What do you think?
Rate this book
Twinborn Trilogy #3
Sourcethief
War ravages Veydrus. Driven back by the magical might of the Kadrin Empire, the Megrenn Alliance is in a shambles.
The war spills into Tellurak. and Twinborn plots spanning the two worlds threaten the course of the war from all sides, including within the empire itself.
Desperate to find a way to counter the unstoppable power of an army led by a demon warlock, Jinzan Fehr seeks an ancient source of power.
Thus begins the Fourth Necromancer War ...
The war spills into Tellurak. and Twinborn plots spanning the two worlds threaten the course of the war from all sides, including within the empire itself.
Desperate to find a way to counter the unstoppable power of an army led by a demon warlock, Jinzan Fehr seeks an ancient source of power.
Thus begins the Fourth Necromancer War ...
388 pages, ebook
First published October 27, 2013
31 people are currently reading
221 people want to read
About the author
J.S. Morin
192 books611 followersI am a creator of worlds and a destroyer of words. As a fantasy writer, my works range from traditional epics to futuristic fantasy with starships. I have worked as an unpaid Little League pitcher, a cashier, a student library aide, a factory grunt, a cubicle drone, and an engineer--there is some overlap in the last two.
Through it all, though, I was always a storyteller. Eventually I started writing books based on the stray stories in my head, and people kept telling me to write more of them. Now, that's all I do for a living.
I enjoy strategy, worldbuilding, and the fantasy author's privilege to make up words. I am a gamer, a joker, and a thinker of sideways thoughts. But I don't dance, can't sing, and my best artistic efforts fall short of your average notebook doodle. When you read my books, you are seeing me at my best.
My ultimate goal is to be both clever and right at the same time. I have it on good authority that I have yet to achieve it.
Through it all, though, I was always a storyteller. Eventually I started writing books based on the stray stories in my head, and people kept telling me to write more of them. Now, that's all I do for a living.
I enjoy strategy, worldbuilding, and the fantasy author's privilege to make up words. I am a gamer, a joker, and a thinker of sideways thoughts. But I don't dance, can't sing, and my best artistic efforts fall short of your average notebook doodle. When you read my books, you are seeing me at my best.
My ultimate goal is to be both clever and right at the same time. I have it on good authority that I have yet to achieve it.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
January 2, 2014
The originality of the concept for this series, having characters live lives in two very different worlds, was what first struck me that this was going to be something very special. The author continues to impress me, not only did he go on with this idea but has developed it as well. The importance of passing information between worlds, having alliances that work on both sides and many other important ideas are all developed in this book.
The descriptions are again of the perfect length, there is enough detail to fully visualize the world, but they are not so lengthy that they take to you away from the story for too long.
The reminders of what has happened in the previous two books was almost always the right length, enough there to remind the reader of an event but not so long that you feel you are rereading the story again. The nature of Iridan’s death was about the only thing that I felt wasn’t detailed enough early on, although later in the story I was given enough to remember how it happened.
The characters are again enjoyable and their personalities continue to develop. I really liked how Brannis and Kyrus have blended together, both becoming stronger as a result. It was interesting to read about Kyrus’s doubts about whether he is doing the right thing and fear he will turn into another Rashan. The thoughts and feelings of all the characters are believable, interesting to read about, and come across clearly.
While it is now clear exactly who is good and who is evil, there is always enough good in evil characters, and evil in good characters to keep them realistic and more interesting. The evil characters often also see themselves as doing the right thing.
The relationships between the characters across both worlds are done well, along with the many plot points that are both in their own world and across both. For the most I was able to follow who was who, and what was going on, only a couple of times did I feel a little lost. Considering just how much is going on and how complex it all is, this was quite a feat.
We get to see even more of the world in this book, and like the characters it is varied and has real depth to it. It is really well done especially considering there are two worlds in this book.
The story is excellent, there are many plot points all being developed through the book, almost all of them are interesting and continue the overall story in some way.
