The Last Bookwanderer

Pages & Co. #6

by Anna James, Marco Guadalupi (Illustrator)

The Pages and Co. series comes to a thrilling end in this perfect final instalment.

As Tilly, Oskar, Alessia and Milo venture into Arthurian legend to find the first bookwanderer – the wizard Merlin – they discover that everything they thought they knew about bookwandering might be wrong.

Working together to figure out how to untangle the Alchemist's grip on the world's imagination, save Pages & Co., and defeat an unexpected enemy, they learn about the true power of imagination in a journey through myths and legend that will help them to save the very foundations of bookwandering . . .

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Audiobook, Fiction, Childrens, Books About Books, Adventure

320 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 14, 2023

Reviews

[Suhailah · Rating 4 out of 5]

”The whole world and beyond, is open to you if you read. I’ve been to many, many places I’ve ever set foot in before, as I’m sure you have too.”

◇The final book of the series!◇

Wow, I can’t believe I’ve been reading/following this series since 2021 and it has finally come to an end! It’s been one grand and memorable adventure. Super creative!

The stakes were high in this installment as the grand conclusion of events approached. This book immediately picked up after the last one beginning with the group’s quest to find Merlin, the Keeper of the Book of Books, and ultimately try to defeat the evil Alchemist/save bookwandering and imagination for everyone!

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love and obsess over Arthurian legend, so I was very excited this was incorporated into the final events! There was also huge nods to Ancient Greek mythology (which I also love!) throughout the adventure as the group meets with many famous gods and goddesses. It was a lot of fun with many cheering moments and lots of action. The ending did the series justice and was completely bittersweet.

I’ll forever be a bookwanderer at heart and never forget this beautiful series.

Note: I heard mention that there may be a TV show adaptation in development! That would make my whole world!

“What is a good life but a story well told?”

[Mandy (Bookishlove85) · Rating 5 out of 5]

What. An. Ending. 🥹
This series is what made me fall in love with middle grade books all over again back in 2020 and I can not recommend it enough for readers of all ages. It has mystery, whimsical magic, set around books, and the best friendships and found families out there. Sigh. So sad it’s over but can’t wait to see what this author does next. 💜

[Melody Schwarting · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cry at books all the time, but I actually sobbed at the ending of this one. I just love this series so much and I thoroughly enjoyed the romp through Arthurian legend even if they did have potatoes in their stew in medieval England, LOLOL, Norse mythology, and Greek mythology. The Last Bookwanderer is the perfect ending to the series. I love seeing the character growth and children choosing the right thing even when it's hard. Now I have nothing to do but read it all over again!

The world of Pages & Co. is still my ideal fictional world that I wish I could visit. I mean, in this world, you get all the book worlds in one (and you can read yourself out before the dangerous parts). Oh, thank goodness this series exists. It is a warm hug but also a delightful adventure.

[Muzmuz · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a beautiful ending to a beautiful series…..
Can’t wait for the next adventure.

[Jacq.and.the.readstalk · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gripping conclusion to this enchanting, book wandering series! The best analogy for this series is literally like drinking a cup of hot chocolate with a cozy blanket! Such a comforting and adored read!

I loved how all the plots, characters, and stories were assembled, with old and new alike! The world building and the plot layers were intriguing but simple to understand. There are beautiful moments of friendship, resilience and team-building as well as some edge-of-your seat action! The author continually captures what it's like to be a reader, the sheer magic and imagination of books that become a part of us and essentially makes all bookwanders!

It certainly was an exhilarating ride, but very bittersweet ending to this fantastic and beloved series. A magically-filled journey from start to finish, this series is ideal for book lovers of all ages! I cannot wait to read more of this author's works as she has quickly become one of my favourites!

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Welcome to the Final Instalment in the Pages & Co Series and ever since I heard that it was going to be the last book I have not been prepared to Bookwonder into the world for the final time and even reading it I was not ready for it to end, but I write this Review having just returned from the final instalment and what a book and what a series it has been!

As Tilly, Oskar, Alessia and Milo venture into Arthurian legend to find the first bookwanderer – the wizard Merlin – they discover that everything they thought they knew about bookwandering might be wrong.

