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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
Hello, my name is Toni and my heart will never heal from the HURT this series has put upon me. Also, I feel cheated because I somehow convinced myself this series was going to be five books long?? and then it wasn’t?? and now I’m upset??!
This is a call out to Jessica Cluess for being wicked. But also thank you and I love you
This is a call out to Jessica Cluess for being wicked. But also thank you and I love you
I liked Jessica Cluess’ Kingdom of Fire trilogy, and give it a solid 3 to 3.5. And I will be happy to tell you why, but first let’s go through the rules once more:
Rule #1: No telling them they have an ugly baby. The writer put themselves into the story; they put a lot of work into it and truly believe in it and its merits. Who am I to tell them they created an ugly baby? So even if I am disappointed in it, I will not be cruel and a hater, but will be honest without being mean. On the reverse side, it has to be REALLY AWESOME to earn a 5-star rating. Don’t want to cheapen the rating system by giving out too many 5-star ratings; they have to be earned by golly!
Rule #2: No spoilers! You would not want me in a theater telling you what was going to happen next or expose a pivotal point before you get to experience it for yourself, so why would it be okay to tell you an important part of the story and ruin it for you? Not cool and won't happen.
Rule #3: If it is a series, I will review the entire series instead of each individual book. I may state that one book or part of the story arc is better than another, or that it started off slow and picked up or the reverse, but will review the whole instead of each separate part. This is partly due to my own laziness, but also to provide my opinion on the entire story. Using the movie metaphor again, you wouldn't review half a movie and then come back and review the second half separately, that would be silly. I will review the entire story, regardless if it is a duology, trilogy, or more.
Rule #4: and most importantly, take my review with a grain of salt. Read the story for yourself and make your own decisions. I am only giving my opinion and I may not be as impressed with it as you or you may think I am totally out of my mind and wonder if I read the same story as you. You always have the right to ignore what I write or disagree with me.
The Premise:
This is a series that has been done several times: poor young girl living in poverty or near poverty has special powers that thrust her into society where she is expected to battle evil and save the country. Due to her powers, she is both rejoiced and reviled by the people around her who mistrust her and see her as a threat to their position. There is a strikingly handsome foe who becomes a friend and she holds a secret that can destroy her and any hopes of her being victorious in her quest. Battling with the internal struggle of self-doubt and self-blame for everything that goes wrong, as well as the external battle, she rises to become a leader and ultimately wins and falls in love along the way. In the end they have won the war and the two lovers can finally enjoy living life together in peace and harmony, (and they lived happily ever after-*big dreamy sigh*).
In this series, it is the epic battle of magical beings, sorcerers, magicians and witches fighting evil dark forces. Set in an alternative 19th century England where magic is common (isn’t it always?), ten or so years before the story begins, a portal into another dimension was opened allowing seven unspeakable monsters known as the Ancients to be unleashed upon England. To say the Ancients appear to be from the worst nightmare is an understatement, and they are extremely powerful and evil. A witch and a magician are blamed for opening the portal and allowing the Ancients into the realm thus all witches and magicians were quickly outlawed, tortured and killed. Remaining witches and magicians, though their number greatly decimated, are still around but go into hiding for obvious reasons. Sorcerers, being the only magical mortals legally able to practice magic in England, are commissioned by the queen to protect England from the Ancients. The battle between the Sorcerers and the Ancients has raged for ten years without either side gaining the advantage. A prophecy states a female sorcerer, known as the “chosen one” will be the savior who can defeat the Ancients.
Introducing Henrietta Howel, a 16-year-old orphan girl who acts as a teacher at a girl’s school where reports of a girl with extraordinary powers to set fires is supposed to reside. While the sorcerer is there to find this girl, who may be the potential “chosen one” he accidentally learns Henrietta is the person he is searching for (naturally). Obviously, since she is a sorcerer and female, she must be the Chosen One. He takes her to London to train her with his other five or so (male) sorcerer students. She is accompanied into this new world with her childhood friend Rook, who is an outcast because he carries the wounds of being touched and surviving one of the Ancients and is thus known as being “Unclean” and feared and rejected by most people. So, you have the poor girl who is supposed to rise to be the savior of England and her tainted outcast boyfriend joining the “boys club” of sorcerers.