The action sequences for the first three quarters of the book were rare. There was interesting things going on with the story, but I did think it could do with some more excitement at times. Also most of the early action scenes are very one sided and it was pretty obvious who was going to win (Rashan battling against unknown soldiers, Brannis and his friends fighting off some street thugs, and Jinzan with his staff attacking civilians and local militia). Since all of these main characters were so much more powerful than those they were fighting against, it took away from the tension and you never felt they were in any real danger. The battle scenes for the remainder of the book are fantastic, Avalanche really gets to live up to its name, and when the main characters finally get to face each other, the scenes are exciting, varied and you are never sure who is going to win.
Just like the previous two books this is a big one. It has a fairly small print and large page sizes so it is even longer than the 381 pages would suggest. It’s not a problem since so much happens and it is almost all interesting.
The author did an excellent job of tying up the loose ends, but left a few just loose enough that there could be more books in the series, but if there aren’t then you aren’t left feeling something has been missed out.
I have really enjoyed this series and it is easily my favorite read of 2013. It is one of those books where I found myself really hoping that the book and author will be successful in a big way. The story is so fantastic that the author truly deserves to have it be successful, the originality, story, characters, and quality of writing is so much superior to major fantasy novels out there I really want to see this series do well.
If I had to decide I would probably pick book two Aethersmith as my favorite in the series. Almost everything about this book was great, the story, the characters, the worlds, the descriptions, and the many plot points, it was just lacking a little action and fast pacing compared to the Aethersmith.
I am excited about the authors next project “The Mad Tinker Chronicles” which will pair up Tellurak with a completely new world, which seems to be more steampunky, in a new Twinborn series. I had been thinking for some time how cool it would be to have other worlds for the Twinborns to live in and I am glad to see this will be happening. And if it anywhere near as good as this series it is likely to be my favorite read in 2014.
A big thank you to the author for sending me a copy of this book.
In full disclosure I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The descriptions are again of the perfect length, there is enough detail to fully visualize the world, but they are not so lengthy that they take to you away from the story for too long.
The reminders of what has happened in the previous two books was almost always the right length, enough there to remind the reader of an event but not so long that you feel you are rereading the story again. The nature of Iridan’s death was about the only thing that I felt wasn’t detailed enough early on, although later in the story I was given enough to remember how it happened.
The characters are again enjoyable and their personalities continue to develop. I really liked how Brannis and Kyrus have blended together, both becoming stronger as a result. It was interesting to read about Kyrus’s doubts about whether he is doing the right thing and fear he will turn into another Rashan. The thoughts and feelings of all the characters are believable, interesting to read about, and come across clearly.
While it is now clear exactly who is good and who is evil, there is always enough good in evil characters, and evil in good characters to keep them realistic and more interesting. The evil characters often also see themselves as doing the right thing.
The relationships between the characters across both worlds are done well, along with the many plot points that are both in their own world and across both. For the most I was able to follow who was who, and what was going on, only a couple of times did I feel a little lost. Considering just how much is going on and how complex it all is, this was quite a feat.
We get to see even more of the world in this book, and like the characters it is varied and has real depth to it. It is really well done especially considering there are two worlds in this book.
The story is excellent, there are many plot points all being developed through the book, almost all of them are interesting and continue the overall story in some way.
The action sequences for the first three quarters of the book were rare. There was interesting things going on with the story, but I did think it could do with some more excitement at times. Also most of the early action scenes are very one sided and it was pretty obvious who was going to win (Rashan battling against unknown soldiers, Brannis and his friends fighting off some street thugs, and Jinzan with his staff attacking civilians and local militia). Since all of these main characters were so much more powerful than those they were fighting against, it took away from the tension and you never felt they were in any real danger. The battle scenes for the remainder of the book are fantastic, Avalanche really gets to live up to its name, and when the main characters finally get to face each other, the scenes are exciting, varied and you are never sure who is going to win.
Just like the previous two books this is a big one. It has a fairly small print and large page sizes so it is even longer than the 381 pages would suggest. It’s not a problem since so much happens and it is almost all interesting.
The author did an excellent job of tying up the loose ends, but left a few just loose enough that there could be more books in the series, but if there aren’t then you aren’t left feeling something has been missed out.
I have really enjoyed this series and it is easily my favorite read of 2013. It is one of those books where I found myself really hoping that the book and author will be successful in a big way. The story is so fantastic that the author truly deserves to have it be successful, the originality, story, characters, and quality of writing is so much superior to major fantasy novels out there I really want to see this series do well.
If I had to decide I would probably pick book two Aethersmith as my favorite in the series. Almost everything about this book was great, the story, the characters, the worlds, the descriptions, and the many plot points, it was just lacking a little action and fast pacing compared to the Aethersmith.
I am excited about the authors next project “The Mad Tinker Chronicles” which will pair up Tellurak with a completely new world, which seems to be more steampunky, in a new Twinborn series. I had been thinking for some time how cool it would be to have other worlds for the Twinborns to live in and I am glad to see this will be happening. And if it anywhere near as good as this series it is likely to be my favorite read in 2014.
A big thank you to the author for sending me a copy of this book.
In full disclosure I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
January 19, 2021
A heavy hitting ending. I'm not sure why, but didn't quite feel as invested into the characters, but the story was good and the reveals were good as well.
January 4, 2014
I enjoyed this trilogy and the ending in this final book is epic. We all know where the story is heading and the book did not disappoint in this regard. I did feel the side characters and multiple levels of conspiracies tended to make the story overly complicated. For ereaders I would definitely recommend printing real maps of both worlds to help keep track of things. Since I never grew to love the new characters introduced in book two the side plots weren’t as interesting as the main tail involving Brannis and Kyrus.
I would have liked to have read more about Danil in the late part of the war. We read about Todd and Jodoul but not his part in the battle? I liked Danil and Axterion. Who doesn’t like the talented youngster and a grumpy but wise grandfather. You can never have enough of them.
Brannis’ role in the final book is devalued and I would have liked him to be more important but this fits in with the evolution of his role starting in book one. Kyrus takes a back seat early on and over time the roles are reversed.
The goblin tinker that came to Jinzan in book two and helped build more cannons never makes another appearance. I was under the impression he came back for revenge after what happened to the goblin army at the end of book one but nothing happened.
Overall the book was good and this was an interesting classic epic fantasy worth reading.
4/5
I would have liked to have read more about Danil in the late part of the war. We read about Todd and Jodoul but not his part in the battle? I liked Danil and Axterion. Who doesn’t like the talented youngster and a grumpy but wise grandfather. You can never have enough of them.
Brannis’ role in the final book is devalued and I would have liked him to be more important but this fits in with the evolution of his role starting in book one. Kyrus takes a back seat early on and over time the roles are reversed.
The goblin tinker that came to Jinzan in book two and helped build more cannons never makes another appearance. I was under the impression he came back for revenge after what happened to the goblin army at the end of book one but nothing happened.
Overall the book was good and this was an interesting classic epic fantasy worth reading.
4/5
February 23, 2014
Third and final installment in this fantasy trilogy, and as expected, it takes the concept of the twinborn--some people on one world being the people on another world in their dreams when they sleep (and vice versa)--one step further. Not only are more and more characters demonstrating this gift, but alliances and counterplots between twinborns who have found others like them grow increasingly complex, interacting to affect a wide range of subplots for power and control on both worlds.
It had been awhile since I read the last book, and I have to admit a few times it was cumbersome having to stop and try to recall just whom is connected to whom by twinborn status or more recent secret alliance, but after about fifty or sixty pages I fell back into the rhythm and flow of it again. The climax and conclusion were both predictable yet satisfying on the level of restoring cosmological balance.
It had been awhile since I read the last book, and I have to admit a few times it was cumbersome having to stop and try to recall just whom is connected to whom by twinborn status or more recent secret alliance, but after about fifty or sixty pages I fell back into the rhythm and flow of it again. The climax and conclusion were both predictable yet satisfying on the level of restoring cosmological balance.
July 9, 2019
What an epic wast of time! This book dragged on and on with no hint of ending! While at the same time clearly setting the stage for a predictable end that fell epically flat! There was nothing pulling me into this story, no twists, no pots to spoil nothing. I fail to see how this book is liked by so many. There are soooo many characters so much so that not a single one was relatable, well I actually can’t say that because I never learned enough about any character to figure out if I could relate or not. I finished this book hoping for some spectacular ending or twist or battle or just anything. And in the end I walked away wishing I had not wasted my time.
January 1, 2014
Trilogy review:
Imaginitive concept-what if a parallel world existed where some people have a twin on the other side & both could vicariously share experiences. Kyrus/Brannis and Sonia/Juliana explore the possibilities for intrigue and adventure while redrfining preconceived notions of self.
Imaginitive concept-what if a parallel world existed where some people have a twin on the other side & both could vicariously share experiences. Kyrus/Brannis and Sonia/Juliana explore the possibilities for intrigue and adventure while redrfining preconceived notions of self.
April 16, 2019
I completed the series (1-3), but I will focus my review on this specific book.
I think the concepts were great, and overall I liked the book and the series. I do think that many of the concepts were really underdeveloped - the Immortals for instance, and at the end, there really wasn't a villain. Both of the "potential" villains were really just morally grey. They were relatable and somewhat sympathetic characters and I feel like there should have been a way for them to resolve the conflict without it having gone so far, but I guess that was the tragedy of the situation.
There were some very obvious puzzles which I think the main character (Kyrus/Brannis) should have figured out much sooner. I surely did with even the limited exposure of information that Kyrus had.
I am looking forward to future books in the series though, and I enjoy JS Morin generally so I will be future reader. He seems prolific but maybe he should slow down a bit and spend more time in editing and rewriting.
I think the concepts were great, and overall I liked the book and the series. I do think that many of the concepts were really underdeveloped - the Immortals for instance, and at the end, there really wasn't a villain. Both of the "potential" villains were really just morally grey. They were relatable and somewhat sympathetic characters and I feel like there should have been a way for them to resolve the conflict without it having gone so far, but I guess that was the tragedy of the situation.
There were some very obvious puzzles which I think the main character (Kyrus/Brannis) should have figured out much sooner. I surely did with even the limited exposure of information that Kyrus had.
I am looking forward to future books in the series though, and I enjoy JS Morin generally so I will be future reader. He seems prolific but maybe he should slow down a bit and spend more time in editing and rewriting.
October 3, 2025
[Audiobook Reader] 3.5 Stars
To me, this series (3-in-1 trilogy book) is a great example of "A Story Where Stuff Happens."
It IS well written, it DOES have good worldbuilding, an interesting concept, and (for audiobook) the narration is enjoyable. That having been said, it felt like there were too many characters to keep track of and properly follow the plot; combined with the "Twinborn" concept, which increased the cast list, and overall, I stopped being able to follow along somewhere in book 1.
However, unlike some other series (fantasy, sci-fi, etc.) that would be DNF for these minuses, this audiobook, I had no problem "playing in the background" while I work and/or relax.
Overall, I would recommend reading it to those who enjoy good fantasy, though depending on your tastes, you may lose interest.
Enjoy!
To me, this series (3-in-1 trilogy book) is a great example of "A Story Where Stuff Happens."
It IS well written, it DOES have good worldbuilding, an interesting concept, and (for audiobook) the narration is enjoyable. That having been said, it felt like there were too many characters to keep track of and properly follow the plot; combined with the "Twinborn" concept, which increased the cast list, and overall, I stopped being able to follow along somewhere in book 1.
However, unlike some other series (fantasy, sci-fi, etc.) that would be DNF for these minuses, this audiobook, I had no problem "playing in the background" while I work and/or relax.
