this was by far my favorite in the gemma doyle trilogy, and it was also the longest tome in the series, with over 800 pages to tie up all the loose ends. but it was necessary, and quite honestly, i wouldn't have minded if it had been even longer (or, wait, better yet, how about a fourth book, ms. bray?) because i would still love to read more about the wild and magical realms, the girls who explored them, and the cautious victorian veil their guardians would have them live under for the rest of their lives.this should be a time of great celebration for the girls, as they are preparing to leave spence academy and become true victorian ladies at their debuts, but for each of them, it feels more like the end. poor ann is not a debutante, so she will be shipped off as governess for her well-to-do cousins. pippa is still stuck in the realms. felicity does not wish to be married at all but would instead travel to paris as a free spirit (with the helps of her inheritance, if she can lay claim to it). and gemma, poor gemma...she only wants to figure out who she is and make a name for herself, and she knows that proper english society will never allow or accept that. the futures of these four girls have already been mapped out, and each despises and wishes to fight the course their lives have taken before it's too late and they are truly trapped.
if only it were that easy. gemma still has so much to learn about the magic. and she never seems to know who to trust, who to confide in. she's too brash and reacts too quickly, never thinking things through. (if she'd listened to me while i was screaming from outside the pages of the book, things might have turned out differently, but that's neither here nor there, i suppose.) i am glad that she finally allows herself the feelings she has for kartik. some of the scenes between them are truly romantic and swoon-worthy. and i'm glad she did not simply accept her fate as an english debutante; that she fights for her friends, her family, her love all show her strength of character. and despite her mistakes and flaws, or because of them, she is truly one of my favorite heroines. she made me take a look into my own 'dark corners', and i feel i am better for it, just as she was.
'the sweet far thing' was darker than the rest of the trilogy, pitting friends against friends, forcing difficult decisions, and bringing about unspeakable new horrors for the girls of spence academy. but with the tragic, there is also hope. and that's what makes the ending so spectacular. i want to know what gemma's future holds, to know that she finds a way to help kartik so that they can have a life together, but just knowing that there is hope, that she might one day return to the realms with a better understanding, a knowledge of how the magic works...well, right now, that's enough for me.
