich weiß es nicht. Ich habe keine Ahnung, was ich von dem Buch halten soll. Auf der einen Seite habe ich mich bestens unterhalten und bin nur so durch die Seiten geflogen, doch als ich mal innehielt habe ich mich gefragt, was das soll… Wieso lese ich solch ein Buch? Das ist so gar nicht meins – ganz im Gegenteil. Alles was ich hasse ist im Übermaß vorhanden. Da war ich dann aber schon bereits fast am Ende.
Meine Vermutung, warum ich es binnen eines Sonntages durchgesuchtet habe? Milo. Ich habe die starke Vermutung, dass er mich eh durch die gesamten Bücher gezogen hat. Er war also mein Hauptmotiv das Buch zu lesen. Er ist so loyal, beschützend und … Ich mag ihn einfach. Sehr sogar. Man muss sich selbst nicht zu Tode analysieren. Ich finde er ist großartig und ein Grund die Bücher zu lesen.
Der andere Grund? Wahrscheinlich war die Spannung immer so auf der Spitze, dass ich einfach weitergelesen habe. Ich musste einfach wissen wie sie der und der Situation wieder entkommen. Amber war mittelprächtig interessant dabei, aber ich musste halt wissen, dass es Milo gut geht.
Und so war es wohl letztlich doch die Charakterliebe, die mich mit diesem Buch wieder verbindet.
Band 1 fand ich großartig, doch Band 2 empfand ich als schwach, weil dieser Road Trip Charakters des ersten Buches nicht besonders ausgeprägt war. Hier in Band 3 ist es auch wieder ein Road Trip, aber man kommt nirgendwo an und entdeckt was. Man wird halt durchgehend auf Spannung gehalten.
Erfreulich sind die kurzen Kapitel. Ich liebe sie ja eh, doch dieses Mal habe ich teilweise gar nicht mitbekommen, dass ein Kapitel gewechselt hat.
Den zweiten Teil hatte ich im September 2017 gelesen und jetzt September 2019 den dritten. Ich war schnell wieder drin. Auch wenn ein paar Namen und Details weg waren, habe ich reingefunden. Ich muss allerdings gestehen, dass ich bis Kapitel 4 ernstlich abbruchgefährdet war. Dann wurde ich jedoch so reingezogen… Ihr kennt mein Drama.
Warum abbrechen? Es beginnt gleich mit einer Kampfszene und irgendwie hört die nie auf. Und es ist nicht nur Kampf! ¾ des Buches und ich glaube, das ist noch nicht einmal gefühlt so, wird gemordet, gefoltet, entstellt, zerfleischt… Erst als Amber durch schiere Überlastung in einer Kleinstadt so richtig loslegt, bin ich wach geworden und habe mich gewundert durch welchen Blutsumpf ich bis hier hin gewatet bin. Kommt ein Kapitel ohne Gewalt aus, oder das Nachdenken über Gewalt? Und dazu ist es auch noch eklig!
Es ist ein einziges Splatter-Horror-Szenario und als Film hätte es nicht einmal 5 Minuten bei mir überlebt. Es ist für mich ein wirkliches Wunder, dass ich trotzdem dran blieb und das es der Autor schaffte, die Personen nicht zu vernachlässigen. Ich hatte weiterhin, so seltsam das klingt, eine gute Zeit mit Amber und Milo.
Ich werde bei diesem Buch nicht schlau aus mir. Es hat mich bestens unterhalten, obwohl es alles ist, was ich sonst nicht mag.
Wichtig sei zu wissen, dass für mich diese Reihe nun beendet ist, sogar wenn dem Autoren noch nach einem 4. Buch zu Mute wäre, müsste er schon Leute aus dem Grab holen, damit ich mich noch einmal auf die Demon Road begebe.
So bin ich durch und nein, ich mochte das Ende nicht und fand es unnötig.
3 passende Wörter zum Buch? Gewalt/Splatter – Road Trip - Dämonen
Wem empfehlen? Ich empfehle es allen, die diese Reihe mögen und natürlich allen, die Horror- & Splatterfilme lieben.
Inhalt: Wir befinden uns wieder ‚On the Road‘ mit Amber und Milo. Die Situation hat sich dennoch enorm verändert, denn nun ist sie die Stellvertreterin des leuchtenden Dämons. Moralische Bedenken hat sie bei dem Job einige und möchte raus, doch wie?
Art des Buches: Horror & Splatter
Wie fand ich das Buch? Ganz ehrlich? Ich weiß es nicht. Ich habe keine Ahnung, was ich von dem Buch halten soll. Auf der einen Seite habe ich mich bestens unterhalten und bin nur so durch die Seiten geflogen, doch als ich mal innehielt habe ich mich gefragt, was das soll… Wieso lese ich solch ein Buch? Das ist so gar nicht meins – ganz im Gegenteil. Alles was ich hasse ist im Übermaß vorhanden. Da war ich dann aber schon bereits fast am Ende.