Overall, I would recommend reading it to those who enjoy good fantasy, though depending on your tastes, you may lose interest.
Enjoy!
February 26, 2020
The concept of twin born is amazing concept of two individuals born of the same source living on two different worlds, parallel lives but not really, one of world and magic one of science, loved the first book lots of action and adventure but takes a bit to understand the switching back and forth between worlds and individuals but loved it. Please read this book so worth it and book 3 wrapped it up all nicely with the unexpected ending loved it.
October 3, 2019
Fantastic finale to this series. Again the quality of the writing is outstanding with an engrossing storyline that keeps you guessing as to the final outcome pretty much until the end.
I was sad for this to finish as I have become very attached to the characters, both good and bad, although who is good and who is bad certainly is blurred at times.
I was sad for this to finish as I have become very attached to the characters, both good and bad, although who is good and who is bad certainly is blurred at times.
April 10, 2018
One hell of an ending to an incredible epic fantasy trilogy! I couldn't put this book down. I highly recommend this book and the series to anyone!
October 11, 2018
A satisfying conclusion to the series.
May 31, 2019
Great conclusion to the story, but man are there major dry sections. This one was tough to get through
August 5, 2019
Wonderful end to the three book series. Action, adventure and intrigue galore! If you like J.S. Morin don't miss this.
December 18, 2019
A very enjoyable trilogy with a satisfying conclusion.
February 3, 2020
I very much enjoyed the ending and conclusion to the trilogy, but this third book on its own was my least favorite.
February 6, 2020
This is an excellent conclusion to an excellent trilogy. This story has complex characters that I feel conflicted about, intricate storylines, and many different motivations that ultimately play into the outcome. I very much enjoyed this series, and have already purchased the next segment.
June 1, 2020
Even though it had a satisfying ending, it felt somehow anticlimatic.
January 11, 2022
Dragged myself to the finish ... long winded and slightly boring. Lost track of who was who and didn't care ... will be awhile before I read fantasy again.
April 20, 2022
Could not finish this book...it became so long-winded and just was such a slog. Really dissapointing. I tried and tried to finish it and just couldn't keep going.... I just didn't care anymore.
August 8, 2022
I enjoyed this series. There were a few questions I had that were left unanswered at the end of the book, but overall I enjoyed it.
February 4, 2024
Such a satisfying trilogy
August 20, 2014
If you've made it as far as the ending of Aethersmith then you know exactly what to expect from Sourcethief. There is no need for an in-depth review on my part, those have been provided by the (deservedly) growing number of fans of this series. Simply put, if you've made it this far, you should definitely finish it off.
An excellent series, and one which shows the world that an independently published author can put out fantasy work that is not only as good as, but better than most of the traditionally published books being released today.
The twinborn concept is used in a delightful fashion, with plots and plots within plots developing over a series of increasingly complex machinations that flit from character to character and world to world.
My one concern was that this final book is shorter than the other two, but given that the world was already built it was a matter of moving the pieces about and watching them in play. Morin juggles the varying viewpoints with deft aplomb and doesn't skimp on content or conclusion. Everything is wrapped up neatly and nothing feels overly rushed.
The conclusion is satisfying, and while this particular story is fully told it does leave the author with the ability to revisit his world at a later date, which he has done with the Mad Tinker Chronicles.
Rashan Solaran is one of the great creations of the last decade of fantasy, but it is through the eyes of Kyrus Hinterdale that I enjoyed the story most. Their inevitable conflict and the third party of Jinzan Fehr constantly looking to be rid of both of them made for some tense but memorable reading.
Hats off to you Mr. Morin, an appropriate ending to a great adventure. I look forward to reading whatever you write next.
An excellent series, and one which shows the world that an independently published author can put out fantasy work that is not only as good as, but better than most of the traditionally published books being released today.
The twinborn concept is used in a delightful fashion, with plots and plots within plots developing over a series of increasingly complex machinations that flit from character to character and world to world.
