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4.33 AVERAGE
4.33 AVERAGE
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:
Yes
[This review is already spoiler tagged but just in case: this review contains MAJOR SPOILERS.]
Where do I even begin with this review? I’ll start off by saying that I was very quickly gripped by this last book in the Ember Quartet. It jumped right into the action, which was something I very much appreciated. After I finished, I kind of just wanted to curl up in a corner and bawl my eyes out (something I was already doing from the couch at that point), because it just hit me even more that this series was truly over now.
A Sky Beyond the Storm follows, as before, the perspectives of Laia, Elias and Helene, and also offers some chapters from the Nightbringer’s POV. I liked the alternation between the different main characters: I enjoyed each POV equally, and they all followed each other up nicely.
Because the book started off so strongly for me, at first I was convinced this would be a 5 star read. Unfortunately it did not fully live up to that level of enjoyment for me. Don’t get me wrong, I very much enjoyed reading this last book in the series, and appreciated how everything was tied up in the end. The ending also really pulled at my heartstrings; not just for the events in the book but also because of the realisation that it was truly over now.
However, despite this emotionality and me being satisfied with the conclusion overall, I lowered my rating mainly for 2 reasons. The first being that somewhere in the middle of the book, I got a bit bored. This was mostly related to the fact that I personally prefer strategy and planning scenes in books containing war over actual fighting scenes. There was so much going on in the world, and for me the emphasis was too much on the fighting alone. However, I have to add that I understand what the author was going for, as it did truly show how a war cannot be won with one battle.
Secondly, I do have to say I maybe expected a little more from the ending. Overall everything was wrapped up nicely, but to me it felt like some problems were fixed too easily. Throughout the whole book there is such a large focus on the Sea of Suffering being released, and in the end, it did get released but it was fixed too quickly in my opinion. [Extra warning that the rest of this paragraph contains MAJOR SPOILERS] The Nightbringer surrendered himself so quickly. In general I also found the events near the end (except for Mirra’s comeback) fairly predictable. Based on the scenes throughout the whole book I could predict Avitas and Darin would die. And with Avitas I really was angry about it because he deserved to be happy and also: CAN HELENE CATCH A BREAK?! I was glad that in the end she did have Laia’s, Elias’ and Musa’s friendship, but still... She lost her whole family (don’t get me started on how pissed off I was about Livia’s death) and then also the one person that truly loved all of her and that she loved? So unfair! I was happy for Laia and Elias of course (though I felt sad for Laia about Darin), but Helene really couldn’t be allowed to be happy... I did like how we already saw the ways in which she’ll make the Empire a better place though.
On a last note, I’d just like to say that this series was a great read that got me very emotionally involved, and I’d definitely recommend it. I like how this series in general shows the strength in friendships and family.
—> Here are some quotes I found particularly powerful:
“All of us striving for power and control, and destroying any who get in the way. Laia of Serra knows this. Of course she does, for she has lived it. All her pent-up rage at what was done to her people - and I never understood it until now. I thought I served a great cause: protecting the Empire. But all I did was protect people who were never in any danger. Maybe this is what Elias learned from Mamie and her stories. The ones where I never understood who the villain and who the hero was. Maybe all of us need more stories like hers.” (Helene)
“I understand every death caused in service of my purpose. I do not take them lightly. Am I not kinder than you and your ilk, who cannot recall face of form of your faces? Your homes and lives and loves are built upon the graves of those you never even knew existed -“ (Nightbringer)
Where do I even begin with this review? I’ll start off by saying that I was very quickly gripped by this last book in the Ember Quartet. It jumped right into the action, which was something I very much appreciated. After I finished, I kind of just wanted to curl up in a corner and bawl my eyes out (something I was already doing from the couch at that point), because it just hit me even more that this series was truly over now.
A Sky Beyond the Storm follows, as before, the perspectives of Laia, Elias and Helene, and also offers some chapters from the Nightbringer’s POV. I liked the alternation between the different main characters: I enjoyed each POV equally, and they all followed each other up nicely.
Because the book started off so strongly for me, at first I was convinced this would be a 5 star read. Unfortunately it did not fully live up to that level of enjoyment for me. Don’t get me wrong, I very much enjoyed reading this last book in the series, and appreciated how everything was tied up in the end. The ending also really pulled at my heartstrings; not just for the events in the book but also because of the realisation that it was truly over now.
However, despite this emotionality and me being satisfied with the conclusion overall, I lowered my rating mainly for 2 reasons. The first being that somewhere in the middle of the book, I got a bit bored. This was mostly related to the fact that I personally prefer strategy and planning scenes in books containing war over actual fighting scenes. There was so much going on in the world, and for me the emphasis was too much on the fighting alone. However, I have to add that I understand what the author was going for, as it did truly show how a war cannot be won with one battle.
Secondly, I do have to say I maybe expected a little more from the ending. Overall everything was wrapped up nicely, but to me it felt like some problems were fixed too easily. Throughout the whole book there is such a large focus on the Sea of Suffering being released, and in the end, it did get released but it was fixed too quickly in my opinion. [Extra warning that the rest of this paragraph contains MAJOR SPOILERS] The Nightbringer surrendered himself so quickly. In general I also found the events near the end (except for Mirra’s comeback) fairly predictable. Based on the scenes throughout the whole book I could predict Avitas and Darin would die. And with Avitas I really was angry about it because he deserved to be happy and also: CAN HELENE CATCH A BREAK?! I was glad that in the end she did have Laia’s, Elias’ and Musa’s friendship, but still... She lost her whole family (don’t get me started on how pissed off I was about Livia’s death) and then also the one person that truly loved all of her and that she loved? So unfair! I was happy for Laia and Elias of course (though I felt sad for Laia about Darin), but Helene really couldn’t be allowed to be happy... I did like how we already saw the ways in which she’ll make the Empire a better place though.
On a last note, I’d just like to say that this series was a great read that got me very emotionally involved, and I’d definitely recommend it. I like how this series in general shows the strength in friendships and family.
—> Here are some quotes I found particularly powerful:
“All of us striving for power and control, and destroying any who get in the way. Laia of Serra knows this. Of course she does, for she has lived it. All her pent-up rage at what was done to her people - and I never understood it until now. I thought I served a great cause: protecting the Empire. But all I did was protect people who were never in any danger. Maybe this is what Elias learned from Mamie and her stories. The ones where I never understood who the villain and who the hero was. Maybe all of us need more stories like hers.” (Helene)
“I understand every death caused in service of my purpose. I do not take them lightly. Am I not kinder than you and your ilk, who cannot recall face of form of your faces? Your homes and lives and loves are built upon the graves of those you never even knew existed -“ (Nightbringer)
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
adventurous
challenging
dark
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:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
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:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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:
Yes
This series was incredible and idk what to do now because I’m in shock
dark
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
helene wleciała właśnie do topki moich ulubionych bohaterów
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mannnnn idk. this whole series just took a bit of a downward turn for me after book 1 and while i enjoyed a torch against the night, the final two books went in a direction i just didn’t love. the biggest issue for me is that i just really did not like the storyline of my favourite character, which meant that i didn’t even have that character to fall back on when the rest of the book was dragging lol.