Meine Vermutung, warum ich es binnen eines Sonntages durchgesuchtet habe? Milo. Ich habe die starke Vermutung, dass er mich eh durch die gesamten Bücher gezogen hat. Er war also mein Hauptmotiv das Buch zu lesen. Er ist so loyal, beschützend und … Ich mag ihn einfach. Sehr sogar. Man muss sich selbst nicht zu Tode analysieren. Ich finde er ist großartig und ein Grund die Bücher zu lesen.
Der andere Grund? Wahrscheinlich war die Spannung immer so auf der Spitze, dass ich einfach weitergelesen habe. Ich musste einfach wissen wie sie der und der Situation wieder entkommen. Amber war mittelprächtig interessant dabei, aber ich musste halt wissen, dass es Milo gut geht.
Und so war es wohl letztlich doch die Charakterliebe, die mich mit diesem Buch wieder verbindet.
Band 1 fand ich großartig, doch Band 2 empfand ich als schwach, weil dieser Road Trip Charakters des ersten Buches nicht besonders ausgeprägt war. Hier in Band 3 ist es auch wieder ein Road Trip, aber man kommt nirgendwo an und entdeckt was. Man wird halt durchgehend auf Spannung gehalten.
Erfreulich sind die kurzen Kapitel. Ich liebe sie ja eh, doch dieses Mal habe ich teilweise gar nicht mitbekommen, dass ein Kapitel gewechselt hat.
Den zweiten Teil hatte ich im September 2017 gelesen und jetzt September 2019 den dritten. Ich war schnell wieder drin. Auch wenn ein paar Namen und Details weg waren, habe ich reingefunden. Ich muss allerdings gestehen, dass ich bis Kapitel 4 ernstlich abbruchgefährdet war. Dann wurde ich jedoch so reingezogen… Ihr kennt mein Drama.
Warum abbrechen? Es beginnt gleich mit einer Kampfszene und irgendwie hört die nie auf. Und es ist nicht nur Kampf! ¾ des Buches und ich glaube, das ist noch nicht einmal gefühlt so, wird gemordet, gefoltet, entstellt, zerfleischt… Erst als Amber durch schiere Überlastung in einer Kleinstadt so richtig loslegt, bin ich wach geworden und habe mich gewundert durch welchen Blutsumpf ich bis hier hin gewatet bin. Kommt ein Kapitel ohne Gewalt aus, oder das Nachdenken über Gewalt? Und dazu ist es auch noch eklig!
Es ist ein einziges Splatter-Horror-Szenario und als Film hätte es nicht einmal 5 Minuten bei mir überlebt. Es ist für mich ein wirkliches Wunder, dass ich trotzdem dran blieb und das es der Autor schaffte, die Personen nicht zu vernachlässigen. Ich hatte weiterhin, so seltsam das klingt, eine gute Zeit mit Amber und Milo.
Ich werde bei diesem Buch nicht schlau aus mir. Es hat mich bestens unterhalten, obwohl es alles ist, was ich sonst nicht mag.
Wichtig sei zu wissen, dass für mich diese Reihe nun beendet ist, sogar wenn dem Autoren noch nach einem 4. Buch zu Mute wäre, müsste er schon Leute aus dem Grab holen, damit ich mich noch einmal auf die Demon Road begebe.
So bin ich durch und nein, ich mochte das Ende nicht und fand es unnötig.
3 passende Wörter zum Buch? Gewalt/Splatter – Road Trip - Dämonen
Wem empfehlen? Ich empfehle es allen, die diese Reihe mögen und natürlich allen, die Horror- & Splatterfilme lieben.
October 15, 2018
I am honestly so glad that I enjoyed American Monsters. I really wanted to love this series and Demon Road was a great beginning, but I did not like Desolation as much as I'd hoped I would. Luckily, this final volume was great - maybe even better than the first one.
Right from the start, Amber and Milo are back on the road. Personally, I prefer this setting over the single small town that the second book was set in. I've mentioned before that the demon road gives me strong Supernatural-vibes that I cannot get enough of. Our protagonists - whom I continue to love, btw - get the chance to fight mutiple villains/fulfill multiple quests/get some exciting stuff done. Of course, this is also due to Amber's new job, which I find fits her very well. There was honestly not a single moment in this novel that I did not find exciting.
However, I'm not going to pretend that there are no flaws. For one, the characters and their relationships are not my cup of tea.
Additionally, some spoilery stuff I enjoyed:
All in all, American Monsters was a great finale for this series. It picked up most loose ends (and I'm fine with the questions that are left open) and tied them together quite well. Sure, there were aspects that I didn't enjoy, but that's fine as well. I genuinely loved this series as a whole. I liked how it was just that little bit more mature and cruel than the Skulduggery Pleasant series, even if it came at the expense of some of Landy's well-known humor. I should probably mention that I actually binged this series (even on audio, which I usually don't like), so you can tell I liked it a lot.
