Destiny Risen

Starbright #3

by Hilary Thompson

The world cries for Peace, but she can’t stop fighting now.

One hundred years before, the Great Sickness reduced the world to three scattered cities. Now Asphodel has risen, Tartarus no longer burns, but Elysium still waits at the edge of the earth.

Trea’s destiny is still uncertain – but with her own personal prophet to help, the choice will finally be hers to make.

Three Sisters.
Four fallen stars.
Seven minutes to determine the future of our world.

Genres: Fantasy, Dystopia

Paperback

Published April 1, 2016

About the author

Hilary Thompson was born to parents who made a habit of taking roads less traveled. But she was also a first child, and an independent, willful child, so she has made a habit of taking a few roads on her own.
After trying on hats made for artists, architects, restaurant and retail workers, landscape designers, legal secretaries, and professional students, she retreated back to her first loves of education and writing.
Hilary now teaches high school full time, writes whenever and wherever she can, and reads as much as her eyes can handle. She also tries not to spoil her own independent, willful children or neglect her wonderful soul-mate of a husband too much. She tends to ignore laundry baskets and dirty dishes.

Reviews

[Jamie (The Kansan Reader) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating: 3.5

I kind of fought with this one. Before half way I couldn't figure out why this one was taking me so long to get through. The after I got half way through I figured it out. It was Lexan. Even though I like Lexan as a character I just found his POV a little slow. I loved Astrea's so much better than Lexan's.

I still loved the story but I didn't like it as much as the other two. I think it has to do with Elisyum. I didn't like the city and the people there weren't the best. Too many trials and not enough trust. Just having to read about the city wasn't piquing my interest.

Even after halfway I still fought because I went into a book slump and it was just hard to finish this. Again loved the story but there were just parts that made this tough to get through. The end was worth it though.

[Jenelle Compton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was probably my favorite installment to this series. I really liked the way the narrative was broken up between Astrea and Lexan. I don't actually always like that style, but I feel like it fit well with this story and heightened the rising action quite a bit.

I also really liked the plot to this book. Trea's journey down the path was well done and it was like you could see her growing as a character. Elysium was probably my favorite of the cities, probably because I really liked Aisa's journals at the start of each chapter. After a couple books with just the Lakessa sister opening chapters, I liked reading Aisa's take on things. I kept hoping someone from Taratarus was going to produce a journal from the 3rd sister and we would get a peek into her view of the events leading up to the three cities being formed (I actually liked that aspect of this series a lot. The little bits at the start of each chapter, from old texts and journals.)

Lexan's journey was equally interesting, as he grew and changed. His was cool because he caught up with all the different groups of people they had stumbled across through the previous books and tied a lot of things back together with the main story line. I was a little let down after he reached Asphodel, I feel like we didn't get to see everything and it frustrated me. But that's probably my only complaint about this book.

Overall, I really enjoyed the final installment into this series. Even the ending was alright. I was rooting for a sad ending with a lot of deaths...but this was alright. I didn't make me angry anyways.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing and so detailed you are there.

You are reading the last part of the journey and about the garden. Every chapter has your heart and mind racing with excitement to get to the conclusion hoping for their happy ending. So many trials along the way. Destiny awaits and you must read this to find out the end.

[Danielle Frost · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this series from the beginning! although I found lexans point of view rather slow, I enjoyed this book a lot and I'm so glad it ended how it did, made my heart happy
4.5 stars got aitans revenge left to read then I'm done :'(

[Stacey Kym · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC kindly provided by Hilary Thompson in exchange for an honest review.

Review

'Destiny Risen' is the third and FINAL instalment in the wild and magical 'Starbright' series by Hilary Thompson. When I first picked up this series, I just knew that it was going to leave me enchanted and reeling. I loved the exploration of a dystopian society where astrology became the central faith and religion as a way to overcome the dark times that had fallen upon humanity. The past two instalments had taken me on an a crazy and hectic journey that left me eager for the series finale.

'Destiny Risen' definitely shone in the "characters" department. There was such a vast array of personalities that there was never a moment were I would feel like the novel was lacking. I loved how in-depth and complex they were, mainly because their richness allowed for the plot to always remain interesting and their contributions towards it varies as much as their personalities.

For every antagonist, there was an equally powerful protagonist, and vice versa. So many novels written have extremely powerful protagonists that dominate the story. Their power is unmatched and they are risen to such power and...perfection...that any antagonist just doesn't create enough resistance to make the story believable. This was not so in 'Destiny Risen' and I am so glad of that.

There was a GREAT plot. It was a solid roller-coaster of an adventure that took me from one place to another and then back again. I enjoyed the constant movement and the quick yet steady pace that the author created. Looking back, I can't recall ever skipping a page or two. And that's a big deal to me. The author managed to keep me reading even the slightly "boring" parts and the parts where action needed to be a tiny bit slower in order for a better progress of events later on.

However, the one thing I regretted most was that it had been such a long time since I had read books one and two. I felt like the significance of Astrea's and Lexan's journey to the Garden was lost to me, partially. I had a bit of a hard time recalling all the events and the intricacies of the previous instalments. I would highly recommend rereading those novels before venturing into 'Destiny Risen'!

Hilary Thompson beautifully wove tension and anticipation into each chapter of her novel. There was always a constant on-edge feeling that permeated the novel. Any and all surprises had me shocked even though I should have expected them.

I also loved, loved, loved the little snippets of the world's history at the beginning of each chapter. I felt that they gave the novel tangibility and really took the world-building to another level.

An epic conclusion to the novel. It had me crying and laughing and just generally loving every moment of it. I did not expect it and was very happy with it!
Congratulations to Hilary Thompson on publishing the epic finale to the 'Starbright' series!

Rating Plan
1 star : Strongly did not like the book, writing and plot was bad. Idea of the book was against my liking.
2 star : Didn't like it, didn't find it interesting or gripping. Seemed to drag on to me.
3 star : An average book. Wasn't bad or good. Everything else was well done. Original idea.
4 star : Like a 3 star but has potential to it as a series or the book grew on me as it progressed and certain scenes captured me. I Enjoyed it and read it in one sitting.
5 star : I LOVED IT! I stayed up late until 3 am. Author is a genius, characters, plot, idea, development, EVERYTHING was EXCELLENT. Nothing else can possibly be said except that its 5 STAR!

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book.The author is quite talented at creating well developed characters that are flawed and relatable.Their struggle to understand and fulfill their destiny is engaging and i was fully engrossed in their story.The book is beautifully written and the story flows well.I especially enjoyed the verses of prophecy included at the beginning of each chapter.I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

[SB Senpai Manga · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am not a fan of this book or this series. Plot holes galore, bland characters, a "one size fits all" dystopian setting, and pacing is terrible. I'm SO glad this story is done.