The Light of All That Falls

The Licanius Trilogy #3

by James Islington

The Light of All that Falls concludes the epic adventure that began in The Shadow of What Was Lost, the acclaimed fantasy blockbuster from James Islington.

The Boundary is whole once again, but it may be too late.
Banes now stalk Andarra, while in Ilin Illan, the political machinations of a generation come to a head as Wirr's newfound ability forces his family's old enemies into action.
Imprisoned and alone in a strange land, Davian is pitted against the remaining Venerate as they work tirelessly to undo Asha's sacrifice - even as he struggles with what he has learned about the friend he chose to set free.
Finally, Caeden is confronted with the reality of the plan he laid centuries ago - heartbroken at how it began, and devastated by how it must end.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Audiobook, Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy, Magic, Adult

830 pages, Hardcover

First published December 10, 2019

About the author

James Islington was born and raised in southern Victoria, Australia. His influences growing up were the stories of Raymond E. Feist and Robert Jordan, but it wasn't until later, when he read Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn series - followed soon after by Patrick Rothfuss' Name of the Wind - that he was finally inspired to sit down and write something of his own. He now lives with his wife and two children on the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria.

Reviews

[Petrik · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC provided by the publisher—Orbit—in exchange for an honest review.

The Light of All That Falls is an absolute marvel, a prodigious finishing touch to an ingeniously plotted series.

Here’s a little statistic to give you an idea of how much I loved this book and series. If you look at my Goodreads profile, you can take a look at my list of favorite authors. Inside this list are authors who have written three or more books—that I’ve read, of course—to be included in my “favorites” shelf. Before today—out of approximately four hundred books I’ve read—there were eight authors on this list. With one trilogy, and without a shadow of a doubt, I’m going to include James Islington as the ninth author to join my list of favorite authors. Binge reading this trilogy for the first time blew me away, and I’m already looking forward to rereading it in the future. If you stumbled upon this review without having read the previous books in the trilogy, rest assured that this review will be spoiler-free; no details regarding the plot will be mentioned. There is, however, a better option for you, pick up The Shadow of What Was Lost and begin binge-reading this astounding series. Now.

“He stared over the expanse and then closed his eyes, feeling the soft breeze against his face and the gentle silence of the night. These quiet moments were too rare, and went unappreciated too often. How long had it been since he had just stopped and breathed? The past year had been a blur of pressing forward, of learning and planning and obsessing over all the different things he could try, going through every potential strategy and how likely it was to succeed or fail. In all that time, it hadn’t felt like he had once just…paused.”

The Light of All That Falls is the third—and final—book in The Licanius Trilogy by James Islington. Unlike An Echo of Things to Come which starts immediately after the end of the first book, the story in The Light of All That Falls begins approximately one year after the end of the previous book. As much as I loved the previous two books, I do personally believe that The Light of All That Falls is, by far, the best book within the series; Islington has truly saved the best for last. I can’t emphasize how impressed I am by Islington’s feat of crafting this immense trilogy as his first series; it’s exceptionally well-plotted and complex. Complexities wise, in a different way and even though the two series are very different from each other, the complexities of The Licanius Trilogy was slightly reminiscent of Steven Erikson’s Malazan Book of the Fallen. There are Gods, thousands of years of histories that affect the present predicament, immortals, powerful magics, and many more I’ll refrain from mentioning to avoid spoilers. The main differences between the two authors? Islington’s series has only three books rather than ten books, his writing is also less dense than Erikson’s and it’s also so much more accessible to read.

I honestly had my doubts, there was a myriad unresolved storyline for Islington to close in one book, and he nailed it in an extremely satisfying manner; no stones left unturned. All three books in the trilogy are inextricably linked one way or another. Nothing is wasted in this series, simple as that. Every moment of foreshadowing—whether you realized them or not—from the first book are crucial to the all-encompassing story of the series. These are also why it’s quite mandatory to read this trilogy subsequently, or at least not far in between. There are a twenty pages long detailed summaries at the beginning of the books, and a twelve pages long glossary at the end—thank you, Islington and Orbit Books for this—but I’m not sure they would be enough for a series as complex as this if it has been years since you’ve read the previous books. This epic fantasy series with a huge focus on faith, morality, prejudices, fates, friendship, and love as its themes will require your concentration and commitment. And it’s worth your time.

