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Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
READ: Jun 2023
FORMAT: Digital
BRIEF SUMMARY:
In this historical fantasy/romance, West is on his way to Stallion Ridge to help protect his brother Cal from an evil that’s hiding in plain sight, and to take care of some personal unfinished business. Gin, with his life devoted to the protection of one man, is tasked with putting a stop to the centaur long before he can ever make it into the town they’ve settled into. Gin has never lent significance to the rumors and legends that follow in the wake of the Pale Horse of Death and turn him into a ghost story; West is still a man who can bleed and die like any other, and he will be no match for Gin’s blades.
ENTERTAINMENT VALUE: 2.5 / 5⭐
I’m not going to lie – my expectations for this finale of the Stallion Ridge series were admittedly set pretty low, and this book met exactly those expectations. For context, all of the setup from the previous book pointed to the events of this one taking a direction I wasn’t exactly interested in. On top of that, the two characters who were set up for the romance portion were characters who I had no investment in. My only real motivation to get into this book was to see how everything would wrap up for the town of Stallion Ridge and the characters whom I’ve grown fond of. I could have left this series several books ago; my fondest characters (Jesse, Gunner, Mack) had already had their stories pretty neatly tied up, and each book after theirs has been progressively more tedious to read.
The arc of dishonour and redemption for a peripherally-known character just never piqued my curiosity, and I put off reading this book for about two months because of it.
After witnessing and partaking in endless travesties in the midst of the war, West’s life took a turn towards crime and profiteering at the hands of an ambitious mastermind. After breaking free of that life, protecting Cal from West’s resulting shame and disgrace became his primary goal, preferring to be dead to his brother than to shatter the image of the man he would remember. Gin lives his life in accordance to the Warrior’s Code, conducting himself honorably in all things within his control. His oath of protection is unwavering and his dedication to the fair fight is unflappable, but these values are at odds when he is sent after West, and they put him at risk of failing in either one or the other.
TECHNICAL / PRODUCTION: 3.25 / 5⭐
This book’s biggest failing is easily its page count. It had a lot that it needed to accomplish, and not nearly enough space to do it – or at least, to do it well. Between the Marshal’s arc, the battle for honour, the culmination of books-worth of plotting, the romancing, the final conflict, and the fallout of said conflict... all the seeds of an excellent finale were planted, but I feel like they just weren’t given enough air to breathe or time to grow. Nothing felt as impactful as it was meant to. Maybe I would feel different if I’d jumped right into this one instead of waiting a couple months? I don’t know.
In this book specifically, the classic enemies-to-lovers trope misses the mark as well; in part from the rushed pacing, in part from a lack of chemistry. At the fighting stage of their relationship, there isn’t so much as a spark of interest: no flirtation, no buildup of tension, no ribbing or antagonism beyond irritation at their circumstances, nothing. Then, once they establish a tentative truce, things ramp up from zero to sixty going from vague interest, to unreasonably possessive, to lust, to “okay but I still have to kill you though so see you on the battlefield,” to “I love you,” all over the course of a terribly short period of in-story time.
I actually laughed at the first declaration of love, because I was not buying it. West describes years of physical devotion to a man whom he claims to never have loved, and we’re somehow meant to believe, after a couple of days of barely getting to know each other and only two steamy encounters, that West wouldn’t treat his feelings with some degree of skepticism or caution? Again, I simply do not buy it.
Regarding the series as a whole, I will say that Maddox’s world-building through characters remains outstanding, and the best character throughout might be the town of Stallion Ridge itself. Ultimately, I sort of wish this final book would have foregone the entire romance angle for West. I think if this book belonged to Cal and Jesse, with West being a primary side character who strongly informs the big standoff, we might have had room for everything to neatly wrap up within this page count. Each of our couples could have had space to show how their relationships have continued to grow from where we left them, and how they continue to breathe life into and exist within their beloved town. I'd even have been fine if the rivalry between West and Gin still occurred, perhaps hinting at something more growing between them along the way.
FINAL THOUGHTS - OVERALL: 3 / 5⭐
I’m so grateful that this series exists, and I am likely to read through a couple of the books again at some point. There are definite hits, and definite misses, and I’m sad to say that for me, this finale was a miss. Other people's reviews are overwhelmingly positive, however, and one shouldn’t go by my personal disappointment to decide whether or not to read this one. If you’re this far in, you know what you’re in for and you might as well wrap it all up.
This book has representation for gays and gender-nonconforming. Many background and skin colours are portrayed. A character represents “Natives” of a fictional tribe, although the ‘magical natives’ trope is leaned into and may be viewed as problematic, along with any misrepresentation of the wendigo myth (in this case, it's largely physical misrepresentation; the themes of greed and excess are well-placed within this story).
The following elaborates on my content warnings. These may be interpreted as spoilers, but I do not go into deep detail.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Gore, Gun violence, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War
Minor: Child abuse, Trafficking, Cannibalism, Death of parent