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The Deptford Mice #3
The Final Reckoning
The spirit of the evil cat Jupiter has returned, more terrifying than ever before. Bent on revenge, he smothers the world in an eternal winter of ice and snow. The Deptford Mice huddle around their fires, knowing that few will survive the inevitable, desperate struggle . . .
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First published January 1, 1990
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About the author
Robin Jarvis
62 books246 followersRobin Jarvis (born May 8, 1963) is a British children's novelist, who writes fantasy novels, often about anthropomorphic rodents and small mammals—especially mice—and Tudor times. A lot of his works are based in London, in and around Deptford and Greenwich where he used to live, or in Whitby.
His first novel—The Dark Portal, featuring the popular Deptford Mice—was the runner up for the Smarties book prize in 1989.
His first novel—The Dark Portal, featuring the popular Deptford Mice—was the runner up for the Smarties book prize in 1989.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
February 8, 2011
In The Final Reckoning the mice find themselves under threat not only from the army of rats that is massing under London but also from the mysterious eternal winter which has enveloped Deptford. Everything points to Jupiter being back and so the mice, together with the bats and the Starwife, must try to stay alive long enough to defeat him.
You may remember that one of my favourite things about Robin Jarvis’ writing is that he isn’t afraid to be dark even though he is writing for a younger age group, and this book was no exception. Often in children’s fiction, the forces of evil (whatever form they may take) are distant, incompetent or impotent or a combination of all three. Evil is usually active in a far off land to which the protagonist must journey to fight it, its plans fail fairly easily before they can be put into practice, and if a character is important and liked then Evil will frequently content itself with capturing rather than killing them. All in all, Evil often isn’t terribly threatening. However, the forces of evil in Jarvis’ books are immediate, powerful, bloodthirsty and indiscriminate in who they attack. Just because a character has a name and has been well developed does not mean that they are safe. I love that I can read a book for younger readers entitled The Final Reckoning with a final chapter also called ‘The Final Reckoning’ and do so with apprehension because I don’t know which, if any, of the characters will make it through to the end alive. There is real tension and anxiety in these books which I’ve not often found in children’s fantasy. Of course, this might be far more common in children’s literature now, I don’t know, but I still think Jarvis should be applauded for what he has done, particularly considering The Deptford Mice Trilogy is more than twenty years old.
You may remember that one of my favourite things about Robin Jarvis’ writing is that he isn’t afraid to be dark even though he is writing for a younger age group, and this book was no exception. Often in children’s fiction, the forces of evil (whatever form they may take) are distant, incompetent or impotent or a combination of all three. Evil is usually active in a far off land to which the protagonist must journey to fight it, its plans fail fairly easily before they can be put into practice, and if a character is important and liked then Evil will frequently content itself with capturing rather than killing them. All in all, Evil often isn’t terribly threatening. However, the forces of evil in Jarvis’ books are immediate, powerful, bloodthirsty and indiscriminate in who they attack. Just because a character has a name and has been well developed does not mean that they are safe. I love that I can read a book for younger readers entitled The Final Reckoning with a final chapter also called ‘The Final Reckoning’ and do so with apprehension because I don’t know which, if any, of the characters will make it through to the end alive. There is real tension and anxiety in these books which I’ve not often found in children’s fantasy. Of course, this might be far more common in children’s literature now, I don’t know, but I still think Jarvis should be applauded for what he has done, particularly considering The Deptford Mice Trilogy is more than twenty years old.
May 31, 2020
Dark yet exciting and delightful. This series was highly original. May be written simply enough for children, but it has plenty of adult level disaster, death, and gore. If you like animal fantasies, then this series will please. (Book one is the slowest, with events in book two really getting interesting.)
December 27, 2008
Dark and violent, this was a fitting end to the trilogy. A few things seemed like they needed more explaining, but I guess that's why there is a prequel trilogy!
November 28, 2014
The third and final book of the trilogy and the most scary and gory of them all I think. The thing about Jarvis is he is not afraid to kill off any of the characters - something fairly unique to children's writing - so you really don't know what is going to happen and who is going to survive. It will be up to individual parents if they think it is suitable for their child but I give the whole series four stars for story telling and vivid character and scene setting. They lost the last star just because I am on the fence as to whether they are a little violent and scary for their target audience. Don't be put off as an adult though, these really are fun reads - and perhaps read them before your child to see if you think they are suitable as I can assure you, you will enjoy them if nothing else.
