Reviews

Crown of Shadows by C.S. Friedman

mrbear's review against another edition

4.0

A reasonable end to the story. It's an unremarkable series, but well done for what it is. The storyline with Tarrant is essentially the only part of the series that is consistently intriguing, but I don't regret having read it.

bucketsjen's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

The Coldfire Trilogy is a classic science fantasy series -  with a developed magical system, solid plot, and characters who can feel typical to those familiar with the genre but who are easy to get attached to nonetheless. 

The third and final book of the trilogy was my least favorite. Most of the book is great and would have earned four stars just like the first two, but at the end...

the magical system that the author has put into place and detailed was always one of my favorite things about this series. And for the ending, she threw that out of the window and had the magic system work atypically just to get a specific "good" ending.

. So, it felt weird and contrived and just out of place for its own world. 

The series is still worth reading and it's enjoyable, but the way it pulled together at the end ultimately didn't sit wholly right with me. Not enough that I won't re-read it or recommend it, but enough that I felt weak and bothers me a bit. 

shiverowl's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

seethefox's review against another edition

3.0

If you plan on reading this series DO NOT READ IT IN E-BOOK FORMAT.

Somehow actual editing was skipped and the random italics ruined the whole book for me. Annoying, distracting, and confusing.

sonice's review

3.0

3.0 stars. You know, it was fine. Maybe a little too fine. Nothing really shocked me about how it all ended up... I wouldn't say it was predictable, but it didn't blow my socks off either. I'm just not a fan of when things work out so well. I think maybe it's a product of it's time in that regard.

I'm still glad to have read it - and despite the very average rating on the final instalment, I could see myself re-reading this trilogy one day down the road. There was still plenty to like.

tasteepig's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

coriandercake's review against another edition

4.0

Great ending to the series. It wasn't as depressing as I thought it'd be. The worst part of this series are the female characters, which just seemed to get worse with each book. In this one, we were down to a single woman, who didn't do anything except act as a love interest.

styracosaurus's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

3.25

mpoper's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

jmschomers's review against another edition

2.0

Didn’t care about a single character in this book