Obsidian Sky

Dark Sky #3

by Amy Braun

The final struggle against the Hellions has arrived. A trapped engineer and a desperate marauder scramble to fight an enemy with unspeakable power on its side. Time is running out, and one world will be destroyed…

After sacrificing herself to save the lives of her friends and family, Claire Abernathy struggles to outwit her Hellion captors. They torment and terrify her into working on a weapon with the sole purpose of obliterating the world, friends, and love she has struggled to save. If Claire has any chance of saving those she loves, she must delve deeper into the Hellion world, and witness nightmares she could never imagine.

In Westraven, Sawyer Kendric is desperate to find the woman he loves. To do so, he must finally embrace his family’s atrocious past and heal the wounds it has caused. He will be forced to make new allies, uncover secrets that change all he knows, and find the courage to lead a ragtag crew into the darkest, deadliest battle of their lives.

Claire and Sawyer fight to save their broken world in the final installment of the epic DARK SKY trilogy.

Genres: Young Adult, Steampunk, Dystopia

281 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 6, 2017

About the author

Amy is a Canadian urban fantasy and horror author. Her work revolves around monsters, magic, mythology, and mayhem. She started writing in her early teens, and never stopped. She loves building unique worlds filled with fun characters and intense action.

When she isn’t writing, she’s reading, watching movies, taking photos, gaming, struggling with chocoholism and ice cream addiction, and diving headfirst into danger in Dungeons & Dragons campaigns. Amy can be found online on Facebook (www.facebook.com/amybraunauthor/) Twitter (@amybraunauthor) and Instagram (@amybraunauthor)

Reviews

[Cassandra (Thebookishcrypt) · Rating 3 out of 5]

*arc provided in exchange for an honest review*
3.4 stars
I can't believe it has taken me six years to get to this book... (Amy, if you're reading this, please forgive me!!!!! )
I have to give a bow to Amy. I really loved the way she described this devastating world. My most favorite thing was reading about the world the villains lived in. I wish I could see it in the big screen cause a whole world made of Obsidian sounds magnificently atrocious.
I also loved that this was dual pov. Claire and Sawyer were pretty cool to follow along on this journey, although sometimes their co-dependence scared me a little bit. (Sawyer's in particular...)
Claire is just a badass who knows her way around gadgets and I seriously admire her to no end.
I had a few issues with ONE certain plot device, aka person, but even though I'm still not onboard with them being a part of the story in the end, I can appreciate this story as a whole.
I'm happy to have closed this story along with Claire and the gang and I can't wait to meet more of Amy's creations!

[Betwixt the Pages · Rating 4 out of 5]

The final struggle against the Hellions has arrived. A trapped engineer and a desperate marauder scramble to fight an enemy with unspeakable power on its side. Time is running out, and one world will be destroyed…

After sacrificing herself to save the lives of her friends and family, Claire Abernathy struggles to outwit her Hellion captors. They torment and terrify her into working on a weapon with the sole purpose of obliterating the world, friends, and love she has struggled to save. If Claire has any chance of saving those she loves, she must delve deeper into the Hellion world, and witness nightmares she could never imagine.

In Westraven, Sawyer Kendric is desperate to find the woman he loves. To do so, he must finally embrace his family’s atrocious past and heal the wounds it has caused. He will be forced to make new allies, uncover secrets that change all he knows, and find the courage to lead a ragtag crew into the darkest, deadliest battle of their lives.

Claire and Sawyer fight to save their broken world in the final installment of the epic DARK SKY trilogy.

Rating: 4.75/5 Penguins
Quick Reasons: can we talk about this cover?!; can we talk about THIS SERIES?!; awesome, complex, strong-willed characters; satisfying end; trigger warning for sensitive readers; this whole journey was filled with heartbreak, horror, and darkly intense atmospheres; I'm sad to see it end, but so happy to have read it

HUGE thanks, as always, to Amy Braun for being the epic author she is and sending me a free digital copy of this title in exchange for an honest review! This in no way altered my read of or opinions on this book.

Darkness. I woke up to it, I fell asleep to it. It was everything I saw, everything I touched, everything I dreamed.

And now I was creating it.

Wheeeeeew, penguins. This was an intense, bitter-sweet ending to a journey that I've adored and been in awe of these last few years. And I don't mean bitter-sweet in terms of the way this series ended...but instead that it had to end at all. I've fallen so deeply in love with this world, and these characters... I'm sad to see them go. I know one of the first things I intend to do, as soon as I'm able, is buy these books in physical copies--I NEED them on my shelves. I mean, just the covers alone are GOOOOORGEOUS; whoever designed these books did an A++ job on it, seriously. But the stories?! The stories inside are just as gorgeous, and I need them in more than one form. NEED, penguins.

Let's talk gritty for a minute, though. This is a courtesy trigger warning for sensitive readers--certain difficult topics are broached and handled throughout. These include, but are not necessarily limited to: rape; physical assault; physical abuse. These are, by far, the biggest that I found. Please be careful if you decide to pick this series up--keep yourselves safe! While most scenes are brief and not overly detailed, there were some difficult moments, so keep this in mind.

"I wasn't asking for good ideas," I pointed out. "You said this place is a source of the Vesper's power. That means he'll be vulnerable if I destroy it. He won't have power, and he won't have an army."

Riley's eyebrow rose. "You want to destroy an entire building?" He took in my sharp stare, then shook his head. "Of course you do. You're always blowing things up."

I frowned. "It's not always on purpose."

These characters are just... They're going to haunt me for a while to come. They are well-rounded and realistic, and while they've made some judgement calls I'm not sure I agree with... I love them. I love them all so hardcore, I can't even. The plot is action-packed, filled with drama, and just SO epic I can't even begin to explain. Amy Braun knows how to ratchet up the tension, and she does so twenty-fold in this book especially. I found myself unhinged in several key instances, both glued to the pages and wanting to fling the book away in "NO NO NO don't hurt me again!" pleas. These, of course, went mostly unheard.

In the end, this was a WILD ride--from page one, book one to the last closing words. I have, once again, been reminded why I need to pick up more steampunk novels--they always wind up being some of my favorites, and this series is no exception! I definitely recommend this journey to lovers of alien vampires, cloud-surfing pirates, and plots that are more like delicious action stew. Amy Braun, this series has turned the cogs in my penguin heart; I cannot wait to see what the future has in store for your writing! Take down the Hellions with me, penguins; let's save the world!

[Raven_Blake (dreamy addictions) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Same Review Also Posted In My Blog: Dreamy Addictions

* ARC Provided by the author in exchange for an honest review *

An epic conclusion to the trilogy! It was even more exciting, suspenseful, action packed and thrilling than it's previous installments and I absolutely loved it. Dark Sky is a unique dystopian series that I've been enjoying so far and I feel a bit sad to finally say goodbye to it. I loved every aspect of this book especially the characters, setting, action, and the amazing plot. Though I loved every book in the trilogy, I think the final book is the best of them and it's definitely my favorite. I wish more people have read this trilogy because it was really a great dystopian series filled with interesting aspects such as steampunk, sky pirates, blood drinking hellions and kickass protagonists.

Claire Abernathy sacrificed her freedom to save her sister from Vesper's hold. Now she's currently in the hellnore, a place where the blood drinking hellions originally came from. She reluctantly works for the king of hellnore aka Vesper to create another palisade, a machine which is used to open the rift between hellnore and the human world. While enduring Davin's physical torment, Claire comes up with a plan to fail their plans of invading their whole world. Sawyer Kendrick is desperate to save Claire from the hellions but first he needs to embrace his family’s atrocious past and become a fearless leader. At the end, together with his marauder's crew and an unlikely new allies, Sawyer marches towards hellnore for a final epic battle to save their loved ones.

Claire is a great female protagonist. With each installment, she's becoming even more stronger and mature. She never gives up hope even if the odds are against her and will not hesitant to sacrifice her life to save her loved ones. From the start, I always admired her protectiveness towards her little sister. I liked Sawyer in this book. He's become so much different from the previous books and I liked the new change in him who is strong and confident. I'm glad he has finally admitted his feelings towards claire and now he's desperate to save her. I also liked the romance between them even if it was short. As for the other characters, I hated Riley for his betrayal in the previous book but after reading this book, I felt very sad for him and I don't hate him anymore. Davin is pretty much hateful guy who took great pleasure in tormenting Claire. He is quiet sadistic and wicked monster. Vesper aka the hellion king is one hell of a scary guy that totally creeped me out. Besides Nash and Gemma there are also some surprising new characters introduced in this book and I don't want to spoil this anymore so you'll need to read this book if you want to find out.

The plot is absolutely fantastic! It was engaging from the start and the second half is definitely mind blowing with all the twists and the action. Seriously, It was exciting and thrilling through out and I never want this to end. The pacing was perfect and I also liked the writing style. I loved the dual POV of the book which made the story even more exciting to read. The world building is simply awesome! I enjoyed the world of hellnore, I was actually looking forward to it because I was curious from the start about where these guys popped up from and damn that place really looked like hell no wonder those guys want to invade earth.

Overall, I loved it! I enjoyed every minute of this book especially the ending part and now I'm feeling pretty much sad that it finally came to an end. I'm really gonna miss Claire, Sawyer and the team. Anyway, It's been a great journey and I'm so glad that I read this trilogy. I highly recommend this trilogy to everyone who are looking for an action packed dystopian series with a dash of romance.

[Sarai Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amy Braun has brought an explosive and fitting end to her Dark Sky series. I loved this ending, and though I'm sad to see it go, I will always be rooting for my favorite buccaneers of the skies.

This book mainly follows Claire and Sawyer as they learn to deal with their feelings for each other all while trying to save the world from the invading Hellions. Claire, who is being held captive on the Hellion ship, has a big undertaking, when she devises a plan to blow up their leader and the power that he uses to create his armies. Sawyer is desperate to save the woman that he loves, and face the brother that only has loathing for him. Its an epic battle of whits and excitement.

I'm so glad to be a part of this wonderful world. Five stars for Amy Braun's Obsidian Sky!

[Boundless Book Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Obsidian Sky is wonderful ending to a wonderful series! Amy Braun had yet to disappoint, a very talented writer with imagination to do it justice! Thank you for taking me on this adventure. The Dark Sky series has it all; action, adventure, romance and suspense in one exciting story. I highly recommend all five books, you will enjoy this book as a stand-alone, but I guarantee you will love it more if you read the entire series in order.

This one was definitely not a long as the second, a quick and adventurous read. Overall; a strong 5 Boundless Stars. Again, I absolutely loved it! 

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[zoë · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

While reading Obsidian Sky , I really had to ask myself this question, “What is it about the Dark Sky trilogy that makes the books so enjoyable?” Few minutes of pondering and one Tokyo Ghoul theory later, I've found my answer. It's the characters, it's always been them, but more specifically the fact that they don't lie in the black or white area. They aren't heroes who do things because it's the noble thing to do. They're survivors who are fighting for their right to live. They have the courage to stand up against the Hellions and attempt to bring them down. That realism, combined with their snark, makes them easily likeable and unforgettable characters.

The prologue picked up immediately after Midnight Sky and started on a heart-wrenching note as we see that Claire is not faring well at the hands of the Vesper and her desperately holding on to the few hopes she has left. Seeing the state of the newfound family she sacrificed herself to save is in doesn't lessen the heartache any less. From there one, it was one hell of an emotional rollercoaster. More sacrifices were made. There were reunions at which tears were shed and fight scenes at which more blood was shed.

But at the end of it all, after all the hardships and obstacles our dear characters have faced thus far, it warms my heart to see them finally achieve their happy ending. Obsidian Sky has brought with it a truly fitting end to the Dark Sky trilogy.

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[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars!!

I can’t tell you how sad I am to see this series end. Once upon a time, Amy Braun sent an email to me, the owner of a tiny blog, and asked me to read her upcoming book. It was the first in a series of dystopian, sci fi, new adult novels. I love romance novels, but I can’t turn down a good sci fi novel, so I said yes. I am so glad I did.

Obsidian Sky is the final book in the Dark Sky series and this time the Hellions are in for the fight of their lives against our little crew of heroes! It is not an easy journey and they put everything into saving their world. WIth their wit and will, the gang takes us on a dangerous and exciting ride!

Amy Braun writes with no remorse. The world she has created is gritty and dirty and dangerous and I can’t imagine it any other way. The characters are deep and honest and raw, which has made them some of my favorite book characters of all time.

Thank you, Amy Braun, for taking me on this journey with you. I am so happy I got to read your words and imagine your rich and dangerous worlds in my head!

This series is a must-read series for any sci fi and/or dystopian fan and Obsidian Sky will blow you away!

[Whitney McGruder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Truth be told, this is only my second time visiting the Dark Sky series. I've already reviewed Braun's novella, Amber Sky, so I got to meet Sawyer and Nash at the very beginning of their friendship. This novel is the last of the series, so there's a lot of bonding and action that I've missed as a result.

Nevertheless, the novel certainly took me on a fun ride! I'm not a major fan of dystopian novels because they seem to be deeply rooted in human despair and carnage, but the steampunk and pirate feel of the series made the fight for humanity an enriching and exciting one.

From the get-go, Braun is able to ensure the reader is caught up to speed on who is who in the series and what you might've missed if you jumped in late like I did. I appreciated even the physical descriptions of the Hellions so I could keep up with the world building and what the baddies are up to. She was able to fill me in without slowing down the plot or rushing.

As always, I'm impressed with Braun's knack for describing action and fighting. There's a lot of hand-to-hand combat and dueling, and her description flow is easy to follow and creative. The only annoyance was the over-use of certain phrases of wind rushing out of the lungs and other descriptors for pain. Since the characters often take severe blows to the head and other sensitive areas, it seemed a bit excessive that they would experience such excruciating pain and either run away or not pass out.

Without giving too much away, I would say this ending was exciting and worth the buildup and tension created throughout the novel—and I'm sure the rest of the series. You can tell Braun enjoyed writing this series and her joy and talent shine through the characters and the narrative.