This book is once again full to the brim with magic, imagination, adventure, and friendship, which is something that I have come to love and appreciate in these books. Above all I love the characters within this series and Its been amazing to see that characters grow and develop throughout the course of the books and see them drawing on their own individual strengths for the final Battle

All Good Things must come to an end, But what an Ending it was!

[Erin Cataldi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series started off strong and kind of meandered. The Last Wanderer is the final book in the six book series and it does tie a lot of loose threads up but I feel as if it still ended rather abruptly. Tilly, Alessia, Oscar, and Milo team up to find the final ingredients for the potion to wake Horatio up and vow to discover where the book of books is before the Alchemist discovers it first. As with the other books there are lots of little side quests taken and lots of fanciful bookwandering rules and lore. Fun, but the first book is still the strongest.

[Odette Brethouwer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dit was een teleurstelling.

Het voelt alsof er teveel ideeën nog in dit deel gepropt zijn. Alsof er plannen waren voor t/m deel 9, maar omdat dat niet doorging moest alles hierin. En ook alsof de auteur al met haar hoofd bij haar nieuwe serie was.

Tot het slot, daar zat ineens vanalles moois en leuks in. Maar al met al voelde het als een afgerafeld slot van een prachtige wereld, en daarom voor mij als een enorme domper.

[Krissy · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

An enchanting adventure and a great end to the series. While it didn't take the direction I expected, I'm sad to see it end. I really enjoyed the series overall.

[Brandee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally the conclusion to this amazing series. I will preface this review by saying I highly recommend reading book 4, 5, and 6 all in a row (or at least 5 and 6) because there were some things I had to go back and look at in order to really read this one. Having the characters and sequence of events clear in your mind might be helpful.

I really enjoyed this finale. Book 5 left on a huge cliffhanger and we pick back up right where we left off for this book. Milo and crew are still trying to outsmart the Alchemist. With so much happening before this point, our crew is hesitant with who to trust and rightfully so. Here we meet an important character Merlin and we learn much more about Milo and how bookwandering came to be. In this book the characters travel into older stories like Greek myths so there is also that side of it too.

Overall, I did enjoy this book, but not as much as the others in the series. Imagining stepping into the Boxcar Children or the Secret Garden was more interesting to me than the myths and things in this book. However, the suspense and thrill was still there as well. You are trying to solve the mystery right along with the crew and I found myself saying to the characters, "Can we trust them?"

I highly recommend this series and this is a series that I honestly would recommend binging all the way though. You fall in love with the characters right off the top and then spend the rest of the series going on adventures with them and solving the mysteries. I am not a huge fantasy reader so this would also be maybe a good fantasy series for those who want to try a new genre. I could definitely see myself rereading this entire series in a few years just to experience the magic again!


Quotes I loved:
“As I discovered how to shape and use imagination, I made a record. It contains the sum of my knowledge, all it can be used for and the ways to control it, to give it, and to take it away” pg. 63
“Remember what endures. We may all be rulers of our own realm, but it does not mean we know what happens next” pg. 225
“See, a happy ending. For now. If you can endure the winter and her snows, then spring and her blossoms will always come back around” pg. 226
“Who we were, who we are, and who we hope to be. Stories show us where we came from - the lives of people before us, their hopes, their failings, their dreams. But not everyone’s stories we remembered, and even this speaks to our history - what we value, what we protect, and who we let tell our stories. In the present, books are a thread to follow, a way to reflect and understand and grow. They allow us to escape and roam and learn beyond our own limits and experiences, to think about who we are and what we stand for, and to find our way back again. And finally stories help us decide who we want to be” pg. 231
“You may tell a tale of great adventure or one of quiet purpose, and both have equal value. And hopefully, when the thread is run out, you will look back and say that was a life well told” pg. 233

[Yvonne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alle læsere er bogvandrer i hjertet.

Tilly, Oskar, Alessia og Milo er sammen om at klare udfordringerne i dette sidste eventyr i serien og der er meget på spil. De 4 venner rejser helt tilbage til vikingetiden og antikken og møder både guder og gudinder. 

Anna James har skabt en fabelagtige afslutning på hendes serien som hylder alle læsere. Bogen fik både smil og tåre frem og jeg nød hver en side.

