Name: The subtle knife
Rating: 4.162327718223583 (653 reviews)
ISBN: 0786241241

Philip Pullman

As the boundaries between worlds begin to dissolve, Lyra and her daemon help Will Parry in his search for his father and for a powerful, magical knife.

The subtle knife

The Subtle Knife

Laura Chin

Oh my goodness. I don't think I've blasted through a book of this length this quickly before.

The Subtle Knife introduces new characters and more importantly, new worlds. We left off with Lyra crossing into the city in the sky, only to find out that it is actually the crossroads to all the worlds and that someone from "our" universe has crossed over as well. Will and Lyra are thrown together with these strange and bizarre artifacts and they don't know what they mean or what to do with them.

Again, the religious symbolism is pretty heavy in this book. However, I feel it's more action-oriented than The Golden Compass. Maybe it's because the one-on-one combats read better than the massive fight sequences of the first book. While there is still some world and character building, the universe of "His Dark Materials" has now been well established so that the reader can jump right into the action without having to understand why choices are being made.

My only negative feeling towards this story is that it jumps around a lot. There are many different characters who are following their own paths that we're interested in. In the end, it all comes together cohesively, and ready to tackle the next big thing. The Subtle Knife is not a stand-alone book by any means, but a good solid second book in a trilogy that inspires its reader to pick up the third installment, The Amber Spyglass.

http://lemonlaiime.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-subtle-knife.html

For use in schools and libraries only. As the boundaries between worlds begin to dissolve, Lyra and her daemon help Will Parry in his search for his father and for a powerful, magical knife.

Subtle Knife

I had a hard time reading the first half, I don’t think it’s the book’s fault though because I’ve been in a major reading slump and this couldn’t get me out of it til the second half which was a wiiild ride. Very entertaining and intense. I am surprised this is considered a children’s book.

Bethany

"What is he? A friend, or an enemy?" "He is a murderer." Will has just killed a man. He's on the run. His escape will take him far beyond his own world, to the eerie disquiet of a deserted city, and to a girl, Lyra. Her fate is strangely linked to his own, and together they must find the most powerful weapon in all the worlds... The second volume in Philip Pullman's incredible HIS DARK MATERIALS trilogy. First published in 1995, and acclaimed as a modern masterpiece, it won the UK's top awards for children's literature.

I craved the childhood feeling, made me feel more adult because I couldn't get to it

Dora Tominic

Disclaimer: this is not a review.

I craved the childhood feeling, made me feel more adult because I couldn't get to it

Lyra Belacqua and her animal daemon live half-wild and carefree among scholars of Jordan College, Oxford. The destiny that awaits her will take her to the frozen lands of the Arctic, where witch-clans reign and ice-bears fight. Her extraordinary journey will have immeasurable consequences far beyond her own world...

His Dark Materials: the Subtle Knife

Skillful storytelling, mix of current science and world builds by 

Steve C

Luke Harkness

Great imagination and intrigue

The second book in Philip Pullman's 'His Dark Materials' series is better than the first in many ways. It introduces new great characters and a plot and a story that really opens the mind and broadens the potential for where this could go. Pre-warning: it ends on a cliffhanger that'll force you to buy the third book - I look forward to reading that next!

Third read: every time I read this, I think, if I hope hard enough, that Lee's fate could be changed

I want my own copies of this series

Reread: trauma trauma trauma

Third read: every time I read this, I think, if I hope hard enough, that Lee's fate could be changed

The second volume in Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy. The story of Lyra, Will and their incredible journey through many worlds has thrilled millions of children around the world.

erin

A reread for me.

Enjoyed it as much as I did as a child, if not more, though I forgot how grim this one was.

charisa

i so wish i could have read this as a child, if only to experience this story without the critical bent that colors my perspective now. ok yes, there's more of an explicit anti-religious agenda in this installation, to an almost uncomfortable degree (guess i'm just used to subtler means of subversion lol). i was reminded of ted chiang's hell is the absence of God; that story and this one raise legitimate theological questions, but totally miss the mark in arriving at a conclusion that accurately outlines faith and the God of the Bible. i take comfort in the fact that the deity chiang and pullman lambaste is not the one i follow, but again, considering this a viable critique of oppressive, distorted religion! it is fascinating to observe the expansion of pullman's universe, in what he chooses to subvert and uplift. 

anyway, if i assume my ingenuous twelve-year-old-self's mind, the story itself is so lush with detail and creative ingenuity! there is really something special about children's literature. i loved the burgeoning relationship between will and lyra, full of innocence and wholehearted trust. i'm reminded to strip all complications away! at the heart of true friendship, that trust holds true, no matter the trials.

