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A review by debchan
Locklands by Robert Jackson Bennett
5.0
the acknowledgement at the end was both the cherry on the top and the final straw on the camel's back.
bennett you have done it again. how do you even describe what happened? if the first book set the tone with the scriving the heists the found family, the second book was a marathon at a million miles per hour all while ripping your heart out, then this last book was a more mature grief, the feeling of being completely alone and the feeling of being connected to an entire group of people you could call "family." it's apt that he wrote this during covid as well.
the battle scenes were screen-worthy. giant monsters, massive floating land masses, doors wrenched from reality. this was pure scifi genius and though i could barely grasp what was going on, i knew it was written incredibly well.
it takes place 8 years after the second book which astounded me. i didn't think it would work, but it did. bc it showcased how extensive this fight became and how huge giva has become. one of my favorite things was greeter and design. the idea of so many people agreeing to become one conglomerate person to fit and work together and hold giva together? i loved it. i loved what is said about when people truly know each other, when their intent is made known, is there really a need for conflict? that this in itself was a small piece of paradise, a utopia? and was it worse that it could never be possible here in this reality?
what could i say about sancia and berenice that i haven't already said? that they were so determined, not just for themselves or each other, but for all of humanity. that they could've run away but they didn't bc then they wouldn't be them. and how berenice has come so far from book 1. their love is so strong, when i read wife i was flabbergasted but yes i'm so happy for them. they know each other so well that sancia just has to run into the fray, report what she sees, and trusts completely that berenice will come up with an idea. my girl is so so smart.
and then we had clef and crasedes and valeria, all beings of incredible power. we get to see more clearly what really happened all those years ago. all the pain they caused each other, everything bc they were trying so hard to fix everything but it was just them and they were the only ones who knew how. and so they did the unforgivable, knowing what it was, in the slight hopes that everything would be ok. their story is so tragic and understandable and horrific and i'm totally glad it's fiction. i'm sure somewhere in another world and time they could have a chance to live freely and smile.
we got gregor back too for just a short while. and he and berenice were holding each other up for as long as they could. only they knew what they had been through. after all those years, i'm glad she had him even if he did leave in the end. and then i just knew bennett had to give us some sort of happy ending. (bc i'd go crazy if berenice were left on her own without sancia). they can get a drink now, they can stroll along the beach, they can hold each other and never let go. the sheer force and power of sancia and berenice's love wow. esp when they were reminiscing about book 1 ugh i miss those times too.
it's about people first and foremost. how we can destroy each other, for sure. but also how we are connected as a whole, how we can be stronger together. how it's impossible to become giva but isn't it worth it a bit to try? not the scriving but the tie, the bonds they had. it's about how crasedes tried over and over to fix the world but he couldn't. how gregor wanted to give reprieve to the people but realized the rot was deep within. it's about how the people you love the most can also hurt you the most. it's about how a seemingly simple choice could ripple into effect for hundreds of years later. it's a series about humanity. (and now i won't ever stop thinking about these books!)
bennett you have done it again. how do you even describe what happened? if the first book set the tone with the scriving the heists the found family, the second book was a marathon at a million miles per hour all while ripping your heart out, then this last book was a more mature grief, the feeling of being completely alone and the feeling of being connected to an entire group of people you could call "family." it's apt that he wrote this during covid as well.
the battle scenes were screen-worthy. giant monsters, massive floating land masses, doors wrenched from reality. this was pure scifi genius and though i could barely grasp what was going on, i knew it was written incredibly well.
it takes place 8 years after the second book which astounded me. i didn't think it would work, but it did. bc it showcased how extensive this fight became and how huge giva has become. one of my favorite things was greeter and design. the idea of so many people agreeing to become one conglomerate person to fit and work together and hold giva together? i loved it. i loved what is said about when people truly know each other, when their intent is made known, is there really a need for conflict? that this in itself was a small piece of paradise, a utopia? and was it worse that it could never be possible here in this reality?
what could i say about sancia and berenice that i haven't already said? that they were so determined, not just for themselves or each other, but for all of humanity. that they could've run away but they didn't bc then they wouldn't be them. and how berenice has come so far from book 1. their love is so strong, when i read wife i was flabbergasted but yes i'm so happy for them. they know each other so well that sancia just has to run into the fray, report what she sees, and trusts completely that berenice will come up with an idea. my girl is so so smart.
and then we had clef and crasedes and valeria, all beings of incredible power. we get to see more clearly what really happened all those years ago. all the pain they caused each other, everything bc they were trying so hard to fix everything but it was just them and they were the only ones who knew how. and so they did the unforgivable, knowing what it was, in the slight hopes that everything would be ok. their story is so tragic and understandable and horrific and i'm totally glad it's fiction. i'm sure somewhere in another world and time they could have a chance to live freely and smile.
it's about people first and foremost. how we can destroy each other, for sure. but also how we are connected as a whole, how we can be stronger together. how it's impossible to become giva but isn't it worth it a bit to try? not the scriving but the tie, the bonds they had. it's about how crasedes tried over and over to fix the world but he couldn't. how gregor wanted to give reprieve to the people but realized the rot was deep within. it's about how the people you love the most can also hurt you the most. it's about how a seemingly simple choice could ripple into effect for hundreds of years later. it's a series about humanity. (and now i won't ever stop thinking about these books!)