May 13, 2020
I can't help but give it five stars. This book (the whole series!) was a childhood favourite and is probably responsible for how my tastes developed into adulthood.
But - and I can't stress this enough - I had forgotten just how much Robin Jarvis wanted to hurt these mice! This isn't your usual kids story, it's violent and cruel and downright graphic (for a kids book).
But - and I can't stress this enough - I had forgotten just how much Robin Jarvis wanted to hurt these mice! This isn't your usual kids story, it's violent and cruel and downright graphic (for a kids book).
November 15, 2019
The final story in this trilogy and Im sad to see it end. All three books were amazing!
August 20, 2023
It was interesting to reread this series as an adult, having read it when I was in my early teens, some years ago.
It's driven more by action than character and it felt a bit as though I was taking it on faith that certain relationships had developed and the loss of characters was felt deeply by those left behind.
The antagonists were one dimensional throughout and I did find those parts a bit repetitive with lots of information about how the rats were disgusting and horrible and loved killing. Barker was a bit different to that, but very similar to Akkikuyu, in the main. The descriptions of rat deformities and missing limbs as being indicative of their twisted nature, and the repeated references to Oswald being albino also felt more problematic than in my first encounter. The ending felt a bit rushed, and I was sad that Twit never had a story resolution as I thought he was one of the more interesting characters early on.
Still, I'm no longer the target audience! The Starwife character and mythos was good and it's pretty pacey. A decent introduction to fantasy worlds for the age group and one I have some nostalgia for.
It's driven more by action than character and it felt a bit as though I was taking it on faith that certain relationships had developed and the loss of characters was felt deeply by those left behind.
The antagonists were one dimensional throughout and I did find those parts a bit repetitive with lots of information about how the rats were disgusting and horrible and loved killing. Barker was a bit different to that, but very similar to Akkikuyu, in the main. The descriptions of rat deformities and missing limbs as being indicative of their twisted nature, and the repeated references to Oswald being albino also felt more problematic than in my first encounter. The ending felt a bit rushed, and I was sad that Twit never had a story resolution as I thought he was one of the more interesting characters early on.
Still, I'm no longer the target audience! The Starwife character and mythos was good and it's pretty pacey. A decent introduction to fantasy worlds for the age group and one I have some nostalgia for.
April 22, 2019
I am glad I took the time to finish this series. The trilogy was exciting, surprisingly violent, and gave me characters I could root for. But this last book felt a bit tired and thrown together, using played out villains from the earlier books and trying to pass them off as fantastic, god-like creatures. Some of the loose ends were tied up but not as neatly as could be hoped for, such as the Star Wife, Jupiter’s finale, the whole bat society thing. The first book was the best. The second book too stereotypical religious mania-flavored. And this third installment was the weak link.
June 30, 2024
The further I got in this series, the less I liked it. It just got increasingly dark and hard to stomach with gore and violence. Though technically things ended "well", I certainly wouldn't call this a happy ending. So many beloved characters died, and I just wasn't happy reading this (as evidenced by it taking me 2 weeks to read it). (No, all books do not need to be happy, but particularly for a supposed children's book, this just seemed like too much.)
January 12, 2025
4 stars! For me I thought the book was quite slow paced for the first 150 pages but then, it sped up and became faster paced. I read the last 180 pages in a day and I feel like the ending dragged on a bit but I think this book is a good way to end the Deptford mice trilogy.
April 15, 2022
Review : here.
(Spoiler: I cried).
(Spoiler: I LOVED IT).
(Spoiler: I cried).
(Spoiler: I LOVED IT).
November 25, 2022
4.5 stars ⭐️
This was a great ending to the trilogy, action packed from the beginning and kept up right to the last few pages. Really want to read the prequel books, this is a great world.
This was a great ending to the trilogy, action packed from the beginning and kept up right to the last few pages. Really want to read the prequel books, this is a great world.
October 11, 2025
loved it!
What i love about these books is the author is so inventive, not afraid to kill off characters & you never know what's going to happen next!
What i love about these books is the author is so inventive, not afraid to kill off characters & you never know what's going to happen next!
