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Oct 04, 2008

Becky rated it:

DuPrau, Jeanne. 2008. The Diamond of Darkhold.

The Diamond of Darkhold is the fourth in the Ember series by Jeanne DuPrau. It begins shortly after the close of the second book in the series, The People of Sparks. The Emberites--now on their way to becoming full citizens of Sparks--are struggling side-by-side with the people of Sparks (their former enemies) to survive the harsh winter months. In the midst of this struggle, a roamer comes to town. Maggs, a woman roamer, a shepherdess, c More...

1 comment like (10 people liked it)

Sep 14, 2008

Roxanne Hsu rated it:

This is an exciting addition to a popular series. Although I kept on reading, fast, because of the actions and the mystery, I was not blown away by either the crafting of the language, or the development of the characters and plot. Lina and Doon are Lina and Doon -- they have not changed from a year ago, even if so much has happened in their life. They came to the series fully developed and little room is left for them to grown into more mature or slightly different people. This is not reall More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Nov 10, 2008

Christine rated it:

I read this book because I liked "The City of Ember" and the "People of Sparks". I expected to be a little disappointed because I was with "The Prophet of Yonwood", however I wasn't. From the very first chapter it kept me reading. Doon and Lina decide to go back to Ember to see if they can salvage anything from their old city to help their new city through the winter, plus they believe the builders have left them something to help their future. I liked the fast More...

2 comments like (4 people liked it)

Sep 04, 2008

Brandi Rae rated it:

Just in time for the movie release of City of Ember, Jeanne DuPrau returns with The Diamond of Darkhold: The Fourth Book of Ember. Life in Sparks is becoming increasingly difficult for everyone; supplies are running low and people are starting to go hungry. With winter coming there is no relief in sight to the hardship.

Visits from roamers, who trade goods and information from town to town, have also slowed; people are running out of useful things to trade. A glimmer of hope comes when More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Sep 15, 2008

Sq.Hill rated it:

So I am truely a copulsive series reader. Even though I did not like the subsequent Ember books as much as the first I continued reading them and had to read this one, the last in the series.

In Diamond of Darkhold, we meet back up with Lina and Doon in the village of Sparks and follow their story for another year's time. This story does not have the same feeling as City of Ember, but it is engaging and easy to read. Times are tough in Sparks and Lina and Doon set out on a journey More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 12, 2008

Brandy rated it:

The people of Ember are now the people of Sparks, and Sparks isn't looking so hot these days--with 400 new mouths to feed, supplies are running low, and winter's only just beginning. A ~~plot device~~ trader comes along and gives Doon the tattered remains of a book; Doon and Lina head back to Ember to save the world.

Eh. It's better than Prophet of Yonwood, but that doesn't say much. Maybe it's the distance from when I read the first book, but this has neither the charm nor complexity of More...

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Jan 29, 2009

Val rated it:

I loved this book. I loved the City of Ember, and was less impressed with the other books in the series (though they were good and necessary).

This book captured the part of Ember that made it such a fantastic book for me. It had all of the adventurous elements and worked very well with the story line.

1 comment like (5 people liked it)

Mar 06, 2009

Brittany rated it:

This book is the fourth installment in the Books of Ember series, and my favorite of all the books. I did like The City of Ember and The People of Sparks, but I thought that ‘Diamond’ wrapped things up in a nice way.
During book two of the series, I always wondered why the people of Ember didn’t go back for resources to help them get settled in their new lifestyle living on the Earth’s surface. So, I thought if finally made some sense that Lina and Doon would go back to Ember to see what More...

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Feb 08, 2009

Bethany rated it:

After the disappointing second and third installments, The City of Ember series mostly redeems itelf in its conclusion. Lina and Doon resume their community-saving adventures and, as usual, their discoveries yield widespread effects. The new characters, although less of a caricature than in The Prophet of Yonwood, still lack depth, and they feel exactly like the plot devices that they are. Without the Darkhold invaders, Lina and Doon might have A) found their goal too quickly for the novel to More...

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Dec 11, 2008

Corinne rated it:

When I saw this one in the library, I knew I wanted to know more about the former residents of the City of Ember. I really enjoyed City of Ember and City of Sparks - Prophet of Yonwood was okay - but I liked this fourth installment, the Diamond of Darkhold better.

