Review – The Grimm Conclusion (A Tale Dark and Grimm, Book 3) by Adam Gidwitz (5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Middle Grade
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 368 pages
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Release Date: October 8, 2013
ISBN: 978-0525426158
Stand Alone or Series: 3rd book in A Tale Dark and Grimm
Source: Borrowed from Library
Rating: 5/5 stars

I love this series and this book was the icing on the cake. Very funny, very well done, and excellent fairy tale retelling with lots of sarcasm and humor.

Each of these books has followed a sister/brother pair as they stumble through horrible and funny fairy tales. This book is no different and follows a sister/brother (Jorinda and Joringel) through fairy tales such as The Juniper Tree, Rumplestiltskin, and Cinderella. The siblings destroy a kingdom and seek to fix it through this crazy tale. Along the journey the narrator makes sarcastic, hilarious, and witty remarks while always warning you when the tales are about to get particularly gruesome.

In addition there is an afterword about the fairy tales and their origins. Gidwitz goes through the history and admits to any parts that are completed fabricated.

I loved this book. These books make me laugh so hard, yet they are so dark and gruesome at times. I love the original Grimms fairy tales and this book gives homage to, expands upon, and delves into both popular (Cinderella) and less known (The Juniper Tree) fairy tales.

This book has a twist to it that the other books did not have. We actually, finally get to meet the narrator…which was creative, unexpected, and clever.

I read through this whole book in one sitting chortling to myself the whole time and wincing as the Cinderella’s sisters mutilated themselves to fit into shoes.

Jorinda and Joringel are interesting characters who fight their way through a series of bad circumstances and unlikely events, in an effort to life their lives the best way they know how (which ends up being not all that well). Along the way they make mistakes, figure out who they really are, and finally find a way to be happy. Of course, they do this by fighting through a vareity of fairy tales.

Very well done and ties up the series well. The asides from the narrator are just as hilarious as ever. There are some grotesque parts to the story so younger readers should beware. The series is nicely tied up….or is it….

Overall a splendid and wonderful read. I thoroughly enjoyed this whole series and this book was the best yet. Fans of the series should be incredibly pleased. I enjoyed tramping through all of these fairy tales and laughing myself nearly to death at the narrator’s asides. I enjoyed some of the excellent surprises that made this book different from the books before. This whole series is highly recommended to everyone…seriously I don’t know why anyone would not like this series.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– 100 Books in a Year Reading Challenge
– 150+ Reading Challenge