Endling: The Last

Endling: The Last
Katherine Applegate
Harper, 2018 381 pages
Grades 4-7
Fantasy
Endling series #1

When her pack is attacked and Byx is the only survivor, she becomes an endling, the last of her species of darines, dog-like creatures who can talk, glide almost like flying and sense dishonesty in others. She sets off on a quest to hopefully find more of her kind and meets fellow travelers along the way in Wizard of Oz fashion: one at a time. The first is Tobble, a small creature of the wobbyk species, which is thought to be insignificant. Next is Khara, a human girl who poses as a male poacher and harbors other secrets about her true identity. They end up picking up a few other travelers who join their band, including Gambler, a cat-like creature known as a felivet and two different human young men. It is hard to know who to trust, even with Byx being able to decipher lies, and mistakes are made. The dangers are many and the crew of friends must more than once fight for their lives. The power-hungry ruling humans are looking to eliminate darines, as well as other species that may threaten their control. Byx is not only the last known darine, but is in grave danger of being hunted down. This unlikely band of allies learns to trust each other, overcome past hurts, and become a family, all while escaping the bad guys and following the trail to where other darines are rumored to exist. The moving island of the darines is in view as the story ends, leading the reader to the next installment, yet to be released.

Applegate leaves the world of realistic fiction, where she has been living the past few years of her successful career, back to a place closer to where she got her start when writing the Animorphs series. Certainly of a higher quality than the Animorphs, Applegate has nevertheless created a really cool world with interesting and original creatures, who must survive dangerous circumstances. The action never stops and the plot offers surprises and twists. Adventure lovers will appreciate the many battle scenes, while fantasy lovers will enjoy the truly original new creatures. The book opens with a map, signaling to readers that they need to fasten their seat-belts, a high quality, epic adventure awaits. The plot can get intense at times and there are parts of the story that are truly tragic and sad, yet Applegate manages to infuse humor within the story. All of the main characters are likable and enduring and will surely appeal to readers. The book is a bit long for some readers, but kids who appreciate a nice juicy story will get sucked right in and keep turning pages. Perfect for fans of the Warriors series and anything Rick Riordan, the Endling series will most likely join the cannon of high quality children's fantasy that stands the test of time.