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4.18 AVERAGE
4.18 AVERAGE
HOW GOOD WAS THIS?!
I will tell you folks. It was so fucking good.
Welcome, readers. For those of you who've stuck through from the start of The Winner's Curse, well... gird your loins folks, you've got a wild and wonderful ride ahead of you. For those of you who happen to have by some strange chance stumbled across my blathering, raving review, seriously: go now. Go! Even if you find it only mildly enjoyable, I promise you, IT GETS SO MUCH BETTER.
I can't even begin to explain how I enjoyed this finale of this book. The gentleness but still strong foundation of action, suspense, and romance of the Winner's Curse is just the bare bones--sure, you have interest, you have excellent characters, you have a world divided. But by the end of The Winner's Crime you will be GOBSMACKED. Left hanging by mere threads, heart in shreds, you will wait in anticipation much as I did for the finale to finally reach your grasping fingertips
Only to behold this PERFECT conclusion. Oh, my, word.
I seriously could not find a single flaw with this finale. Arin and Kestrel are depicted with even more depth and nuance than before, and supporting characters such as Roshar and even Kestrel's father are depicted with such honesty. UGH. How I enjoyed Roshar. For me, each character's struggles with family, war, loyalty, and betrayals hit just the perfect spot, not too ridiculous, absolutely believable, and so heartwrenching. And the drama... the action... the skill of Marie Rutkoski's clever weaving of this intricate story, oh man, put a fork in me, I am DONE.
Sorry not sorry for the mad ravings. What can I say folks. Just read the DANG thing already!!
I will tell you folks. It was so fucking good.
Welcome, readers. For those of you who've stuck through from the start of The Winner's Curse, well... gird your loins folks, you've got a wild and wonderful ride ahead of you. For those of you who happen to have by some strange chance stumbled across my blathering, raving review, seriously: go now. Go! Even if you find it only mildly enjoyable, I promise you, IT GETS SO MUCH BETTER.
I can't even begin to explain how I enjoyed this finale of this book. The gentleness but still strong foundation of action, suspense, and romance of the Winner's Curse is just the bare bones--sure, you have interest, you have excellent characters, you have a world divided. But by the end of The Winner's Crime you will be GOBSMACKED. Left hanging by mere threads, heart in shreds, you will wait in anticipation much as I did for the finale to finally reach your grasping fingertips
Only to behold this PERFECT conclusion. Oh, my, word.
I seriously could not find a single flaw with this finale. Arin and Kestrel are depicted with even more depth and nuance than before, and supporting characters such as Roshar and even Kestrel's father are depicted with such honesty. UGH. How I enjoyed Roshar. For me, each character's struggles with family, war, loyalty, and betrayals hit just the perfect spot, not too ridiculous, absolutely believable, and so heartwrenching. And the drama... the action... the skill of Marie Rutkoski's clever weaving of this intricate story, oh man, put a fork in me, I am DONE.
Sorry not sorry for the mad ravings. What can I say folks. Just read the DANG thing already!!
4.5 stars!
A beautiful ending to a beautiful story. This trilogy will always be dear to me.
A beautiful ending to a beautiful story. This trilogy will always be dear to me.
Great end to the trilogy. Everything wrapped up nicely and I wasn't disappointed in anything, but at the same time I wasn't surprised either.
Definitely not a disappointing series.
Definitely not a disappointing series.
3.5. Too much battle stuff that sang clear, not enough time devoted to the very rushed ending.
I couldn't put this book down! What a wonderful way to end the series! (Now where is my movie adaptation?)
To be completely honest, I had forgotton a lot of the details of the plot of this series but it didnt matter too much in the end...because so does one of the characters so things get explained. This is a novel plotted entirely around a revolution; described in tactical detail that still never really focuses on the bigger picture of the war itself. Glossing over the thornier details of war and the instability in the aftermath is a massive oversight in novels about fictional wars and this series certainly did that. The ending was too abrupt, yet the story was incredibly successful with its vivid central characters and the portrayal of all the ways love and war transformed them. This is a smart, gorgeously written series that I'm glad I read.
The ending was just a little too neat for me, but it was a mostly thrilling ride and I enjoyed the series as a whole well enough. The MC finally got her shit together enough to realize that lying and avoiding talking to people about important things is stupid. I -hate- entire plots involving this tired ass trope. JUST TALK TO EACH OTHER FUCKING HELLS. The entirety of book two could have been mitigated by one honest conversation. -_- Anyways, overall decent, but holy shit frustrating characters sometimes.
3.5 stars
I kind of wished I'd reread The Winner's Crime at least because I spent the first 25% of the book trying to remember who the supporting characters were.
For me it didn't quite live up to the intrigue of the 2nd book. Kestrel's amnesia was too contrived for me. It didn't feel earned and seemed to be just another way to add obstacles and drama to Kestrel and Arin's relationship (as if there weren't enough already).
I still enjoyed it though. I like Marie Rutkowski's writing style; it manages to not be either overly flowery or dry and basic (the two writing styles for most ya high fantasy). Over the course of the three books she managed to win me over on the concept of Kestrel and Arin despite my misgivings at the beginning and the relationship is still compelling here - I just thought it was MORE compelling when their obstacles were political intrigue, deception and betrayal rather than contrived plot amnesia.
I kind of wished I'd reread The Winner's Crime at least because I spent the first 25% of the book trying to remember who the supporting characters were.
For me it didn't quite live up to the intrigue of the 2nd book. Kestrel's amnesia was too contrived for me. It didn't feel earned and seemed to be just another way to add obstacles and drama to Kestrel and Arin's relationship (as if there weren't enough already).
I still enjoyed it though. I like Marie Rutkowski's writing style; it manages to not be either overly flowery or dry and basic (the two writing styles for most ya high fantasy). Over the course of the three books she managed to win me over on the concept of Kestrel and Arin despite my misgivings at the beginning and the relationship is still compelling here - I just thought it was MORE compelling when their obstacles were political intrigue, deception and betrayal rather than contrived plot amnesia.
The opening of this third book is absolutely captivating, with Kestrel trapped in a work camp that drugs her for compliance. I love the politics, the romance, and even though I normally hate big battles, I still really enjoyed The Winner's Kiss. A satisfying end to a series.