Michael Springer

The second book of His Dark Materials, from page 1, changes your expectations of the series. This book is startling, complex, and every bit as enjoyable as The Golden Compass. I am just as excited about the series as I was after finishing book 1, and that's saying quite a bit.

Prashanth Srivatsa

Pullman displays his imagination like a magician revealing a box of tricks, but he's slowly transforming his world(s) from those of wonder to mundane settings of conversation and action. Nevertheless, it's all set up nicely for the end of the trilogy.

Jeff James

This was not at all what I was expecting from a sequel to The Golden Compass. The end of the first book in the trilogy pulls the rug out from under the reader, revealing that Lyra’s father is just as dangerous as her mother, if only with different methods and conflicting alliances.

The second book resets the playing field when we meet Will Parry, who comes from a world much like our own and who lives in modern times, not the early part of the Twentieth Century like you might imagine from Lyra’s version of Oxford.

The Subtle Knife is deeper and weirder, and much more disturbing than the first book. Lyra and Will discover a third world that serves as a way station between their respective worlds, but it has fallen into disrepair and been overrun with invisible specters who can suck the life out of an adult in seconds.

Will has to make some hard choices, and they encounter new and more terrifying dangers. We also start to get glimpses of Lord Asriel’s grand plan, and it is unclear what to root for other than Lyra and Will living to fight another day.

The book ends on a cliffhanger that must have been maddening back when it was first published. On to the final book in the trilogy!

The second volume in Philip Pullman's groundbreaking HIS DARK MATERIALS trilogy, now a thrilling, critically acclaimed BBC/HBO series. "What is he? A friend, or an enemy?" "He is a murderer." Will has just killed a man. He's on the run. His escape will take him far beyond his own world, to the eerie disquiet of a deserted city, and to a girl, Lyra. Her fate is strangely linked to his own, and together they must find the most powerful weapon in all the worlds... this edition has a stunning cover by celebrated artist, Chris Wormell.

tianna

The second installment in  His Dark Materials trilogy. 

I think the book was fairly well written and as engaging as the first book. The plot did not lack suspense, and the idea of the alternate worlds was very catchy and well built. The details were rich in every aspect, and Pullman's imagination was never lacking! Every twist and turn was filled with dangers and deceit of every kind that kept me hanging on the edge of my seat. I loved watching Lyra, and her newly introduced companion, Will, as they explored the collision of the "real" world and their fantasy world. Also, I had to get adjust a little to the more alternating pov's than usual. 

What bothered me, though, was the lack of news from the real world. There was never really much closure given from the transition to the outside worlds. I flet like the Gyptians, her world, the panserbjörne were abandoned too abruptly, and I kind of missed them. The dust was ignored or the longest time, too. Also, I think Will was not inserted very well. He just kind of came out of nowhere and seemed to divert the reader's attention from Lyra, and I get the feeling he's more of the main character than her now. I wish he was introduced earlier in the first book, so that he didn't seem too intrusive or anything. 

I don't really pay attention to the second books in a trilogy, so my review might be a little short and absent-minded. I do not even want to discuss the Anti-God accusations, okay?

Kirsten Simkiss

I read the Subtle Knife years ago, probably a decade ago if not longer, and I find that my opinion of the story largely hasn't changed. While I had completely forgotten the religious aspect of the story, I am definitely more conscious of it as an older reader. While I know I saw many people decrying this book as a work of atheism, it clearly isn't. Agnostic, perhaps, but not atheist. An atheist would never acknowledge god was real; agnostic beliefs would be more likely to kill a god that didn't care.

Ultimately, this doesn't measure up to the level of the plot of the first book. It feels like the middle act of the play more than a book in a series. It lacks resolution and, frankly, it's a little depressing. I don't want to spring spoilers on anyone, but the book remains pretty bleak from beginning to end. Most of the book is also reactive rather than proactive, by which I mean the characters do things as a reaction to something else happening to them as opposed to doing something themselves. This is particularly true of Will, who seems to be getting tossed around by the wills of other beings at every given moment - even at the very end of the book.

Ultimately, I know I will be reading on to finish the series, but I can see why I stopped after this book as a teenager. This is definitely not a book you can read without reading The Golden Compass, so definitely read these in order.

Esslam Ben Ramadan

** spoiler alert **
           Although not my favorite this book had its moments of intrigue and kept me reading endlessly as I yearned to learn more. My only issue with the book is how Lyra the main protagonist in the first book is cast aside in favour of Will. I'm hoping that this is intentional to build Will's character up as he and Lyra will have an important part to play in the last book.

Sandra Tammaru

I love how the show actually does this series justice

The subtle knife

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