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4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Whew what a finish to the series!! The Big Event in this book is definitely the scariest of all four but the strength and growth and love of the characters in it buoys the reader throughout. Little Briar facing his own fears and growth as a person is the perfect cap to the books.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-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:
No
Reading this after 2 years of being in a pandemic hits different
2023: look. it’s about the found family of it all. NOBODY is doing it like tamora pierce
2018: Why did I just realize Briar and Rosethorn are essentially the same name?
2018: Why did I just realize Briar and Rosethorn are essentially the same name?
I do think this is my favourite in the series... It is also the book that makes Briar my favourite (and I do so love his book in the following quartet).
Everything I want to mention counts as a spoiler, and though I don't mind marking small parts here and there as spoilers a whole review marked as such isn't much fun!
I will say you get some back story on more characters, some of them only mentioned in passing previously and our four leads get some more development. It is most certainly a fitting end to the series!
Everything I want to mention counts as a spoiler, and though I don't mind marking small parts here and there as spoilers a whole review marked as such isn't much fun!
I will say you get some back story on more characters, some of them only mentioned in passing previously and our four leads get some more development. It is most certainly a fitting end to the series!
Briar is so good y'all. He just loves Rosethorn so much.
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
FOLKS. THIS BOOK. NOT GREAT TO READ IN A PANDEMIC. But also it feels like everything comes so full circle (lol) here in such amazing and powerful ways. I just love these characters so much and every book it has felt like the stakes get a little bit higher and a little bit higher. Some of it was predictable to some extent but I don't think that predictability hurt the book in any way--if anything, it made the tension of it all greater.
I can't wait to read the next series, but this was such an amazing end that deeply highlighted the growth of all the characters, loved it so much.
I can't wait to read the next series, but this was such an amazing end that deeply highlighted the growth of all the characters, loved it so much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death
It's about a pandemic so as I noted in my review, worth considering when you read it.
It took me a really long time to get around to reading the fourth and final book in the quartet because while I did like the series it wasn't my overall favourite. It took me hardly any time to whizz my way through The Healing in the Vine, it is my favourite of the entire series. I really liked this one. You get to know the characters more, and it's got this mysterious element to it which just makes it really interesting. It kind of makes me want to carry on to the Circle Opens quartet which involves the same characters and how they go on.
I think this series has just continually improved starting from Sandry’s Book. Briar has always been a slightly irritating character in the series, but in his book, we saw how much he cares for his friends and makeshift family. This chapter in the story was overall more enjoyable mostly because it really focused on Briar rather than trying to switch between all the characters.
Pros:
• Briar became a real character in my opinion rather than just a thorn in my side (ha!)
• Good development from secondary characters such as Crane with less focus on just the inner circle
• The plague was not as easy to solve as a lot of the other conflicts that these characters have faced
Cons:
• The ending to the series was nicely wrapped up, but still seemed unsatisfying it was a little too perfect- the circle always manages to find a way to bend the rules of magic and there are little to no consequences
I’m giving Briar’s Book a 4/5 star rating because I did read it pretty much in one sitting. I was interested in it from start to finish and I found it the most enjoyable of the series. The real issue I have had with this series is that these books are geared toward an audience much younger than me (which is so sad) so I’m finding it a lot harder to relate to the characters and I’m looking for too much in a book made for such a young age group.
Pros:
• Briar became a real character in my opinion rather than just a thorn in my side (ha!)
• Good development from secondary characters such as Crane with less focus on just the inner circle
• The plague was not as easy to solve as a lot of the other conflicts that these characters have faced
Cons:
• The ending to the series was nicely wrapped up, but still seemed unsatisfying it was a little too perfect- the circle always manages to find a way to bend the rules of magic and there are little to no consequences
I’m giving Briar’s Book a 4/5 star rating because I did read it pretty much in one sitting. I was interested in it from start to finish and I found it the most enjoyable of the series. The real issue I have had with this series is that these books are geared toward an audience much younger than me (which is so sad) so I’m finding it a lot harder to relate to the characters and I’m looking for too much in a book made for such a young age group.