★★★★★
An amazing ending to a high fantasy trilogy. Ms. Estep crushes it with this final book. I loved it. Evie is still fighting to save her country from their ancient enemy, Morta. I adore Evie and how she's created to be a "dish served cold" character. Evie's long game is impressive and inspires me to think long term strategies even more.
This spellbinding book takes a reader back to the war torn world of magic, intrigue and star crossed lovers. Although, I think we can safely state at this point, her love is solid and no one is going to force Evie to do what she doesn't to do. Trying to keep the political back-stabbing to a minimum in her own kingdom, Evie also create a subtle war against the kingdom of Morta. It is a masterful stroke that I didn't exactly see coming. And that is what I love best about it. That I had a vague notion of what was going on, but I couldn't see the end game. It is very rare for me not to be able to see the end game so I am always thrilled when an author catches me off guard. Ms. Estep certainly stepped up her game in this trilogy. Her writing style has become more complex with rich layers and complicated characters. I like this new maturity and I hope to see more if it in new series she creates.
This book can not be read as a standalone. It is critical that it is read in the order it was written to understand all the nuances. Each scene is created to add another step in this chess game to live. Because the loser, will end up dead. Evie's high stake plans sometimes seems to take steps backwards. It is because she adjusts her plans as new information comes to light. This is also astounding to be able to create a plan, stick to it yet still be flexible enough to adjust to rogue elements. Well done!
I absolutely adored this trilogy and highly recommend it to high fantasy readers who want to be stimulated, enthralled and amazed.
*provided by Edelweiss
