I listened to the first book going to and from work. I was hooked; I had to purchase the other 2 audio books. I loved this. I will purchase the books in paperback or hardcover for my middle school library. Great series

I listened to the first book going to and from work. I was hooked; I had to purchase the other 2 audio books. I loved this. I will purchase the books in paperback or hardcover for my middle school library. Great series

The Lionboy trilogy is a breath of fresh air in a domain currently dominated by fantasy. Set in an imaginative post-environmental-disaster Europe, the hero, 10-year-old Charlie, sets out to find his parents who have been kidnapped, embarking on a rolicking set of adventures across the English Channel, France, Venice, the Mediterranean, Africa and the Caribbean. While the first book takes a while to gain momentum, by the time you hit the second and third (Lionboy: The Truth) the adventure whips you along, full of twists and turns, breathtaking escapes and unexpected discoveries. The characters (which include lions, cats, a nasty evil corporation, gondoliers, and a Bulgarian king) are beautifully crafted and the hero's gritty determination is something with which any child (and adult, too) will relate. The animals are a sheer delight. The books are interspersed with detailed, charming illustrations that enhance the sheer pleasure of the experience. These are books to be read aloud or to savour under the bedcovers at night.

Having read the trilogy over the past few months, I was impressed with the quality of this last book. The author uses richer language than in the previous books, and lots more diagrams are included to help visualize the locations.

A few big surprises at the beginning of the book, and an awesome adventure all through.

With the humor and tight plotting of LIONBOY, the thrill, excitement, and, yes, more humor of LIONBOY: THE CHASE, this last book came off just kind of...dry. Charlie isn't as interesting, the humor falls short, there is more of Africa and less of Venice (I've got nothing against Africa, of course, and the story wouldn't have worked without it, but the Venetian setting was just perfect in the second book. I mean, lions in Venice?), Charlie's parents are more brusque and dumb than they seemed when they were portrayed as caring, brilliant people, and the ending was much too tidy, even resorting to checking off loose ends and telling what happened. I didn't really mind that so much; the author's style fit it. It was the other flaws that kept staring me in the face. When you strip away the technical details, LIONBOY: THE TRUTH just wasn't as fun, as funny, as exciting as the previous books, with hardly any convincing new characters and the flattening of the old good ones. King Boris and a few others made the second book the best, in my opinion, and he hardly get any screen time (or, I suppose, page time) in this one.

About halfway through the book I realized I was reading it for the sole purpose of getting it off my To-Read shelf, something I'd never felt when zipping through the previous two. I don't like circus books, but I loved the first book, LIONBOY. What does that tell you?

My advice is to read the first two and skip this one. If you're desperate for a conclusion (even though it's one everyone saw from a mile away) then read it, but don't expect it to be anywhere near the quality of the first two.

2 1/2 stars.

P.S. Why does EVERYONE love Charlie?! It's incredibly unrealistic, and in this book I ended up trying to pick him apart for something to DISLIKE. I much prefer it when characters -- or even ONE character -- bad-mouth the main character, making you want to stick up for them. This technique is employed masterfully in Harry Potter with Harry and Snape -- why can't Corder just insert an anti-Charlie who happens to be neutral, not with the bad guys? Not everyone's going to like someone.

Book arrived promptly and in promised condition. Recipient enjoyed storyline very much.

The first two books in the trilogy series were fast-paced and fun. Unfortunately, this wasn't really the case with the final book (Lionboy: The Truth). The story seemed to just drag on and then at the end everything happened at once. It seemed that only parts of the book were good while the rest was slow, irrelevant and unnecessary. However, I would still recommend that you read the book so you know what happens at the end of the trilogy series.