Year of the Griffin (Derkholm, 2)

Wonderful conclusion to The Dark Wizard of Derkholm.Ms. Jones bring her characters beautifully to life. So much so that I feel saddened when I have to leave them at the end of a book.

delightfully drawing on the first book, Dark Lord of Derkholm, which counfounds all expectations by being a rollicking good adventure, Year of the Griffin continues the adventures wrapping up all our favorite characters in a very tidy finale.

Elda is so much fun. I loved the characters. I liked the storyline. It was funny, thought provoking, and a really good time. I really enjoy this author's humor.

I read it over and over again. I bought this but borrow Dark Lord of Derkholm from the library.What can I say about this book that can even begin to touch how I feel about it? Elda is a bit of a misfit, but she's instant friends with a lot of other misfit prodigies. We get to see the world after Mr. Chesney loses control. I loved it.

For all the wild fantasy elements, this is a savage satire on academic life. I may not have gone to college with griffins, but I sure know some of the absurd (and LAZY) professors delineated in this book, as well as the crappy cafeteria and excessive beer consumption. The fantasy stuff is funny as well, and I'm happy to see friends from Derkholm again. How I wish Diana Wynne Jones could still fill my shelves!

Jones always goes a little deeper into her character's Fears or aspirations than cheesy fantasy writers. In this book, we see a magical wizarding school that is badly run accepting a series of seemingly rich students with potentially disastrous results. Lighter in tone than its predecessor, the Dark Lord of Derkholm, we see characters dealing with love, bad teachers, finding talents, and magic that operates with rules of its own. Lots of likable characters, some wit, and some mystery.

I read the Dark Lord of Derkholm several years back and love it. When I saw it had a sequel I was very excited. Regrettably, Year of the Griffin doesn't really live up to it's predecessor. While still a relatively good read, the characters and the school didn't really manage to capture my interest. The story was pretty forgettable.

LOVE IT. One of my favorite books by one of my favorite authors. It is a sequel to the Dark Lord of Dirkhelm and I personally enjoy it more than the first book. It focuses in on the Wizard University and on Dirk's youngest griffon daughter, Elda. Events go from not-so-simple to complex to Holy Cow! A great read for fantasy fans.

If you have enjoyed the Harry Potter books, then chances are well that you will also love 'The Year of the Griffin' (even much more so if you also happen to like authors like Terry Pratchett, as this is a very funny book).I can not say it often enough - try to get hold of all the books of Diana Wynne Jones, they make for an extremely interesting read. In this case, be sure to start with the prequel 'Dark lord of Derkholm', as it might spoil you much of the fun of reading the other book if you already know the outcomes.Best regards,Andy

I haven't actually opened this yet as it is a Christmas present for me, but it arrived very quickly and it's an excellent book so I don't really care about condition :)

The article came as described, delivery was quick, it's a good book in a good series from a good writer.