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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
amazing and wonderful. so sad the trilogy is finished. Harkness needs to write more novels.
adventurous
dark
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
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
1.5/5 stars.
A bleh end to a bleh trilogy.
As with all of my other reviews for the previous two books, this book is a eh for me. There were too many loose ends, the book was overinflated with unnecessary details that could have shorten the novel considerably, and the main characters (and several side characters) were insufferable. It's hard to root for a romance and happy end for a couple that you don't like nor care for. For the most part, my qualms remain the same - Matthew with his disgusting machismo and Diana with her woe-is-me attitude.
I think what also really solidified my annoyance was Diana's reaction to her separation from Matthew, because are you serious? He's not leaving forever and Deborah Harkness wrote Diana as though he was never going to return, that she would never see her (quite frankly) toxic beloved husband ever again. I was so beyond done with Diana and everyone else as well. There was so much eye-rolling and internal screaming because of how frustrating the novel is. I only powered through the rest of it because I was somewhat interested in the Book of Life - and also because I had already devoted too much time to the series. Tragically, much to my frustration, there was no conclusion. Absolutely none. The question of what this book is, where it came from, who wrote it, why it was created, and more - none were answered. The conclusion was lackluster, at best, leaving me annoyed by the plot holes and unanswered issues.
And don't get me wrong, I loved Harkness's prose. Her descriptions of romance between the characters are swoon worthy and extremely emotional. However, it didn't help her in this novel because I found that she wrote unnecessary details that served to only bore me the longer I had to read it.
I just can't recommend this novel but for those who enjoy the somewhat Fated Mates trope with Mary-Sue characters, then maybe you'll find enjoyment in an otherwise mediocre trilogy.
A bleh end to a bleh trilogy.
As with all of my other reviews for the previous two books, this book is a eh for me. There were too many loose ends, the book was overinflated with unnecessary details that could have shorten the novel considerably, and the main characters (and several side characters) were insufferable. It's hard to root for a romance and happy end for a couple that you don't like nor care for. For the most part, my qualms remain the same - Matthew with his disgusting machismo and Diana with her woe-is-me attitude.
I think what also really solidified my annoyance was Diana's reaction to her separation from Matthew, because are you serious? He's not leaving forever and Deborah Harkness wrote Diana as though he was never going to return, that she would never see her (quite frankly) toxic beloved husband ever again. I was so beyond done with Diana and everyone else as well. There was so much eye-rolling and internal screaming because of how frustrating the novel is. I only powered through the rest of it because I was somewhat interested in the Book of Life - and also because I had already devoted too much time to the series. Tragically, much to my frustration, there was no conclusion. Absolutely none. The question of what this book is, where it came from, who wrote it, why it was created, and more - none were answered. The conclusion was lackluster, at best, leaving me annoyed by the plot holes and unanswered issues.
And don't get me wrong, I loved Harkness's prose. Her descriptions of romance between the characters are swoon worthy and extremely emotional. However, it didn't help her in this novel because I found that she wrote unnecessary details that served to only bore me the longer I had to read it.
I just can't recommend this novel but for those who enjoy the somewhat Fated Mates trope with Mary-Sue characters, then maybe you'll find enjoyment in an otherwise mediocre trilogy.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Murder, Pregnancy
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Incest, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, War, Pandemic/Epidemic
- I’m going to be completely honest, this book isn’t a five star read. There is a lot of plot holes, the pacing is series and there is a lot of plot diversion and an obscure ending... but, I absolutely adore this series. This trilogy felt like more of a journey, it had a realistic feel to it (for me) seeing points of happiness and points of sadness that in no way shape of form move along the storyline but are just there to create more depth to the characters and the story. The pacing, while slow, was nice because it allowed me a chance to immerse Myself into Diana’s world. The point of reading is to feel like you know the characters and the characters know you, so diversions from the plot just excelled this point
- the characters development was astounding, I wouldn’t even recognise Diana in book one compared to this book, she is confident, powerful and outspoken and a leader as well as a mother. She is such a different person
- Mathew, if he were a real person, would be perceived as possessive, aggressive, overbearing and toxic. But, being a 1500 year old vampire, he developed wonderfully, finding more to himself than the sad man he used to be, becoming a father and creating a new family to which he will no longer distance himself from
- the ending was not my favourite, maybe it’s because I didn’t want to end the story but it felt incomplete, maybe we will get a spin off? I don’t know I just wanted more but all in all, this book was like a comfort to me, the whole series was so welcoming and I felt like I was taking a journey with Diana
⚠️spoilers⚠️
- the ending was just unfulfilled. What happened with Chris and his research? I know he is now a night of Lazarus dude but will the research be revealed or is that just up to us to decide? It would have been interesting if in the end these books were just written by Diana to be revealed to the world
- Diana discovering her powers more thoroughly, along with Cora being a manifestation of her fear, WOWOW, so so powerful. She developed her abilities and developed herself along with it. Also, absorbing the book of life.. fucking awesome
- Mathew developed well aswell, holding himself to his blood rage and finding control, after coming back from leaving Diana for months and not going on a rampage (which wouldn’t be a lot to ask for of a formal human but whatever) was just a clear show of how much more control he has
- when I knew that this story would have children be the focal point I was upset. I don’t like kids so I thought I would struggle to relate to the characters and events to follow, but I actually found myself enjoying their involvement. It made the characters more real? I don’t know how to say it but the children seemed to ground them all
- Sarah and Agatha getting together in the end made my heart melt. She deserves so much happiness
- the characters development was astounding, I wouldn’t even recognise Diana in book one compared to this book, she is confident, powerful and outspoken and a leader as well as a mother. She is such a different person
- Mathew, if he were a real person, would be perceived as possessive, aggressive, overbearing and toxic. But, being a 1500 year old vampire, he developed wonderfully, finding more to himself than the sad man he used to be, becoming a father and creating a new family to which he will no longer distance himself from
- the ending was not my favourite, maybe it’s because I didn’t want to end the story but it felt incomplete, maybe we will get a spin off? I don’t know I just wanted more but all in all, this book was like a comfort to me, the whole series was so welcoming and I felt like I was taking a journey with Diana
⚠️spoilers⚠️
- the ending was just unfulfilled. What happened with Chris and his research? I know he is now a night of Lazarus dude but will the research be revealed or is that just up to us to decide? It would have been interesting if in the end these books were just written by Diana to be revealed to the world
- Diana discovering her powers more thoroughly, along with Cora being a manifestation of her fear, WOWOW, so so powerful. She developed her abilities and developed herself along with it. Also, absorbing the book of life.. fucking awesome
- Mathew developed well aswell, holding himself to his blood rage and finding control, after coming back from leaving Diana for months and not going on a rampage (which wouldn’t be a lot to ask for of a formal human but whatever) was just a clear show of how much more control he has
- when I knew that this story would have children be the focal point I was upset. I don’t like kids so I thought I would struggle to relate to the characters and events to follow, but I actually found myself enjoying their involvement. It made the characters more real? I don’t know how to say it but the children seemed to ground them all
- Sarah and Agatha getting together in the end made my heart melt. She deserves so much happiness
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I am so torn about this book series. On one hand I love it. I'm intrigued about this story. I love the characters. I love the history and details of the magical world building. And... on the other hand, I feel so unsatisfied. So many questions left unanswered. Dare I say 'gaps'? Whenever it offers a conclusion or solution here at the end... more questions present. Also, we spend a lot of time on beautiful details/imagery (example: what the houses and rooms looked like, the ribbons/weaving), but then we rush past the action. Those are just a few examples of how I'm torn. There are definitely inconsistencies. I think I may want to do a reread at some point even through all this.