Inkdeath is the last book in the Inkheart trilogy (though there is room for a sequel). What can I say…no one who has read the first two books can possibly NOT read the third book. The third book does fall a bit short of the first two, though.

In the first two books, Meggie was mostly the heroine. In this book, though, a lot of the characters undergo a cranial lobotomy or something. Meggie can only work her reading magic a couple of times and spends the rest of the time heart-sick. Her mother Resa does a little bit more but she seems desperate all the time rather than brave. Mo really becomes the hero of this story, morphing into the legendary Bluejay. Dustfinger, back from the dead, is now fearless. You get the sense that Cornelia Funk fell in love with the latter two characters and made them the heroes. Everyone else – even the Black Prince – falls into the shade. And it seems that she’s taken Resa’s words to heart – that the Inkworld is a world for men – and so Meggie and her mother pale a little, while Mo comes to the forefront.

The plot was a rollicking one, but there were numerous little detours that, instead of weaving into the main plot, wrapped themselves up neatly and didn’t seem to have much consequence, such as Mortola’s reappearance.

But, to be fair, anyone who read the first two books HAS to read this one. It’s a fairly good conclusion. And I did enjoy it while I read, it’s just that afterwards you’re like “What just happened to all those characters?” And I’ve always liked Mo’s character so I didn’t mind him getting a bit more screen time.