Pullman's stunning conclusion of the His Dark Materials trilogy.

Lyra and Will continue their adventures through various worlds. Many new things are learnt and sacrifices are made. Angels, Gallivespians, and Dragonflies are amongst the new characters introduced. For you bear fans out there, Iorek also appears. The result of all their toils is unexpected, a little sad, yet satisfying.

A friend of mine told me he found the books to be very anti-church. This tainted the series for me somewhat, because I kept thinking about what he had said. I would say the story is more like a warning that human beings are fallible and that blind faith in any religion can result in suffering.

• Northern Lights
• The Subtle Knife
• The Amber Spylgass