“Faithful people suffer and evil people prosper all the time, Davian—you must know that is true. Besides, if our actions are driven only by reward or punishment—eternal or otherwise—then they are motivated by greed and selfishness, not faith or love. That is where so many people go wrong, even those who say they believe in El. They obey because they think it will make their lives better, rather than themselves. And that is very much the wrong reason.”

It’s astounding how much the main characters have developed throughout the series, and I grew to love all of them as more and more as I progressed through the story. The physical torment they’ve endured was brutal, and the spiritual conflicts they constantly faced were damaging. I wish I can elaborate more on why I’m so emotionally invested in the four main characters, but unfortunately, that would mean going spoiler-fiesta, and I don’t want to do that. Caeden, in particular, has become one of my favorite characters of all time. Caeden made the series shine the most to me. I know some readers will disagree with me on this, but in my opinion, the series—especially in An Echo of Things to Come and this book—has some of the best flashback sections I’ve ever read; they’re on par with The Stormlight Archives by Brandon Sanderson, maybe even better! The juxtapositions of the past and the present have an enormous effect on intensifying the quality of the narrative and the lessons embedded in it. Are we, as a human, guided by destiny? Has everything been pre-destined? Or is it our free will and choices that decide the final result? Islington raised thought-provoking questions and dilemmas regarding the concept of free will, choices, beliefs, redemption, and fates; I found them working incredibly well for the story and the characterizations.

“I don’t doubt His existence, but how could I continue to love, worship, even just accept a god whose plan involved something so precious to me being ripped away?”

The Light of All That Falls features the most stunning display of power within the series. I wouldn’t call The Licanius Trilogy a battle-focused series, at least not when compared to other epic fantasy series. However, this one definitely had plenty of thrilling action sequences. From daring escape, violent torture, pulse-pounding stealth, and explosive display of magic, there’s no shortage of breathtaking scenes and cruel destructions being demonstrated. The vortex of chaos rules, but the glimmering light remains, and the light strives for peace. The flow of the climax sequences—specifically the final 100 pages—was a supercharged adrenaline rush reading experience. I mean it, I was so engrossed that I forgot to have my lunch, not even hunger could stop me from reading. Need I say more on how gripping and climatic it was?

“It is not enough to fight for the right side. You have to figure out how to fight the right way, too. If winning is truly all that matters, then we’ve lost sight of what’s actually right and wrong in the first place.”

This is hands down a spectacular conclusion enhanced by one of the most jaw-dropping epilogues I’ve come across, Islington efficaciously delivered an immaculate full-circle tale with expertise that matches the best of the best authors in the genre. I loved this book and series with all my heart. Heart-wrenching, tension-packed, meticulously crafted, riveting, and gloriously epic, The Light of All That Falls is an unforgettable superlative concluding installment; a page-turning classic fantasy with a modern voice that immediately earns Islington his place among the pantheon of greatest epic fantasy authors, and I’m seriously incapable of imagining a better ending for this mind-blowing series than what’s written here.

To Islington, bravo for such a truly spectacular feat, especially for a debut trilogy. I’ll be waiting patiently for the next book you write, and I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed that the magnificence of this series is an echo of great things to come in your career as an author.

Series Review:

The Shadow of What Was Lost: 4.5/5 stars
An Echo of Things to Come: 5/5 stars
The Light of All That Falls: 5/5 stars

The Licanius Trilogy: 14.5/15 stars



P.S:
The cover art of this series is nothing short of outstanding. Well done to the cover artist, Dominick Saponaro, and I hope he’ll be hired to do Islington’s books again in the future.

You can order the book from: Amazon UK | Amazon US | Book Depository (Free shipping)

You can find this and the rest of my reviews at Novel Notions | I also have a Booktube channel

Special thanks to my Patrons on Patreon for giving me extra support towards my passion for reading and reviewing!

My Patrons: Alfred, Devin, Hamad, Mike, Miracle, Nicholas.

[zuza_zaksiazkowane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Miałam z tym tomem problem przed pierwsze osiemset (!) stron. Uważam, że momentami był naprawdę nieczytelny, niepotrzebnie zagmatwany i po prostu za długi. Nie zmienia to faktu, że ostatnie 50 stron było absolutnie w punkt. Zakończeniem tej trylogii jestem zachwycona. Tylko dlaczego wcześniej było tak przeciętnie?

[James Tivendale · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been looking forward to reading The Light of All That Falls ever since I finished An Echo of Things To Come and have been counting down the days until I could return to the world of Davian, Caeden, Asha and Wirr. I won’t go into too much detail here regarding the actual story as I don’t wish to spoil anything for people who haven’t started the series yet.

“Remember that your past does not define you—no matter the consequences,” he said gently. “Choice is meaningless without consequences, and a privilege we do not deserve if we will not face them. You are facing them, Tal’kamar. You have changed.”

I can safely say that the final entry in The Licanius Trilogy is breathtaking and brimming with phenomenal moments throughout. It starts off with a showdown in the prologue and wraps up with one of the finest and perfectly crafted endings that I have read in a long while. One I did not see coming at all but is satisfying and wraps all the loose ends up expertly. There are quieter segments in the beginning-middle stages. All four of the point of view perspectives had a huge number of highlights and they occasionally cross paths. It’s always excellent when the main characters meet up again. Some of these engagements take place unexpectedly and not until much later in this eight-hundred-page door-stopper.

As mentioned, it had been some time since I finished the last book and thought it was a nice addition offered by Islington that he presents a summary of past events. This usefully filled in the slight gaps in my knowledge and potential confusion with character names. Caeden and Davian have always been the characters I have enjoyed following the most especially with their destinies been so closely intertwined.

I believe only two years have passed since we met the ensemble for the first time in The Shadow of What Was Lost. The characters have changed so much and you wouldn’t really recognise the same three students who met at the school for the Gifted. A few of the players are extremely overpowered now – both main and supporting. In addition the magic-schemes and possibilities get much deeper, complex and enhanced throughout the overall narrative. The magic system is one of my favourites from modern fantasy although it’s sometimes confusing and scientific-like within the rules of the crafted world.

Elements included are destiny, knowing your fate, time-travel, a legendary sword, and alternate plains of existence where time doesn’t follow normal rules. It has incredibly well-depicted monstrosities such as the serpent-like Dar’Gaithin and the terrifying Al’Goriat. These often cause havoc and raise a great deal of suspense. It includes a plethora of competing factions, complex and sometimes frosty relationships, and thousands of years of past history. The trilogy also showcases a huge dramatis personae and a unique and detailed glossary of world-specific phrases. This is a useful link regarding the points mentioned above: (here) A version is also included and updated in the novel itself.

There isn’t really much left to say regarding my feelings with this trilogy and the final entry in this series that I haven’t mentioned already. It was an epic, stunning and extremely satisfying finale. The series features some of my favourite modern fantasy characters that I truly cared about and ended up loving. It’s one of my favourite trilogies from the last 5 years and the ending was perfect and completely unpredictable. It is the end of an era and I’m not sure if we will return to see these characters again. Islington does hint in his afterwards that we may return to the world and see the stories of more minor but extremely important players. I can’t wait.

[Jay H (Hiatus) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars✨

“Evil men rarely convince others to their side by asking them to perform dark deeds for no good reason. They will always start with the lightest shade of gray. They so often use what seems like a good cause."

I can’t write a proper review on this trilogy without spoiling it, so I’ll try my best to write this review spoiler free.

While I absolutely loved this trilogy, I wouldn’t recommend it to someone new to fantasy. This is very much an EPIC trilogy with an emphasis on epic. It follows multiple viewpoint characters, features a deep and richly developed world and has an incredibly complex plot. The summary doesn’t even begin to capture everything that’s going on.

“It has been twenty years since the god-like Augurs were overthrown and killed. Now, those who once served them—the Gifted—are spared only because they have accepted the rebellion's Four Tenets, vastly limiting their powers.

As a Gifted, Davian suffers the consequences of a war lost before he was even born. He and others like him are despised. But when Davian discovers he wields the forbidden power of the Augurs, he sets into motion a chain of events that will change everything.

To the west, a young man whose fate is intertwined with Davian's wakes up in the forest, covered in blood and with no memory of who he is...

And in the far north, an ancient enemy long thought defeated begins to stir.”

It just gets crazier from here. This summary barely scratches the surface.

This trilogy is simply STUNNING! The plot buildup, the way fates intertwine, and the payoff in the end are masterful. If you decide to dive into this I URGE you to binge read it. You’ll need the previous book fresh in your mind otherwise, you might feel lost. It’s also one of those series that you just KNOW will make for an amazing re-read.

What I Loved:

⇨ CAEDEN!! 😩😩 ENOUGH said.

⇨ Every POV mattered. No dreaded chapters you just want to skip.

⇨ The magic system was incredibly well done and fun to explore with shapeshifting, time travel, mind control, and so much more.

⇨ How everything came together. The ending of book three is one of the best I’ve ever read.

⇨ Despite each book being over 700 pages, they never felt long.

⇨ How I was constantly questioning who was truly on the “good” side.

⇨ The sheer number of jaw dropping plot twists!! There’s a crazy twist in practically every chapter.

What I Didn’t Love:

⇨ The series leaned very heavily on the plot. I generally enjoy plot driven books, but this felt like too much at times. I wanted more character development outside of the main characters.

⇨ Islington tried to do too much. While I loved the ending, it left me with a couple of unanswered questions that I wish had been resolved.


If you love epic fantasy with a complex plot, morally ambiguous characters and twists that will leave you reeling, The series is a must read. Just be prepared to focus and take notes. 😘


Spoiler from this point forward‼️

Is there any sequel to this series????!!!! I DESPERATELY NEED a sequel!! Even just a novella about Detzia and Alaric and Davian's mom!!! I need to see when she finds out that her baby is alive!!!

[Nick Borrelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I begin my review, I'd first like to mention how absolutely thrilled I was to finally have this book in my hands. The Licanius Trilogy is one of my top 10 all-time fantasy series and in my opinion is a masterwork that stands out among the majority of its peers. I eagerly awaited the release of this book for over two years and when I finally finished reading it, I sat and stared into space to process the amazingness of what I just absorbed. But enough about that, let's get to my review shall we?

THE LIGHT OF ALL THAT FALLS concludes the story that was begun in the previous two installments beautifully in my opinion and just solidifies it as one of the great fantasy series in recent memory. Andarra is threatened on its northern border by evil forces that are determined to conquer and overthrow it. The only way these horrific beasts can be held back is through Asha's special magic as she attempts to strengthen the boundary. But is her magic enough to keep the invading hordes at bay?

Meanwhile Davian finds himself still a prisoner of his own doing. Held captive in an unfamiliar land, his ability to time travel proves to be both a boon and a curse as he struggles to find an escape so that he may be able to help his friends. And help his friends he must as they find themselves trapped in a vice between fanatical religious zealots on one side and frighteningly heinous monsters born of nightmares on the other. If he doesn't find an answer soon, all could be lost to devastating effect.

Will the boundary break and unleash hell on an already weakened land, or can the four friends Davian, Wirr, Asha, and Caeden muster the courage and will that it will take to win the ultimate battle of good versus evil? Will the only thing that may be able to save them all be a forbidden magic that was once all but snuffed out of Andarran society? All will be answered in this exciting and riveting final book in The Licanius Trilogy.

Well that was totally worth the wait! Simply put I was enthralled by THE LIGHT OF ALL THAT FALLS to the point that I got really emotional as the events leading up to the finale began to take shape. I was left feeling like I had just read a really important work of fantasy that more people need to discover. This series is truly masterful and is a great substitute for those waiting on the new Stormlight book by Brandon Sanderson. It contains a lot of the same magic and world-building that makes Sanderson such a success and I believe fans of his work would adore this series if they gave it a chance.

It also has the complexity of Steven Erikson's Malazan but is a bit more accessible and easy to follow than Erikson's lengthy opus. I compare it to those authors only to give a feel for the style but make no mistake, this series is completely original and stands proudly on its own merits. The characters withstand challenge after challenge and are tested to the brink of their limits. The world-building is some of the best you will encounter in the genre.

But what sets this series apart for me is the different types of magic found throughout. This series has everything from time travelling to shape-shifting to sorcery and evil dark magic. The way that this magic is so vividly described and manifested through the characters is something that reminded me again of the reasons why I got into reading fantasy to begin with. Islington has a skill that not many authors can match in that regard.

If you have never read these books, you should really pick up the first book The Shadow of What was Lost immediately. By the time you get to this third book you will see why this should be regarded as one of the very best fantasy series out there. It most-certainly is for me. In closing I would just like to recommend THE LIGHT OF ALL THAT FALLS whole-heartedly to anyone who feels like there hasn't been anything new or challenging written in the fantasy genre lately. This series will happily prove you wrong. The book is due to be released on December 10, 2019, which is less than a week from now.

[Mayim de Vries · Rating 2 out of 5]

“Nothing is truly beautiful, until it can be lost.”

You know the story: the boy gets the sword, the boy loses the sword, the boy wins the sword back. This book is about the third part of the business. I liked nearly everything except for the time travel. It would not be a problem if not for the fact that everything in the series rides on this precise concept. This, and the fact that travelling through time cannot alter the events—which basically renders the whole time-travelling a little bit meaningless. And reading about it—insufferable.

If only The Light of All That Falls was more like book 1 and less like book 2, we would have been great friends. It was not a bad bad book (hence two gracious stars instead of one), but it has been definitely one that nearly put me into a giant reading slump in the time of the year when I am at liberty to read as much as I please. I kept thinking that I did not really care how things end. Especially that we have known how they end since the last instalment so the imagination does not have a huge playground to run amok.

It is as if you participated in a play where the director is on the annual leave, yet the ending is known because the players have every tenth page of the script so they desperately try to fill in the blanks in a manner that fits the overall logic of what they can deduce.

I can tell you that if I were in this play, I’d rebel.

Since I was merely an audience, I am only relieved that the applause at the end is not as predetermined as the outcome was. I have some rotten eggs though.

A series that started as a great read with relentless pacing and a straightforward story, by the middle book evolved into something dull and needlessly complex. Here, in the final instalment, the events just meandered and mostly in a way that did not contribute to the overall plot. A significant portion of this book could have been cut without any detriment to the story. This means that the novel is disproportionately convoluted (without being interesting) and about twice as long as it needed to be.

Part of the problem is the fact that sometimes you cannot see the forest for the trees. There are the Himalayas of info-dumps. Frequently, a bunch of rules or laws are introduced just to make things more complicated. Normally it proceeds as follows: the author needs something to happen, so he invents a rule that makes it possible. And then, because our protagonists are so speeeecial, many of the rules are either bent or broken and many things happen “somehow,” for some reason that no one can ever explain.

It is simply unbelievable how this book is cluttered with exposition, buzzwords, and characters (many with multiple names, other with copy-paste like features and attributes). The main protagonists stopped developing at the end of book one. In the subsequent parts, they just keep collecting special abilities in record time (Asha is a particularly sad example of that affliction, but Davian turns into Inspector Gadget!). If you take away these special features, none of them has anything to keep your interest going. To add insult to injury, characters that are thousands of years old act like teenagers. Foes came and go, and are dispatched almost as an afterthought. It is frankly exhausting to watch underdeveloped characters die one after another as soon as they can no longer contribute to the plot.

It is not even that I did not like the individual tests and turns each of the characters went through (though I did not like them all), it is more about the general design that tired me: the world of possibilities versus the universe of the inevitability of which both were perfectly alike and equally unappetising. Many events that happened during time travel were tautological (like the destroyed city that prompted the boy to look for vengeance and in the end made him destroy it inadvertently; what a perfect illogical loop! and yet, no-one bats an eye!) The only thing I really cared about were the Lyth (and the forge!), but that thread was abandoned the moment they lost their instrumental appeal for the Author without ANY explanations, might I add. Similarly, the long-winded theological ruminations we were forced to endure throughout the series were for naught because, in the end, the mythical El does not make an appearance even once, so all the agonising about the nature of him and the antagonist was just a waste of pages. Neither Shamaeloth nor El have no function other than to serve as a plot convenience. Even the sword we endured so much to retrieve, was itself abandoned by the author.

By the way: Kudos to the person who can tell me what happened to this ever-so-important artefact. Not that I care. But it just shows you how much of the creative energy in the book went wasted into absolutely redundant details, while those pillars of the story just stand neglected!

There was no emotional payoff at the end, and what was there was so mind-numbingly predictable (because of pre-determination) and based on artificial conflicts not integral to the story. I expect the epilogue was supposed to make me cry. Well, it didn’t. It made me jump in delight that I am finally done and free. I need to conclude that any comparison with Wheel of Time is unjust as this series just slams some juicy bits together in a way that does not allow the reader to follow along. I guess I ought to be grateful that Mr Islington dod not make me endure 14 books of this.

Also in the series:

1. The Shadow of What Was Lost ★★★★☆
2. An Echo of Things to Come ★★☆☆☆

[Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow.

I'm speechless.

Okay, maybe not that speechless, but that doesn't mean I wasn't blown away by this final book in the Licanius Trilogy.

I think I've said this before, but it bears repeating: This is one of THE best Epic Fantasies ever written. I compare it to Brandon Sanderson and Brent Weeks in my head and in some ways it succeeds better where those do not. It's tighter, for one. These are three thick books that cram a hell of a lot of emotional and action-filled impact inside its pages.

Each book seems to end on a reveal that changes everything we ever thought we knew, but this one wraps back around and ties up every loose end in a way that is more than satisfying. It's more than amazing. It leaves me gutted.

Let's say something about the most interesting parts of the trilogy: It's Fantasy Time-Travel, time-manipulation battles, pocket universes, energy beings, and one of the hairiest paradox tales I've ever read. Take all the best aspects of the best time-travel SF, give it a full Fantasy treatment with full rules and the ways to bend or even break the rules, and then give us an epic battle that lasts a very long time for reasons that are shockingly brilliant and tragic and horrific.

But do you know where it really shines? The characters. So many character arcs and looming tragedies we try and try to avoid, but since we're dealing with time paradoxes and deep friendships and truly gut-wrenching events.

It pulls no punches. I was super invested and I freaked out.


I recommend this to any fantasy lover. I RECOMMEND IT. Without hesitation. With a feverish glee, even.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Shadow Of What Was Lost: ★★★★★
An Echo of Things to Comee: ★★★★1/2
The Light of All That Falls: ★★★★★

A suitable and brilliant final to now one of my all-time favorite high fantasy series.

I certainly did not expect that when I picked up An Echo of Things to Come last year. This book closed the circle that the first book started and in a very satisfying -and smart- way. The epilogue is definitely one of the best epilogues I’ve ever read, it showed what a master storyteller Islington is. The Licanius Trilogy started traditionally and simple enough and it became more complex and the details more important and intricate and delivered a solid tale in the fantasy genre.

I was very worried when I started this installment because I’ve heard a lot about how confusing it can get. I did my best in book 2 to keep track of everything going on and it was good. I did the same thing here. I read Islington’s summary thoroughly. I checked every word/name I don’t know in the glossary, I tried to keep track of everything… and while I do not claim to have understood everything, I don’t think I’ve missed out on anything.

The Light of All That Falls picks up a year after Echo during which not much has happened. We have the same points of view and style. There’s no need for a plot summary because well... it’s the third and last book. What do you think it’s going to be about? So I’ll move on directly to my thoughts about it.

