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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
This was such an amazing conclusion to this series. It was definitely my favorite book of the year and one of the most though provoking fantasy series I ever read.
Kelsea is such a strong but still flawed character and especially in the end I could completely understand her. she had such a hard journey to make and I'm so happy with that ending. it's not just a happily ever after fluffy ending like in so many fantasy series.
I think the decision to answer most of the questions but also left some things in the open was a great one, like in real life not everything about the Tearling was discovered, there is still some mystery and I don't mind it.
The pacing of this book was really fast at least for me because if you are attentive to details you can answer a lot of open questions yourself while reading this book.
I'm just awed by how structured and detailed this book is and I enjoyed this series so so much.
Kelsea is such a strong but still flawed character and especially in the end I could completely understand her. she had such a hard journey to make and I'm so happy with that ending. it's not just a happily ever after fluffy ending like in so many fantasy series.
I think the decision to answer most of the questions but also left some things in the open was a great one, like in real life not everything about the Tearling was discovered, there is still some mystery and I don't mind it.
The pacing of this book was really fast at least for me because if you are attentive to details you can answer a lot of open questions yourself while reading this book.
I'm just awed by how structured and detailed this book is and I enjoyed this series so so much.
I've spent the last hour trying to process this book's conclusion and I'm still in denial.
Out of the hundreds, thousands of potential conclusions, we get the king of all deus ex machinas ever devised? I genuinely cannot wrap my head around it. The sapphires, the ultimate plot device, are presented as all-powerful. Kelsea blows the heads off of a hundred men in an instant, barely cognizant of the action. Yet somehow, the monster children is where we draw the line? Creating an alternate timeline is fair game, but her actually using her powers in combat is suddenly, after 3 books of insane displays of power, off the table??? Not only did she have the crown and both Tear & Row's sapphires but she had vast knowledge on Row's weaknesses and personality from Katie's memory. I just don't get it, I really don't. If I had known this series would end with Kelsea as a librarian in pseudo-Manhattan, I wouldn't have picked it up. Putting the conclusion aside, with great difficulty, there are a few other questions/problems I have with this book.
1. Elyssa & Mhurn
There was absolutely no reason for Elyssa to be alive. It contributed to nothing, nor was the interaction anything of substance. I have no idea why, in the last 100 pages of the book, the author decided to revive her for a 1min long conversation with her daughter just to never be seen again. Well, not until we see her cooking in that damned ending. Elyssa's purpose as being Kelsea's predecessor worked well with the storyline, and didn't need to be touched. I'm usually a fan of big parent-child interactions in fantasy but the interaction wasn't even satisfying. Elyssa's advertised personality of vanity and thoughtlessness seemed too forced as well. Yes, we get that she's a vain piece of shit but the flow of conversation and Elyssa's replies didn't read like normal dialogue to me. And don't get me wrong, Elyssa secretly being alive could've made for a wonderful plot twist if only it had served a purpose. I adore the Mace, but I'm kinda disappointed he went along with this. It's in character but still, a shame.
As for Mhurn, his being Kelsea's father was another plot point that had much potential. She killed her father and only knew she was her father until months later, it's really the perfect source of angst. That is, if it wasn't mentioned briefly in the last 90 pages of the trilogy. Kelsea's father has been hyped up throughout the series, with cryptic replies from those who knew that seemed to indicate future plot relevance. But no, one of, if not the biggest, anticipated reveal was jammed into the final book and barely even touched upon. The suspense was built so perfectly for the reveal too, only to be mishandled the last second.
2. The Loose Ends
There are so many characters and topics that we don't learn the answer to. Who is Breanna? What truly happened in Arlen Thorne and the Mace's past? How did Rowland Finn learn dark magic? What exactly were those dark children (be specific please, no vague 'they're a great evil' statements that don't actually tell us anything)? What exactly are the sapphires? What happened to the Holy Father? There was just so much story left to tell, which makes the conclusion even more dissatisfying: it was completely and utterly unnecessary.
3. The True Queen
The entire series, from the very first page of the first book, is very heavily structured around one idea: Kelsea being the True Queen. It's on the inside of the cover, in each summary, in the beginning of every chapter. The little quotes on top of every chapter in EVERY book are little excerpts from history books centuries after the book's conclusion, that document Kelsea and the Mace's great achievements. I began looking forward to seeing this conclusion unravel, as the implications of the little quotes were interesting to think about. What was the point of all this? To throw us off and achieve the most unpredictable ending ever? I'll admit, the ending was unpredictable, just because it was so ass. The entire pretense of the trilogy was discarded, despite having such crazy potential. That's what bothers me the most about this series: it had so much potential. Yet every single topic of interest was either neglected or ruined needlessly.
4. The Fetch
God, the Fetch. The most enigmatic character in the entire novel, with only the Red Queen as a rival. Every appearance he would make enriched that section of the novel and I found myself looking forward to learning more about him. You can imagine my surprise when I learn the Fetch was just some weak loser who couldn't think himself out of a box as a kid. Worst part is, his name's GAVIN. Really kicking us when we're down here, I'm so distraught. When Kelsea confronts him, all the mystery and allure of the Fetch disintegrates. He starts begging her to understand his mistake, begging. Despite having had 300 years to process his mistakes, he still folds when confronted and couldn't even face it with dignity. Kelsea's attraction to him amounted to absolutely nothing as well, which was just disappointing. She talked about how she'd never love someone like she did the Fetch and proceeds to have what, two interactions with him? Their dynamic never even approaches romantic, it's just one of many discarded plot lines that served no purpose whatsoever.
Giving this book 2stars because the book wasn't half-bad until that conclusion fucked it up. 3 stars for the first 90% of the book, 1 star for that sad, sad 10%.
PS. What the hell was the point of snapping Jonathan Tear's neck? Kelsea went back in time to kill Row and prevent him from doing his weird demon shit, but decides to snap Johnny boy's neck first for WHAT? If she was trying to get rid of all Tear blood (for a reason I currently cannot think of), she would've killed Katie or at least made her have a miscarriage since she knew she carried either Jonathan or Row's kid, both dudes of Tear blood.
Out of the hundreds, thousands of potential conclusions, we get the king of all deus ex machinas ever devised? I genuinely cannot wrap my head around it. The sapphires, the ultimate plot device, are presented as all-powerful. Kelsea blows the heads off of a hundred men in an instant, barely cognizant of the action. Yet somehow, the monster children is where we draw the line? Creating an alternate timeline is fair game, but her actually using her powers in combat is suddenly, after 3 books of insane displays of power, off the table??? Not only did she have the crown and both Tear & Row's sapphires but she had vast knowledge on Row's weaknesses and personality from Katie's memory. I just don't get it, I really don't. If I had known this series would end with Kelsea as a librarian in pseudo-Manhattan, I wouldn't have picked it up. Putting the conclusion aside, with great difficulty, there are a few other questions/problems I have with this book.
1. Elyssa & Mhurn
There was absolutely no reason for Elyssa to be alive. It contributed to nothing, nor was the interaction anything of substance. I have no idea why, in the last 100 pages of the book, the author decided to revive her for a 1min long conversation with her daughter just to never be seen again. Well, not until we see her cooking in that damned ending. Elyssa's purpose as being Kelsea's predecessor worked well with the storyline, and didn't need to be touched. I'm usually a fan of big parent-child interactions in fantasy but the interaction wasn't even satisfying. Elyssa's advertised personality of vanity and thoughtlessness seemed too forced as well. Yes, we get that she's a vain piece of shit but the flow of conversation and Elyssa's replies didn't read like normal dialogue to me. And don't get me wrong, Elyssa secretly being alive could've made for a wonderful plot twist if only it had served a purpose. I adore the Mace, but I'm kinda disappointed he went along with this. It's in character but still, a shame.
As for Mhurn, his being Kelsea's father was another plot point that had much potential. She killed her father and only knew she was her father until months later, it's really the perfect source of angst. That is, if it wasn't mentioned briefly in the last 90 pages of the trilogy. Kelsea's father has been hyped up throughout the series, with cryptic replies from those who knew that seemed to indicate future plot relevance. But no, one of, if not the biggest, anticipated reveal was jammed into the final book and barely even touched upon. The suspense was built so perfectly for the reveal too, only to be mishandled the last second.
2. The Loose Ends
There are so many characters and topics that we don't learn the answer to. Who is Breanna? What truly happened in Arlen Thorne and the Mace's past? How did Rowland Finn learn dark magic? What exactly were those dark children (be specific please, no vague 'they're a great evil' statements that don't actually tell us anything)? What exactly are the sapphires? What happened to the Holy Father? There was just so much story left to tell, which makes the conclusion even more dissatisfying: it was completely and utterly unnecessary.
3. The True Queen
The entire series, from the very first page of the first book, is very heavily structured around one idea: Kelsea being the True Queen. It's on the inside of the cover, in each summary, in the beginning of every chapter. The little quotes on top of every chapter in EVERY book are little excerpts from history books centuries after the book's conclusion, that document Kelsea and the Mace's great achievements. I began looking forward to seeing this conclusion unravel, as the implications of the little quotes were interesting to think about. What was the point of all this? To throw us off and achieve the most unpredictable ending ever? I'll admit, the ending was unpredictable, just because it was so ass. The entire pretense of the trilogy was discarded, despite having such crazy potential. That's what bothers me the most about this series: it had so much potential. Yet every single topic of interest was either neglected or ruined needlessly.
4. The Fetch
God, the Fetch. The most enigmatic character in the entire novel, with only the Red Queen as a rival. Every appearance he would make enriched that section of the novel and I found myself looking forward to learning more about him. You can imagine my surprise when I learn the Fetch was just some weak loser who couldn't think himself out of a box as a kid. Worst part is, his name's GAVIN. Really kicking us when we're down here, I'm so distraught. When Kelsea confronts him, all the mystery and allure of the Fetch disintegrates. He starts begging her to understand his mistake, begging. Despite having had 300 years to process his mistakes, he still folds when confronted and couldn't even face it with dignity. Kelsea's attraction to him amounted to absolutely nothing as well, which was just disappointing. She talked about how she'd never love someone like she did the Fetch and proceeds to have what, two interactions with him? Their dynamic never even approaches romantic, it's just one of many discarded plot lines that served no purpose whatsoever.
Giving this book 2stars because the book wasn't half-bad until that conclusion fucked it up. 3 stars for the first 90% of the book, 1 star for that sad, sad 10%.
PS. What the hell was the point of snapping Jonathan Tear's neck? Kelsea went back in time to kill Row and prevent him from doing his weird demon shit, but decides to snap Johnny boy's neck first for WHAT? If she was trying to get rid of all Tear blood (for a reason I currently cannot think of), she would've killed Katie or at least made her have a miscarriage since she knew she carried either Jonathan or Row's kid, both dudes of Tear blood.
Sporting a polarizing ending that leaves you gobsmacked no matter what side your opinion lands on, The Fate of the Tearling was just as enthralling and riveting as the other two books in the series. With such a stunning ending, from which I am still recovering and collecting my thoughts, I have no choice but to plug in some spoilers at the end here.
The Fate of the Tearling was, like its predecessors, a lovely mix of the fantasy and dystopian genres. In this go-round, we are introduced to Katie, a first generation after The Crossing. Through Kelsea's fugues we get to finally experience how everything went so wrong so quickly for William Tear and his followers. Once again, Johansen's brilliant characterizations and fantastic world-building are front and center for the richly complex plot and conclusion for this trilogy. Every character is nuanced, every place detailed, every subplot is addressed.
Like so many have already said, this book was utterly brilliant and unstoppable until that odd last chapter. While I didn't have the qualms and didn't experience any book-chucking urges, I can quite obviously see why so many did. It's a questionable decision and it's endings like that one that make me very aware of the author, instead of focusing on the characters and their stories.
However, there is no way that ending sucks all the life out of the series for me. It's a fantastically done trilogy and I would totally and completely recommend it for those who are attracted to these genres. Johansen's writing is top-notch and her characters and settings are enthralling. I have a floaty kind of ambivalence to the ending, but ultimately I'm okay with it.
Here there be spoilers:
However, my big issue with Kelsea's parents was after the earthshaking, time-traveling, butterfly-effect event. I love me some time travel, but it needs to retain some modicum of sense and a certain level of continuity. Honestly, I'd rather Kelsea have woken up and not remembered the alternate history of her life. But she did and that leaves this huge gaping hole for me...if her mother Elyssa had never been anyone of importance (much less a QUEEN), how is it that she and Mhurn still met at the exact right time to create Kelsea? Where's that story? Is Elyssa not married or involved with Mhurn currently? Did he somehow, in this more perfect future, still become an addict? I really need more explanation for this, and I don't see how I'd be satisfied with any. Ultimately for me, that was my big beef with this ambitious and sad, ambiguous ending.
While I was a little down about Pen/Andrew, I was ultimately accepting of the new situation—after all, though Pen had fallen in love with Kelsea, she was never truly in love with him, and I'm fine with her needing to find her own way in this new world. I do like how she bumped into several people she used to know, and how Carlin is her boss, and that everything seems to have worked out for everyone except her. The unseeable future hurt her because she was left with her memories of the past—interesting take on the butterfly effect. However, that time-travel business has me question the outcome in a general sense. Hundreds of years after Katie and Kelsea together saved the Tearling and its future, everyone (at least to that point) of significance in Kelsea's life still met and married and had the same children? The only thing that was affected really was the setting? And thus the emotional development of the people? That was a hard pill to swallow and the longer I think on it the less believable I find it to be.
But, as I say, I still found this book to be a fantastic finale to an incredible and entertaining trilogy.
The Fate of the Tearling was, like its predecessors, a lovely mix of the fantasy and dystopian genres. In this go-round, we are introduced to Katie, a first generation after The Crossing. Through Kelsea's fugues we get to finally experience how everything went so wrong so quickly for William Tear and his followers. Once again, Johansen's brilliant characterizations and fantastic world-building are front and center for the richly complex plot and conclusion for this trilogy. Every character is nuanced, every place detailed, every subplot is addressed.
Like so many have already said, this book was utterly brilliant and unstoppable until that odd last chapter. While I didn't have the qualms and didn't experience any book-chucking urges, I can quite obviously see why so many did. It's a questionable decision and it's endings like that one that make me very aware of the author, instead of focusing on the characters and their stories.
However, there is no way that ending sucks all the life out of the series for me. It's a fantastically done trilogy and I would totally and completely recommend it for those who are attracted to these genres. Johansen's writing is top-notch and her characters and settings are enthralling. I have a floaty kind of ambivalence to the ending, but ultimately I'm okay with it.
Here there be spoilers:
Spoiler
The revelation of Kelsea's parentage was shocking and I was completely surprised by her mother's appearance in the book. I think I would've rather her father have either been a more prominent character, or a completely new one...I really was rather dismissive of this reveal and at this juncture in the plot, I couldn't have cared less about Mhurn.However, my big issue with Kelsea's parents was after the earthshaking, time-traveling, butterfly-effect event. I love me some time travel, but it needs to retain some modicum of sense and a certain level of continuity. Honestly, I'd rather Kelsea have woken up and not remembered the alternate history of her life. But she did and that leaves this huge gaping hole for me...if her mother Elyssa had never been anyone of importance (much less a QUEEN), how is it that she and Mhurn still met at the exact right time to create Kelsea? Where's that story? Is Elyssa not married or involved with Mhurn currently? Did he somehow, in this more perfect future, still become an addict? I really need more explanation for this, and I don't see how I'd be satisfied with any. Ultimately for me, that was my big beef with this ambitious and sad, ambiguous ending.
While I was a little down about Pen/Andrew, I was ultimately accepting of the new situation—after all, though Pen had fallen in love with Kelsea, she was never truly in love with him, and I'm fine with her needing to find her own way in this new world. I do like how she bumped into several people she used to know, and how Carlin is her boss, and that everything seems to have worked out for everyone except her. The unseeable future hurt her because she was left with her memories of the past—interesting take on the butterfly effect. However, that time-travel business has me question the outcome in a general sense. Hundreds of years after Katie and Kelsea together saved the Tearling and its future, everyone (at least to that point) of significance in Kelsea's life still met and married and had the same children? The only thing that was affected really was the setting? And thus the emotional development of the people? That was a hard pill to swallow and the longer I think on it the less believable I find it to be.
But, as I say,
Spoiler
if I disregard the time travel ramifications with which I disagree,
In retrospect, everything in the series was leading up to this ending which was, though not as satisfying as I'd hoped for, unexpected and probably what Kelsea really deserved.
A very satisfying ending to this complex high-fantasy series. After a slightly faltering second installment, this felt like the perfect ending that took Kelsea and her colleagues in a highly unexpected direction. I had to re-read the ending twice to be sure I understood everything that happened, but ultimately am so impressed with how beautifully this story came together to tell the fate of the Tearling. Absolutely phenomenal.
3 stars.
Okay let me preface this a bit. I first read the Queen of the Tearling series back when it was first published four years ago. I remember the first book was slow but I had liked it quite a lot. Then the second book came along and holy crap was it slow and I honestly could not have cared less about the plot once Lily was introduced. All I wanted to read were the chapters about the Crossing because Kelsea was so infuriating and her character development just got worse and worse to me. Then the third and final book came out and it was pretty close to the same -- what saved the book were the chapters that had nothing to do with Kelsea, the ones about the Crossing and the Town.
I loved reading about different characters from the Town era, Katie and Row Finn and their friendship. Their story was so much more interesting than Kelsea's but honestly Kelsea was so god damn annoying so literally anything would have been better than her chapters. I could understand Kelsea's changes from headstrong naive girl to morally confused queen to what she ended up being in the end which was something in between. It was a strong journey and a necessary one, but that doesn't mean it was easy to read or easy to like Kelsea as a character. She was callous and harsh and indifferent with matters that she shouldn't have been and then she was so weak willed and soft when she should have been strong. GAH SHE WAS SO FRUSTRATING. But in the end, she was the person she was meant to be (FINALLY) and was true to herself.
So one of my biggest issues was how so many secondary characters were brushed off at the end of the story. Penn, Aisa, even the Fetch, all got brushed under the rug by the end of it all. I like Penn and Kelsea's relationship in the first two books especially once they got romantic but then Kelsea ended it and after all of Penn's blubbering about her being in the Red Queen's hands he barely seemed to register her return. Yeah yeah he couldn't be with her anymore but still you don't just stop loving someone like that, it just felt really abrupt and poorly timed. Then there was Aisa, this cool badass little girl out to protect her family by any means necessary and what even happens to her in the end??? Like her death happened so fast that I didn't even notice it. After all she went through she died that frickin fast and without ceremony. And honestly what was the point of the Fetch this whole time???? He was so mysterious and cool and then I learned his real identity and who he was to Row Finn and wow disappointed because he's now no longer cool and his character just seemed pointless.
I don't know guys this series started off so strong and had so much potential and then that fUCKING ENDING JUST RUINED EVERYTHING BEYOND REPAIR. LIKE SERIOUSLY WHAT THE HELL???? It was so FRICKIN disappointing to see that Kelsea saved everyone but ended up creating a new future where her life was changed completely and I don't know man it was just so unsatisfying and disappointing and I am disappointed that this was how I started off 2017 because I think it put me in a bit of a slump.
Okay let me preface this a bit. I first read the Queen of the Tearling series back when it was first published four years ago. I remember the first book was slow but I had liked it quite a lot. Then the second book came along and holy crap was it slow and I honestly could not have cared less about the plot once Lily was introduced. All I wanted to read were the chapters about the Crossing because Kelsea was so infuriating and her character development just got worse and worse to me. Then the third and final book came out and it was pretty close to the same -- what saved the book were the chapters that had nothing to do with Kelsea, the ones about the Crossing and the Town.
I loved reading about different characters from the Town era, Katie and Row Finn and their friendship. Their story was so much more interesting than Kelsea's but honestly Kelsea was so god damn annoying so literally anything would have been better than her chapters. I could understand Kelsea's changes from headstrong naive girl to morally confused queen to what she ended up being in the end which was something in between. It was a strong journey and a necessary one, but that doesn't mean it was easy to read or easy to like Kelsea as a character. She was callous and harsh and indifferent with matters that she shouldn't have been and then she was so weak willed and soft when she should have been strong. GAH SHE WAS SO FRUSTRATING. But in the end, she was the person she was meant to be (FINALLY) and was true to herself.
So one of my biggest issues was how so many secondary characters were brushed off at the end of the story. Penn, Aisa, even the Fetch, all got brushed under the rug by the end of it all. I like Penn and Kelsea's relationship in the first two books especially once they got romantic but then Kelsea ended it and after all of Penn's blubbering about her being in the Red Queen's hands he barely seemed to register her return. Yeah yeah he couldn't be with her anymore but still you don't just stop loving someone like that, it just felt really abrupt and poorly timed. Then there was Aisa, this cool badass little girl out to protect her family by any means necessary and what even happens to her in the end??? Like her death happened so fast that I didn't even notice it. After all she went through she died that frickin fast and without ceremony. And honestly what was the point of the Fetch this whole time???? He was so mysterious and cool and then I learned his real identity and who he was to Row Finn and wow disappointed because he's now no longer cool and his character just seemed pointless.
I don't know guys this series started off so strong and had so much potential and then that fUCKING ENDING JUST RUINED EVERYTHING BEYOND REPAIR. LIKE SERIOUSLY WHAT THE HELL???? It was so FRICKIN disappointing to see that Kelsea saved everyone but ended up creating a new future where her life was changed completely and I don't know man it was just so unsatisfying and disappointing and I am disappointed that this was how I started off 2017 because I think it put me in a bit of a slump.
Terzo e ultimo volume della trilogia iniziata con The Queen of the Tearling. Avevamo lasciato la nostra Kelsea nelle mani della Regina Rossa, dopo averle consegnato i suoi zaffiri e sacrificato se stessa in cambio di una tregua di tre anni nella guerra fra il Mortmense e il Tearling, e qui la ritroviamo, imprigionata nelle segrete di Demesne; nel frattempo Mazza Chiodata ricopre il non facile ruolo di Reggente cercando di gestire allo stesso tempo gli affari del Regno, la minaccia della guerra, i rapporti sempre più tesi con la Chiesa, e le missioni per riportare a casa la Regina; dal Fairwich discende inesorabile la minaccia dell'Orfano che devasta sempre più villaggi allungando le sue file di inquietanti e mostruosi bambini.
Kelsea continua ad avere le sue visioni ma stavolta non si tratta più di Lily, ma di Katie, una giovane ragazza di una generazione successiva al Passaggio, cresciuta assieme a Row Finn e Fetch prima che venissero maledetti e resi immortali. Cos'è successo veramente? Cos'ha portato alla disfatta del grande sogno di William Tear? Com'è morto in realtà suo figlio Johnatan? Ma soprattutto, cosa deve imparare stavolta Kelsea dalla vita di Katie, e in che modo è collegata alla sua?
Mentre cerchiamo risposte a questi interrogativi troviamo le risposte alle domande che ci siamo fatti al termine del libro precedente: scopriamo come è finita l'invasione Mort, scopriamo cos'è successo a Lily e William Tear, scopriamo chi sono davvero Fetch e Row Finn, ma soprattutto scopriamo chi é il dannatissimo padre di Kelsea! (Non avrei mai indovinato...)
Come ho già detto parlando degli altri libri, i continui flashback non confondono le idee ma sono invece gestiti benissimo e riescono a portare avanti le due storie mantenendo vivo l'interesse verso entrambe, e la trama del racconto mette in luce un sacco di spunti di riflessione e dibattito verso idee e argomenti sempre molto attuali e a volte scomodi.
Il finale è assolutamente imprevedibile e mi ha lasciata di sasso, sul momento ci sono rimasta malissimo ed ero veramente angosciata, tuttavia pensandoci si tratta di un finale perfetto, un finale agrodolce ma perfettamente in linea con quello che è il carattere della nostra protagonista.
medium-paced
J'ai beaucoup aimé la trilogie. La fin n'était pas tout à fait prévisible donc j'ai été agréablement surprise. C'est une histoire fantastique comme je n'en ai pas lu avant, c'est intéressant de voir les différents destins des personnages se croiser sans que ça tombe dans des voyages temporels.