Right from the start, Amber and Milo are back on the road. Personally, I prefer this setting over the single small town that the second book was set in. I've mentioned before that the demon road gives me strong Supernatural-vibes that I cannot get enough of. Our protagonists - whom I continue to love, btw - get the chance to fight mutiple villains/fulfill multiple quests/get some exciting stuff done. Of course, this is also due to Amber's new job, which I find fits her very well. There was honestly not a single moment in this novel that I did not find exciting.
However, I'm not going to pretend that there are no flaws. For one, the characters and their relationships are not my cup of tea.
Additionally, some spoilery stuff I enjoyed:
All in all, American Monsters was a great finale for this series. It picked up most loose ends (and I'm fine with the questions that are left open) and tied them together quite well. Sure, there were aspects that I didn't enjoy, but that's fine as well. I genuinely loved this series as a whole. I liked how it was just that little bit more mature and cruel than the Skulduggery Pleasant series, even if it came at the expense of some of Landy's well-known humor. I should probably mention that I actually binged this series (even on audio, which I usually don't like), so you can tell I liked it a lot.
June 20, 2022
Actual rating 1.5/5
I have my reasons as to why I'm rating 'American Monsters' only fractionally higher than book 2, and significantly lower than book 1. That is because—as much as the concluding book in the 'Demon Road' trilogy is infinitely better than the slow, plodding, dodgy disappointment that was 'Desolation'—it's still a pretty appallingly written book. I just can't believe how rushed it feels given that it's coming from a seasoned writer, whom I love very much, like Derek Landy.
Like the first book, much of 'American Monsters' takes place on the road with Amber and Milo jumping from place to place and encountering different horror pastiches along the way (a literal monster truck, cannibal hillbillies, a killer clown only kids can see etc.). However, unlike Book 1, all the sparkle, fun and joy is missing from the prose, as is Derek Landy's trademark polish and flair. His humour and wit is still there for sure, but it feels bogged down by everything else that's going on. The narrative reads like a shopping list: "And then this happened and then this and then this and then this..." Amber also feels like a completely different character from the way she is in Book 1, not because of any character development she may have experienced, but because Derek Landy kinda gave up and just defaulted to writing Valkyrie Cain.
Key story elements that are relevant to the plot's final conclusion are also introduced way too late. This next part is a very big spoiler, so please click/read with caution:
I did however quite like the ending itself, regardless of how it was written. It was a relatively satisfying conclusion.
As I understand it, Derek Landy wanted the 'Demon Road' trilogy to be super streamlined and read fast. However, I also know that he wrote the second and third 'Demon Road' books is rapid fast time (something like only 6 months per book?). Regardless of the authorial intentions, I think the fact there was a tight deadline for this one shows. There's streamlined, and then there's rushed. This is rushed. Definitely.
Overall, I think the first book, 'Demon Road', is still very much well worth your time. It's my personal favourite thing Derek Landy has ever written. However, I honestly would advise people to not bother continuing on with the rest of the trilogy. There are so many things wrong with the final two books, it can't help but leave a really bitter taste in my mouth.
I have my reasons as to why I'm rating 'American Monsters' only fractionally higher than book 2, and significantly lower than book 1. That is because—as much as the concluding book in the 'Demon Road' trilogy is infinitely better than the slow, plodding, dodgy disappointment that was 'Desolation'—it's still a pretty appallingly written book. I just can't believe how rushed it feels given that it's coming from a seasoned writer, whom I love very much, like Derek Landy.
Like the first book, much of 'American Monsters' takes place on the road with Amber and Milo jumping from place to place and encountering different horror pastiches along the way (a literal monster truck, cannibal hillbillies, a killer clown only kids can see etc.). However, unlike Book 1, all the sparkle, fun and joy is missing from the prose, as is Derek Landy's trademark polish and flair. His humour and wit is still there for sure, but it feels bogged down by everything else that's going on. The narrative reads like a shopping list: "And then this happened and then this and then this and then this..." Amber also feels like a completely different character from the way she is in Book 1, not because of any character development she may have experienced, but because Derek Landy kinda gave up and just defaulted to writing Valkyrie Cain.
Key story elements that are relevant to the plot's final conclusion are also introduced way too late. This next part is a very big spoiler, so please click/read with caution:
I did however quite like the ending itself, regardless of how it was written. It was a relatively satisfying conclusion.
As I understand it, Derek Landy wanted the 'Demon Road' trilogy to be super streamlined and read fast. However, I also know that he wrote the second and third 'Demon Road' books is rapid fast time (something like only 6 months per book?). Regardless of the authorial intentions, I think the fact there was a tight deadline for this one shows. There's streamlined, and then there's rushed. This is rushed. Definitely.
Overall, I think the first book, 'Demon Road', is still very much well worth your time. It's my personal favourite thing Derek Landy has ever written. However, I honestly would advise people to not bother continuing on with the rest of the trilogy. There are so many things wrong with the final two books, it can't help but leave a really bitter taste in my mouth.
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