Mine absolut varmeste anbefalinger.

Både Mads of Sarah har også læst bogen i sommerferien og de roser den også meget - "Afslutningen er ligeså god som første bog I serien" og jeg er enig med dem.

[Anne (ReadEatGameRepeat) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a good ending to the series

[Andrea Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this series and the entire concept! Funny enough I missed the book right before this one so I’m not officially done yet. I want this entire series in my home library! 📚

[Manon the Malicious · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was provided an ARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

This last installment in Pages & Co was everything. Just like this entire series. I love all these characters and I will miss them dearly. I just loved the magic system and the world so much. All the intrigues were also so smartly written. This one especially was captivating to me. I loved where Anna James took us and I simply could not recommend this entire series more.
A true gem for all ages.

[Chantelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolute perfection ✨
My favourite middle grade comfort series
This and the first book, are by far my favourite in the series
When I look back on my life and I look at my shelves of « books that made me me » you’ll find Pages and Co.

[Fi's Journey · Rating 4 out of 5]

“We are trying to save one of the most important things of all - imagination. Stories. Book magic. The things passed down from generation to generation. Why you live in here, and why we can come here at all. The glue that holds the world together.”

4.5* ⭐️ Stars

I loved how this book ended and the whole Pages & Co series.

This book and the others gave me a warm fuzzy feeling like drinking a hot chocolate near a fireplace tucked up inside while outside it’s snowing.

Although in this one I felt the whole world of stories and books. Of Imagination. It is pure fascination for reading and stories why I really enjoyed this book series.


I’m definitely curious to read Anna James new series in 2024.

[Susannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this series about people who can wander into books. This is the last in the series and Tilly, Milo, Oskar and Alessia have to go into myths to find Merlin and the Book of Books in order to defeat the alchemist who is trying to control imagination and use it for himself.

As usual the book wandering sections were great, in this book we go to Norse Myth, Greek Myth and Arthurian Legend. This is so well done with all the details and how these times and people differ to our own.

The magic system in this series so so well thought out and has so many layers and detail and this is the perfect ending to this series. There is story, imagination and how these things have a power of their own and how the children have to work together to win in the end.

Although it is sad that it is over, Anna James has more books coming out soon so can’t wait to read what is next.

[Jaynie.Hufflepuff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bookwanderers young and old will not be disappointed with this final instalment of the Pages & Co. series. Full of magic, imagination, adventure and friendship. A perfect way to end a perfect series ☺️

[Sifa Poulton · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE LAST BOOKWANDERER is an epic finale to this world of travelling inside stories - and all the people who would control imagination for themselves.

This instalment wanders through myths and legends from Norse to Greek to Arthurian. I really liked seeing how this series approached tales that, unlike the classics, do not have a single version. The book also addressed how different these tales can be from the more "sanitised" version we peddle today, where hero and villain are more blurred by modern standards, and prejudices are baked in. As someone who personally does not like Merlin much, I enjoyed how his character played out.

The book ends with an epic imagination battle, the two sides creating very different things. I loved how it was the fun and creative stuff (jelly floors! funhouse mirror mazes!) that Tilly and co created and how much of an impact it had. They were not trying to destroy and control but celebrate the different things they loved.

This book is narrated from both Milo and Tilly's perspective. I really liked being able to hear from Tilly again. Milo is a great character but Tilly is the original heroine and coming back to her for the finale felt so good.

In all, this was a fun finale that closed the series off in a satisfying way.

[Ellie (bookmadbarlow) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gah, and just like that, the series is over. Pages and Co has held onto my heart for so long, I feel slightly bereft that it is all over.
In this final instalment, Tilly, Oskar, Milo and Allesia must face down The Alchemist and save book wandering and imagination. As the children work together, they discover myths and legends, as different chapters follow different characters and layers.
I will say that this is one you really need to concentrate on, I found myself slightly confused in places as to what was actually happening and where the characters were, but overall I really enjoyed how the author put everything together, it had a few heart stopping moments and lots of adventure. A good way to end and tie everything up.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gah. The pull and thrill of a page-turner, only to get to the end and realizing it's over and the series has ended! I will need to reread this series to revisit this beautiful, well told and thought out world/worlds.