September 16, 2017
Ahh, my heart! A brilliant but tragic end to the series. Can't wait to move onto the prequels.
November 29, 2023
Least favorite of the trilogy.
April 16, 2025
UPDATE 16/04/25:
It's interesting reading this book in today's climate, because in some ways it feels more relevant. Dark forces moving against all of mankind. A decision whether you step up against those forces, even if you don't have any feeling that you can win. The idea that right might win in the end, but the cost will be high and many will be traumatised. How all this was considered children's fiction was incredible for me, but it somehow feels more modern. Or maybe the better word is timeless. It feels as if it could be read in many different decades and, as long as there is a Deptford and Greenwich in London, it will always be relevant.
ORIGINAL REVIEW:
Well, that was just the mother of all finales. Villains come back from the dead, half our favourite characters are killed off, you get halfway through and have no idea how everything is going to sort itself out.
In short, it's Robin Jarvis at the top of his game and it's awesome. Don't read this unless you've read the first two because the long arc of the three books is brilliant. Still remains one of my favourite YA series of all times.
It's interesting reading this book in today's climate, because in some ways it feels more relevant. Dark forces moving against all of mankind. A decision whether you step up against those forces, even if you don't have any feeling that you can win. The idea that right might win in the end, but the cost will be high and many will be traumatised. How all this was considered children's fiction was incredible for me, but it somehow feels more modern. Or maybe the better word is timeless. It feels as if it could be read in many different decades and, as long as there is a Deptford and Greenwich in London, it will always be relevant.
ORIGINAL REVIEW:
Well, that was just the mother of all finales. Villains come back from the dead, half our favourite characters are killed off, you get halfway through and have no idea how everything is going to sort itself out.
In short, it's Robin Jarvis at the top of his game and it's awesome. Don't read this unless you've read the first two because the long arc of the three books is brilliant. Still remains one of my favourite YA series of all times.
May 28, 2014
What a perfect ending to a wonderful trilogy. This book is probably the best book in this series as it sends all the other books out of the park. One bad thing about the book though is that so many wonderful characters had to die off, but I guess it makes a bit of sense considering that the end of the world is pretty much happening. An endless winter is some way to end it all, and it definitely puts everyone in danger. Great. Loved it. Deserves five stars. You should read. It's wonderful.
January 22, 2009
Not your cute, sweet Engilsh country forest creatures story. A more violent and grusome Rats of Nimh type book. No happy ending really but a realistic one, (that is if mice and rats and cats could talk to each other and form a real society and communities plus magic, yep, that's how it would be) Fun but dark book for pre-teens and up.
September 13, 2016
The final book in The Deptford Mice trilogy. The evil spirit of Jupiter has returned to encase the world in eternal winter. The Deptford mice feel his hatred. Then their allies are murdered, the bats flee, and the Starglass is stolen. Can Arthur, Audrey, Piccadilly, and Oswald save the world? Will any of them survive? A sad ending, but no battle against evil is won without cost. A great series!
June 6, 2016
It was definitaly an ending book. Characters kept dropping like flies. It did go back to the way the first book was written with the various storylines, and that's probably why it was better, because the whole series should be like that, making for a better adventure.
February 5, 2008
The concluding story of the Deptford Mice and their dealings with Jupiter.
June 9, 2008
Conclusion was very well written - for the first time in this series had had several plot lines going at once which I thought added nicely to the adventure and plot anticipation.
December 9, 2008
A really fitting conclusion to the Deptford Mice trilogy. These books were really enjoyable.
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January 21, 2011I find this book boring...but i still don't know why I choose it. :P
April 8, 2011
ust got reminded of these by the fact they're doing a live version at wimbledon theatre. it was one of my favourites as a kid, i read all these deptford mice books multiple times. great stuff!
October 20, 2011
I think the author was running out of ideas at this point. Final book in the trilogy was rushed and not that entertaining really. I really enjoyed the first two though.
June 19, 2015
The conclusion to this series sees things getting even darker, and those characters we've grown to love may not be safe from the writer's knife! A fantastic end to a fantastic series.
December 17, 2021
I liked the book a lot, it is great how the text develops even though I liked the cover of the cat much more
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June 30, 2017Read aged 11/12
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews