Arabesque

Wings #5

by Aprilynne Pike

More than ten years after the events of DESTINED, Laurel and Tamani get a visit from their niece, Rowen—an orphaned Summer faerie with a passion for ballet.

To succeed at the Scazio Dance Academy in California, Rowen must learn to get along with the humans she despises. But an ancient mystery sends Tamani scrambling for answers and threatens to upend Rowen's best-laid plans!

Book Five of the Wings series.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Romance, Fae, Fairies, Urban Fantasy, Magic

412 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2016

About the author

Aprilynne Pike has been spinning faerie stories since she was a child with a hyper-active imagination. At the age of twenty she received her BA in Creative Writing from Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho. When not writing, Aprilynne can usually be found at the gym; she also enjoys singing, acting, reading, and working with pregnant moms as a childbirth educator and doula. Aprilynne currently lives with her husband and three kids in Utah, and dreams of warmer climates.

Aprilynne Pike's #1 New York Times best-selling debut, WINGS, is the first of four books about a seemingly ordinary girl with a not-so-ordinary destiny. In this tale of magic and intrigue, romance and danger, everything you thought you knew about faeries will be changed forever...

Aprilynne's Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/aprilynnepike

Reviews

[Caitlin]

I read the wings series when I was like 14-15 what the fuck is this 5th book

[Ishmeen]

THERE IS A FIFTH BOOK WTF HOW DID I NOT KNOW ABOUT THIS ???

[Brittany · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never thought I would be brought back into the world of Avalon. I got into this series when I was sixteen and I finished it four years ago. To be brought back into this wonderful world of faeries has made my bookish heart soar with joy. So ten years has passed and a lot has changed since then. We are remembering the lives that had fallen during the war in Avalon. We also get introduced to Rowen (Tamani's niece). I did not like Rowen at first really. She was reckless, stubborn, and judgmental. But throughout the story she grows up quickly because she has to. Tamani helps her realize this which makes for great character development. I didn't like the romance between her and Shawn. I felt it happened quite fast and in such a typical way. I felt the story would've been better without the romance. What I really enjoyed about the book and what got me hooked was following Tamani's story. It was extremely interested and not only that, but he and Laurel are one of my favorite literary couples. In the first four books of this series they were not together so we didn't really get a chance to see how they were as a couple. This book made up for it in a huge way. I adore their relationship! They communicate very well which I appreciate. I find myself usually reading about couples who can't agree on anything and it's annoying. Plus, it's not a healthy relationship. Tamani and Laurel are each other's rocks still in this story. Throughout the series even when they were only friends they always had each other's backs. This was no different. They even make a huge commitment (which I can't say) and I got very happy about this big surprise. I think they have a very balanced relationship and it's just so good for this series. I'm happy to see that they are still together. I was so afraid that David would make an appearance and she'd go to him. THANK YOU for not doing that! We also get to see Tamani be a hero all over again. He plays a huge role in this book and I love his character. He is very respectable, brave, smart, and loving. I absolutely love Tamani! I'm so happy we got to follow him on a new adventure. Other characters were also brought back which made this book very interesting and just kept me hooked. This made me fall in love with the Wings series all over and I want to cry because it's over again. Thank you, Pike for bringing back the world of Avalon even though you took it away again.

[Francis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a big fan of the Wings series, so when I caught wind of this fifth book of course I had to read it.
I have been following Laurel's story since Wings came out in 2009. I quickly fell in love with the magic and romance of these books.

This story is about Rowen, the little girl whom Tamani calls his niece, you might remember her if you've read the first four books. If you did read them I recommend this one to you. It will take you back to the characters you fell in love with (especially Tamani) and introduce you to new, fun characters!

Without spoiling anything I can say that this book has all the ingredients to Mix up a good fifth book; magic, romance and mystery. Here is a link to Wattpad where you can read Aprilynne's fifth installment to the wings series for free:

https://www.wattpad.com/story/5690188...

For all the hardcore fans, the book is now also available on Amazon!

[Nancy The book junkie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to come!

[Sabrina Ye · Rating 4 out of 5]

4~4.25 stars.Wow it's actually better than I'd thought! :)

[Myndi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the final book in the Wings series. I actually read the other four books awhile back and hadn't realized when I started them that there was a fifth book. So there was a gap in my reading of this one. However, I found it was very easy to dive right back into the world and remember all the fantastic characters.

Some time has passed between book 4 and book 5 and we've got the main characters from the first four books as older more "mentor" type characters. Tamani still plays a heavy role and we still see Chelsea and Laurel, but the main focus of this book seems to be Rowen. I rather enjoyed seeing this. It gave us a perspective of a fairy who grew up with both the old fashioned class system in Avalon, as well as the changes after the troll war. It also showed how the younger fairies or fairies who grew up in Avalon view humans.

There's lessons in this book that I found to be impressive. Lessons of tolerance, not judging people based on their skin color, or financial status reigned heavily in this volume and I think it's great for young people to get this message over and over again from as many different sources as possible. There's also a slight message that I picked up on (whether intentional or not) of choosing to do what you feel is right, regardless of what's easy or what you've been raised to believe.

If you enjoyed the first four books, and if you enjoy fairy novels or Paranormal Romance, I think you'd love this book and this series.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

My head is telling me that this is a biased rating. Which it is. My head is saying that logic is superior and needs to win. That the actual book was good, but didn't amaze me, which means it should get four stars.
But my heart, the heart of my 18 year old self who remembers a young me reading these years and years ago, and remembers how much these books changed the course of my own writing and therefore myself, knows that me crying on the third page means I cannot listen to logic. There are a few lines in the book that by themselves alone would have granted it an immediate five stars from me.

So this review isn't for people who haven't read any of these books, this review is for people who are wondering if they should get this extra pretty-much-stand-alone fifth one after having read the first four, and to them I say this. I'll admit, it wasn't amazing or astounding in itself, but it was amazing to me. You be the judge.

Pike, I can't thank you enough. For the originals. For this treasure that I never imagined I'd get. For everything.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5 stars. The grammar errors were slightly annoying but I got over it because the story and characters were so amazing. This series will forever mean so much to me. I love the characters so much it kills me to see any of them unhappy and the plot of these books are just so good that I find myself getting lost in the story.

[mikael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is god damn insane in the best way. I didn’t realize that Wings as a series felt like it needed some plot threads tied until I read Arabesque, and I even think that there’s a few more that may warrant another book….. wink wink? The only thing holding it back from being 4.5 or 5 stars is that there was an absolutely ridiculous amount of typos. We’re talking at least two per chapter. This series has always been my guilty pleasure, though, and Arabesque did not disappoint.

[Jessthebookslover · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am so happy.
So happy I got to read this book after all these years.
I felt the magic. I read about the birth of a fairy and that was the most magical moment I had ever had with a book.
I kind of fell in love with this series all I've again.
I'll miss these characters.

[Hillary Ernzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funnily enough, I enjoyed this story more than the first 4 books in the series. I wasn't sure how Pike was going to flesh out characters from the margin and push the former main characters to the background. But it turned out to be quite convincing and the action was creepy and fast-paced.
Tamani finally came into his own in this story!

[caitys.booknook · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW! Just WOW! What an amazing delve back into Laurel and Tamani's world!!! I love the development of the characters over the span of a decade - making connections that always seemed left at a loose end at the end of Destined. I would really love to see the story get a chance to continue and develop once more.

[Maddie | mads.chaos_ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this story. It was so good to be back in this world.

[Saamia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to say this book was undoubtedly stunning. The character development was intriguing and amazing! Overall, I highly recommend this novel! You will absolutely not regret it!

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Normaal gesproken herlees ik geen boeken, maar toen Jen Minkman deze serie volledig opnieuw ging uitgeven zodat ze ook het laatste deel uit kon geven, las ik maar wat graag ook de eerdere delen opnieuw voor de blogtours. Uiteraard kijk ik wel het meeste uit naar dit nieuwe deel, ook al herinnerde ik me na het vierde deel weer waarom ik dit laatste deel nooit echt gemist had. Het verhaal was eigenlijk al gewoon af na het vierde deel.

Dit boek voegde echter verrassend veel toe! De auteur heeft een aantal bekende personages hun opwachting laten maken, uiteraard, maar de focus ligt eigenlijk vooral op Rowan, die als Elf onderdeel wil worden van de samenleving van de mensen, en een nieuwe dreiging die het voortbestaan van Avalon en het elfenrijk bedreigt. En juist door die frisse wind, voelt dit boek echt als een volwaardige toevoeging aan de serie.

Ik vind het met name leuk dat dit boek eigenlijk de originele serie spiegelt. Waar Laurel opgegroeid was als mens en alle gewoontes van de Elfen moest leren kennen, doet Rowan nu het omgekeerde. Rowan heeft haar hele leven in Avalon gewoond en besluit naar de mensenwereld te verhuizen. Met alle gevolgen van dien. Het was heerlijk om de mensenwereld door haar ogen te beleven en te zien hoe raar onze maatschappij eigenlijk kan zijn.

Ik vond ook het probleem dat in dit boek moest worden opgelost, wat vooral door Tamani gedaan werd, erg tof gedaan. Vooral omdat de auteur eigenlijk met een hele toffe twist aan het einde kwam, waardoor ik als lezer ging snappen waarom de slechterik deed wat hij deed. Ik vond uiteindelijk de oplossing wel wat "makkelijk" en vroeg me oprecht af of het daadwerkelijk zo zou werken, maar dat doet niks af aan mijn leesplezier. Ik heb enorm van het boek genoten!

[Alysia Wolfe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now, usually, I'm not one to like books that take place years after the "last book", and I'm still not. But, this one didn't rip us away from Laurel and Tamani like others did *cough, cough, The Heir*. I liked that.

[Sting Key · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so sad I finished this series. I would totally recommend and I will definitely reread this again.

[Kaitlyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

At first I hated a character, but now I love her

[Elien · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good return to this series.

[Lana ʕ •ᴥ•ʔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel like my opinions of this book will change just like the third book that ended up being my favorite. I feel like it's what you need if you expect it to be far after the fourth book. If you're in the mindset of the characters at the time it's much better. It'll probably grow on me on reread and nothing would stop this from being below 4 stars and one of my favorite books lol.

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

AND IF I COULD HAVE GIVEN IT SIX STARS, I WOULD HAVE!
(Please be prepared for the sappiest review in the history of human-and-possibly-faeriekind)

Reading this book was like running into your first love again after ten years and realizing two things: 1) shit, you still love them, and 2) as you've both changed and grown, you discover all these new things about them and they actually somehow make you love them even more. Am I talking about the series or about Tamani? Possibly both. Anyways...

After rereading the other books more than I have ever reread any other book (except for Destined, which I only read the once because I am still not over Shar dying and I am not reliving that, thank you very much), I was both thrilled and anxious when I discovered that there was a fifth book. Thrilled because I love the series to death and think it's perfect, and a little anxious because... it was already perfect. Did I really need this fifth book?

The answer is yes. Yes, I did. There are too many things that I loved about Arabesque to list, but I'll try anyway. I loved Tamani (SURPRISE!). I loved Rowen despite of her horrible flaws, and I loved how she overcame them. I loved Mitchell (although I wish I could have gotten to know him a little better outside of school). I loved Meghan, even when she was acting like a bitch. I loved Shawn, although I admittedly think things moved pretty fast with him and I would have liked to know more about his personality earlier on. I loved that Tamani's hair is longer and has green roots again. I loved to meet Misha (and I will spell that without a C until the day I die) and to find out that she was exactly like I imagined her to be. I loved how very used to the human world Tamani has become. I loved that Tamani and Laurel had a seedling and that they named her Sharlet, oh my god, my heart. (I'm talking a lot about Tamani again, ain't I?) I loved getting to know Lenore better even if it hurt how much she reminded me of Shar. Most of all, I loved how Rowen found her place in the human world and got her own little human crew like Laurel did.

Are there things I would have done differently? Sure. After all, there were things I would have changed about Destined, and these characters have been living rent-free in my brain for ten years since then on top of that. But that didn't make this story any less magical, and it has more than earned its own special place in my heart next to the other four books.

And on that note, I will end this review with some lyrics from a song that I listened a lot to around the time I read the books for the first time, which seem to capture very well how I feel about the Wings series:

Oh, but even if I fall in love again with someone new
It could never be the way I loved you

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

SPOILER FREE REVIEW!:

I loved this book so so so much! I read it on Wattpad while Aprilynne was writing it in segments, and every time I got to the end of one chapter, I wanted to be able to keep reading! I do wish that this book delved more into David, Chelsea and Laurel. However, I enjoyed being able to see Rowen's life and her experience in the human world. I also loved that her love interest and 'rival' are of another ethnicity. The fact that the issue of physical appearance overruling talent in any art form is shown through this book which was a very nice addition to the story for me. The fact that Aprilynne highlighted how hard Meghan had to work to become Clara in the Nutcracker made me very happy because, formerly being a ballerina, it is very hard for someone who doesn't look the part to achieve the honor of performing as Clara. I love that she added that into the story.

SPOILERS:

I loved this novel a lot and it tied up a couple of loose ends for me, but I did think that the ending was a bit rushed. The sea fae didn't put up much of a fight even though they have complete control over human's minds. Also, the fact that Lenore has crazy amazing powers kinda came out of nowhere. I really didn't understand how that happened. I think it would have been better for Tamani to find out about her power from Lenore's grandmother instead of Marion. It really didn't make sense to me. But, non-the-less I loved this book and hope that she continues with Rowen's adventures!

[Chloe · Rating 2 out of 5]

I finished reading this back in October and it was very very hard to finish. I love love loved her 4 books in this series, but this one, not so much....
I typically don't do well with sequel spin offs that change who the main characters are, but this one is way worse than usual.
Tamani and Laurel are in this book here and there a little (Tam a lot more so) which was nice, but the way Pike took the book was so off the radar and random. For example, we meet a character for about a second, who would serve no other purpose but to introduce the time traveling protagonist of another series of Pike's. It's a book about faeries and bringing time traveling into it for even a second was very weird and out of place.
At the start of the book, Rowan is very cruel, judgy, and a little bit psycho when it comes to humans. I had a hard time liking her even later in the book when her character development made her a little more tolerable. The new characters were hardly likable and all of it just felt very forced. Pike crammed in so many different elements to try and 'get with the times', and it was painfully obvious the whole book that it just came out plain cheesy.
I'm super sad about the whole thing because I was super excited to read this. The original books were my favorite when I was a teenager (still love them) and so I guess I'll just pretend like it ended with Destined. 🤷🏻‍♀️

There were SOME parts of the book I did like! I loved Tamani and his little family for one, even though they weren't in it much.

[Morgan Radley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a HUGE fan of the original Wings series. I have read the original series probably 7 times by now. However, as much as I wanted to love this 5th/additional book, this one was just rough, especially toward the end.

The best parts of the book were the beginning/wholesome continuation from books 1-4. You got to see Chelsea go back to Avalon, Avalon in recovery, the destruction of the caste system, Laurel and Tamani together, etc.

The roughest parts of the book were the latter parts, where there was not only a whole new cast of characters, but a new enemy as well. And that's not to say that the characters or the enemy were horrible. I loved the concepts of them. There was just never enough space for them in the story. For example: Shawn, the new love interest. Aside from him being a twin, black, and handsome, what do we know about him? Nothing. He has no personality or interests. And the same could be said for Lenore, Jason, etc. There are just too many new elements and not enough time for any of them.

(Plus, there is a lot about the book that either doesn't make sense or is simply not continuous with the worldbuilding that was already previously established. For example, Marion putting so much emphasis on family, when family was never a part of Avalon's culture.)

As a result, this book just leaves me wishing the author had decided to write a sequel series instead of trying to do this one add-on. There was so much potential for an Atlantis kind of story, and instead, everything here just felt halfway baked.

[ReadInTheNight · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF at 37%, 2 stars
(mild spoilers but no major plot points)

I wanted to like this book, I really really did. I found out about it's existence less than a month ago and decided on a reread of the series so I could end with this one. During this reread I remembered why I liked the Wings series so much. The original take on fairies, the magical world, the magic system, the characters, etc. After finishing Destined I wondered where Arabesque could go. The world had been saved, the story had been finished, the series had a beautiful -if not bitter sweet- ending.

I started Arabesque with hope. Hope that it was as good as the first four books, hope that I would see beloved characters again and see what happened to them in the past ten years, hope that we would learn about what happened in Avalon after Jamison told Laurel about his plan. I was not disappointed. I got all of this and more. I ended up shedding a little tear when Yeardley spoke to Chelsea.

It was everything I had hoped it could be, sadly enough, it only lasted for a few chapters. In my opinion, these first few chapters are the best -and should have been the only- part of this book. It's a beautiful answer to the questions I had after finishing Destined. Everything else in this book just feels off.

Arabesque feeling different, dare I say almost wrong, started quite innocently with popculture references. Popculture references in general are not a bad thing, however, it felt weird, seeing as other than mentioning Gaiman's Stardust, there hadn't been any in the previous books. Which is the reason I was startled when the Academy was described as Hogwards-like and Yeardley as it's Dumbledore or Snape (in my humble opinion, Yeardley is ten times the man Snape could ever wish to be, but this is a discussion for another time). There were other popculture references, but I've tried to forget all of them seeing as they felt so out of place.

Rowen's storyline was alright, and if it had been tweaked a bit it might even have been on par with the other books. The idea of a fairy going to the human world to learn ballet is an interesting concept with lots of possibilities. An entitled fairy who believes it's her right to be a ballerina and since she's scared of losing her place in the ballet group to someone less deserving (but she "isn't jealous" she just "wants to be special") decides to go the the human world even though she's very spieciest towards humans and barely has a positive thought about them, is less interesting. I think her learning to love humans could have been an interesting set up for a story, had it involved more than watching Netflix, asking Laurel's dad some questions and the most insta instalove I have seen in quite some time.

Compliments need to be given to the ballet school and Meghan storyline. I am neither a ballet dancer, nor black, so I can't say how well it was handled, other than that I liked the light that was put upon this issue. You see, Meghan is the only black student in Rowan's course, not only that, she's a scholarship student. It is made clear quite quickly that the other (white) students are not a fan of Meghan, who is better than all of them. Racism in the ballet industry is a real issue. The fact that Arabesque didn't shy away from showing it was definitely a nice thing to see.

Next up: Tamani's storyline. Where do I even start?
Let's start with the parts I enjoyed. Tamani and Laurel have planted a seed. I loved reading about this since I had wondered about how this would be done since they were living in the human world. Definitely one o the highlights of the story! Tamani is looking forward to becoming a father and is so damn proud, it's wonderful to read and see. I love Tamani and Laurel and their future child.
Now for the bad parts, Tamani's nightly hobby. It's, how do I say this, bad? ridiculous? Like it was writen by someone who had just finished Batman the Animated Series and decided to add Tamani to it? And I could have looked passed this. I was willing to take it for what it was, roll my eyes at Tamani's shenanigans and laugh it off. It wouldn't have bothered me if not for the world breaking elements in it.

You see, Tamani's plotline suddenly takes a left turn and introduces worldbuilding elements that have never been a part of the Wings world before. Where were these during the first four books? Laurel and co. could definitely have used some of this. It didn't even need to have an explicit appearance in the main series, just a mention or reference would have been more than enough. But no, it hadn't. Which means it didn't exist up until Arabesque was written. It feels like a macguffin just created to give Tamani information and to then never be seen again. Was there really no other way Tamani could have figured this out?

You might be wondering why I haven't mentioned Laurel yet. I too had been wondering why there was barely any Laurel in this book. Even though she's the main character for the first four books, she barely appears in Arabesque. Arabesque has two main POV's: Rowen's and Tamani. Tamani thinks a lot about Laurel and his love for her, how she's doing, their sprout, etc. But Laurel herself barely if at all appears in the book after the first few chapters. I'm glad for other reviews mentioning some information you find out about her around the end of the book. If no, I would have known nothing about her other than "she lives in the house near the gate, has a lot of plants and potion making stuff in her house and is looking forward the having her child".

David is mentioned briefly but that's it, and Chelsea gets a moment to shine in Avalon and we meet the family she created for herself. Both of them deserve the best.

I'm angry at this book, angry cause of the disappointment I felt while reading it, angry cause I had to dnf it even though I wanted to love it, angry because it can't even hold a candle to the beauty that is the original four books. In my opinion: don't read this book, and if you do, just read the first few chapters where they visit Avalon and then close the book and put it away. If you do end up reading more of it, I sincerely hope you'll enjoy it more than I did, I hope you'll find the joy and love I wished I could have gotten while reading it, I wish you a better reading experience than I had.

[Ariba Khayyam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did not expect a fifth book from the Wings series and then one day I suddenly came across Arabesque. At first, I was a bit disappointed that it was actually about Rowen, Tamani's niece and not the main characters, now after reading I assure you that I do not regret reading this because it is just as good as the other books in this series. I still have mixed feelings about this novel that I cannot explain that's why I will reread it soon and rewrite this review, nevertheless it was satisfying.

[stynenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

loved the whole wings series and this book is a nice prequel. an easy read but one that sometimes feels a bit rushed: if only the book was a bit bigger so there could be more depth to the characters and relationships in Rowen’s plot.
also, so nice to read deeper into one of my favourite literary couples: Tamani and Laurel. they never really got to spend a lot of time together, or even be together for that matter, in the last 4 books so it’s nice to see how their relationship has evolved.

[Minnie cocuzza · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pike should have not written this. After Destined my hopes were very high when I found out their was a fifth book in the wings series. Now it was nice to catch up a little with tamani (who narrates) but you never hear about Laurel and a true plot doesn’t develop until the last 4th of the book and it solved itself kind of. Not a huge fan.

[Novembre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Aprilynne Pike for giving us another glipse into the world of Wings once again! It was such a delight to explore the world and visit with Laurel & Tam to peek at what theyre up to.

I really hope this isn't the last adventure. It would be fun to see the world expanded upon with all sorts of supernatural beings and how they fit into the modern era and what new spins they could have added to them. The world is so much bigger than we know I love all the world building in this new addition.

The writing is just as rich and beautiful as before. Keep in mind you dont follow Laurel in this story. She's still really smart and helps a ton to the main plot but her story has already been told so its time for Tam and Rowen to shine.

You dive into the world of Wings but this time exploring what it would be like for a Summer faerie born & raised in Avalon trying to blend in with humans without knowing any human customs.

I was so worried this was going to just be a slice of life following Rowen trying to pass as a human ballet dancer based on the handful of reviews I saw. But I'm glad its more than that. Its just as an engaging fantasy adventure as the other books in the Wings series.

You get two POVs. Tamani and Rowen, Tamani's 17 yr old niece, a Summer Faerie who can use her illusion magic to blend in with humans.

Rowen starts off rough, sure, shes an arrogant know-it-all teenager fae who was raised with the "all humans are just animals" mindset. She unlearns it and becomes better for it.

I get that as a reader it can make you uncomfortable because shes not immediately a hero with a great moral code. People quit reading because they think it'll be a boring read. On the contrary its interesting to see her grow as a person & see humans as just as special & important as fae. Just stick it out 80 pages and she'll get better.

Rowen wants to be a good person but she needs help figuring out what that means and how to get there.

Rowen is a great example of "if you never leave your bubble you grew up in you'll stay stuck in limiting beliefs that dont help you grow in the long run." And they definitely would be the case if Rowen didnt take the time to travel and socialize. Its a great insight into how our experiences and lack of experiences shape & change us especially in our formative years.

Tamani has a mystery to solve as he's a vigilante at night and he's noticed curious things happening in the city. In his POV chapters where he travels to fae locations only mentioned in other books. That was super satisfying to see especially since it breathes life into locations that were once just names on paper, with no real weight before, that are now places you can walk the halls of and see the sunlight stream through windows etc. however brief the visit its still satisfying to explore the world.

At the begining of the book we get brief cameos of Laurel and Chelsea for a chapter or so as they mourn the events of Destined. David is mentioned a handful of times throughout the book (they were all friends so of course they think of him) but he doesnt appear. His friends respect his choice at the end of Destined and let him live his life free from magic. But theyre all still friends who hang out so dont worry!

Tamani is still Laurel's personal guard there to help protect the gates of Avalon. He trains & keeps fit despite settling into domestic human life with Laurel. You get bits and pieces spread across the book of what Laurel and Tamani have been up to since high school. Thankfully we learn Laurel's life has been full of the same milestones as some young adults. She went to college and has a professional career.

I was worried, being long lived, Laurel and Tam would just be static lumps on a log kissing and reading each other poetry in the forest for the rest of their lives. I'm glad I was wrong. It feels so nice to see Laurel have a life that goes on and grows beyond what we got to see.

Its wonderful that a series so near & dear to my heart can take the time to show such an emotionally mature couple actually talk things through in a healthy way and still be deeply in love nearly ten years later. Laurel and Tamani are still smitten with one another and its delightful. We get a brief PG13 love scene between Tamani and Laurel that tastefully fades to black.

Aprilynne Pike writes such amazing heartfelt romance with just such good chemistry makes me wish she wrote more books centered around adults, not for spice, but for the excellent mix of adventure, magic, and sprinkle of romance that makes it all feel like a story I love getting lost in again and again.

Rowen gets her own teen whirlwind romance, over the course of a few months shes smitten and its all she can focus on. The romance is more down to earth but every bit as emotional and sweet as Laurel/Tam.

I loved this book so much. I've read dozens of faerie/fairy fantasy books since Wings but none of the worlds feel as rich and magical as Wing's Avalon. And the romance and chemistry between Tam/Laurel is so sweet I really wish there was more. I love the world that Pike created, this spin on fae being another species entirely with actual magic mixed with science its so fun and unique. I hope Pike knows what a lovely world shes created. I'd be happy for any future stories.