His Dark Materials: The Subtle Knife (Book 2)

His Dark Materials, Book 2

By: Philip Pullman

Narrated by: Philip Pullman, full cast

Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

The spellbinding sequel to The Golden Compass, the modern fantasy classic that Entertainment Weekly named an "All-Time Greatest Novel" and Newsweek hailed as a "Top 100 Book of All Time," continues the epic adventure, catapulting listeners between worlds, and toward a devastating discovery.

Lost in a new world, Lyra finds Will—a boy on the run, a murderer—a worthy and welcome ally. For this is a world where soul-eating Specters stalk the streets and witches share the skies with troops of angels.

Each is searching—Lyra for the meaning of Dark Matter, Will for his missing father—but what they find instead is a deadly secret, a knife of untold power. And neither Lyra nor Will suspects how tightly their lives, their loves, their destinies are bound together...until they are split apart.

A #1 New York Times Bestseller
Published in 40 Countries

“Just as quick-moving and unputdownable as The Golden Compass. . . . The mysteries deepen and the wonders grow even more extravagant.” —The Washington Post

“Pullman’s imagination soars . . . A literary rollercoaster ride you won’t want to miss.”—The Boston Globe

“The story gallops with ferocious momentum . . . Devilishly inventive.” —The New York Times Book Review

Don't miss Philip Pullman's epic new trilogy set in the world of His Dark Materials!
** THE BOOK OF DUST **
La Belle Sauvage
The Secret Commonwealth

Listen to the rest of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials series.

©1997 Philip Pullman

Critic reviews

"The superb production of this fascinating fantasy epic makes it a heart-thumping listening adventure." (AudioFile)

"More than fulfilling the promise of The Golden Compass, this second volume starts off at a heart-thumping pace and never slows down." (Publishers Weekly)

"A resoundingly successful sequel." (Booklist)

Best Book of The Trilogy

In my opinion, this was the best book of the Dark Materials Trilogy. The first book was really hard for me to get into and dragged at times. And the third book was just too long and seems to contradict itself several times. The second book was the only one that seems to have a good pace throughout and wasn't bogged down with too many characters and unnecessary plot points. If only the other books in the series were written as well as this one...

Great!!!

All though this is the low point in "His Dark Materials" the three books togeather are a "6" out of 5. listen to it or read it ITS GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Loved this book - not for children

I loved these 3 books. But I agree with Keri from Colo and another review. This book is not for impressionable children who are still developing their moral and religion beliefs. I am not a Christian btw, but still found some of the anti-established religion messages to be disturbing as this is listed as a children's book

Best narration ever!

This is a great book series, but the narration makes it amazing! I'm ready for book three.

great book.

this is a great series and the narration is decent from everyone.

It's interesting listening to it vs reading it as these characters seemed a lot more harsh in txt format. the audiobook leads a different take on things.

Great book, lousy music.

I loved the story, but the music between the chapters was a bit of overkill.

Another great HDM entry following in TGC footsteps

Having finished the Golden Compass, my girlfriend and I immediately dove into this one. It’s quite a jarring experience at first. The second HDM book is the slowest of slow burns. While the first book takes place entirely in Lyra’s world, a noticeably large portion of the start of the second entry is ALL universe-building. Much of the story focuses on a new world and new characters, leaving readers yearning to get back to the adventures of Lyra. By the end, it was all worth it as Pullman masterfully makes it all come together to show up the big picture of it all by the end.

The performances are great once again. Will is a great addition and Pullman once again delivers a fantastic storytelling. TSK isn’t as satisfying a stand-alone story as TGC, but still succeeds in not only setting up the scene (or universe) for the reader, but also leading us nicely into the conclusion in the final book. If I had to choose, I’d probably prefer TGC over this one, mainly cause I prefer the completion of the story arc from the first book over this one. Both books (and audiobooks) are great though.

Once again, I’d highly recommend to fantasy adventure fans. Definitely listen to TGC first and if you like that one, jump directly into this one.

Mixed Bag

The music between the chapters was too loud, very annoying, and completely unnecessary. However, the actors were superb.

Still great

Read as a kid. Listened as an adult. Still love! A wonderful book. Definitely for an older audience

Loved it

I have been hooked on these books & the TV series that hearing the parts in the show in the book still make me cry. I now know more details from the book that were not in the show & it gives me a greater love for both.