This last one was exceptional as the reader explores the power of imagination (like the actual power). My favorite, without giving anything away is how the silliness and joy of imagination at least temporarily stuns the violent, rigid, power-hungry "imagination". Personally, as an adult who's trying to tap into her inner child, heal, and be present while parenting.... this spoke deeply to me.

There were so many twists and turns to the end as the main quartet finds themselves in story within story (within Story?) and discovers more about their own selves in the journey.

So good. Also, the author's note ("Book Magic") was a fun end, because yes, I related as a book/bookshop/library lover. May we all get lost in a good book.

[Katharine Pelican · Rating 5 out of 5]

First book hug of the year. I adore this series so much. It makes me feel like a kid again in all the best ways. Anna James really stuck the landing with the final book too, tying up all of the loose ends of the first 5 books. This will be a series I will most certainly reread and look forward to sharing my love of them with future generations. I haven’t felt this sense of wonder and imagination since reading Harry Potter as a kid. I also loved the book wandering into Greek/Norse mythology and am inspired to read up on those tales more. Could gush about these books for days. 4.5 stars!

Half star deducted for minor flaws which barely detracted from my reading experience (I would have benefited from more context setting at the start and it got a bit hard to follow at the very end).

[Jordan Cuellar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the final installment of the Pages and Co. series! There were so many twists and turns as Milo, Alessia, Tilly, and Oskar sought to save bookwandering from the Alchemist with the help of Rosa the Botanist and Merlin the magician from Story. With the help of the Fates, some Greek heroes, some Norse gods, Jörmungandr, and their own imaginations, they discovered the true villain of their story and sought to defeat them. A twist of fate, forgiveness, hope, perseverance, imagination, and trickery all play important roles in this book and I so appreciated Anna James's ability to answer so many questions while keeping the reader in the dark until the perfect moment.

[Stine Bjørdal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hvis du liker barnebøker, anbefaler jeg denne serien sterkt!! Bøkene har minnet meg på hva slags bøker jeg koser meg med, og generelt hvorfor jeg elsker å lese🥹 Jeg vil si de gir lesing en ny mening, og det er bare den skjønneste serien✨ Jeg har også lest en del barnebok klassikere, og i disse bøkene møter jeg de på nytt😌 Og hvis man ikke har lest sånne klassikere, får man fortsatt en god oversikt over hva de handler om🙌
Review til denne boka;
Likte de andre bøkene bedre enn denne, denne var litt rotete med for mange karakterer og historier, og følte ikke boka gjorde justice for serien, som siste bok🙂‍↕️😞

[Roxy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is the end of the series, and I do feel like it wrapped up the series well, and I'm glad the author probably isn't going to make a spin-off series. I love how this series feels so cozy, but also having a lot of action. I also really like how the author describes how books feel.

What I liked: Cozy vibes, cozy descriptions of books, nice end to the series.

What I didn't like: Didn't really hook me that much, one character said low-key so that kind of cringed me out because it felt like the author was just trying to make the characters relatable, the end felt like a fever dream.

[Siobhan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing end to a great series. I always had a soft spot for Tilly because she really reminds me of me. I'm glad everything worked out nicely and no one special died. I hope Anna James writes more books because I really enjoyed this series. 😌😌

[Charlotte (Bogrejser) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jeg havde sådan håbet på en 5-stjernet oplevelse, og måske er det bare, fordi det er længe siden, jeg læste de første fem bøger, og jeg her på det seneste har læst udelukkende voksenlitteratur, men jeg oplevede, at sproget var rettet mod en meget yngre målgruppe end den sædvanlige middle grade ... Handlingen var dog ganske fin, og jeg elskede de sidste 5-8 linjer 🙌🏻

[Renee Davis Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A series well ended. I loved the way Tilly and the Book wanderers’ adventures came full circle, and how this entire story celebrates imagination and story, and the way we make memory and tell our stories.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Då var den sista slut - det har varit spännande läsning ihop med dottern. I den här fick vi lära känna Merlin samt besöka både nordisk och grekisk mytologi. Den håller spänningen hela vägen tycker jag och bjuder på en del överraskningar.

[Amélie Boucher · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars