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A review by bookish_satty
The Empire of Ashes by Anthony Ryan
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
This review encompasses my thoughts and feelings on the entire Trilogy.
This series is unique and so very special to me as I loved all the 3 books back to back because I couldn't put it down and not know what happened next.
The characters were the highlight of this story for me as well as the world building. All 3 main characters i.e. Clay, Lizanne and Hilemore were some of the best characters that I've ever read about. By the third book I had formed a deep connection to each of them. Now that I've finished the trilogy I just don't know what to read next as these characters are still on my mind and I want to know more about their future and the new age to come in this world. Another huge plus point of this series is the side
Worldbuilding was the second best thing in this trilogy as it is rich in lost histories, forgotten lore, Dragons, Rules based Magic System and such a vast and rich world that is filled with unique creatures, culture, beliefs, etc. The Dragons are used in this story in a unique and creative way. I've never read a book where the Dragons are the antagonist and to be honest I didn't know if I'll like it as I've always liked Dragons as being the protectors of our protagonist but I'm happy to report that this new experience was awesome.
The plot was well thought out and executed very well. The author maintained in keeping up the suspense and I felt a sense of impending doom as I continued on with the journey that our brave characters take to save the world.
The writing style is excellent and the dialogues are written so wonderfully and it suited the personality of each of our main characters.
Overall a great experience but I have a little complaint regarding the ending of this trilogy. It did seem abrupt to me. All the tension and suspense kept building up from Book 1 and when the final confrontation happened it ended too quickly and too blandly in my opinion. Moreover after the end of the world I would have loved to see more about the new age that this war ushered in and how our main characters cope with these changes. Hope someday we get a sequel series or a prequel series because there is still so much to explore in this world.
WARNING - MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD [For the Entire Trilogy].
Some questions and thoughts I had after finishing the series.
What happened with the Seer [From the religion whose Scriptures Preacher quotes]? Did the prophecy come true? Did he also drink the blood of the White Drake like The Mad Artisan? Are the Seer and The Mad Artisan the same person? I'm still confused regarding that.
I really liked the way the mind controlled Spoiled were freed from the slavery but after Clay went to so much trouble to get the information it seemed very anticlimactic when the thrall was actually broken within a paragraph and the White Drake killed so easily.
Clay's decision to redeem Catheline rather than kill her when the moment arrived was the stupidest thing ever but it did give Sirus a chance to redeem himself. I liked the ending he and Tekela got.
What happened to the Black Dragon Heart Blood Clay had? During the funeral of Sirus and burning of the White Drake Clay threw away a vial of Dragon Blood but he had two vials one containing White Drake blood and the other containing the Heart Blood of a Black Drake so which one did he keep or did he disposed off both.
I really wanted Clay to bond with the baby Drake whose mother's heart blood he collected for that same purpose but later he just gave up the egg and nothing came out of the Black Dragon Heart Blood he collected which was disappointing.
Not bringing the Black Dragons to the ultimate fight was also baffling to me. Clay stated the reason that it was humanity's fight only but didn't he went to seek help from the Black Drakes in the first place because the White will eventually annihilate the Black Dragons after he finishes off Humanity so why wouldn't they fight for their own survival? Though after reading about the horrible way humans treated Dragons in Book 1 I think they got what they deserved at the hands of the White. Revolution is always bloody.
This series is unique and so very special to me as I loved all the 3 books back to back because I couldn't put it down and not know what happened next.
The characters were the highlight of this story for me as well as the world building. All 3 main characters i.e. Clay, Lizanne and Hilemore were some of the best characters that I've ever read about. By the third book I had formed a deep connection to each of them. Now that I've finished the trilogy I just don't know what to read next as these characters are still on my mind and I want to know more about their future and the new age to come in this world. Another huge plus point of this series is the side
Worldbuilding was the second best thing in this trilogy as it is rich in lost histories, forgotten lore, Dragons, Rules based Magic System and such a vast and rich world that is filled with unique creatures, culture, beliefs, etc. The Dragons are used in this story in a unique and creative way. I've never read a book where the Dragons are the antagonist and to be honest I didn't know if I'll like it as I've always liked Dragons as being the protectors of our protagonist but I'm happy to report that this new experience was awesome.
The plot was well thought out and executed very well. The author maintained in keeping up the suspense and I felt a sense of impending doom as I continued on with the journey that our brave characters take to save the world.
The writing style is excellent and the dialogues are written so wonderfully and it suited the personality of each of our main characters.
Overall a great experience but I have a little complaint regarding the ending of this trilogy. It did seem abrupt to me. All the tension and suspense kept building up from Book 1 and when the final confrontation happened it ended too quickly and too blandly in my opinion. Moreover after the end of the world I would have loved to see more about the new age that this war ushered in and how our main characters cope with these changes. Hope someday we get a sequel series or a prequel series because there is still so much to explore in this world.
WARNING - MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD [For the Entire Trilogy].
What happened with the Seer [From the religion whose Scriptures Preacher quotes]? Did the prophecy come true? Did he also drink the blood of the White Drake like The Mad Artisan? Are the Seer and The Mad Artisan the same person? I'm still confused regarding that.
I really liked the way the mind controlled Spoiled were freed from the slavery but after Clay went to so much trouble to get the information it seemed very anticlimactic when the thrall was actually broken within a paragraph and the White Drake killed so easily.
Clay's decision to redeem Catheline rather than kill her when the moment arrived was the stupidest thing ever but it did give Sirus a chance to redeem himself. I liked the ending he and Tekela got.
What happened to the Black Dragon Heart Blood Clay had? During the funeral of Sirus and burning of the White Drake Clay threw away a vial of Dragon Blood but he had two vials one containing White Drake blood and the other containing the Heart Blood of a Black Drake so which one did he keep or did he disposed off both.
I really wanted Clay to bond with the baby Drake whose mother's heart blood he collected for that same purpose but later he just gave up the egg and nothing came out of the Black Dragon Heart Blood he collected which was disappointing.
Not bringing the Black Dragons to the ultimate fight was also baffling to me. Clay stated the reason that it was humanity's fight only but didn't he went to seek help from the Black Drakes in the first place because the White will eventually annihilate the Black Dragons after he finishes off Humanity so why wouldn't they fight for their own survival? Though after reading about the horrible way humans treated Dragons in Book 1 I think they got what they deserved at the hands of the White. Revolution is always bloody.