Light (Gone Book 6)

Title: Light (Final book in the Gone Series) Author: Michael Grant Rating: 5 Stars My Review - No MAJOR Spoilers. Some minor ones... Ok, so I JUST finished this story and I am tempted to just babble, "I loved it" repeatedly like a lunatic. But the truth is, I LOVED it. Perfect, perfect, perfect ending. I absolutely absorbed this book, and I knew I would. I've been on this ride with Mr. Grant for a while now and I have a lot invested in this story. Having *just* set the release date for the end of my own trilogy, I have a new and sustaining respect for anyone who attempts to bring an epic story to a satisfactory close. And the GONE series is EPIC. I love it. Ironically, the "world" is a small space, but it's an entirely different universe, no different from Middle Earth in its need for world-building. I love the "truth" of being teenagers forced to face adult issues. I love the "truth" of duality: good and evil, bravery and cowardice, life and death. In the end (though I tend to say this too often about this series) Grant is BRAVE. You know why I think so? Let me break it into categories for you. (And you thought I was going to be brief. HA!) Social Issues: Grant is brave because he's willing to muck about in religious waters that often scare authors, particularly ya authors. He has characters that had faith that lose it and others that gain it. He has characters that have no idea what they believe, but who feel the pull of ritual, the desire the make sense of it all. But none of it is a simple, trite, easy answer. Grant is brave because he's not afraid to write about 15 year olds having sex with *gasp, heaven-forbid* a few details thrown in, KNOWING that this is authentic to his story and that the characters are essentially ADULTS given their situation. Still, people are terrified of this in ya. (Bravo for showing a loving, mutual relationship in Sam and Astrid, as well.) Grant is brave because he deals in all those real-life issues of race and prejudice. Like Albert. He's the "businessman" but he's African-American, and characters are wary of him in this role at first (until they realize they're hungry). And Edilio, often referenced as the "wetback" by the nastier or more ignorant characters. The way that Grant addresses those issues and turns them on their ear without sounding preachy is excellent and gives a lot of DEPTH to a story for and about teens that one would not associate with "superhero" kind of stuff. (ie - Most adults who don't appreciate graphic novels and comics don't realize these media can include serious discussion topics) Writing: Grant is brave because he wasn't afraid to write it his way, with a kabillion shifting POVs, sometimes that last for only a few sentences at a time! No fear of HEAD-HOPPING here. Grant is brave because he wrote a sprawling epic that has WAY too many words to be MARKETABLE, right? Grant is brave because he's not afraid to take on a modern-day "Lord of the Flies" in a time when we've become increasingly uncomfortable with precocious youth. BACK TO "LIGHT" IN PARTICULAR This may be one of my favorite endings to an epic tale ever. It had exactly the right amount of tragic loss, gut-wrenching, heart-stopping loss, AND heroism, and triumph, and sacrifice and REDEMPTION. In the end, that is what this story is about, I think: redemption. I never expected anything that Caine ever said to anyone, especially Diana, to make me cry. But it did. And it was perfect. And I never expected a kiss between Astrid and Sam to feel like the last gasp of a marathon when you feel the tape snap across your chest, but it did. I practically pumped my fist in the air! (Ok, I did pump my fist in the air.) And I never expected to be so moved, so entertained, and so enthralled by such an odd, personal, and utterly genre-breaking story as the Gone Series. But I was. Go out. Buy it. Read it. May I be so fortunate as to write something that makes people say the same.

