The Wizards of Once: Never and Forever
- Downloads：2892
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-04-24 12:31:30
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Cressida Cowell
- ISBN：1549158937
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Rick Giles
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Loved it！This great saga is the kind of story to incite the imagination and make new young dreamers hope， laugh and believe。
Eszter Kosa
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Such a great story overall but not too sure about the ending。 I don't think it was needed at all， also found the narrator's reveal as forced just to not have the expected fan favourite one。 Such a great story overall but not too sure about the ending。 I don't think it was needed at all， also found the narrator's reveal as forced just to not have the expected fan favourite one。 。。。more
Mrs Claire Milne
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It took my son and I longer to get this through book than it did the other three but the time we spent reading it was time well spent。 I love the magic in these books and I feel sad this series is finished just as my son moves into first year at secondary， one chapter ends and a new one begins。
Alice
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Magical， heartwarming， and hilarious。 A fantastic ending to a very fun series。
Finn Tyrrell
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It was a good book， but I did not like the conclusion at the end。
Laura Newsholme
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This was an incredibly satisfying conclusion to what has been a really fun series。 I thought that Cressida Cowell did a fantastic job at tying up all of the threads that were woven throughout the series， with great callbacks throughout to the previous installments。 The character arcs， while fairly predictable， were nonetheless rewarding and I particularly enjoyed the 'sting' at the conclusion to the book。 I was glad to see the return of Perdita and Hoola and overall， I thought this was a thoroug This was an incredibly satisfying conclusion to what has been a really fun series。 I thought that Cressida Cowell did a fantastic job at tying up all of the threads that were woven throughout the series， with great callbacks throughout to the previous installments。 The character arcs， while fairly predictable， were nonetheless rewarding and I particularly enjoyed the 'sting' at the conclusion to the book。 I was glad to see the return of Perdita and Hoola and overall， I thought this was a thoroughly enjoyable finale。I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review。 。。。more
Amanda Santiago
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Loved it。 Eagerly waiting the next book in the series。
One Man Book Club
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Check out my blog， One Man Book ClubThe Value of a Star: Ratings ExplainedWell， that was a whole bunch of unexpected fun！Cressida Cowell， who gave the world How to Train Your Dragon， has gifted us with The Wizards of Once--and I'm certain if you haven't heard of it yet， you will soon。 It was wonderful！Wizards and Warriors are sworn enemies， but when a 13-year-old wizard boy whose magic hasn't come in yet and a 13-year-old warrior girl who's more a lover than a fighter meet on a fateful night in Check out my blog， One Man Book ClubThe Value of a Star: Ratings ExplainedWell， that was a whole bunch of unexpected fun！Cressida Cowell， who gave the world How to Train Your Dragon， has gifted us with The Wizards of Once--and I'm certain if you haven't heard of it yet， you will soon。 It was wonderful！Wizards and Warriors are sworn enemies， but when a 13-year-old wizard boy whose magic hasn't come in yet and a 13-year-old warrior girl who's more a lover than a fighter meet on a fateful night in the fright-filled Wildwood， you know there's a grand adventure about start。。。And what an adventure it is！The evil （and quite terrifying） Witches are supposed to be extinct， but they're not。 Forbidden magic， giants who are very kind and think big giant thoughts， werewolves who are a bit crazy， tiny sprites who get into hilarious mischief， magic swords， shape shifting wizards， quests， spells， lessons to learn， characters who grow。 Fun， peril， laughs， scares， heart breaks， redemptions， great climaxes， mysteries。。。These books have everything！All four books of The Wizards of Once series were wonderful to read！ It will be important for us grown ups to remember these books were written for children， so don't be turned off by the simplicity。 There is very much a relaxed whimsy to the story， and I'm afraid anyone who tries to take these books too seriously might get a little frustrated with the occasional lack of explanation of how idea A connects to idea B。 It's a little bit scattered， even maybe a bit bonkers。。。but it all adds up to such tremendous fun！The series wraps up very well， and there's even some unexpected surprises in the last few pages that even made this dad-reading-a-children's-story a bit ponderous。There are clever and abstract illustrations throughout that I thought were lovely。 They reminded me of Roald Dahl's illustrations in books like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The BFG。 Also， I insist that you listen to the audio。 David Tennant of Dr。 Who fame doesn't just read this story。。。he performs it。 Brilliant isn't strong enough。 Just wait until you hear the truly terrifying voice he gives to the Witches！I'm going to be reading this one with my kids。。。possibly save it for a nice， long road trip so we can listen to it together。Great for family read-alouds or strong independent readers 10 and up。Happy Reading！ 。。。more
Sirah
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I'm afraid I checked this book out of the library before realizing that I hadn't read the third yet， so I quickly got Knock Three Times and listened to the audiobook while reading the hard copy of Never and Forever。 Do bear with me if my synopsis is a bit jumbled。 Xar， Wish， and Bodkin are on the final journey to save the world from the witches after many a perilous adventure to obtain the ingredients for the spell to get rid of witches。 Their parents， Encanzo and Sychorax， while still determine I'm afraid I checked this book out of the library before realizing that I hadn't read the third yet， so I quickly got Knock Three Times and listened to the audiobook while reading the hard copy of Never and Forever。 Do bear with me if my synopsis is a bit jumbled。 Xar， Wish， and Bodkin are on the final journey to save the world from the witches after many a perilous adventure to obtain the ingredients for the spell to get rid of witches。 Their parents， Encanzo and Sychorax， while still determined to lock up their children for the greater good， seem to be on the verge of discovering that love is actually a beautiful weakness rather than something to toss away， and time is running out for poor Squeezjoos。 It's quite the remarkable situation。 But help is always available for those who ask， and although the Chewgink （Kingwitch） seems quite unstoppable， the children know that you can't always run from Witches: sometimes you have to face them。 Altogether， it's quite a lot to take in， but I think that has always been the beauty of this series。 The Wizards of Once is a rather unique set of books。 There's a raw realism to each episode that avoids being crude or ghastly but still turns on real emotion。 Many children's fantasy adventures rely heavily on tropes and predictable writing styles， but Cowell is adept at combining just enough of the expected with the unexpected to give us a pleasing tale with high morals that doesn't feel preachy or unattainable。 The untidy drawings enhance the themes of courage， acceptance， and second chances， and the twist at the end had just the right balance of thrilling and cozy。 This book （and Knock Three Times） was a lovely way to spend a Saturday afternoon。 。。。more
Erin
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This was a fun series for kids。 Honestly， the most mind blowing part was the very end of this book that hypothesized where the main characters’ futures would take them。 Highly recommend for kids in elementary school。
Athina Petromichelaki
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Long awaited - read in greek with 9 year old Stella who now wants her own goodreads accountStella gives 4，5 stars， liked the fast and adventurous pace， thought it was well written and fun。 She was furious with the identity of the narrator， considers it a betrayal and Cressida a cheat as she had mentioned that the narrator would be from the first book。 Also says she does not see the use of the adult names at the end of the book and that it felt rather pointless。 Adult view I quite enjoyed it but Long awaited - read in greek with 9 year old Stella who now wants her own goodreads accountStella gives 4，5 stars， liked the fast and adventurous pace， thought it was well written and fun。 She was furious with the identity of the narrator， considers it a betrayal and Cressida a cheat as she had mentioned that the narrator would be from the first book。 Also says she does not see the use of the adult names at the end of the book and that it felt rather pointless。 Adult view I quite enjoyed it but less than the other 3 books。 Liked the adventures and me too felt the adult names and more so their connection annoying。 Spoilers ahead。 。 。 。 。 。 。 。 So why， why why？ Why would they need to be Arthur and Morgana and Lancelot in any version of the future？ When in character they are nothing alike？ And their formed connections would make it very unlikely to fulfill such or any similar story。 Pointless and spoils the ending， sorry Cressida it a 3 from me 。。。more
Marie the Librarian
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Aww what a great ending to a great series。
Daboss Chi
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Ok I wanna start off with saying Cressida is lit but she didn't do as well on this book。 Since the start of the wizards of once I always felt like this series was a bit randomly pieced together。 Without clear rules of magic its left them to add anything at anytime without much issue。 But it also made it feel like natural。 There's not much lead up to things。 But in book 4 this issue became much more apparent with the ending。 I wont say what exactly happend but I have to say it definitely ruined i Ok I wanna start off with saying Cressida is lit but she didn't do as well on this book。 Since the start of the wizards of once I always felt like this series was a bit randomly pieced together。 Without clear rules of magic its left them to add anything at anytime without much issue。 But it also made it feel like natural。 There's not much lead up to things。 But in book 4 this issue became much more apparent with the ending。 I wont say what exactly happend but I have to say it definitely ruined it all for me。 The book was going fine by my standards but the ending is just so so painful。 If u know anything about the ending you'll also realize how messed up it is。 Anyways I have to say book 3 was a master piece with bodkins finally getting the spotlight and becoming a hero but book 4 ruined it。 I'd recommend if you read book 4 just stop a bit before the end 。。。more
Margaret
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Mr 10 and I loved it。
Naomi Campbell
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I confess I do not know enough about other stories to have understood the depth of this story。 However I did read it aloud to our 14-year-old son who does know and understand the depths of many， many other stories， and he rated this one three stars。 He said it didn't quite work exactly right or something to that effect。 But we did like it。 We liked the hilarity and the continuation of the story from the previous books。 We liked the filling in of some blanks and finding out who the narrator was。 I confess I do not know enough about other stories to have understood the depth of this story。 However I did read it aloud to our 14-year-old son who does know and understand the depths of many， many other stories， and he rated this one three stars。 He said it didn't quite work exactly right or something to that effect。 But we did like it。 We liked the hilarity and the continuation of the story from the previous books。 We liked the filling in of some blanks and finding out who the narrator was。 I wrote down a couple of Keepers for my journal:You must be careful what you say to children。 For children will listen。How quickly jubilation can turn to despair。Sometimes home， you see， is not a place。 It is being with the person that you love。 Where THEY are， is home。 。。。more
Kassie
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Crissida Cowell has done it again！ A ridiculously fun and surprising story with a powerful message！ I loved this series， maybe not as much as How to train your dragon， but still very， very good！
Kevin Zwiefelhofer
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Wonderful series and would recommend to everyone。 If you like to listen to audio books， we listened to books two & three and the reading was well done and entertaining。 Would have done book four as well on audio if our library had it available。
Carl Power
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A satisfying conclusion to a fun and exciting series。 The story kept me entertained throughout with beautiful illustrations scattered between pages that made the novel an experience。
Kafl
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What an amazing finale to an amazing series！ It is the perfect finish， all wrapped up， elegantly。 I didn't guess the narrator but wasn't surprised when i found out either。 I don't know if cressida cowell can come up with a third series after how to train your dragon and the wizards of once but i shall be waiting expectantly。。。 What an amazing finale to an amazing series！ It is the perfect finish， all wrapped up， elegantly。 I didn't guess the narrator but wasn't surprised when i found out either。 I don't know if cressida cowell can come up with a third series after how to train your dragon and the wizards of once but i shall be waiting expectantly。。。 。。。more
Carlee Beatty
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This would have had 5 stars except that Cressida Cowell is a liar about the narrator。 I don't care about her change of heart， but it is messed up to have something explicitly laid out in every book and the rules there and then it is a lie。 This would have had 5 stars except that Cressida Cowell is a liar about the narrator。 I don't care about her change of heart， but it is messed up to have something explicitly laid out in every book and the rules there and then it is a lie。 。。。more
Jennifer
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The spoon was my favourite character throughout the entire series。
Emma
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3。75 stars。Never and forever is a satisfying end to this quartet of books。 Up until the last chapter， a sting in the tail， this was probably a four and a half stars book or so。 The characters developed and grew， the plot lines were tied up nicely and the hero's lived happily ever after。 Overall I enjoyed this book and was pleasantly surprised by the identity of the unknown narrator。 Recently worth reading to finish the series。 This series would also be good for anyone who has read the how to tr 3。75 stars。Never and forever is a satisfying end to this quartet of books。 Up until the last chapter， a sting in the tail， this was probably a four and a half stars book or so。 The characters developed and grew， the plot lines were tied up nicely and the hero's lived happily ever after。 Overall I enjoyed this book and was pleasantly surprised by the identity of the unknown narrator。 Recently worth reading to finish the series。 This series would also be good for anyone who has read the how to train your dragon books or needs some light fun reading。 。。。more
Chris
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3。25⭐️
James
