The perfect end to my favorite series.

This was an incredibly bittersweet book for me, I started reading this series at 10 years old and this series has just been such an amazing ride for me during tough times.
Once again, I was left intrigued and invigorated by the final mystery.

Type of reading: Heavy read, best read in big chunks of sittings
It's all so bitter-sweet to read the last edition of Scarlet and Ivy. But the knowledge that Rookwood is now safe and sound, their mother's wish was finally granted, and that they continue studying at Rookwood is just so peaceful.
Compared to the other edition of the series, I am very grateful that the author expanded the story of the twin's family. It's great to see that the twins finally feel safe at home and that their father acts like a father figure (well the father is ok, he seems to be depressed after Emilie's death).
The final page of the book was honestly the most breathtaking as now we have discovered all of Rookwood's secrets and adventures that the Whispers in the Walls left for the future generation (us!).

What a lovely finale to an amazing series. I felt that it was implying that the books everyone is reading by Sophie Cleverly are the 6 diaries (it probably wasn't but I have a wild imagination). I'm so sad that this is the end but I've got so many more amazing books to read now. Maybe I'll reread it all in the near future...

The Last Secret is the 6th and final book in the Scarlet and Ivy series, in which Scarlet and Ivy face off a threat that could very well mean the end of Rookwood School itself.

THE BAD:

Much like the fifth book for me, I found the set up was quite predictable. In book 5, I could guess the mystery from a mile away, and in this book, there was really no mystery, just them defeating the threat. This was my only issue with the book. In books 1-4, there was always an extremely satisfying payoff at the end, where all the threads were tied together unexpectedly, but nicely. In Book 5 however, since the threat was children, it just felt at lesser stakes. In this book, there was no mystery...we know from the get go what's going on, we just need to stop it. And I found this fine, and just enjoyed going along for the ride, but I think there could've been a little more tension and mystery, instead of just trying to prove what was going on.
I think this series would've been perfect for me if the fifth book was just entirely removed from the story. This way it would flow a lot better. Or at least something different for the fifth book!

THE GOOD:

I found this book to hit all the right beats it should have in the finally, especially the last 100 pages or so. At first, the build up is slow, but then, we get right cracking into the action, and it's really exciting.
While the mystery element is missing, this book has all the other aspects of a usual S&I book: a dark, creepy feeling about Rookwood, some personal drama between the girls, and the girls using crazy schemes and tactics to achieve their goals.
This was one of the highlight of the book for me: the clever ways they went about their business, especially the whole fiasco with

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getting into Matron's room. That whole sequence was so cool for me, with all the girls operating different parts.

. Seeing the girls all play a part was very nice.

Another part of the book that I really enjoyed, was how pretty much every book that came before it, as much as I hate to admit it, even book 5 , played a part in achieving their goal. A scene that I loved immensely was

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when they visit Miss Fox in jail.

That, I felt, really tied in the whole series beautifully. Of course, the threat from Book 2 coming into extreme play, the whole fiasco that happened in Book 3 with Miss Finch had boosted the trust between them and

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had gotten the keys of Miss Fox, which in turn helped them get into the vault

. And Book 4 was only lightly glazed over, but

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Rose's family lawyer did play a part in stopping Henry Bartholomew

. And of course, if Ebony from book 5 hadn't

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kept the keys to the principal's office

, it would've slowed the girls down immensely. It was just the perfect culmination of all of the events to ultimately acheive their goal.

I'm sorry for the long spoilers, but I just have to take about this:

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The part where they visit back home and finally expose their stepmother for poisoning their dad and just in general all the sketchy things she did, was the best part of the book for me. I had been unsure if we would ever get the final conclusion to this underlying storyline that has been repeated throughout every book. After book 3, I wondered how Sophie Cleverly was going to expand it, why she hadn't left it at just a trilogy. But of course, now I see all the loose threads: Rose's family, Rookwood School's ownership, and their stepmother's cruelty. Let's not talk about book 5... This section to me was just the thing from this book that I hadn't realized I'd needed. A final tie up of a threat that has been underlying throughout the whole series. Thank you, Sophie Cleverly for doing this!

.

MY FINAL THOUGHTS:
All in all, I thought The Last Secret was a very well executed conclusion. The only problems I had with it, where the lack of mystery, but apart from that, I felt the author hit every single beat she should have to create this finale. I have loved this series since the first book , and have gotten every book since book 2 on the release date. While I think that it dropped a bit in Book 5, all in all this is a marvellous series, and I hope the length of this review proves my love for it. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in Rookwood School, and cannot wait to see what Sophie Cleverly does next!