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mjfmjfmjf's review against another edition
4.0
Huh. Well that was weird. But it was 3rd and probably final in a series that had been weird. And by weird I also mean kind of original. Basically a mashup with apocalyptic and steampunk and zombies and time-travel and westerns. And that really doesn't capture it. In this one, our hero Matilda has come back from the past and lots of stuff has been changed. And everyone hates this one guy including her, but we are really never shown why the people of now hate him. And it's all about her setting the right now in place. The characters and situations never quite make sense and most of the world isn't quite detailed enough. So it's kind of a near-miss. But a pretty good near-miss. 3.5 of 5.
chllybrd's review against another edition
4.0
Matilda finds herself in a different timeway with all of her loved ones alive and well, but not exactly how she remembers them. She quickly realizes that she can deal with the changes as long as she stops Slater from destroying them all.
CRUCIBLE ZERO brings us back to the House Immortal series and wastes no time picking up where INFINITY BELL left us with its cliffhanger. It was a bit weird seeing how alike and different all of our favorite characters were in the new timeway, but I quickly feel in love with their new counterparts. The world also has a lot of changes to it and Monk did a great job of building it up for us.
I missed the closeness between Abraham and Matilda as she was trying to figure him out again. It did help that Abraham, though different, was still very drawn to Matilda and therefor was very open to a relationship. Still Matilda took a while to give in to her feelings so I missed their easy relationship from INFINITY BELL.
With it's many fight scenes and interesting twists and turns, book 3 lived up to the previous books in the House Immortal series. CRUCIBLE ZERO did a great job proving that happily ever afters can come in very unusual, but interesting ways. Bravo Ms. Monk, another great series!
* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
CRUCIBLE ZERO brings us back to the House Immortal series and wastes no time picking up where INFINITY BELL left us with its cliffhanger. It was a bit weird seeing how alike and different all of our favorite characters were in the new timeway, but I quickly feel in love with their new counterparts. The world also has a lot of changes to it and Monk did a great job of building it up for us.
I missed the closeness between Abraham and Matilda as she was trying to figure him out again. It did help that Abraham, though different, was still very drawn to Matilda and therefor was very open to a relationship. Still Matilda took a while to give in to her feelings so I missed their easy relationship from INFINITY BELL.
With it's many fight scenes and interesting twists and turns, book 3 lived up to the previous books in the House Immortal series. CRUCIBLE ZERO did a great job proving that happily ever afters can come in very unusual, but interesting ways. Bravo Ms. Monk, another great series!
* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
buuboobaby's review
5.0
4.5 - 5 stars
Great wrap up to a great series. Everyone got a HEA - well, everyone except for the evil Slater. He just got the ending he deserved.
This was an interesting twist on Frankenstein, with an engaging cast of characters, a truly vile villain, and an intriguing conundrum with time. I enjoyed Monk's narrative style and look forward to reading more of her work.
Great wrap up to a great series. Everyone got a HEA - well, everyone except for the evil Slater. He just got the ending he deserved.
This was an interesting twist on Frankenstein, with an engaging cast of characters, a truly vile villain, and an intriguing conundrum with time. I enjoyed Monk's narrative style and look forward to reading more of her work.
lindca's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars
Strong and satisfying end to a very good trilogy. I enjoyed this much more than Monk's Allie Beckstrom series, in which I lost interest after a few books. The premise of an altered world with the nearly invincible Galvanized and the alterations of time is intriguing and a bit different than most UF fare. Tillie is an excellent protagonist: strong, smart, takes no guff from anyone, yet good-hearted and very loyal. The twists of time and characters were handled well and kept things interesting.
I hope that Monk will turn her efforts into more series like this rather than her Allie Beckstrom and world spinoffs, as I definitely would be interested in reading more original stories from her.
Strong and satisfying end to a very good trilogy. I enjoyed this much more than Monk's Allie Beckstrom series, in which I lost interest after a few books. The premise of an altered world with the nearly invincible Galvanized and the alterations of time is intriguing and a bit different than most UF fare. Tillie is an excellent protagonist: strong, smart, takes no guff from anyone, yet good-hearted and very loyal. The twists of time and characters were handled well and kept things interesting.
I hope that Monk will turn her efforts into more series like this rather than her Allie Beckstrom and world spinoffs, as I definitely would be interested in reading more original stories from her.
catsluvcoffee's review against another edition
5.0
[b:House Immortal|20821206|House Immortal (House Immortal, #1)|Devon Monk|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1392761144s/20821206.jpg|40072985] was amazing. I devoured it in a day. [b:Infinity Bell|22859788|Infinity Bell (House Immortal, #2)|Devon Monk|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1409122131s/22859788.jpg|42427681] was a little slower but still enjoyable. The weird time shift ending had me hesitant. I didn't quite know how much I would enjoy the third installment, Crucible Zero.
I loved the world building in these books. "Stitched" heroes and heroines, time travel, the world split into ruling Houses, miniature sheep whose wool holds time, lizards (aka dragons) whose scales heal. The relationships made me smile and felt genuine without being overdone. When you are saving the world (again), you don't have a whole lot of time to spend developing them but I'm glad the author didn't have the characters immediately falling in love and in bed.
All in all, I LOVED IT this series.
AHHH! Is it really over?
I loved the world building in these books. "Stitched" heroes and heroines, time travel, the world split into ruling Houses, miniature sheep whose wool holds time, lizards (aka dragons) whose scales heal. The relationships made me smile and felt genuine without being overdone. When you are saving the world (again), you don't have a whole lot of time to spend developing them but I'm glad the author didn't have the characters immediately falling in love and in bed.
All in all, I LOVED IT this series.
AHHH! Is it really over?
shelley_pearson's review against another edition
4.0
At first, I wasn’t sure if I would even read this book, because I listened to the first two on audio and the third one is only available in print. But I’m a sucker for time travel and an alternate timeline, so I went for it. And I ended up liking this story most of all! Mostly because it was so interesting to see how things were different in the new timeline that Matilda ended up in, and I kept wanting to know what would happen next. Plus, I liked how there were fewer different Houses to keep track of in this book. I’m glad I finished out the series.
rowan108's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this series and I'm happy with the ending. It seems fitting and gives closure. I love that Oscar and Welton remain an integral part to this trilogy. Loved it.
amym84's review against another edition
4.0
Originally posted at Vampire Book Club
Infinity Bell ended with a bang, literally, and also left Matilda Case in an alternate world, as going back in time and changing events is wont to do. Crucible Zero pretty much picks up right after Matilda wakes.
In this world, all those that Matilda love and care for seem to be alive and…well they’re alive. The differences being that the galvanized body Matilda inhabits in this time remained Evelyn Case, Matilda’s personality and mind never “woke up” after her brother Quentin transferred them. Naturally, Quentin is surprised when the sister he’s grown up with is suddenly gone and Tilly is in her place. Also, in this world, the galvanized are murderers and mercenaries. A far cry from the heroes they are considered in the original timeline. So, yes, that means Tilly’s Abraham is also not the same person that she loves. But is this new Abraham beyond redemption?
Tilly has to put that aside and deal with the main problem at hand. It seems as though her travels through time didn’t correct all that it should and Tilly finds herself experiencing various time ripples where she is in both the new world and the original world. Things get even worse when she discovers Slater Orange (evil head of House Orange who, in House Immortal, got himself transferred over to a galvanized body) has also traveled through time. He remembers all the things Matilda has done to thwart him and he’s looking for revenge (along with world domination).
Devon Monk was pretty bold ending Infinity Bell the way she did and then planning on having everything wrapped up in Crucible Zero, which is the last book in this trilogy. There’s a lot going on and a lot to get finished. Add the fact that all the characters, minus Matilda, are basically new versions of themselves, meaning readers have to learn to like these characters again, and you’ve got a full plate. True, some of their more inherent traits blend over to the new world but said traits aren’t immediately apparent.
For example, Tilly and Quentin’s relationship is strained largely due to the fact that she’s not the sister he grew up with. Evelyn was more complacent than Tilly and Quentin is having a difficult time processing that fact for all that he still loves Tilly.
Then there’s Tilly and Abraham. She immediately notices all the differences between her Abraham and this ‘new’ one. But she can’t forget the love she felt (feels) for him either. She struggles through the majority of the book trying to figure out if she could love this new version of him.
Ever practical though, Matilda doesn’t let her lovelorn feelings get in the way of the big plan: kill Slater Orange. I loved that Matlida could separate these things and remain levelheaded, but because her feelings for Abraham are still important, Monk did great in making time for Matilda to ruminate on her feelings without them overshadowing the big picture.
Overall, this has been a very strong trilogy. There were some little details I felt were glossed over because the plot was so fast-paced. I don’t know if this could have been corrected with slowing things down a bit and adding another book or not. As it goes, those things will be left up to reader conjecture and sometimes that’s okay too. The main plot threads were all tied up and Crucible Zero left me smiling at the end.
Infinity Bell ended with a bang, literally, and also left Matilda Case in an alternate world, as going back in time and changing events is wont to do. Crucible Zero pretty much picks up right after Matilda wakes.
In this world, all those that Matilda love and care for seem to be alive and…well they’re alive. The differences being that the galvanized body Matilda inhabits in this time remained Evelyn Case, Matilda’s personality and mind never “woke up” after her brother Quentin transferred them. Naturally, Quentin is surprised when the sister he’s grown up with is suddenly gone and Tilly is in her place. Also, in this world, the galvanized are murderers and mercenaries. A far cry from the heroes they are considered in the original timeline. So, yes, that means Tilly’s Abraham is also not the same person that she loves. But is this new Abraham beyond redemption?
Tilly has to put that aside and deal with the main problem at hand. It seems as though her travels through time didn’t correct all that it should and Tilly finds herself experiencing various time ripples where she is in both the new world and the original world. Things get even worse when she discovers Slater Orange (evil head of House Orange who, in House Immortal, got himself transferred over to a galvanized body) has also traveled through time. He remembers all the things Matilda has done to thwart him and he’s looking for revenge (along with world domination).
Devon Monk was pretty bold ending Infinity Bell the way she did and then planning on having everything wrapped up in Crucible Zero, which is the last book in this trilogy. There’s a lot going on and a lot to get finished. Add the fact that all the characters, minus Matilda, are basically new versions of themselves, meaning readers have to learn to like these characters again, and you’ve got a full plate. True, some of their more inherent traits blend over to the new world but said traits aren’t immediately apparent.
For example, Tilly and Quentin’s relationship is strained largely due to the fact that she’s not the sister he grew up with. Evelyn was more complacent than Tilly and Quentin is having a difficult time processing that fact for all that he still loves Tilly.
Then there’s Tilly and Abraham. She immediately notices all the differences between her Abraham and this ‘new’ one. But she can’t forget the love she felt (feels) for him either. She struggles through the majority of the book trying to figure out if she could love this new version of him.
Ever practical though, Matilda doesn’t let her lovelorn feelings get in the way of the big plan: kill Slater Orange. I loved that Matlida could separate these things and remain levelheaded, but because her feelings for Abraham are still important, Monk did great in making time for Matilda to ruminate on her feelings without them overshadowing the big picture.
Overall, this has been a very strong trilogy. There were some little details I felt were glossed over because the plot was so fast-paced. I don’t know if this could have been corrected with slowing things down a bit and adding another book or not. As it goes, those things will be left up to reader conjecture and sometimes that’s okay too. The main plot threads were all tied up and Crucible Zero left me smiling at the end.
suzjustsuz's review
4.0
My four star rating is for both this book, which was a satisfying ending to the trilogy, and for the series over all. However, I do not recommend the series for someone who isn't ready to read the trilogy as the first and second books both have heinous, horrible endings that just kind of stop as you're moving into the next phase of the story. They felt like cliff hangers to me, and they felt manipulative. Now that the series is complete those nasty endings can be ignored.
I have to admit that I found the time travel aspects of this story confusing for a good portion of the story, at least until I was well into this last book. I am not sure how much of that can be attributed to the distractingly unsatisfying endings and then waiting between books or how much of it was just that it's tough to make time travel coherent. Paradox and all that.
I'm not sure I could have jumped into a new time and just immediately started loving everyone in the now that I'd watched die in the then. That said, it was nice to see the new people come around to Matilda and to watch the new Matilda having such an affect on the new world.
Also, sometimes feel good endings can cover a multitude of sins.
I have to admit that I found the time travel aspects of this story confusing for a good portion of the story, at least until I was well into this last book. I am not sure how much of that can be attributed to the distractingly unsatisfying endings and then waiting between books or how much of it was just that it's tough to make time travel coherent. Paradox and all that.
I'm not sure I could have jumped into a new time and just immediately started loving everyone in the now that I'd watched die in the then. That said, it was nice to see the new people come around to Matilda and to watch the new Matilda having such an affect on the new world.
Also, sometimes feel good endings can cover a multitude of sins.