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Never and Forever follows Wish， Xar， Bodkin and friends as they travel to get the final piece of their plan to destroy the witches。 This book tests the bonds of the characters so much and I loved it even as it made me cry。 There's a particular scene near the beginning that I did not see coming and it broke my heart。 If there was ever a moment I wanted to hug a book character， it was Squeezjoos。 All of character development for Wish， for Xar， for Bodkin and for the parents all came together in th Never and Forever follows Wish， Xar， Bodkin and friends as they travel to get the final piece of their plan to destroy the witches。 This book tests the bonds of the characters so much and I loved it even as it made me cry。 There's a particular scene near the beginning that I did not see coming and it broke my heart。 If there was ever a moment I wanted to hug a book character， it was Squeezjoos。 All of character development for Wish， for Xar， for Bodkin and for the parents all came together in this final book。 The parents were forced to confront the darker elements they had each let run rampant。 Throughout the series both the King of the Wizards and Queen of the Warriors have both been heading towards something。 It finally happens in this book and I was so happy。 It's been a long time since a middlegrade book had me crying the way this one did。 It was a perfect ending to this series， though。 I can't wait to see what comes next。 。。。more
Jessica Bird
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 My kids （6 & 8） loved this series but this book didn’t quite match the others as the action is slower。 The ending was a real disappointment and just plain weird。 It goes off on a totally unrelated tangent and we felt a little fooled after being told the unknown narrator was someone who had been in it from the first book but turned out not to be。 Trying to guess who it was was a real highlight throughout the story and to have been given a false clue in an earlier book felt disingenuous。 Maybe we My kids （6 & 8） loved this series but this book didn’t quite match the others as the action is slower。 The ending was a real disappointment and just plain weird。 It goes off on a totally unrelated tangent and we felt a little fooled after being told the unknown narrator was someone who had been in it from the first book but turned out not to be。 Trying to guess who it was was a real highlight throughout the story and to have been given a false clue in an earlier book felt disingenuous。 Maybe we missed something。。。 Overall I’m glad to read this series but wish we’d skipped the last chapter and epilogue。 。。。more
Rachel Meyer
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Wow。 What an ending to the series。 I applaud you， Cressida Cowell。She managed to wrap everything up， but in a way that didn't feel contrived。 It left me feeling happy that the characters had achieved their goals， but also mildly worried for their futures。 And we finally found out who the narrator was。I really like the style of this series。 It's got a depth to it a lot of middle grade doesn't have。 The narration is beautiful， hopeful but a little bit pragmatic。 I liked all the parts about being t Wow。 What an ending to the series。 I applaud you， Cressida Cowell。She managed to wrap everything up， but in a way that didn't feel contrived。 It left me feeling happy that the characters had achieved their goals， but also mildly worried for their futures。 And we finally found out who the narrator was。I really like the style of this series。 It's got a depth to it a lot of middle grade doesn't have。 The narration is beautiful， hopeful but a little bit pragmatic。 I liked all the parts about being the ones to create change， create a new world where people can live together in peace。And the characters。 They have grown so much。 Which is good， because I don't feel like they had a lot of development in this book。 More of a solidifying of what they've learned over the series。 I also ship the wizard king and warrior queen so hard。 They are precious。This is an absolutely fabulous series and I would recommend it to anyone of any age。 。。。more
Gundenhagen
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My favorite part was when （view spoiler）[all the warriors and wizards were fighting the Droods while Wish and the Kingwitch were exploding each other。 （hide spoiler）] My favorite part was when （view spoiler）[all the warriors and wizards were fighting the Droods while Wish and the Kingwitch were exploding each other。 （hide spoiler）] 。。。more
Attia
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This last instalment of the Wizards of Once series was amazing！ So well written and concise too。 I loved the idea of a retelling of famous figures such as Arthur and Morgana Le Fay and Lancelot。 Ingeniously written。。。 I’m now tempted to read the ‘How To Train Your Dragon’ series。
Amy
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I was disappointed in the conclusion of this great series。 I found that the last book was too drawn out and anticlimactic。 My kid even said “why did she have to do that in the end， tie it into another story？ Why couldn’t it have been a story all on its own？” That said， we loved the series， and would recommend it to families and kids 8-11。 I especially loved the dynamic between the parents and children trying their hardest but not getting it right。 I also loved the way the reader was always inclu I was disappointed in the conclusion of this great series。 I found that the last book was too drawn out and anticlimactic。 My kid even said “why did she have to do that in the end， tie it into another story？ Why couldn’t it have been a story all on its own？” That said， we loved the series， and would recommend it to families and kids 8-11。 I especially loved the dynamic between the parents and children trying their hardest but not getting it right。 I also loved the way the reader was always included in the story by the narrator。 You really felt part of it and invested in the story。 。。。more
Travis Bow
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