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The Spellmason Chronicles #3
(Incarnate) [By: Michael Frost] [Apr, 2014]
HITTING ROCK BOTTOM When Alexandra Belarus discovered her family’s secret ability to breathe life into stone, she uncovered an entire world of magic hidden within New York City—a world she has accidentally thrown into chaos. A spell gone awry has set thousands of gargoyles loose upon Manhattan, and it’s up to Lexi and her faithful protector, Stanis, to put things right. But the stress of saving the city is casting a pall over Lexi and Stanis’s relationship, driving them to work separately to solve the problem. As Stanis struggles to unite the gargoyle population, Lexi forges unlikely alliances with witches, alchemists and New York’s Finest to quell an unsettling uprising led by an ancient and deadly foe long thought vanquished. To save her city, Lexi must wield more power than ever before with the added hope of recovering a mysterious artifact that could change her world—and bring her closer to Stanis than she ever thought possible…
Paperback
First published September 30, 2014
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244 people want to read
About the author
Anton Strout
33 books314 followersWhen not plotting against his mortal enemy Patrick Rothfuss, Anton Strout is the author of the Simon Canderous urban fantasy series for Ace Books including
Dead To Me, Deader Still, Dead Matter and Dead Waters.
His new series with Ace Books is entitled The Spellmason Chronicles. Alchemystic is first in the series, followed by Stonecast and the upcoming Incarnate .
He is also the host and curator of content for The Once & Future Podcast, a weekly show that focuses on discussions with other working writers.
His other writing has appeared in a variety of anthologies—some of which include Simon Canderous tie-in stories—including: Boondocks Fantasy, The Dimension Next Door, A Girl’s Guide to Guns & Monsters, Pandora’s Closet, Spells of the City, and Zombie Raccoons & Killer Bunnies, Spells of the City, Boondocks Fantasy, After Hours: Tales from the Ur-Bar, and the upcoming Human For A Day .
He currently lives outside New York City in the haunted corn maze that is New Jersey (where nothing paranormal ever really happens, he assures you). In his scant spare time, he is an always writer, sometimes actor, sometimes musician, occasional RPGer, and the world’s most casual and controller-smashing video gamer. He also works in the exciting world of publishing, and yes, it is as glamorous as it sounds.
He can be found lurking the darkened hallways of www.antonstrout.com.
His new series with Ace Books is entitled The Spellmason Chronicles. Alchemystic is first in the series, followed by Stonecast and the upcoming Incarnate .
He is also the host and curator of content for The Once & Future Podcast, a weekly show that focuses on discussions with other working writers.
His other writing has appeared in a variety of anthologies—some of which include Simon Canderous tie-in stories—including: Boondocks Fantasy, The Dimension Next Door, A Girl’s Guide to Guns & Monsters, Pandora’s Closet, Spells of the City, and Zombie Raccoons & Killer Bunnies, Spells of the City, Boondocks Fantasy, After Hours: Tales from the Ur-Bar, and the upcoming Human For A Day .
He currently lives outside New York City in the haunted corn maze that is New Jersey (where nothing paranormal ever really happens, he assures you). In his scant spare time, he is an always writer, sometimes actor, sometimes musician, occasional RPGer, and the world’s most casual and controller-smashing video gamer. He also works in the exciting world of publishing, and yes, it is as glamorous as it sounds.
He can be found lurking the darkened hallways of www.antonstrout.com.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 31, 2016
I really enjoyed this story. It was an excellent conclusion to the trilogy of the Spellmason Chronicles. I found the ending to be highly satisfactory. :-)
Before I talk about the ending, though, here are some words on the rest of the story:
This story begins roughly six months after the events in book two (Stonecast), so a year since book one (Alchemystic). In this one, Alexandra is still learning about Spellmasonry, but she's becoming much more adept at it and pulls off some rather impressive feats in this book. :-)
We are introduced to true witches and wizards (they're warlocks in this world) and meet a new antagonist.
The arcane community is after whoever was responsible for unleashing the gargoyles.
Since gargoyles are now known to the world, the police get involved and two in particular, Detectives Rowland and Maron, want to know what's going on and how to stop it.
In the end, the police, witches, Alexandra's crew, and Stanis' grotesques are able
I suppose I should mention that the
In the end (since this is the final book in this series, I won't quote lines), And. . .
[Okay, one quote:] "And in that moment, the world around us fell away." [fin] :-)
The ending was so full of hope and possibilities. . .it was just wonderful. I really enjoyed it.
A few other remarks in closing: Rory wasn't quite as annoying to me this time out. Perhaps partly because Marshall showed great promise in his practice of alchemy? Because he did. :-) Also, Lexi was much more confident with her Spellmasonry.
So this was a really fun story and I really enjoyed it. I also appreciated the fact that it didn't have nearly the number of errors that were in the second book (though it did have a few).
I'm glad I read this trilogy. It turned out to be well worth reading. :-)
Before I talk about the ending, though, here are some words on the rest of the story:
This story begins roughly six months after the events in book two (Stonecast), so a year since book one (Alchemystic). In this one, Alexandra is still learning about Spellmasonry, but she's becoming much more adept at it and pulls off some rather impressive feats in this book. :-)
We are introduced to true witches and wizards (they're warlocks in this world) and meet a new antagonist.
The arcane community is after whoever was responsible for unleashing the gargoyles.
Since gargoyles are now known to the world, the police get involved and two in particular, Detectives Rowland and Maron, want to know what's going on and how to stop it.
In the end, the police, witches, Alexandra's crew, and Stanis' grotesques are able
I suppose I should mention that the
In the end (since this is the final book in this series, I won't quote lines), And. . .
[Okay, one quote:] "And in that moment, the world around us fell away." [fin] :-)
The ending was so full of hope and possibilities. . .it was just wonderful. I really enjoyed it.
A few other remarks in closing: Rory wasn't quite as annoying to me this time out. Perhaps partly because Marshall showed great promise in his practice of alchemy? Because he did. :-) Also, Lexi was much more confident with her Spellmasonry.
So this was a really fun story and I really enjoyed it. I also appreciated the fact that it didn't have nearly the number of errors that were in the second book (though it did have a few).
I'm glad I read this trilogy. It turned out to be well worth reading. :-)
September 26, 2014
INCARNATE, by Anton Strout (Sept 30, 2014, Ace Books)
Incarnate is the third and final installment of the Spellmason Chronicles (preceded by Alchemystic and Stonecast). I always have a hard time reviewing third books because so much has happened before them and I don't want to spoil anything for potential readers. But let me just say this: with Incarnate, I think Strout definitely proves himself to be a strong player in the urban fantasy genre. When I read Stonecast, the second book in the trilogy, I thought it was a strong book and had commented that Strout had found his stride. So often, many authors kind of slip with the middle of their second series, but this story just took on a life of its own while I was reading it. There was so much action and I really loved the characters. With Incarnate, I found it to be all that and more. Alexandra, one of the two narrating characters, has such a strong voice and is so well developed it was easy to forget I was reading a book by a person outside of the story. Events in the book played out in my mind like a fast-paced movie, yet there was a lot of emotion at play here as well. I had to stop myself from laughing out loud several times so I wouldn't wake up the family while I read at night, yet the humor is very nicely balanced with suspense and mystery. Come for the geeky entertainment--there is PLENTY to go around, with nods to practically every corner of the geekiverse, from gaming, to TV shows I have fond memories of growing up, to books that should be loved by everyone. But stay for the emotional kick you'll get from watching the relationships between the characters grow and change. This is a story I found hard to finish--not because it was hard to read but because I truly did not want this to be the end. I didn't want to close it when I was done, and honestly, got a little teary at the thought of not being able to go on new adventures with Lexi, Stanis, Rory, Marshall, and Caleb.
(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review)
http://www.amazon.com/Incarnate-Spell...
Incarnate is the third and final installment of the Spellmason Chronicles (preceded by Alchemystic and Stonecast). I always have a hard time reviewing third books because so much has happened before them and I don't want to spoil anything for potential readers. But let me just say this: with Incarnate, I think Strout definitely proves himself to be a strong player in the urban fantasy genre. When I read Stonecast, the second book in the trilogy, I thought it was a strong book and had commented that Strout had found his stride. So often, many authors kind of slip with the middle of their second series, but this story just took on a life of its own while I was reading it. There was so much action and I really loved the characters. With Incarnate, I found it to be all that and more. Alexandra, one of the two narrating characters, has such a strong voice and is so well developed it was easy to forget I was reading a book by a person outside of the story. Events in the book played out in my mind like a fast-paced movie, yet there was a lot of emotion at play here as well. I had to stop myself from laughing out loud several times so I wouldn't wake up the family while I read at night, yet the humor is very nicely balanced with suspense and mystery. Come for the geeky entertainment--there is PLENTY to go around, with nods to practically every corner of the geekiverse, from gaming, to TV shows I have fond memories of growing up, to books that should be loved by everyone. But stay for the emotional kick you'll get from watching the relationships between the characters grow and change. This is a story I found hard to finish--not because it was hard to read but because I truly did not want this to be the end. I didn't want to close it when I was done, and honestly, got a little teary at the thought of not being able to go on new adventures with Lexi, Stanis, Rory, Marshall, and Caleb.
(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review)
http://www.amazon.com/Incarnate-Spell...
October 1, 2014
Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy.
A fitting end to the Spellmason Chronicles, INCARNATE wraps up all my issues from STONECAST and surprises me with an ending I didn’t even know I wanted. Full of great characters, lots of action, and even some touching moments, INCARNATE has everything a good urban fantasy novel should have.
One of my favorite parts of the Spellmason Chronicles has always been Lexi’s relationships with her friends. Rory and Marshall are well developed characters, not just cut-out best friends. Their genuine caring for Lexi, and the bond all three of them have is something that makes this series stand out. Marshall’s geeky references and Rory’s sarcastic quips don’t hurt, either.
My other favorite aspect of the series is the originality. Gargoyles and alchemy are not common urban fantasy elements, and the combination of the too is interesting. The aftermath of the creation of so many gargoyles around Manhattan is a great subject for the book to deal with, even bringing in police. We don’t often see the moment that magic is revealed to the world in books – usually we see it hidden or we see after the revelation. Strout’s imagining of how it would be if magic was revealed is a fun mental exercise.
Overall, INCARNATE is a great way to end the Spellmason Chronicles. Action-packed and never slowing down for a moment, the conclusion will satisfy readers who have been with Lexi since the beginning. Though the romance storyline falters near the middle, the final match-up is surprising and just what Lexi needs. All in all, a great series closer.
Sexual content: N/A
A fitting end to the Spellmason Chronicles, INCARNATE wraps up all my issues from STONECAST and surprises me with an ending I didn’t even know I wanted. Full of great characters, lots of action, and even some touching moments, INCARNATE has everything a good urban fantasy novel should have.
One of my favorite parts of the Spellmason Chronicles has always been Lexi’s relationships with her friends. Rory and Marshall are well developed characters, not just cut-out best friends. Their genuine caring for Lexi, and the bond all three of them have is something that makes this series stand out. Marshall’s geeky references and Rory’s sarcastic quips don’t hurt, either.
My other favorite aspect of the series is the originality. Gargoyles and alchemy are not common urban fantasy elements, and the combination of the too is interesting. The aftermath of the creation of so many gargoyles around Manhattan is a great subject for the book to deal with, even bringing in police. We don’t often see the moment that magic is revealed to the world in books – usually we see it hidden or we see after the revelation. Strout’s imagining of how it would be if magic was revealed is a fun mental exercise.
Overall, INCARNATE is a great way to end the Spellmason Chronicles. Action-packed and never slowing down for a moment, the conclusion will satisfy readers who have been with Lexi since the beginning. Though the romance storyline falters near the middle, the final match-up is surprising and just what Lexi needs. All in all, a great series closer.
Sexual content: N/A
November 9, 2017
Reviewed by Justin
Book provided by Ace Publishing
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
The third and final book of the Spellmason Chronicle series, Incarnate left me wanting more. Not in the this-book-isn’t-very-good way, but in the when-is-the-next-book-coming kind of way. The best kind of way.
The book follows Alexandra and her posse around Manhattan, chasing gargoyles and dodging wizards. Stanis, the gargoyle, is coping with becoming a leader of people now found trapped in their own bodies of stone, and spends much of the book trying to balance helping out other gargoyles and helping out Alexandra et al. Towards the middle of the novel, we learn that a rival group of gargoyles is forming under a big baddie wizard, and our heroes must team up to fight off the coming onslaught.
While the prior two novels mostly revolved around the Spellmasonry aspect of the magical world (and, to a lesser degree, Alchemy), this novel finally blows open the entire underground magic scene in the Spellmason universe. The author has us meeting numerous wizards and witches, and in one scene I was secretly giddy that witches were actually riding around on broomsticks. There is more gore in this book as well, so if rooms full of blood used for selfish magic make you queasy, this probably isn’t a book for you.
The unfortunate downsides, however, hit home a little hard for me. A lot of the conversations between the characters feel unnatural and choppy. This forced me out of the story on numerous occasions, but seemed to happen more the later this book went on. This may, however, tie into the heroine, Alexandra. Throughout the entire book, she is frayed, frazzled, and generally worn out. She bemoans the fact that she hasn’t had any time to work on her real art, and by the end of the book, still no art. She’s constantly angry at everything and everyone around her, flying off the hook at little remarks, and it felt very forced in places. My last complaint is that the end of the book felt incredibly rushed. I found myself near the end of the book, with about 30 pages or so, and couldn’t see the end coming. It wraps up terribly quickly, and left me feeling a little gypped.
Overall, however, this is definitely a book I enjoyed. I found I had a hard time putting it down. It starts out slow, but picks up pace quickly. The author also did a good job of allowing this book to breathe on its own. You could pick up this book without any of the prior books in the series, and not miss a thing. Also, this book finally delivered on something I had been expecting since page one of book one: a little gargoyle/human romance. I’d definitely recommend this series to anyone who enjoys a good read.
Book provided by Ace Publishing
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
The third and final book of the Spellmason Chronicle series, Incarnate left me wanting more. Not in the this-book-isn’t-very-good way, but in the when-is-the-next-book-coming kind of way. The best kind of way.
The book follows Alexandra and her posse around Manhattan, chasing gargoyles and dodging wizards. Stanis, the gargoyle, is coping with becoming a leader of people now found trapped in their own bodies of stone, and spends much of the book trying to balance helping out other gargoyles and helping out Alexandra et al. Towards the middle of the novel, we learn that a rival group of gargoyles is forming under a big baddie wizard, and our heroes must team up to fight off the coming onslaught.
While the prior two novels mostly revolved around the Spellmasonry aspect of the magical world (and, to a lesser degree, Alchemy), this novel finally blows open the entire underground magic scene in the Spellmason universe. The author has us meeting numerous wizards and witches, and in one scene I was secretly giddy that witches were actually riding around on broomsticks. There is more gore in this book as well, so if rooms full of blood used for selfish magic make you queasy, this probably isn’t a book for you.
The unfortunate downsides, however, hit home a little hard for me. A lot of the conversations between the characters feel unnatural and choppy. This forced me out of the story on numerous occasions, but seemed to happen more the later this book went on. This may, however, tie into the heroine, Alexandra. Throughout the entire book, she is frayed, frazzled, and generally worn out. She bemoans the fact that she hasn’t had any time to work on her real art, and by the end of the book, still no art. She’s constantly angry at everything and everyone around her, flying off the hook at little remarks, and it felt very forced in places. My last complaint is that the end of the book felt incredibly rushed. I found myself near the end of the book, with about 30 pages or so, and couldn’t see the end coming. It wraps up terribly quickly, and left me feeling a little gypped.
Overall, however, this is definitely a book I enjoyed. I found I had a hard time putting it down. It starts out slow, but picks up pace quickly. The author also did a good job of allowing this book to breathe on its own. You could pick up this book without any of the prior books in the series, and not miss a thing. Also, this book finally delivered on something I had been expecting since page one of book one: a little gargoyle/human romance. I’d definitely recommend this series to anyone who enjoys a good read.
January 13, 2019
I haven't read the first two books in this trilogy. It worked pretty well as a stand alone. It is first person point of view, alternating between two characters: the magic wielder, Alexandra, and her magical creature companion, Stanis, an animated gargoyle-or grotesque, as he prefers. The book, as might be expected in the 3rd book of a series, starts at a low point for the team---Alexandra and her friends. And things get worst before they get better.
I found the premise more original than many urban fantasy genre novels. I enjoyed the grotesque characters and actually found them more interesting and appealing than the humans.
Good pacing, creative ideas. My issues were around the young humans (Alexandra and her friends). These people aren't very bright, given all the battles they presumably have been through in the first two books. They mostly alternate between angry and smart-ass---and thus have a lot of trouble with crafty plans and any kind of finessed situation. But, that's who they are.
I found the premise more original than many urban fantasy genre novels. I enjoyed the grotesque characters and actually found them more interesting and appealing than the humans.
Good pacing, creative ideas. My issues were around the young humans (Alexandra and her friends). These people aren't very bright, given all the battles they presumably have been through in the first two books. They mostly alternate between angry and smart-ass---and thus have a lot of trouble with crafty plans and any kind of finessed situation. But, that's who they are.
June 2, 2017
Not to be missed!
This was such a satisfying book as so many threads were pulled together to create a magnificent tableau of adventure. As a trilogy, it was beautifully written and had a satisfying conclusion. Unfortunately, it was so good that you don't want it to end and the ending leaves it open enough for more adventures. I want more adventures. I want more Caleb as his character development was possibly the most stunning of the characters. I want to see what the rule over the grotesques becomes. I need more Lexi, Stanis, Rory, and Marshall!!! This series is for gamers, those who know but don't understand gamers, those who care nothing about gamers, fans of the paranormal, fans of fantasy, and most everyone with the ability to read.
This was such a satisfying book as so many threads were pulled together to create a magnificent tableau of adventure. As a trilogy, it was beautifully written and had a satisfying conclusion. Unfortunately, it was so good that you don't want it to end and the ending leaves it open enough for more adventures. I want more adventures. I want more Caleb as his character development was possibly the most stunning of the characters. I want to see what the rule over the grotesques becomes. I need more Lexi, Stanis, Rory, and Marshall!!! This series is for gamers, those who know but don't understand gamers, those who care nothing about gamers, fans of the paranormal, fans of fantasy, and most everyone with the ability to read.
April 24, 2018
What can I say other than I really liked it! The action, the characters, the quips and dialogue, it is such a rich but hidden world that I loved visiting. Might even be loving that grotesque, too.
And I definitely want a Bricksley.
And I definitely want a Bricksley.
October 17, 2014
And here we are at the end of The Spellmason Chronicles (following
Alchemystic
and Stonecast). So the big question for me going into this (aside from how would Lexi and Stanis clean up that mess from Stonecast?) was: could Strout stick the landing -- his other series was just canceled, leaving things open (and I'm still curious about it), this was a planned conclusion, so how'd he manage it? I'm not at all surprised to say, pretty well.
First off, Strout really expands his world here -- there's a lot more magic, magic users and the like than he'd shown before (it was there before, but we hadn't seen it as much). There's some new characters I'd like to spend more time with -- Fletcher seems really interesting, and the NYPD detectives Maron and Rowland need to run into Simon Canderous and Connor Christos.
Lexi's a lot more confident in her abilities -- which have grown since we saw her last -- and driven in a very Peter Parker-y way. She's a lot more than the would-be artist we meant a couple of books ago. Similarly, her pals Rory and Marshall have grown a good deal -- I like the development of them both. Marshall's is on the one hand surprising (as Lexi's and Rory's reactions attest), but on the other is a lot more believable than Rory's. But with Rory, her continued growth into Lexi's go-to fighter is pretty fun, and as long as we're buying the whole Spellmason thing, we might as well buy into Rory the super-hero.
Stanis has his hands full trying to track down stray grotesques like himself, help them understand what's going on with them and give them a place of safety and refuge -- particularly as the threat of a group of grotesques who are out to use their strength, abilities and invulnerabilities against humanity. The more we learn about the leader of the other group, the worse it gets. I don't want to get into spoilers here, but the Big Bad in Incarnate here is probably the worst villain that Strout's come up with yet.
Throw in interference from the magic community (who aren't happy at all that muggles are seeing flying statues in the Big Apple), notice of -- and pursuit by -- the NYPD, and Lexi and her gang have more than their hands full. Which makes for a good time for the readers.
That said, Strout stumbles a couple times with this. In the opening chapters, the dialogue is a little stilted, a little awkward. Which is really unusual -- this is typically Strout's strong point. But to me, a lot of the dialogue was very thinly veiled exposition. Not quite as bad as, "Hey Rory, my blue-haired best friend since childhood, dance student and resident ass-kicker, could you please pass me my great-great-great-grandfather's spell book, the one I just inherited a couple of months ago when I started manifesting the abilities of a Spellmason?" But it felt close. By chapter 4 or 5, that mostly disappears, and if not for the notes I'd taken I'd probably have forgotten it.
There was a lot more blood than I expected here -- not that this was really gory at all, and all of the nasty stuff happened off-screen (if you will), and our heroes either came across it after the fact or in photographs. So there's a lot of blood and some dismemberment -- but even the more squeamish readers should have no problem with it.
And, like Stonecast, this is a little too short. I could've used more Rory and Marshall (together or on their own). We hit the big "Boss Battle" a bit abruptly, I thought. Also, the last chapter is rushed. It felt like one of the alternate endings to Wayne's World (there's a relevant pop culture reference, for ya) -- a series of conclusions for each character one after the other, bam, bam, bam. Given everything he tried to accomplish in those last few pages, the importance and scope involved, I just think it could've used a bit more breathing room.
I realize my negatives are longer than my positives -- but that's because I can talk about them with a bit more detail than all the cool stuff that happens, which pretty much involves spoilers. The good far outweighs the nits I may want to pick. All things considered, it's a solid conclusion to a pretty good series. Good character development throughout, leaving most of the characters in places that will please and satisfy fans (I, honestly, would've preferred something a little less happy and a little more incarceration-y for Caleb). I don't know if Strout has plans in this direction, but he leaves things in a place that he could come back and tell more stories in this world, and with these characters with no problem. Or he could leave them alone with no problem. Which is a nice place to leave a series.
Whatever Strout has planned next, I'm looking forward to it.
First off, Strout really expands his world here -- there's a lot more magic, magic users and the like than he'd shown before (it was there before, but we hadn't seen it as much). There's some new characters I'd like to spend more time with -- Fletcher seems really interesting, and the NYPD detectives Maron and Rowland need to run into Simon Canderous and Connor Christos.
Lexi's a lot more confident in her abilities -- which have grown since we saw her last -- and driven in a very Peter Parker-y way. She's a lot more than the would-be artist we meant a couple of books ago. Similarly, her pals Rory and Marshall have grown a good deal -- I like the development of them both. Marshall's is on the one hand surprising (as Lexi's and Rory's reactions attest), but on the other is a lot more believable than Rory's. But with Rory, her continued growth into Lexi's go-to fighter is pretty fun, and as long as we're buying the whole Spellmason thing, we might as well buy into Rory the super-hero.
Stanis has his hands full trying to track down stray grotesques like himself, help them understand what's going on with them and give them a place of safety and refuge -- particularly as the threat of a group of grotesques who are out to use their strength, abilities and invulnerabilities against humanity. The more we learn about the leader of the other group, the worse it gets. I don't want to get into spoilers here, but the Big Bad in Incarnate here is probably the worst villain that Strout's come up with yet.
Throw in interference from the magic community (who aren't happy at all that muggles are seeing flying statues in the Big Apple), notice of -- and pursuit by -- the NYPD, and Lexi and her gang have more than their hands full. Which makes for a good time for the readers.
That said, Strout stumbles a couple times with this. In the opening chapters, the dialogue is a little stilted, a little awkward. Which is really unusual -- this is typically Strout's strong point. But to me, a lot of the dialogue was very thinly veiled exposition. Not quite as bad as, "Hey Rory, my blue-haired best friend since childhood, dance student and resident ass-kicker, could you please pass me my great-great-great-grandfather's spell book, the one I just inherited a couple of months ago when I started manifesting the abilities of a Spellmason?" But it felt close. By chapter 4 or 5, that mostly disappears, and if not for the notes I'd taken I'd probably have forgotten it.
There was a lot more blood than I expected here -- not that this was really gory at all, and all of the nasty stuff happened off-screen (if you will), and our heroes either came across it after the fact or in photographs. So there's a lot of blood and some dismemberment -- but even the more squeamish readers should have no problem with it.
And, like Stonecast, this is a little too short. I could've used more Rory and Marshall (together or on their own). We hit the big "Boss Battle" a bit abruptly, I thought. Also, the last chapter is rushed. It felt like one of the alternate endings to Wayne's World (there's a relevant pop culture reference, for ya) -- a series of conclusions for each character one after the other, bam, bam, bam. Given everything he tried to accomplish in those last few pages, the importance and scope involved, I just think it could've used a bit more breathing room.
I realize my negatives are longer than my positives -- but that's because I can talk about them with a bit more detail than all the cool stuff that happens, which pretty much involves spoilers. The good far outweighs the nits I may want to pick. All things considered, it's a solid conclusion to a pretty good series. Good character development throughout, leaving most of the characters in places that will please and satisfy fans (I, honestly, would've preferred something a little less happy and a little more incarceration-y for Caleb). I don't know if Strout has plans in this direction, but he leaves things in a place that he could come back and tell more stories in this world, and with these characters with no problem. Or he could leave them alone with no problem. Which is a nice place to leave a series.
Whatever Strout has planned next, I'm looking forward to it.
October 22, 2014
Initial thoughts: I liked it better than the previous novel. All our favorite supporting characters were much more prevalent and I enjoyed the perspectives, humor and support they brought. I enjoyed the final outcome and enjoyed how we really see a more mature Alexandra, I was finally starting to like her in this book. Though the major story arcs are resolved, it is left in a way that a spin-off series could continue in the world. However the ending was a bit conveniently wrapped up (with a nice big bow). Please click on the link for the full review at That's What I'm Talking About blog: http://twimom227.com/2014/10/review-i....
January 23, 2016
Lots of action with an aw... ending. Good last book of a series.
Read
January 8, 2017Loved this series. Light read, very entertaining, never quite sure where it will go.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews