| $@%&! level: Low “Bedroom” level: Low Violence level: Medium-Low Back Cover: “The students of Oakhurst Academy believe they have triumphed over the Shadow Knights. But Spirit, Burke, Muirin, Loch, and Addie know better. Under the guise of a company called Breakthrough Adventure Systems, the Shadow Knights have actually taken over the campus. The new regime is brutal, designed to turn the students into soldiers wielding both weapons and magic. Anyone who protests disappears. Desperate, the group decides that Muirin should go undercover to spy on Breakthrough. But Muirin’s act is a little too good, and Spirit begins to fear that her friend’s loyalties might have truly changed. Surrounded by enemies and friends who suddenly seem like strangers, Spirit has decide who can—and cannot—be trusted.” |
So, there are a lot of mysteries that get finally resolved in this book, setting up for the grand finale. To tell the truth, I was half expecting this to be the end, but when I’d made it to maybe 30 pages from the end of the book and they still hadn’t come close to saving the world, I knew I’d have to hang on for one more book. There are still a few puzzles left, including the question of just which of our five teenage heroes is the reincarnation of which of the people from Arthurian legend. Also, we still don’t know who Spirit’s enigmatic internet friend is, nor exactly how anyone is going to stop the bad guys, but there has to be some adventure and figuring things out left for the final installment. On the other hand, you finally figure out who Dr. Ambrosius really is, learn the complete history of Oakhurst, both mundane and magical, and realize exactly why Spirit wasn’t attracted to any of the schools of magic taught at Oakhurst. And her mage talent shows up just in time to save the day. Twice. Even if she doesn’t know exactly what she’s doing or how she does it, it seems to be pretty darn effective.
In the interests of not spoiling things, I’ll just add a few warnings. The ending is really sad, especially for those who are fond of certain characters. And the term “love triangle” takes on a slightly unusual meaning, which adds interest and variety to an otherwise grim set of circumstances, but doesn’t really affect the overall plot one way or another.