The Subtle Knife

Though ostensibly written for children, this heroic and heart-wrenching His Dark Materials trilogy is beloved by readers of all ages. These three novels unlock the door to parallel universes where demons and winged creatures live side by side with humans, and a mysterious entity called Dust just might have the power to unite the universes—if it isn't destroyed first. Lyra, Pantalaimon, Will, and the rest embark on the most breathtaking, heartbreaking adventure of their lives. The fate of the universe is in their hands.Lyra and Will tumble separately into the strange tropical otherworld of Cittàgazze, where adults are curiously absent and children run wild. Their journey is plagued with obstacles, some familiar and some horribly new, but it eventually brings them closer to Will's father and to the Subtle Knife, a deadly, ancient tool that cuts windows between worlds. As the boundaries between worlds begin to dissolve, Lyra and her daemon help Will Parry in his search for his father and for a powerful, magical knife. She had asked: What is he? A friend or an enemy? The alethiometer answered: He is a murderer. When she saw the answer, she relaxed at once. Lyra finds herself in a shimmering, haunted otherworld – Cittàgazze, where soul-eating Spectres stalk the streets and wingbeats of distant angels sound against the sky. But she is not without allies: twelve-year-old Will Parry, fleeing for his life after taking another's, has also stumbled into this strange new realm. On a perilous journey from world to world, Lyra and Will uncover a deadly secret: an object of extraordinary and devastating power. And with every step, they move closer to an even greater threat – and the shattering truth of their own destiny. Will tugged at his mother's hand and said, "Come on, come on..." But his mother hung back.