Though I was tempted to drop this rating one star because of its length, I had to overlook it. Overall this is certainly not the average happily-ever-after story. I almost stopped reading it several times because it all was so bleak, and though it never really came to a standstill it had its moments. And even though this seems like I'm thinking poorly of this book, I still think it was fantastic. Funke is truly talented in the way that she can become so descriptive and make up a whole new world without becoming overwhelming. The way she weaved snippets of information about the "Inkworld" leaves the reader at the end very knowledgeable without feeling like she just came out of a history class. And her characters. Her characters I absolutely adored. They ranged from the wrinkled old writer of the world they all are in, to the Arabic boy that seems to have relationships with more than one of the characters, to Mo, the steadfast father, who sadly makes a much smaller appearance in this book as he is unconscious for most of it. They are developed in ways that makes them seem like real, living, people who aren't always predictable or perfect.
The ending, dark as it may be, was still good. It was obvious that she was already planning her sequel (InkDeath), and I wasn't sure if I was happy or sad about that. While I have certainly read longer books than this one (it was 635 pages), it seemed like on of the longest. And I believe the next one is even longer. Hopefully with less death, but not likely. I know that his has been a scatterbrained review, but I am torn how to describe this book. The best I can say is: read it for yourself.