Sorcerers tend to be male. A female sorcerer is a rarity and that is why she is considered to be the “Chosen One” since she is the only female sorcerer known to exist, (really reduces the competition for the title if you are the only one). The other sorcerers, including the ones she is training with, are threatened by her presence and distrust and dislike her. The misogyny is great in this culture, remember this is 19th century England we are talking here. Women are considered to be incapable both physically and emotionally, of performing in a “man’s world” (some things never change! It would be nice if one day we could all look past gender or race or religion or any other aspect and just see each other as EQUAL. But I digress, sorry, this is just an incredibly important issue to me).
It does not take long before Henrietta learns she is not truly a sorcerer but is in actuality from magician descendance. If she reveals the truth, she will at the least be sent away in shame back to her school and the abuse of her school’s headmaster or most probably she would be executed. If she, on the other hand, continues to hide the truth and allow herself to be believed to be the Chosen One, she risks the fraud causing innumerable deaths and destruction including her own. Decisions decisions!!! Since it is not just her who is in danger, but her friend Rook, she decides to play the part and keep her secret. She “befriends” a magician who teaches her how to pretend to be a sorcerer utilizing her magician’s powers.
Eventually her secret is revealed, naturally, but not before she has gained the respect of the sorcerers she is training with. They become trusted friends and allies who risk themselves to help her and she proves herself to be valuable in the war; destroying one of the ancients. So, her and her friends join the battle in earnest. Along the way they acquire more allies, including a witch, Maria, who must also hide her true identity lest she be executed. This “team” ultimately unites all the magical factions to do battle with the Ancients.
There is a lot of “borrowing” both in minor and major aspects in this book. Without giving spoilers, I will just say think of Dobby and Harry in Harry Potter and Luke and Darth Vader in Star Wars to state a couple. I’m not faulting Ms. Cluess for this, just stating that these have been played, actually I was somewhat amused to see these subtle “homages”.
An interesting twist to the love triangle aspect that is so often seen in these stories is Ms. Cluess takes it to another level and does not stop with just two gents after Henrietta’s hand and heart, but three guys are vying for her. Lucky her to have such competition to choose from! She has her childhood friend, Rook. Then there is the rich and powerful sorcerer, Blackwood, who of course begins as a nemesis who mistrusts and feels threatened by her but with time, she wins his respect and love, (naturally). Lastly there is the handsome roguish Magnus, who is a womanizer living off his good looks and charming personality, an irresponsible rascal who hides his feelings behind bluster. Oh, which one will she end up with? Guess.
Although this is a story arc done so often that it has almost become cliché, Ms. Cluess keeps the story interesting and maintains a steady pace. There are enough twists to keep things interesting, though some are rather obvious and telegraphed, some do not play out as anticipated. She does not fall into all the same old cliches and plot lines, there are enough twists that blindside you to keep it fresh and she does not always “play by the rules” of these types of stories.
The characters are enjoyable, even the jerk annoying ones you can understand and tolerate to a degree. Some appear a little clinically insane, (maybe bi-polar?). They have depth. None are completely evil or completely good, they can be honorable at one time and be a total jerk-wad later. Some that appear heroic and honorable have their secrets that show the dark side of them and those that are considered evil may have honorable, if not misguided motives at times. As usual the main character can be irritating at times by making stupid mistakes or allowing their devotion to their friends cloud their judgement and make really bone-head decisions. An example of this that occurs often in these stories, including this one, that is hard to accept is that they could pause in the heat of battle to contemplate the moral consequence of their action thus allowing the enemy to escape. If considered rationally, in the heat of battle, the adrenaline and emotions would be exceedingly high, thus rational thought, moral relevance of present actions or even considering past relationships would not even be thought of. Survival takes over and rational thought is left at the door, but as often done in these types of stories, this situation occurs and the bad guy is able to escape. In reality, the person would not hesitate when they were in the middle of battle and had the opportunity to end it. It would be game over. But as usual, Henrietta has the opportunity to stop an evil to spread, but hesitates and ultimately people die because she had “moral issues” in ending it. She keeps secrets that are detrimental and dangerous. Afterward she feels the responsibility but does not learn from it because later she continues to keep secrets and when the opportunity arises to end the war before it really begins, she hesitates and allows the leader of the Ancients to escape. These are the things that make you just want to shake her until her teeth rattle. It doesn’t matter how bad she feels afterward and how responsible she feels for her hesitation to act or for keeping secrets, it doesn’t help the innocent people who died because she couldn’t bring herself to doing what is right.