My one concern was that this final book is shorter than the other two, but given that the world was already built it was a matter of moving the pieces about and watching them in play. Morin juggles the varying viewpoints with deft aplomb and doesn't skimp on content or conclusion. Everything is wrapped up neatly and nothing feels overly rushed.
The conclusion is satisfying, and while this particular story is fully told it does leave the author with the ability to revisit his world at a later date, which he has done with the Mad Tinker Chronicles.
Rashan Solaran is one of the great creations of the last decade of fantasy, but it is through the eyes of Kyrus Hinterdale that I enjoyed the story most. Their inevitable conflict and the third party of Jinzan Fehr constantly looking to be rid of both of them made for some tense but memorable reading.
Hats off to you Mr. Morin, an appropriate ending to a great adventure. I look forward to reading whatever you write next.
March 17, 2014
Wow! Really .... WOW! Sourcethief wraps up the Twinborn Trilogy perfectly! It was hard to imagine it was possible to take care of the myriad characters of Veydrus and Tellurak and their situations but not only were they handled, they were handled with finesse. So many trilogies and series have predictable endings; when reading the last book you find yourself saying, "Aha, this is where the story turns toward the predictable finish." Not so with this one! There were a few chapters I had to read again, just to be sure I had grasped what had happened, and I tried to figure out how the story would twist to come to the conclusion I was expecting. But that wasn't happening. Sourcethief ended the trilogy in ways I wasn't expecting.
Holding true to the first two books in the Twinborn Trilogy, the characters were very believable. I liked that the "good" guy wasn't always so good and the "bad" guy had redeeming attributes. The scheming, the plotting, the twists and turns of the characters personalities made for a very entertaining trip. I have to say, I didn't see one of the storyline resolutions coming at all! It was a total surprise which makes me all the more sorry the trilogy has come to an end. Hopefully, the worlds of Veydrus and Tellurak will provide many more stories as I've fallen in love with them both.
If you read Firehurler and Aethersmith, you're going to LOVE Sourcethief! And if you haven't read them, do yourself a favor: buy the whole trilogy and block off a week or two just to read. You won't be sorry!
Holding true to the first two books in the Twinborn Trilogy, the characters were very believable. I liked that the "good" guy wasn't always so good and the "bad" guy had redeeming attributes. The scheming, the plotting, the twists and turns of the characters personalities made for a very entertaining trip. I have to say, I didn't see one of the storyline resolutions coming at all! It was a total surprise which makes me all the more sorry the trilogy has come to an end. Hopefully, the worlds of Veydrus and Tellurak will provide many more stories as I've fallen in love with them both.
If you read Firehurler and Aethersmith, you're going to LOVE Sourcethief! And if you haven't read them, do yourself a favor: buy the whole trilogy and block off a week or two just to read. You won't be sorry!
November 9, 2013
Sourcethief is a great finale to the Twinborn Trilogy. As with the previous two other books it is well written with a rich development of new locations within the two worlds and continued growth of the characters including some secrets that most twinborn may never discover. As the war escalates, the ability to pass information between worlds becomes very important. What happens to Kyrus, Brannis, Soria, Julianna, Abbiley, Celia, Rashan and Jinzan? All will be revealed including the destiny of many minor characters that have been with us throughout the story. There are no loose ends, all is wrapped-up very neatly. Except, perhaps, for some minor details that may lead to… another story?!
April 10, 2014
I really liked the characters in this series. I thought the story was exciting from beginning to end. I don't have too much experience with reading fantasy novels, I have read much more science fiction. If other fantasy is like this, then I will read more. I hope J.S. Morin writes some more in this particular universe, because I want to see what happens with the characters.
March 15, 2016
By the time the trilogy was done, I wasn't really rooting for any of the characters to win. The world is fascinating, though, and I loved the way it felt like every corner was explored by the end of the book.
November 30, 2013
Great end to a great trilogy.
January 19, 2014
I loved this series! best fantasy series that I've read since jim butcher.
December 5, 2015
I wish we could read more about Kyrus' adventures after this!!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews