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After reading "The Golden Compass", you'd think they couldn't get any better. But then, Philip Pullman pulls quite an amazing accomplishment out of his hat, and produces the second book in an astonishing trio called "The Subtle Knife". It's everything a reader can hope for, but more, much, much more.

Continuing the heartfelt saga of Lyra and her amazing quest of truth, Pullman introduces us to Will, a character as equally as wonderful and complex as his first. Will's destiny seems to be leading him to discover the identity of his father, but it's deeper, much deeper than that. When he meets Lyra, they join together in an adventure that intertwines, science, theology, physics, and magic.

The final result is a book that transcends the craft, and soars with such intensity and drama, that you simply cannot put this book down. What amazes me is that until recently, I hadn't heard of these books before. Perhaps its too controversial with its unique blending of science and theology, perhaps it doesn't draw the lines as clear as people expect. This is a thinking persons book, and perhaps that's too much for some people.

At any rate, Philip Pullman has granted the world an incredible story, incredible characters in an incredible book. I am eagerly off to finish this series, both saddened and excited to do so. You will be too!

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of waiting, Philip Pullman's sequel to "The Golden Compass" arrived in bookstores. For those left breathless by the original book of His Dark Materials, you won't be disappointed. For those who have yet to experience Book 1, I highly recommend it. In "The Subtle Knife" Philip Pullman continues to create that universe full of wonder and enchantment, while also bringing its characters into our own world. Pullman has the ability to make parallel universes seem perfectly normal to the reader, as if such a place might truly exist. The plot snowballs at a break-neck pace, leaving the reader little time to catch their breath. It is, therefore, a novel which is able to keep the attention of younger readers. However, as I've stated in my recent review of "The Golden Compass," it is by no means a "kiddie book." Indeed, adults can appreciate Pullman's creation as well. To tell you the truth, reading "The Subtle Knife" left me with many unanswered questions. The plot is complex and the clever lack of in-depth information leaves the reader wondering what Philip Pullman is up to. I only have but a vague idea of who is "bad" and who is "good." I don't find this to detract from the novel, however. Rather, I am anxiously anticipating the series' conclusion, "The Amber Spyglass," due in hardcover September of 2000. If you have not yet experienced "The Golden Compass," you should. If you do, this review will be pointless, as you will not be able to pull yourself away from the series. Even those who usually dislike fantasy are entranced by Pullman's novel, and I'm willing to bet you will also.

This is the second book of His Dark Materials (after Northern Lights, or The Golden Compass in the US, and before The Amber Spyglass).

Will Parry is a twelve-year-old boy living in Oxford with his mother, who's suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder, and his cat Moxie. His father, an arctic explorer, has gone missing almost since the boy was born.

Will's mother has been facing more and more crises of late, and strangers have been harrassing her repeatedly, asking questions about her husband, about the letters he sent her twelve years ago. Will decides to send her to his old piano teacher's house to keep her safe, but when these men come back and search their home, Will accidently kills one of them. Not wanting to call the police because they would put his mother into hospital, he takes his father's letters from their hiding place in the sewing machine, and flees.

But walking on the side of the road, he sees a cat much like Moxie suddenly disappear. Examining the patch of grass more closely, he discovers a window, resolves to cross it, and finds himself in Cittŕgazze, a sun-drenched, palm-treed city on the sea shore, in another world.

The city looks as if everyone just left in a hurry though, and when Will is looking for food in the recently abandoned cafés, he stumbles onto a lost young girl, Lyra. Although shocked to see a human without a daemon, and after asking her alethiometer for advice, she knows she can trust Will, and they finally decide to help each other.

The rest of the book describes how they travel back and forth between worlds, Will searching for his father, Lyra gathering information about Dust, both making new allies as well as meeting new enemies, facing new, more deadly dangers.

I liked The Subtle Knife more than Northern Lights (US title: The Golden Compass), was more gripped by it as a whole. I particularly enjoyed the connections between Lyra's and Will's (our) Oxford, when Lyra discovers what is similar, and what is not, to the place where she grew up. There's still a rather mystic edge to the story which I don't quite get, but I guess everything will clear up in the last chapter.