As I said, there are numerous surprises and Ms. Cluess keeps the story fresh and interesting. She keeps the reader involved making it difficult to stop reading because it becomes necessary to learn the outcome of the plot line occurring. If you enjoy this type of story arc, the strong young woman who rises up to become a great leader beyond immeasurable obstacles, Ms. Cluess’ Kingdom of Fire saga is a must read. You won’t be disappointed. As for me, I am looking forward to reading more f Ms. Cluess in the future, especially her House of Dragons duology.
Rule #1: No telling them they have an ugly baby. The writer put themselves into the story; they put a lot of work into it and truly believe in it and its merits. Who am I to tell them they created an ugly baby? So even if I am disappointed in it, I will not be cruel and a hater, but will be honest without being mean. On the reverse side, it has to be REALLY AWESOME to earn a 5-star rating. Don’t want to cheapen the rating system by giving out too many 5-star ratings; they have to be earned by golly!
Rule #2: No spoilers! You would not want me in a theater telling you what was going to happen next or expose a pivotal point before you get to experience it for yourself, so why would it be okay to tell you an important part of the story and ruin it for you? Not cool and won't happen.
Rule #3: If it is a series, I will review the entire series instead of each individual book. I may state that one book or part of the story arc is better than another, or that it started off slow and picked up or the reverse, but will review the whole instead of each separate part. This is partly due to my own laziness, but also to provide my opinion on the entire story. Using the movie metaphor again, you wouldn't review half a movie and then come back and review the second half separately, that would be silly. I will review the entire story, regardless if it is a duology, trilogy, or more.
Rule #4: and most importantly, take my review with a grain of salt. Read the story for yourself and make your own decisions. I am only giving my opinion and I may not be as impressed with it as you or you may think I am totally out of my mind and wonder if I read the same story as you. You always have the right to ignore what I write or disagree with me.
The Premise:
This is a series that has been done several times: poor young girl living in poverty or near poverty has special powers that thrust her into society where she is expected to battle evil and save the country. Due to her powers, she is both rejoiced and reviled by the people around her who mistrust her and see her as a threat to their position. There is a strikingly handsome foe who becomes a friend and she holds a secret that can destroy her and any hopes of her being victorious in her quest. Battling with the internal struggle of self-doubt and self-blame for everything that goes wrong, as well as the external battle, she rises to become a leader and ultimately wins and falls in love along the way. In the end they have won the war and the two lovers can finally enjoy living life together in peace and harmony, (and they lived happily ever after-*big dreamy sigh*).
In this series, it is the epic battle of magical beings, sorcerers, magicians and witches fighting evil dark forces. Set in an alternative 19th century England where magic is common (isn’t it always?), ten or so years before the story begins, a portal into another dimension was opened allowing seven unspeakable monsters known as the Ancients to be unleashed upon England. To say the Ancients appear to be from the worst nightmare is an understatement, and they are extremely powerful and evil. A witch and a magician are blamed for opening the portal and allowing the Ancients into the realm thus all witches and magicians were quickly outlawed, tortured and killed. Remaining witches and magicians, though their number greatly decimated, are still around but go into hiding for obvious reasons. Sorcerers, being the only magical mortals legally able to practice magic in England, are commissioned by the queen to protect England from the Ancients. The battle between the Sorcerers and the Ancients has raged for ten years without either side gaining the advantage. A prophecy states a female sorcerer, known as the “chosen one” will be the savior who can defeat the Ancients.
