Book Review- Out of Oz

I have one spoiler, and it's at the end of this review.  So beware.  Or not.

*I got this book for free from the Goodreads First Reads program*

I enjoyed this book quite a bit.  Now obviously this is the fourth and last book in a series (The Wicked Years), so I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who didn't read and enjoy the first three.  But if you DID read and enjoy the first three, you shouldn't miss this one.

I've liked that each book in the series has a different focal character (first Elphaba, Liir, Brr, and now Rain).  At first I thought this book would focus more on Glinda, since the story seemed to be building around her.  And now I realize that this was because Rain was BORING at the beginning.  And Glinda helped Rain to wake up and start to grow into a real and exciting character.  And I loved that she was able to change so much.  It really felt like I was watching her grow up as she learned about the world around her.

Little Daffy and Mr. Boss are ridiculous.  And they were awesome.  Even though I didn't really like either of them at first.

I love Brr.  I think I love him even more after this novel than I did after the last.

I think I really only have one criticism about this book- I could have done without all the mention of sex.  I really didn't mind the part regarding Rain and Tip's intimacy, but that's because it was touched on briefly and sweetly- without being crass and crude (or overly descriptive).  It's the same criticism I had of Wicked, the first book in the series.  This book didn't really have a whole lot of description in that area, but for a while it felt like a few of the characters were constantly doing it or talking about doing it.  I guess mostly when the company was in Quadling country, where people are apparently very open about their bodies.

But all in all, this was a great ending to the series.  It tied up all the loose ends without feeling like a "happily ever after." And that's a good thing because "happily ever after" stories leave the impression that nothing happened after, that the characters and the world ceased to exist after the last page is turned.  But this book ended in a way that left me satisfied to know that Oz is going to be okay, even after I finish reading about it.

It took me a while to read this just because life got in the way (wouldn't it be great if I didn't have to go to work every day!) so I'm going to have to read it again sometime when I have time to soak in the whole story a little better.

*Spoiler alert: Ozma was hidden in perpetual BOYhood for all these years?!?!?  I mean, I figured there was something strange about Tip, but that he was really a she who is the last in the missing line of Ozmas?  Yeah, I didn't expect that.  But thank goodness this whole Munchkinland war is over!