Rating: 
Summary: Yes, Virginia, there is a sequel
Review: Not only is there a sequel, there are TWO sequels, and make sure you have them both when you start reading. I didn't know it was a trilogy and got caught with a terrible cliffhanger-feeling at the end of the second book.
By the way, I've heard the whole series is going to be reprinted, starting in 2003! This is great news for all of us who were having problems getting our hands on Book 3, The Whim of the Dragon. (Book 2, The Hidden Land, is much easier to find.)
The book deals with the story of five children who, like those in the Narnia books, travel into a fantasy world. Unlike the Pevensies, though, these children think they know what's happening in this world, because they wrote the script in a game they play! I've never before seen an author play with the idea of entering into your own world like that. Highly recommended, for its enjoyable writing and for its novel ideas!
Rating: 
Summary: Exquisite. Lyrical. The very, very best of writing.
Review: Six stars. _The Secret Country,_ _The Hidden Land,_ and _The Whim of the Dragon_ stand among the very best writing ever done. $5000 won't buy my copies. Pamela Dean's writing style is unique; there is nothing like it anywhere. She's done the only prose writing I know of that captures the feel of Tom O'Bedlam's Song. The story is laced with quotes from that, Shakespeare, and other poetry and literature, and it all fits in naturally, because the same kind of talent that makes stories and poetry here creates magic in the Secret Country.
Rating:
Summary: A fantasy series unlike any other . . .
Review: The Secret Country is the first book in a trilogy which includes The Hidden Land and The Whim of the Dragon. Although the book is about children from roughly 9 to 16 years old, the writing is both descriptive and realistic, aimed to satisfy anyone from young adulthood on up. Ted and Laura, a brother and sister, have grown up with their cousins, Ruth, Patrick, and Ellen, role playing an imaginary game called The Secret. Over the years, the story has grown longer and more elaborate. One summer, a new chapter begins in the children's game when they suddenly find themselves in their imaginary land. The people there recognize them as Prince Edward, Princess Laura, etc., but nothing is as wonderful as it first appears. The children have arrived at the beginning of their game, but what happens if they can't stop it? How will Ted and his cousin, Patrick, survive their fencing lessons? Can Ruth work magic? Will Ted's best friend murder his father? The Secret Country is on the edge of war. Suddenly the game the children vividly imagined looms threateningly before them, and no one is sure how to stop it.
Rating:
Summary: Classic in the making
Review: The Secret Country Trilogy is one of the best reprinted by Firebird Books, one of the best fantasy imprints presently in existance. In the first book, "The Secret Country," Pamela Dean draws readers into a magical story that brings to mind classics of the fantasy genre.Patrick, Ruth, Ellen, Ted, and Laura have played at the "Secret" for almost a decade, weaving elaborate medieval fantasies full of magic, treachery, wizards, unicorns, sorceresses and plenty of political intrigue. But one day things change: Ted and Laura discover a house that wasn't there before, and a little sword with blue stones stuck in a hedge. The sword somehow pulls them into the Secret Country, where their games have become reality. Patrick, Ruth and Ellen have also been pulled into the Secret Country, and now have the status and abilities of their fictional alter egos. But they don't have time to be excited about it, before being swept into a growing war and possible treachery. But the Secret Country now threatens to be more deadly than a mere game -- they don't know as much about the future events as they think, and they aren't sure how they can get back home. While it sounds like a thousand D&D roleplaying novels, "Secret Country's" sense of humor and delicate writing elevate it beyond other novels where the heroes get sucked into their own fantasy world. But despite seemingly cutesy plot elements (unicorns) and names ("Well of the White Witch"), this book avoids being precious at any point. The writing has the crisp quality of old favorites, bringing to mind classic fantasy authors like C.S. Lewis and Susan Cooper. With relatively few words she brings the book's events to life ("Ted was watching Matthew dismember some complicated shellfish"), with humor and plenty of detail. The contrast between the teenage heroes and the medieval lords is sharply defined by their speech and behavior. At the start of the book, like in the Narnia Chronicles, it's a little hard to separate the individual leads from one another. But as the book progresses, they start to become distinct and vivid individually. Clumsy Laura, thoughtful Ted, possibly magical Ruth and the others make good, solid, believable leads for this book. The Secret Country trilogy is being brought to a new wave of fantasy fans. "The Secret Country" is well-written, bright with imagination and well worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: Great book, but better be up on your Shakespeare!
Review: This is a great fantasy book, but not just for little kids! Allusions are as common in the Hidden Land as illusions, and things are seldom as they seem to be, and certainly not as expected! This book and its sequals have so much action and intrigue that they're hard to put down. Will the king be murdered? Will Ted have to kill the murderer? Who is the murderer anyway? And who is Claudia, the woman that the children could never have imagined? Read the book for yourself and find out!
Rating:
Summary: AN AWSOME BOOK!!!!!!
Review: This must be read ferom all ages. Im on the third book now and they are the best. Its got it all magic, dragons, unicorns, betrayel, and friendships.Its an Awesome Triology!!!!!! Read them you will love them.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best Fantasys Ever!
Review: When I first got the book, I probably read it three times in one week! I loved the literature quotes and songs that are worked in. The characters are believable and do not make page-long speeches. The sarcasm and irony is entertaining. It did not hop from one action sceen to the next, it developed naturally. I loved it and I have recommended it to all my friends.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best Fantasys Ever!
Review: When I first got the book, I probably read it three times in one week! I loved the literature quotes and songs that are worked in. The characters are believable and do not make page-long speeches. The sarcasm and irony is entertaining. It did not hop from one action sceen to the next, it developed naturally. I loved it and I have recommended it to all my friends.
Rating:
Summary: PLEASE tell me there's a sequel...
Review: _The Secret Country_ is a fun fantasy about five teenagers and pre-teens who accidentally stumble into the fantasy world that they themselves created in play. Unfortunately, they are their normal selves, not their powerful alter egos, and so they are in a magical medieval kingdom without magical abilities, weapons skills, or even decent horsemanship. And the catch is that everyone expects them to know these things--since their characters do. They get by, becoming involved in court intrigue while trying to stay out of trouble by quick thinking and by calling on their knowledge of the way the world works. And then the world starts to change, with characters and objects behaving in ways they never thought of in their game. This book is a role-player's dream, and perhaps nightmare as well. Pamela Dean once again shows herself a master of characterization, especially in her portrayal of the luckless, klutzy Laura, who just may be more than she seems to be. I just hope there's a sequel, since the story ends just when you'd expect it to start heading for a climax. And for some reason, it leaves me intrigued and fascinated, rather than annoyed.
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