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4.18 AVERAGE
4.18 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Arin imagined how, if he could, he would kneel before the boy he had been. He'd cradle himself to his chest, let the child bury his wet face against his shoulder. Shh, Arin would tell him. You will be lonely, but you'll become strong. One day, you will have your revenge.
Summary
Sent to a brutal work camp by her own father, Kestrel is slowly losing her mind. Meanwhile, Arin, convinced of her betrayal, is doing everything he can to forget about her. This proves to be much harder than he had expected. It seems like even the upcoming war isn't enough to keep his treacherous thoughts at bay.
Writing
I loved Marie's writing in the previous books, but I feel like this one is where it finally peaked. I just couldn't get enough. Her prose got better and better with every single installment in this trilogy and observing this development was nothing short of wondrous.
Characters
Kestrel's arc in this book was amazing. I loved seeing her coming to terms with who she is now, who she was before and how, in the end, those two identities made peace with each other.
Arin also went through a wonderful development, though it definitely wasn't as grand as Kestrel's. He is finally shown as brave and strong instead of foolish and naive. He grows into a man who knows that he is loved and is able to love back. Arin changed from an angry and impulsive boy to someone who I can actually admire.
Plot
I think this whole trilogy is based on forced angst. Though I have to admit - in this book it was done much better than in the previous ones.
I think there was a bit too much romance. The stakes in this book were really high, a lot of important things happened and I feel like they still were just a background to Kestrel and Arin's relationship. Their love story is actually very interesting and exciting… but so is the war. I just think that it could have been balanced a little bit better.
I am also left feeling unsatisfied by the ending. I liked the way a lot of things were resolved. Still, it all felt too rushed. This ending needed a good 20-30 pages to wrap everything up nicely. There is still so many things left unsaid and unanswered, so many characters didn't get the closure they deserved. I just needed a little bit more.
Overall
It was definitely the best book in this trilogy and that leaves me with mixed feelings. On one hand I am really happy that I enjoyed this book and that it gave me so much joy. But on the other, it makes saying goodbye to this world that much harder. I am definitely going to miss those characters. But I will do my best to visit them again as soon as possible.
A beautifully written conclusion to the series.
Hmm. After all the ups and downs in the second book, the climax - the biggest mess of all - should've happened here.
It kind of did, but it didn't feel that good?
I love how much Arin and Kestrel matured. And I hate to say this, but the war... the war was boring. Nothing really scared or shocked me the way the second book did. But it's a brilliant ending for these two, I suppose.
Regardless of how I feel about the war, Marie Rutkoski never stops taking my breath away with her writing. Overall, I think the second book is the best in this trilogy.
It kind of did, but it didn't feel that good?
I love how much Arin and Kestrel matured. And I hate to say this, but the war... the war was boring. Nothing really scared or shocked me the way the second book did. But it's a brilliant ending for these two, I suppose.
Regardless of how I feel about the war, Marie Rutkoski never stops taking my breath away with her writing. Overall, I think the second book is the best in this trilogy.
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
This was a case of a series that got better with each book. The growth the FMC and MMC go through from the beginning to the end is quite dramatic because they age into their roles in the war and their relationship with each other.
The story starts off with a lot of tension with Kestrel and then switches to Arin when you're not sure what's going to become of Kestrel. It was a great back-and-forth between them as they do eventually come together at the place and sometimes alternating POV when they're together so much can get redundant. It worked really well here as it mostly pushed the story forward rather than "rehashing" an alt POV of what we saw from the other character.
I liked Arin's and Roshar's relationship. It was funny and definitely brotherly. Kestrel's relationship with her father was a keystone for her in the war and the ending was as good as you were going to get in her predicament.
I liked all the "games" and intrigue played and the end is a war battle scene that was exciting and nail-biting. It was without a doubt a battle scene at the end!
I overall liked the conclusion and thought it was good. More importantly, I still enjoyed Arin and Kestrel a lot through this book. This is unquestionably a series I would have enjoyed more if I was younger and see why the nostalgia of the series comforts older readers too.
The story starts off with a lot of tension with Kestrel and then switches to Arin when you're not sure what's going to become of Kestrel. It was a great back-and-forth between them as they do eventually come together at the place and sometimes alternating POV when they're together so much can get redundant. It worked really well here as it mostly pushed the story forward rather than "rehashing" an alt POV of what we saw from the other character.
I liked Arin's and Roshar's relationship. It was funny and definitely brotherly. Kestrel's relationship with her father was a keystone for her in the war and the ending was as good as you were going to get in her predicament.
I liked all the "games" and intrigue played and the end is a war battle scene that was exciting and nail-biting. It was without a doubt a battle scene at the end!
I overall liked the conclusion and thought it was good. More importantly, I still enjoyed Arin and Kestrel a lot through this book. This is unquestionably a series I would have enjoyed more if I was younger and see why the nostalgia of the series comforts older readers too.
adventurous
emotional
sad
tense
slow-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:
Complicated
So it looks like this one's gonna be a dnf for me. Almost 200 pages in and I just can't seem to get myself to pick it up and finish it. I forgot most of what happened in the other books and I don't really feel like rereading them and I'm not completely desperate to know how this series ends. Maybe someday I'll have the urge to pick it up and finish it, but I have too many other books I'd rather be reading than trying to struggle through this one.
I love stumbling across a trilogy that surprises me, and this one did. Each installment was better than the one before. This is how I like to see women portrayed in books. This is how I like action portrayed in books. This is how I like to see love and relationships portrayed in books. Changing, growing characters both on their own and together. The trilogy gets five stars from me.
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No