If you're a writer or someone who likes to think more deeply than just the immediate text, you may really like this series. I can't remember who recommended this to me, but it's an amazing read on a number of levels.

This series keeps getting stronger and stronger...and it's now at a point where I may break my habit of waiting for trade paperback collections and go hunt up any issues after this one just so I don't have to wait to read more..... ( )

We're finally starting to get into the guts of where Tom gets his power from! Obviously it comes from the mass subconscious (as explained previously), but Wilson Taylor himself seems to be an agent of his power as well. How else could he produce two children capable of wielding magic?The first child was an accident, but it happened when Taylor sr. was already an agent of the cabal, who know how to channel literary power, but the lot of them doesn't seem to be running around producing magically inclined offspring. Taylor had to figure out how to channel the next child's power more productively, so he turned to a sort of "literary training," and the result was obviously Tommy of the present story. There are still a lot of questions that need to be answered, but it seems like Tommy has finally decided once and for all that he is going to take out the cabal for the good of humanity! ( )

Awesome. the series seems to be finally back to the brilliance of the first volume. I gave up on unwritten for a year after being disappointed with volume4. really glad I started up again.

also really appreciated the line "met Martin amis and he was an arse" :) ( )

Oh look, is this another work of fantasy metafiction? Ehehe. Hehe. Hehehe….

This series could only have been written by a lover of fiction, and this installment is no exception. There are so many references, in the characters and the tropes and where the mystery and adventure lead, and the pastiches and homages are spot-on while never truly breaking the flow of the story. Carey is an excellent, creative, and slightly twisted writer and he manages to keep the plot moving without feeling rushed, to walk the line between reality and fiction, to drop hints about the bigger picture without being heavy-handed or intruding on the shorter arc. As usual, I lost myself in the story and was sad when it ended.

8/10 ( )

I started reading this today, and blitzed through it. This series, thus far, has been absolutely awesome, and I simply cannot wait for volume 6.

That said, I can't help but have one minor little quibble. The Cabal Of Arbitrary Evil - if they already all but rule the world, what purpose do they have in trying to quash humanity's will (which has clearly been their goal since volume 2)?

Wouldn't it be less expensive, in the long run, to more gently shape humanity's will to fit their purposes, then to force it into shape like a Japanese rectangular melon. What purpose does it serve. They're set for cash, and it seems that before they started clenching their fingers too much, their position was secure. However, their counter-attacks against Taylor, and particularly the actions of Pullman, seem to be doing more to screw themselves over, then to save themselves. It's like trying to put out a fire on a burning ship with gunpowder than with water - it probably won't put out the fire, unless you blow a hole in the ship, but then you have a bigger problem.

Well, maybe next volume will answer these questions. ( )