Archibald Lox and the Legion of the Lost concludes Darren Shan’s newest series, and what a ride it was.
Finding himself in the most peculiar and deadly of situations, Archie and his friends must use every ounce of cunning and strategy they can muster if they are to survive. Overall, this was a fantastic series and true to Shan’s style. However, and this pains me to say this, Archibald Lox and the Legion of the Lost left me satisfied by the story we were given but unfulfilled because of the story and journey we could have had. Certain elements of the series were built up from Book 1, and the possibilities were endless. I feel as though we were given the ending we were because the story had to end in Book 9, not because the story was actually finished. I truly feel Archie’s journey deserved another installment which would have allowed for the full journey to be explored.
The characters and depth to which they were developed are on par with Shan’s Cirque du Freak series. Each personality came through in the beginning, and I would have loved to see more of that development in this last installment (the last three books, to be precise) of the new (and revealed) characters. The Merge was described so vividly that I felt as though I were there with Archie and Inez.
I was blessed by the reading gods to be allowed to read ARCs of this series, and I cannot express how exciting that was. The positives outweigh any negatives, and the series will definitely go on my recommended list. A part of me will always wish Shan had explored the ending and inner journey as much as he had in Cirque du Freak/The Saga of Darren Shan, but Archie’s journey was delightful, thrilling, insightful, and would make a great movie (provided the studio not rewrite the script).