I bought the first Gone novel on impulse just days after its initial release and have been avidly following the series ever since. Endings, wherein the author has to solve the mysteries and bring all of the plots and sub-plots to completion in a believable way for the reader are understandably difficult and Michael Grant has succeeded beyond even the wildest of expectations. Gone is at heart about the characters and the relationships, but the series also has strong plotting and if the ending hadn't been done well, the brilliance of the heart-rending characters, their loves and hates and the terrible choices they have to make would have been weakened. Let me just say there isn't anything weak about the finale. It has been over a year since the Dome descended on Perdido Beach, originally trapping everyone under the age of fifteen within its sphere. Since then, the survivors have dealt with starvation, injury, disease, resource wars and power wars, the development of mutations that give some of the residents super powers and changed bodies and all of the emotional trauma and growth that such a situation brings. Friendships and loves and coalitions are built and destroyed and built again with new formations. Moral choices are made, reviewed, regretted and lived with in situations where there are no good choices and the effects on Perdido Beach and on the characters are lasting, real and believable. The Gone series and Light in particular are so well plotted and action-packed that it would be easy to overlook the fact that these novels are in fact profoundly moral character studies with real depth. The Dome around Perdido Beach has become transparent and people can now see both out and in, but the children still aren't free. The watching world is beginning to get some idea of just how terrible conditions have been for the children trapped within not only because of the physical and emotional condition of the children, but because the skirmished and conflict that mark life in the Fayz are all to visible to the watching world. Add to that the sense of destiny descending in the form of a final battle between the beleaguered residents of the Fayz, the evil that grew out of the nuclear accident and a cosmic blowback and the residents lining up on both sides of the good and evil divide and the scene is set. Grant doesn't disappoint with his conclusion. Not only do the characters have more believably human traits and choices for both good and evil, but all of the relationships are superb, both friendships and romances. I recently wrote a couple of bad reviews about YA fiction that had harmful messages about romance and it is a joy to report that all of the relationships in Perdido Beach are between flawed and lovable equals whether they be male of female, friends or lovers, gay or straight. It is an inspiration to read. Grant gets a big check plus for sending great messages to young people about what love actually is - that it involves the bad days as well as the good and that one loves the person not only for their virtues but for their flaws as well. An amazing message that we all need to read, hear and remember to practice. I've been careful not to give spoilers about Light, leaving that for the reader to discover but Light is a strong finish to an amazing series, a series I honestly do believe will become a classic of the genre. If you haven't read the other novels in the Gone series, start at the beginning and have a wonderful book marathon. If you have been anxiously awaiting the finale, rest assured that Light is worth the wait and won't disappoint. Highest recommendation for the finale and the series.

You start a series and you love it. You read each book in the series hungrily, devouring it like it was your first meal in months. Then you come to the last book. You have been waiting for this book for years (literally!). You want to read it as fast as you can to find out what happens; you want to savor it and make it last since there are no more. What do you do? If you are anything like I was with Light by Michael Grant, that moment where you consider "savoring" it lasts about 24 hours until you can't take it anymore and rip into it like a ravenous beast! Life in the FAYZ has never been easy, but now that the gaiaphage has taken a body, it is even more dangerous. No longer just a green blob controlling minds from the depths of a cave, Gaia can travel around, is growing exponentially, and can use the powers of any living kid in the FAYZ. The kids are scattered now that the wall has gone clear, and most are spending their time looking through the dome at their parents in the hopes that they will soon get out. In the meantime, no food is being harvested or fished, kids are starving right in front of their parents, and Gaia has a plan. If she can take a body, so can Nemesis (the disembodied Little Pete), and she must prevent him from doing what she did if she plans to escape the FAYZ. She must kill every kid possible to prevent him from taking a body. What Gaia doesn't expect is that while her body allows her to to be more mobile and therefore more powerful, it also makes her more human, complete with the ability to be hurt and feel pain. Sure she can heal herself through Lana's power, but she can still weaken. This was unexpected, and it makes her realize she must be more careful in her plan. But Caine and Sam are out there, and although they never had a brotherly connection, there is one thing they can do together as the most powerful kids in the FAYZ. They can hunt Gaia. But how do you kill a creature with every power in her arsenal? Oh Holy FAYZ Batman! I can't even take it. I want to cry knowing this series is over and I want to REJOICE with how it ended. I absolutely loved this book, this series, these characters, and everything in between. Part of me wants to BEG Michael Grant to write more about these kids, but the rest of me is so happy with the way it ended (despite it being bittersweet), I don't want to ruin the feeling of finality. I was so worried this ending was going to disappoint, but how silly I was. How could the author who wrote this brilliant series NOT come out with a heart-stopping conclusion? And oh boy, did he! So here comes my plea. Put this series on your shelves of your classroom, your library, your kids rooms. This is a series that can get even the most reluctant students reading (and it has! I have seen it with my own eyes!). It is exciting, entertaining, heart-stopping, and you will not be sorry if you turn a student onto this story. It is mature and gruesome at times, but in a world where our teens can smell BS a mile away, this series will make them read and think like adults. They will know how much respect Grant has for them, because he isn't afraid to go dark with his stories. He isn't afraid to challenge teens to think about their lives, the privileges they enjoy, and the things they would fight to the death for. And that is the kind of stuff our young readers want to read. So do it. Put this series on your shelves. Peddle it to your teen readers. And make sure the kids of the FAYZ enter your heart too!

[...] Finishing a series is like finishing a long hike. It's without a doubt a journey of great length, and, looking back, there were so many ups and downs and adventures, and you can't help but think, "Wow, that was crazy." That's how I felt when I reached the final page of "Light", the final book in the "Gone" series by Michael Grant. After six action-packed installments, Mr. Grant finally reveals to his readers the fate of the inhabitants of the FAYZ. It's been over a year since all the adults disappeared. Gone. In the time since the strange, impenetrable barrier appeared around the town of Perdido Beach, California, countless battles have been fought: battles against hunger and lies and plague, the battle against good versus evil. But with Gaia, the gaiaphage incarnate, hungry for destruction and massacre, Sam and his friends know that the end is near. The only question is, will the endgame see them out alive, or will Gaia succeed in her mission to slaughter everyone in the FAYZ? At this point in the series, the characters have gone through most of their character development, but that's not to say that there aren't any emotional or mental changes within them. The two characters I saw most of that in were Caine and Diana. Despite the fact that they were the callous and cruel antagonists throughout most of the "Gone" series, the two really grow on you. You see their vulnerabilities and their struggles with doing the right thing, and how their twisted pasts haunt them. You especially see this in the relationship between the two. They're both so messed up, for lack of a better term, but they find in each other their saving grace. Step aside, Romeo and Juliet. This is one tragic love story that I really felt for, and Mr. Grant's done a great job with crafting the relationships in his stories. The plot itself of "Light" is so intense throughout the entire book, my heart jackhammered in so many places it's a surprise I didn't have a seizure or something. There's definitely a lot of things going on, and it was interesting to see all of these different events from different perspectives as the points of view jumped from character to character. This also allowed for some serious buildup of dramatic irony and tension, things that were only enhanced by the gory, gruesome scenes of kids younger than me dying with holes burned through their necks or arms ripped off for supper. It's this gore that lends an incredibly dark undertone to the entire "Gone" series, and left me feeling slightly disturbed, even at the end of the final book. One thing that I felt sort of detracted from the story was the constant use of references to pop culture. I understand that the reason behind this is to lighten the mood a little and also remind us that the survivors stuck in such a gruesome place are just fourteen-year old kids, and, to a certain extent, I think it's great! But when you add on a whole bunch of names of pop songs that no one really listens to anymore, for example, it's kind of pushing it a little too far. That being said, it's nothing drastic or anything, just a little too overdone. Overall, "Light" is an intense final installment to a grisly dystopian series, with some complex character development and a gripping storyline, specifically tailored to teen readers. If you haven't read the "Gone" series yet, I'd recommend that you check it out and see if it's your thing, especially if you like gory details and dramatic scenes. Rating: 4/5

The gang is back, with the Gaiaphage, now known as Gaia since taking form in Diana's and Caine's offspring leading the way. She's growing iat an outstanding rate, feeding on anything she can, which means Drake is her errand boy tracking down food as Diana accompanies her in travel and listens to her evil plans. Meanwhile, Caine is bored playing King again, all previous respect gone after all he's been through. So when Edilio asks him and Sam to hunt down Gaia and take her out before she can get them, he's nothing short of eager for the challenge, not to mention missing Diana. Outside the dome, however, with the adults and world finally able to see everything going on, they're getting quite the show. Kids with super powers. Epic battles. A little girl ripping the arm of an innocent victim and using her powers to heat it and eat it. The world is terrified. They don't want the walls to come down. Inside, Gaia grows in powers, and Diana soon learns that her powers are the same as the moofs, which is why Gaia won't directly kill any of the kids with powers, she only hurts them. Could the answer be that the only way to destroy Gaia is to destroy their strongest allies against her? Sam and his killing light, which she is killing everyone with? Caine and his powers, Brianna and her speed, which makes Gaia so fast. Lana and her healing, allowing Gaia to heal herself of any damage inflicted. If they kill the moofs, will they be able to finally destroy Gaia? But then, there's Nemesis, Little Pete. Floating around, withering away, watching. Could he be their last hope? Even if they survive inside, will they survive outside? Will the world welcome them back after all they've done? Murder, fires, destruction, stealing, eating domestic animals, eating people, the list went on... It was all for survival. But would they understand that? An amazing book, an amazing ending to an amazing series! Highly recommended, the whole way thru! Usually I read my books and pass them on, I can't part with this series though, it's outstanding!

This book is absolutely fantastic!!! I loved the characters, hated some characters, and a mix of both for some. The story was so perfectly done I can't even begin to explain it. The fact that throughout the books there was the one common enemy (the gaiaphage) and then throughout each book they battled something else, was so cool. The fact that the powers were strong, but had limits was great. Loved the ending, because if Sam got arrested and Edilio was deported I would have been pretty mad. Also the way that Caine wrote the letter, and how it saved the other kids, and yet still seemed like arrogant Caine lying was hilarious and amazing. Wouldn't change anything except why did Orc have to die. Brianna kind of did have to die (even though she was one of my favorite characters) because Gaia was a little over powered, but Orc nooooo. I loved him. Anyway, amazing book series, I will most DEFINITELY recommend this book to my friends!! My brother, who had never willingly read a book in his life, and hated reading books for school, read two chapters of Gone because I forced him to. Three weeks later he finished the series. Thank you for helping my brother learn that reading can be great and thank you for an amazing story with characters I am totally missing right now. -Annabelle Lee

Love this series and very fun to read

Wow. I'm not even sure what to say, really. All the build-up for the release of Light was definitely worth the wait. It's a bittersweet moment for me as a reader. I wanted to know how things ended and also how the FAYZ had truly been created, but now I am sad that I have to leave this world. The Gone series is probably my favorite young-adult series, hands down. Why? Because of the characters, mostly. I have never seen an author who can craft such well developed characters. The characters are so real and vivid that I often have strong feelings about them. Conflicted feelings, too. Somehow this author even made me start falling for characters who I had earlier disliked. And then sometimes he kills characters in such ways that you kind of feel like you just lost a loved one. Tears may start spilling onto the pages. I know mine did for this book. You can't even assume that the big player characters are safe. But somehow, even though I wish certain characters had lived, somehow their deaths still add to the story. Complicated, right? Well, that's life. Aside from the wonderful cast of characters, there's also the story. It's unique and highly imaginative, but also deals with themes that affect all of us--love, hate, fear, strength, weakness, redemption. And so much more. One thing I love most about the series, and this book in particular, is that you almost never know where Grant is about to take you or your most beloved characters. His writing style is uncomplicated and very easy to get wrapped up into. His characters stand out on their own. There are also vivid scenes that I will probably never be able to get out of my head. They are written so well that sometimes I felt like the breath had been knocked out of me. Sometimes I had to re-read passages just to get over the shock of what I'd just read. In Light, it's the endgame for the citizens of the FAYZ. With the gaiaphage growing stronger, this isn't a fight that is easily forgotten. Gaia is completely evil, yet somehow I still find her endearing. I hate her but I also like her. Michael Grant, what on earth have you done to me? Many characters will die. Some will live. And I'm willing to bet that most will end up surprising you. If you loved the rest of the series, I don't think you'll be disappointed. And if you are reading this review and have never read the series, I highly recommend them. Come over to the dark side. It might be lighter than you think. Even though the end of the series manages to wrap up most of my questions well, I still have many. Sadly I know these will probably never be answered, unless Michael Grant does a video (hint hint).

El libro llegó en perfecto estado

Book 6: Light I discovered the GONE-series rather late in its lifecycle, when the first 3 books were already available in German and books 4 & 5 in English. So while I was fortunate enough being able to read through all 5 books within a couple of weeks, when I finished FEAR in December with that cliffhanger ending of the dome becoming transparent after one year of isolation between the FAYZ and the outside world, I could not wait to get my hands on the final and concluding book of the series. So, I already then pre-ordered the Kindle version of LIGHT, and even scheduled a day off work for its release on April 2. And yes - it was worth the wait, and I enjoyed the better part of today to read it in one go from start to the end. I don’t want to spoil anything detailed in this review for those who look forward to enjoying this read, but let me note a few impressions. LIGHT truly is the endgame of the series, and like all epic battles between Good and Evil, the end only comes after a long fight with many casualties. Despite the transparent dome, the FAYZ goes to some dark places before the end... There is lots of blood and deaths, and not everyone you loved will survive. All main characters appear again and have their moments. The open questions from the previous books get addressed, and loose ends are tied up (in what I consider to be a satisfying way). There are lots of moments in this final book that will make you smile, or laugh out loud, and some might even move you to tears. Bottom line, for me, LIGHT has stayed true to the characters and the story built up over the past five books, and presented us with an enjoyable ending that is fully appropriate for such a great book series. I envy everyone out there who may still look forward to reading the complete series for the first time. You are in for a ride! To quote Michael Grant’s own counting, with LIGHT being done, I have spent over 3’000 pages worth of reading time in the FAYZ. It was an amazing journey, and I enjoyed every second of it.

Très bon livre, enfin la fin de la série ! Michael Grant et un génie :) Ca a été un plaisir de lire la saga Gone

it was amazing

This book has everything, action, romance, comedy and gives you dem feels bro. I have love d this series since the start.