Not as great.
I have read all of the books in the series. This is sort of like an in-between book, a filler. It has no prophecey, and they're isn't too much action compared to the other books. I liked all of the other books, especially the Code of Claw, but this was by FAR the worst of them.

Great book...but more horrifying than it appears
I am a K-5 school librarian and I highly recommend the first 3 books in this series for 4th and 5th graders and up. However, the 4th and 5th books in this series are much more detailed in their description of battle and genocide; children under the age of 12 may need some guidance when reading these sections. However, it truly is a wonderful and insightful book.

susan howard's students
This book talks about Gregor going into the Underland practically everyday. When he goes to Gregor's friend's birthday Hazard,he falls into this mission with Luxa to save the nibblers(mice)from the danger that they're in,the only problem is that they don't know what's wrong. The whole hunt to help the mice turn into a picnic with little kids and everything. While they go on this "picnic" as they called it turned into just trying to survive an earthquake that gives them no choice but go to the Firelands where they have to go up against rats,scorpions,volcanoes,and poisinous gases. When they finally get out of there they decide that Luxa and a few others should go finds the mice while Gregor takes the kids back to Regalia. While he is there he decides to read the prophecy that everybody wants him to avoid "The Prophecy of Time".

This story is pretty cool because it has like a problem in every other paragraph and has a very suspenseful ending. Gregor is starting to realize that he has feelings for Luxa,but doesn't know how to say it. This story is cool and I'm glad I started reading this book.4

Jonatan Salinas-5th grade
I like the book because it's interesting and each chapter has a problem.
If Boots didn't come with Gregor it would be easier. When she fell in the water I felt so scared that he will never see her again, but after he finishes one more prophecy his family will have to move and never see his friends in the underland never again-that is my prediction.

Deeper and deeper into the abyss we go......
DISCLAIMER: This review assumes that you have read the first three books in the series or are at least familiar with the basic outline of the story.

"Gregor and The Marks of Secret" is the first part of the final story arc for the series, and it's cliffhanger ending sets the stage well for the last book. My daughter got me hooked on reading the Gregor books after she had been raving about them. She wanted to be able to discuss them with me after I had read them, so I willingly jumped in and got into the plot. The books are obviously written for a younger audience, but Suzanne Collins has added some pretty heady issues into the storyline, so much so that what started out as a basic series of adventure books has now taken on some of the elements of classic tragedy.

Book 4 starts out innocently enough, with Gregor merely visiting the Underland to train and renew friendships. But things go quickly awry as word gets to the humans in Regalia that the mouse population is disappearing. Gregor and his friends sneak away to gain information on what's going on, and end up getting wrapped up in yet another prophesy that foretells doom for all.

I was particularly struck by the sense of darkness and foreboding that was present in this volume. Not unlike the Harry Potter series, Collins has ratcheted up the violence quotient with every installment. Tension builds as Gregor gets into tougher and tougher scrapes. I was also struck by how Collins has added subtle references to racism and even the Holocaust to the text. There is even one point where one character says something to the effect of "The only good nibbler is a dead nibbler!", a loaded reference if I have ever heard one!

Still, the level of violence in this book is somewhat beyond the level of the adolescent audience that Collins has targeted. I could see younger readers getting upset and asking quite a few questions as their favorite characters get put into increasingly dangerous situations. Collins has never avoided the repercussions of violence in this series, and in fact that's one of the things that recommends it, but the dark tone almost overwhelms this book. Most of the humor of the earlier books has been replaced with an overbearing sense of WEIGHT.

I was also intrigued by the developing relationship between Gregor and Luxa. There's good fodder there for tragedy as well, but I guess that I'm getting ahead of myself. If you've read this far in the series, then you have to read this volume as well. It's compelling reading for sure.

Recommended.