We are once again with Lina and Doon in the city of Sparks, as winter is closing in and life is getting very difficult. There is no medicine, food is limited, and the darkness makes life not only more challenging, but more d More...

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Nov 06, 2011

Mara rated it:

At first I had hopes that this book would prove to be a dark and rather creepy installment. Doon and Lina return to Ember! What has happened to it since then? Who has moved in to claim the ruins after the evacuation? What terrible secrets now lurk in the dark? When Lina and Doon first return to Ember, my hopes seemed to be confirmed - it was eerie, dark, and mysterious. But when Doon meets the new occupants of Ember, my hope soon crumbled into disappointment. There's nothing scary about the Trog More...

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Aug 28, 2011

Ival rated it:

The Diamond of Darkhold is the fourth and last installment of the spectacular "Books of Ember" series. It was an absolute thrill to read and I enjoyed watching it come to a formidable end.

When Doon and Lina led the people of Ember out of their dying underground city and into the world above, everything was different and strange. A few months have passed since then, and the people of Ember are living in the small village of Sparks. Life in this new world is difficult, esp More...

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Aug 06, 2011

Sonny rated it:

"Trogg seemed to think that he knew everything, but strangely enough, it was exactly this that made him seem stupid to Doon. A person who thought he knew everything simply didn't understand how much there was to know."" (Doon,79)

Diamond of Darkhold, the final installment of the Book of Ember series marks the closing chapters of Lina and Doon's adventures. On the brink of a terrible winter, food is scarce and sickness has crept into the town of Sparks. If things were to More...

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Jun 05, 2011

Karen rated it:

The people of Ember have been in the town of Sparks for most of a year, and the entire group is struggling to get through the end of the winter. Food is in short supply, and it is difficult to complete work in the dark, shortened days. Lina and Doon discover a mostly-shredded book in the hands of a traveling peddler, and they buy it to study -- the cover has the name "Ember" on it. Though they don't understand it, it gives them the idea to try to return to Ember to see if there is More...

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Mar 05, 2011

Audiaa rated it:

This is the final story in the People of Ember series, and I think it was supposed to show how the human race could rebuild itself after a disaster, but they didn't really get very far in this book. The builders of Ember seemed to have a lot of insight into what the people of Ember would need (though not into what the people NOT of ember might do with it). They decided that the people might need electricity after they left Ember, so instead of teaching them how to use electricity when they we More...

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Dec 23, 2010

Amanda rated it:

The Diamond of Darkhold is about Lina Mayfleet and Doon Harrow going to go back to see they're underground city, The City of Ember. The setting is around the 23rd century and is around a big open valley of where The Village of Sparks and The City of Ember is. Lina's internal conflict is she is so scared to go back because they all left Ember becuase the generator was old, about more than 200 years and after a while it would shut down and restart but it took longer periods of time after the first More...

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Jul 29, 2010

Leighanna rated it:

I started this book series several years ago when it only had two books. I never knew she continued the story. There are 4 books total and the first book was made into a movie not too long ago.

Book One (The City of Ember)- "The city of Ember was built as a last refuge for the human race. Two hundred years later, the great lamps that light the city are beginning to flicker. When Lina finds part of an ancient message, she’s sure it holds a secret that will save the city. She and he More...

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Jun 25, 2010

Lady rated it:

I have loved the Ember series since the first chapter of book one. This book is certainly not a disapointment.
Doon and Lina are back and six months has passed since the action in "People of Sparks", the townfolk are hungry and winter is on its way. One day a wanderer passes through the town and Doon spies a book that she has. Lina offers to trade the wanderer a single match for the remaining pages of the book. The book is entitled "For the People of Ember" and excites More...

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Mar 09, 2010

Lighthearted rated it:

The townspeople of Sparks and the refugees from Ember have settled in together. The winter is brutal, resources are limited and times are difficult: everyone is hungry. When the next roamer comes to town, there is very little to offer in trade. Books always capture Doon’s interest though and the roamer has one—even though it is missing many pages, Lina offers one of their precious matches in trade.

The book seems to indicate that there is a mysterious Builders’ device that may stil More...

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Feb 17, 2010

Tez rated it:

Lina and Doon are struggling through winter when they obtain a book meant for the people of Ember. Only most of the pages have been torn out, and only eight pages remain, mostly graphs. And Sparks is running out of supplies, so Doon and Lina return to Ember to learn and gather what they can. But there's a new danger in their underground city...

I love The City of Ember and The People of Sparks. I skipped the prequel, The Prophet of Yonwood, but the only reference to that is in the epi More...

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Feb 08, 2010

Heather rated it:

This is the fourth in a series that I'd thought was a trilogy. The second book of the series, Prophet of Yonwood, left almost no trace of memory on me at all, probably because DuPrau diverges from the set of characters that prevail in the other books. The third book, People of Sparks, was quite sophisticated in its treatment of two peoples/cultures trying to live in one town under grim conditions. An impressive book, but a bit heavy.

By contrast, I think the Diamond of Darkhold is a More...

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Jan 31, 2010

Ashley rated it:

Would you ever re-enter a dying city that took you several years to escape? Well, that's what Lina and Doon do in the fourth adventure novel,(of the City of Ember series), the Diamond of Darkhold. A roamer comes into the City of Sparks selling Doon a mysterious ragedy book, originally for the people of Ember. Given a limited amount of clues, Doon and Lina set out on an expedition to re-enter their city and find a mysterious jewel. But when they enter the city, Doon finds some not-so-frien More...

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Dec 06, 2009

Runa rated it:

I think this book must have come to be as a result of the criticisms of books 2 & 3 (no return to Ember, lack of Lina and Doon, etc.). While the return to Ember was much anticipated and a welcome plot element, parts of this book were, as a result, overwhelmingly repetitive of the first book. This worked in some instances, but in others, it felt like a desperate return to the successful elements seen in the first book, in order to gain back disappointed fans. I did enjoy seeing Lina and Doon agai More...

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Sep 10, 2009

Patricia rated it:

After I finished The City of Ember, and before I realized there was an Ember series, I spent a few days wondering what, exactly the builders were thinking. Their whole setup seemed great for 200 years, but there seemed to be no plan for how the people of Ember would survive above ground without the collective knowledge of human history. I myself have a smattering of knowledge of how to grow food and consider myself handy, but I'm not sure if I could make it through a winter on my own, and I wa More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Jun 30, 2009

Jennifer rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Apr 30, 2009

Linda rated it:

This is book #4, the final book, in a great YA series! I want to buy the first 3 books. This series takes place in a futuristic world, after it has been annihilated in what was probably a nuclear war. But scientists anticipating the event built an entire underground city, Ember. They estimated when the human race would emerge from the city and left them a clue to something important. However, people emerged from the underground world much later than the scientists had expected. All this happened More...

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Apr 07, 2009

Brandon rated it:

This is the book Diamond of Darkhold which is the fourth and final book of the City of Ember series and a sequel to the People of Sparks. In this book Lina and Doon try and help the town of Sparks. The town of Sparks is running low on supplies during the harsh winters. So Lina and Doon travel to their old city of ember to look for any supplies. Before they leave a traveling tradeswoman comes and has the worst items the town has seen. Lina spots a special book she wants and finds out this w More...

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Feb 08, 2009

Alex rated it:

This book had some promise but I think mostly squandered what could have been a very inspiring re-building of civilization story. It trades the first and second books slight suspension of disbelief requiring realism for pure utopianism. In new society that is created we will all use green energy! yay it's totally plausible. Also have a pony! Also Aliens! it totally ties in with that third book I swear! Was this all the authors fantasy of the world being destroyed but then being rebuilt total More...

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Aug 31, 2011

Nelly rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Feb 03, 2012

Kayla rated it:

This is the fourth and final book in the Ember story, and takes place shortly after the ending of the People of Sparks.

Things are somewhat tense in the town of Sparks, they're in winter now and the food is becoming more scarce. Still, things in the town are going okay, if a bit anticlimactic for Doon and Lina. Doon discovers a hint that the Builders of the City of Ember might have left something for the refugees, while Lina is more optimistic about the idea of salvaging supplies fo More...

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