A review by oldandnewbooksmell
The Burning Swift by Joseph Elliott

adventurous fast-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

5.0

Trigger Warnings: anxiety, violence (war), death, homophobia (internal), sexism, misogyny, ritualistic self-harm

In the 3rd and final book of the Shadow Skye series, Agatha, Jamie, and Sigrid must do whatever it takes to stop the kings of Norveg and Ingland, who had joined forces to annihilate the people of Scotia. They turn to the Badhbh to help, but instead, he kidnaps Agatha and runs towards the kings. While Jamie and Sigrid try to unite the clans of Scotia and beyond their borders, Agatha receives unexpected support from people in Ingland.

What a way to end this wonderful trilogy! I had a hard time putting it down, I just wanted to revisit the trio and see what happens.

The multiple narrative voices of Agatha, Jamie, and Sigrid were still engaging and well characterized; I laughed, I gasped, I cheered. Agatha has always been my favorite but Sigrid and their moments too where I was laughing so hard. Jamie was and still is one of those characters I want to wrap up in a warm blanket and maybe give some hot cocoa to. These three characters are all teenagers, and they all went through so much. Jamie was always beating himself up over not being good enough and that’s a struggle that teenagers still go through to this day (and adults too to be honest)! 

The characters were all together at the beginning, separated around Scotia and Ingland, and then brought back together again. Joseph Elliot did an amazing job at keeping every part of the story fascinating and engaging. I couldn’t read it fast enough to see how they all came back together to defeat the kings.

I can’t recommend this series enough - there’s diverse voices, mythical beasts, magic, LGBTQ+ romance, girls taking action, and so much more! I’ve been constantly trying to get the other two books into people's hands but now that the series is complete, I can really shove it into their hands and onto as many booklist recommendations as I possibly can! Please! Read this series!! 
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