Young Adult Book Review: The Toll by Neal Shusterman

Posted August 20, 2022 by jrsbookr in Horror / 0 Comments

Young Adult Book Review: The Toll by  Neal Shusterman

by neal shusterman
Young Adult Book Review: The Toll by  Neal ShustermanThe Toll Series: Arc of a Scythe #3
Published by Simon and Schuster on November 5, 2019
Genres: Young Adult Fiction / Action & Adventure / General, Young Adult Fiction / Science Fiction / General, Young Adult Fiction / Social Themes / Death & Dying
Pages: 640
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Goodreads

In the highly anticipated finale to the New York Times bestselling trilogy, dictators, prophets, and tensions rise. In a world that’s conquered death, will humanity finally be torn asunder by the immortal beings it created?

Citra and Rowan have disappeared. Endura is gone. It seems like nothing stands between Scythe Goddard and absolute dominion over the world scythedom. With the silence of the Thunderhead and the reverberations of the Great Resonance still shaking the earth to its core, the question remains: Is there anyone left who can stop him?

The answer lies in the Tone, the Toll, and the Thunder.

Review:

The best thing about this book is the storytelling/writing and the unique thread of the premise what if no one died, and how should that be handled?

Shusterman is a genius with how he weaves the characters, old and new, having their paths flirt with each other until they finally intertwine. So many moving parts in this conclusion of the series that it feels like the reader is watching a puzzle being completed, with each piece slowly finding its home until the final result is realized.

That being said, I have finally become tired of the story itself as it felt like this conclusion was drawn out over 600 pages, unlike the second book, where I felt like I was on a roller coaster. (Citra and Rowen and the relationship with each other)They are a big reason I read this series and are missing in a large chunk of this final book. So I felt like we lost the momentum.

I appreciate how everything is resolved, and I think many fans of the series will like the conclusion, but, unfortunately, I felt a little less invested in this than I was at the beginning of the series.

About neal shusterman

Neal Shusterman is the author of many novels for young adults, including Unwind, which was an ALA Best Book for Young Adults and a Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Readers, Everlost, and Downsiders, which was nominated for twelve state reading awards. He also writes screenplays for motion pictures and television shows such as Animorphs and Goosebumps. The father of four children, Neal lives in southern California.