So, I finally finished the third book in this trilogy. I spent all of Saturday evening hunkered down in my bedroom just reading it, taking breaks only to eat, make coffee, and to go to the bathroom. I know, I’m one of this obsessive readers who has to reach the end.
This is very much an immediate reaction to the book, to the trilogy for me. I have loved this trilogy ever since I first started reading it. I think it must have been about two years ago now that, on impulse, I bought the first book off of Amazon, because I had finished uni and I was struggling to find a job, and quite simply, I was bored. I was a bit wary about reading it, the reviews I had seen weren’t amazing, but I decided I was intrigued, I’d read the sample of the book on my kindle and decided to buy it. I don’t know what made me buy it in book form as opposed to buying it on my kindle, but whatever it was I’m grateful.
I remember ploughing through that first book and being heartbroken the next book wasn’t out for another couple of months. I then remember getting the second book and ploughing through that in a day. Then there was a long dark period of waiting for the third book. I became less excited about it’s release. Well, not less excited, but I was waiting for it without having that eager anticipation that comes immediately after finishing a book. When it came in the post last Thursday, I fully expected to power through as I had with the others, to finish it during my Easter weekend. That didn’t happen. I was slow in finishing the first book in my reread, and slow in finishing the second. In fact, I finished the second on Saturday, rushing through the majority of the book and immediately picked up the third and didn’t stop reading until I had finished.
My immediate thoughts about the third book? I loved it. I really did. I loved the resolution to storylines. I loved the character growth. I adored the new characters, and the twists and turns of the story. Everything about this book I adored. It is a definitely a five star review for me. Everything in this book provided a perfect ending to one of my favourite trilogies. I loved that Karou came to some excellent realisations about herself. Her entire development throughout the series was very well done. She began as a teenage girl struggling with so many secrets, a little but heartbroken, but not really, trying to figure out who she was, as we all are trying to do as a teenager. I’m still trying to figure myself out now. You see her come to some realisations about herself, see her fall in love and see her figuring out what love actually means. She experiences a whirlwind of emotions through each book. I admit, in the second book I found her wallowing and self-loathing to be a bit dull and frustrating, but so did she. I think it was all so well written. Taylor managed to write some excellent lessons within the pages without trying. Karou often wallows in the self pity in the second book, and who can blame her? She was betrayed. You see her self-loathing for her actions, which is also understandable, if not deserved.
Throughout the book there are some strong feminist messages, which are great things to be writing for anyone reading this book, and I love that it is written in the pages of this YA series. There was strong message of how, although Karou loved and wanted Akiva to be with her to help her, she did not need him to save her. Karou only needed herself and her own strength. A great message when so often women are shown to be in need of a saviour, something that is becoming less common, but you still see it. Also, it was good to have a glimpse of Akiva, he so wanted Karou, but seeing her with another man he said wished to have her and then changed his mind and wished for her to choose him over anyone else. That is an excellent message about choice right there. With there being a rise in abusive sounding relationship within the bookish world right now, it is so nice to see the message of choice and the freedom of a person to choose to be with someone and everyone just having to chill their beans and accept it.
Now, my love of this series is profound, that isn’t to say there is nothing I didn’t like about these books. As a said before, Karou was mopey and occasionally hypocritical in the second book, which she realises and attempts to get herself out of (thank god, because it was annoying to see a strong character be brought low.) Then, in the third book, I occasionally felt like things worked themselves out too conveniently. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t see half the things coming that happened, but the way they managed to resolve the angel earth invasion felt too clean and convenient. The end to the angel chimera war, also mega convenient. I expected more death and desolation. I found the solution to these things to be too convenient. And the travelling between dimensions and being able to collect teeth so still able to resurrect folk? Damn convenient.
The whole thing with Stelians annoyed me a bit. The Stelians were angry about the Seraphim ignorance, but didn’t they cause it? There were a lot of questions I would have liked answered. I would have liked to have everything explained fully. Like what the Stelians were doing? More explanation about the fallen, I know we got an explanation, but a better one. I think I simply wanted more. I wanted it explained to be more clearly, I didn’t fully grasp what was going on with the Stelians and why they insisted upon distancing themselves. It made no sense to me.
I would recommend this series to anyone and everyone. It’s got some excellent fantasy elements which anyone could relate to and understand. It’s easy and accessible book to the fantasy genre, which is always good with a series like this. Please, everyone go read so I have more people to rave about it with? Until next time folks.
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