Introducing Henrietta Howel, a 16-year-old orphan girl who acts as a teacher at a girl’s school where reports of a girl with extraordinary powers to set fires is supposed to reside. While the sorcerer is there to find this girl, who may be the potential “chosen one” he accidentally learns Henrietta is the person he is searching for (naturally). Obviously, since she is a sorcerer and female, she must be the Chosen One. He takes her to London to train her with his other five or so (male) sorcerer students. She is accompanied into this new world with her childhood friend Rook, who is an outcast because he carries the wounds of being touched and surviving one of the Ancients and is thus known as being “Unclean” and feared and rejected by most people. So, you have the poor girl who is supposed to rise to be the savior of England and her tainted outcast boyfriend joining the “boys club” of sorcerers.
Sorcerers tend to be male. A female sorcerer is a rarity and that is why she is considered to be the “Chosen One” since she is the only female sorcerer known to exist, (really reduces the competition for the title if you are the only one). The other sorcerers, including the ones she is training with, are threatened by her presence and distrust and dislike her. The misogyny is great in this culture, remember this is 19th century England we are talking here. Women are considered to be incapable both physically and emotionally, of performing in a “man’s world” (some things never change! It would be nice if one day we could all look past gender or race or religion or any other aspect and just see each other as EQUAL. But I digress, sorry, this is just an incredibly important issue to me).
It does not take long before Henrietta learns she is not truly a sorcerer but is in actuality from magician descendance. If she reveals the truth, she will at the least be sent away in shame back to her school and the abuse of her school’s headmaster or most probably she would be executed. If she, on the other hand, continues to hide the truth and allow herself to be believed to be the Chosen One, she risks the fraud causing innumerable deaths and destruction including her own. Decisions decisions!!! Since it is not just her who is in danger, but her friend Rook, she decides to play the part and keep her secret. She “befriends” a magician who teaches her how to pretend to be a sorcerer utilizing her magician’s powers.
Eventually her secret is revealed, naturally, but not before she has gained the respect of the sorcerers she is training with. They become trusted friends and allies who risk themselves to help her and she proves herself to be valuable in the war; destroying one of the ancients. So, her and her friends join the battle in earnest. Along the way they acquire more allies, including a witch, Maria, who must also hide her true identity lest she be executed. This “team” ultimately unites all the magical factions to do battle with the Ancients.
There is a lot of “borrowing” both in minor and major aspects in this book. Without giving spoilers, I will just say think of Dobby and Harry in Harry Potter and Luke and Darth Vader in Star Wars to state a couple. I’m not faulting Ms. Cluess for this, just stating that these have been played, actually I was somewhat amused to see these subtle “homages”.
An interesting twist to the love triangle aspect that is so often seen in these stories is Ms. Cluess takes it to another level and does not stop with just two gents after Henrietta’s hand and heart, but three guys are vying for her. Lucky her to have such competition to choose from! She has her childhood friend, Rook. Then there is the rich and powerful sorcerer, Blackwood, who of course begins as a nemesis who mistrusts and feels threatened by her but with time, she wins his respect and love, (naturally). Lastly there is the handsome roguish Magnus, who is a womanizer living off his good looks and charming personality, an irresponsible rascal who hides his feelings behind bluster. Oh, which one will she end up with? Guess.
Although this is a story arc done so often that it has almost become cliché, Ms. Cluess keeps the story interesting and maintains a steady pace. There are enough twists to keep things interesting, though some are rather obvious and telegraphed, some do not play out as anticipated. She does not fall into all the same old cliches and plot lines, there are enough twists that blindside you to keep it fresh and she does not always “play by the rules” of these types of stories.
The characters are enjoyable, even the jerk annoying ones you can understand and tolerate to a degree. Some appear a little clinically insane, (maybe bi-polar?). They have depth. None are completely evil or completely good, they can be honorable at one time and be a total jerk-wad later. Some that appear heroic and honorable have their secrets that show the dark side of them and those that are considered evil may have honorable, if not misguided motives at times. As usual the main character can be irritating at times by making stupid mistakes or allowing their devotion to their friends cloud their judgement and make really bone-head decisions. An example of this that occurs often in these stories, including this one, that is hard to accept is that they could pause in the heat of battle to contemplate the moral consequence of their action thus allowing the enemy to escape. If considered rationally, in the heat of battle, the adrenaline and emotions would be exceedingly high, thus rational thought, moral relevance of present actions or even considering past relationships would not even be thought of. Survival takes over and rational thought is left at the door, but as often done in these types of stories, this situation occurs and the bad guy is able to escape. In reality, the person would not hesitate when they were in the middle of battle and had the opportunity to end it. It would be game over. But as usual, Henrietta has the opportunity to stop an evil to spread, but hesitates and ultimately people die because she had “moral issues” in ending it. She keeps secrets that are detrimental and dangerous. Afterward she feels the responsibility but does not learn from it because later she continues to keep secrets and when the opportunity arises to end the war before it really begins, she hesitates and allows the leader of the Ancients to escape. These are the things that make you just want to shake her until her teeth rattle. It doesn’t matter how bad she feels afterward and how responsible she feels for her hesitation to act or for keeping secrets, it doesn’t help the innocent people who died because she couldn’t bring herself to doing what is right.
As I said, there are numerous surprises and Ms. Cluess keeps the story fresh and interesting. She keeps the reader involved making it difficult to stop reading because it becomes necessary to learn the outcome of the plot line occurring. If you enjoy this type of story arc, the strong young woman who rises up to become a great leader beyond immeasurable obstacles, Ms. Cluess’ Kingdom of Fire saga is a must read. You won’t be disappointed. As for me, I am looking forward to reading more f Ms. Cluess in the future, especially her House of Dragons duology.
I read some of the reviews and was a little nervous reading this.
I wasn't the biggest fan of the ending. I don't know what ending I wanted, but I don't think that was it. I also wasn't a big fan of the romance. To me, it felt like a lot of book centred around that and I didn't like it.
I did like that we got to learn more about the Witches and the Magicians in this book!
Definitely an interesting series, I just wished for a different ending.
I wasn't the biggest fan of the ending. I don't know what ending I wanted, but I don't think that was it. I also wasn't a big fan of the romance. To me, it felt like a lot of book centred around that and I didn't like it.
I did like that we got to learn more about the Witches and the Magicians in this book!
Definitely an interesting series, I just wished for a different ending.
The end is near, but first battles must be fought and what they first thought to be a safe place turns into a trap for all of Henrietta’s warriors. Also her marriage to Blackwood hangs in the balance, but as it approaches she learns of dark secrets about the family she’s about to marry into. There is a lot at stake and she must make her choices wisely. The final novel in the Kingdom on Fire trilogy was a pretty solid ending; it didn’t wow the reader as much as the second novel did, but it still delivered some interesting story arcs. This picked up where the previous novel left off and it again started off slow and slowly began to rise in excitement. The overall plot was good, the reader knew it was all leading up to this moment; there were shocking turn of events and some shocking deaths. There felt like there was a lot of exposition into why everything was happening, and it felt kind of late coming into the third book. This was still a good novel, and the way it ended, all wrapped up with no loose ends, left the reader satisfied. The way Henrietta’s storyline ended was nice and tidy, not what the reader expected at all; after being such a badass and against doing things by the rules in the first two novels to see her settling down was not what the reader saw coming for her. It was still nice to see her happy. It was also interesting to see where all the other character’s arcs left off in which it was either dead or happy. Overall, this novel was a fast-paced and captivating ending to an action-packed and full of great characters, trilogy.
First off, I'm going to say this was a five star read even though what I have to say may not feel like it is! To start, anything that involve fire power, give it to me!
What I love about these books is the world—it has some pretty awesome and dark descriptions! I also love the historical type setting, even though it is a fantasy world. Also, I absolutely love Magnus! When I read book one, I probably wouldn't have said that, but since book two, my mind has been changed. Who would have thought?
Let's get to the nitty gritty—geez, Henrietta has been one character I've wanted to shake all along. The chemistry between her and Blackwood got real weird in book two and even worse here. Still not sure about the Rook situation either—she was all about putting him first before, but then barely thought of him in this book.
Cluess, though, has a way of keeping you immersed in the story and it's addicting words. Like I said above, her descriptions are fantastic. Besides wanting to strangle Henrietta a few times, I enjoyed this book much more than book two and felt it was on the same level as the first one! And that ending was perfection!
What I love about these books is the world—it has some pretty awesome and dark descriptions! I also love the historical type setting, even though it is a fantasy world. Also, I absolutely love Magnus! When I read book one, I probably wouldn't have said that, but since book two, my mind has been changed. Who would have thought?
Let's get to the nitty gritty—geez, Henrietta has been one character I've wanted to shake all along. The chemistry between her and Blackwood got real weird in book two and even worse here. Still not sure about the Rook situation either—she was all about putting him first before, but then barely thought of him in this book.
Cluess, though, has a way of keeping you immersed in the story and it's addicting words. Like I said above, her descriptions are fantastic. Besides wanting to strangle Henrietta a few times, I enjoyed this book much more than book two and felt it was on the same level as the first one! And that ending was perfection!
Oh my god the crying and the laughing and I loved this!
Faster paced than the other two - definitely cramming in a lot more plot in the last book, but it works out pretty well. I anticipate people having issues with some of the romance stuff, but honestly I think it was done really beautifully, particularly this idea that you can genuinely love more than one person, in different ways, and that life sometimes makes you give up one happy ending for another. (Even if there really aren't any 100% happy endings.) Really this series, particularly this installment, is all about complexity of feelings and emotions and I love it.
Faster paced than the other two - definitely cramming in a lot more plot in the last book, but it works out pretty well. I anticipate people having issues with some of the romance stuff, but honestly I think it was done really beautifully, particularly this idea that you can genuinely love more than one person, in different ways, and that life sometimes makes you give up one happy ending for another. (Even if there really aren't any 100% happy endings.) Really this series, particularly this installment, is all about complexity of feelings and emotions and I love it.
After the explosive ending of A Poison Dark and Drowning, Henrietta Howel is set to marry Lord Blackwood, the Earl of Sorrow-Fell, as the remaining sorcerers and survivors travel to Blackwood's estate, which is the only remaining safe haven in the land. However, it's not without its troubles. The battle and the weaponry have left their marks on all of the characters, and though Henrietta and Blackwood want to marry as soon as, there's always something in the way. Blackwood is changing, too, and Henrietta doesn't know how to reconcile that, with the fact that the evil beast they're hunting, R'hlem, is in fact her father, who is hell bent on finding her and bringing her to his side.
This book was so good, but at the same time, there were so many things that confused me. This is a story chocked full of plot, and so much happened it's a struggle to keep your head around it all, and talk about it here without too many spoilers. I still love Henrietta, and feel like this book was the perfect ending for her, with the going full circle. The ending might not appeal to all - and I wouldn't have expected it to do so for me, too - but I couldn't have asked for better, if I'm being honest. All characters went through changes, some more than others, but all for the better, I think. This book really shook up everything we knew about the world Jessica has created, and I'm just more in awe at her writing. I'm glad I discovered this series, and look forward to her new one.
This book was so good, but at the same time, there were so many things that confused me. This is a story chocked full of plot, and so much happened it's a struggle to keep your head around it all, and talk about it here without too many spoilers. I still love Henrietta, and feel like this book was the perfect ending for her, with the going full circle. The ending might not appeal to all - and I wouldn't have expected it to do so for me, too - but I couldn't have asked for better, if I'm being honest. All characters went through changes, some more than others, but all for the better, I think. This book really shook up everything we knew about the world Jessica has created, and I'm just more in awe at her writing. I'm glad I discovered this series, and look forward to her new one.
I stand by this series being very underrated but I am sad to say this closing book did not quite thrill me as the first two books. Now don't get me wrong this book still has everything I have really loved about this series. The characters are still flawed and human, the setting is whimsical and beautiful, the magic is mystifying, however the story was executed in a very convoluted way. I have said before that I enjoyed the relationships in this story because it wasn't your usual love triangle, however in this book our main character was pushed from guy to guy because of situations that presented themselves. I didn't feel like it was entirely necessary but used more for story, which took away from the overall plot. On that note, Sorrow (I'm titling it this for short) did a wonderful job wrapping up Henrietta's story and it was quite satisfying in the end. I urge you, if you are looking for a fun, quick read to try this series out because it deserves more.
A Shadow Bright and Burning-4/5
A Poison Dark and Drowning-4/5
A Sorrow Fierce and Falling-3/5
Kingdom on Fire Trilogy-11/15
A Shadow Bright and Burning-4/5
A Poison Dark and Drowning-4/5
A Sorrow Fierce and Falling-3/5
Kingdom on Fire Trilogy-11/15
3.5 stars
Really enjoyed this series overall though this one felt rushed. There were a lot of little story threads that needed to be tied up plus the plot and 400 pages didn't seem like enough length to dedicate adequate time to everything.
In particular, I felt like Blackwood's character arc in this was a bit of a whiplash. He mostly seemed grumpy and a bit ambitious in the other books, but this one he went full Gaston-In-The-Mob-Scene and was ready to burn a woman alive. Then once Henrietta got together with the endgame love interest, he just went back to being grumpy and stubborn again. Just seemed like a plot contrivance., like he needed to be especially bad to make it so Henrietta would end up with who she ended up with. Which I didn't mind, but still.
I would have liked more with the witches, more time with her father and a bit more Faerie stuff. Also, like all the other books, Rook was a non-entity. He shows up for a page and a half and then he's gone. A bit of a waste.
I did love all the atmosphere surrounding Sorrow Fell and I enjoyed the way it all ended. It was a very satisfying conclusion with loss and change and characters not really being able to go back to how they were before. It was bittersweet and felt like everyone had really struggled and gone through things and come out the other side a little older and a little wiser. Overall I enjoyed this series -- it's a solid YA debut fantasy and I would read anything else Jessica Cluess puts out.
A Shadow Bright and Burning: 3 stars
A Poison Dark and Drowning: 4 stars
A Sorrow Fierce and Falling: 3.5 stars.
Really enjoyed this series overall though this one felt rushed. There were a lot of little story threads that needed to be tied up plus the plot and 400 pages didn't seem like enough length to dedicate adequate time to everything.
In particular, I felt like Blackwood's character arc in this was a bit of a whiplash. He mostly seemed grumpy and a bit ambitious in the other books, but this one he went full Gaston-In-The-Mob-Scene and was ready to burn a woman alive. Then once Henrietta got together with the endgame love interest, he just went back to being grumpy and stubborn again. Just seemed like a plot contrivance., like he needed to be especially bad to make it so Henrietta would end up with who she ended up with. Which I didn't mind, but still.
I would have liked more with the witches, more time with her father and a bit more Faerie stuff. Also, like all the other books, Rook was a non-entity. He shows up for a page and a half and then he's gone. A bit of a waste.
I did love all the atmosphere surrounding Sorrow Fell and I enjoyed the way it all ended. It was a very satisfying conclusion with loss and change and characters not really being able to go back to how they were before. It was bittersweet and felt like everyone had really struggled and gone through things and come out the other side a little older and a little wiser. Overall I enjoyed this series -- it's a solid YA debut fantasy and I would read anything else Jessica Cluess puts out.
A Shadow Bright and Burning: 3 stars
A Poison Dark and Drowning: 4 stars
A Sorrow Fierce and Falling: 3.5 stars.