This book turned out to be a bit of a mixed bag for me. While I thoroughly loved His Dark Materials, I’d be lying if I said that this series isn’t starting with a couple of problems. I’m not going to talk about the overall arching story, as it’s not completed yet, nor will I talk about La Belle Sauvage because this review is about The Secret Commonwealth. Although reviews for this book are overwhelmingly five stars, there are a couple of one stars that are worth noting. I’ll start by saying that if you have any issues with the f-bomb or deadly violence in a book like this it won’t be for you—but if you’re reading my blog, I’m going to assume that it’s not.