I’ve been having a problem lately. I can no longer feel this connection to the characters. Sure, they can be well-written and interesting but I’m always like a stranger to them instead of sharing their story. Thus, I started thinking, what’s wrong with me? Do I no longer enjoy reading? (not the case because I still do and there’s nothing else I’d rather be doing in my free time and no I’m not in a slump.) anyways, then comes books like the Licanius trilogy and I simply fall in love with their characters and live their story as if I’m there, sharing their sorrows, hope, and joy. So yes, the multilayered characters for me in this trilogy are certainly one of the highlights and if someone was having difficulty liking them, then they definitely won’t enjoy these books.

My favorites remain Caeden and Devian (since book 1) and yes, I slightly look to their chapters more than the rest, although the latter was very necessary to the story. But well, Caeden is a very well-written character -one of the best in my opinion in this genre- and his inner conflict and development were masterfully executed. My appreciation for Caeden characterization continued to the end of this book. Devian is.. well, people go crazy about morally gray characters and while I do appreciate these characters, I’m all for the good-hearted and kind main characters in this genre. Wirr’s character is interesting but he’s not memorable for me like the first two. The same thing goes for Asha.

The books read more like one story rather than three separate books because everything is so interconnected and related to the rest especially with the time jumps. They’re not short yet I couldn’t stop reading throughout this trilogy, something very rare for such big books in general and definitely for this genre. Usually, I don’t feel compelled to read all the time, at least not in the first part. Yet, I couldn’t put those books down.

The world-building is nothing short of amazing and yes sure “bad guys behind the wall” isn’t the most imaginative plotline. But the different races, the rich history, and the religion made this book unique among its peers in high fantasy. I liked the themes and the discussions of religion for example, especially where Raeleth was involved and his talk about faith.

For example, something I loved about this trilogy is the Venerate. They are good people. They’re not “evil”. But it’s not so simple, they believe their side is the “good” side. Their beliefs became so twisted that they are sure that the bad actions they are doing are for the greater good. Some even became zealots. What good god asks you to kill millions? Well, of course, it’s for saving humanity. Yet we still had this “evil” that most of us like in this genre. They are empathetic, even kind, and very convincing.

I’m sad to let these characters go because it was certainly a memorable trilogy for me. I’m going to keep an eye out in the future for Islington’s books because I’m unquestionably going to read them. This trilogy is a perfect example of why I love the genre, the epicness, the great characters, and the amazing plotline.

Before ending this review, I have to mention that these books aren’t without faults:
- I wish the characters were older, Wirr being such a “wise” leader for example at a young age didn’t make much sense to me. It would’ve benefited the story a lot, in my opinion, if Wirr, Devian, and Asha weren’t so young. For example, if the original test was at 18 or if more years passed throughout the books (only 2-3 years did).
- Asha’s skills for example were kind of too much but at least she did nothing but train in a year. Nonetheless, I would’ve preferred if she worked on it for a longer time.
- The romance between Asha and Devian. While they were cute in book 1, I don’t exactly ship them. I don’t see the chemistry. They’re good for each other but I suppose I’ve read too many romance novels.
- A death of a certain character happened off-screen and I wasn’t a fan of that, a main character could’ve easily witnessed it.
- I really like Erran, was sad he didn’t have more role/arc in this book.
- The word “adrenaline” was mentioned.. twice. I doubt they have discovered it yet in their world..
- Something about the last part bothered me someone always appeared to save the day at the last moment, I never liked this in books and it happened here a few times.

Overall, I loved this trilogy and I’m absolutely going to recommend it in the future. It will stay with me. While I understand why it’s not for everyone, the story worked wonderfully for me. I no longer ask for perfect books, and this one isn’t. As you can see, I listed several shortcomings and everyone might care about them differently. I personally enjoyed the book regardless but since I always try to be objective in my reviews, I had to mention them. Nowadays, I only ask for stories that will truly take me to another world and another time and make me live their events and connect to their characters.

[Hamad · Rating 4 out of 5]

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“It’s not enough to fight for the right side. You have to figure out how to fight the right way, too. If winning is truly all that matters, then we’ve lost sight of what’s actually right and wrong in the first place.”

The Light of all that Falls is probably the most complex book I have read up to date! As I said in my review of the last book, this is a series that is best binged or read as close to each other as possible. I actually read book 3 less than a month after book 2 but I think I still missed a lot of details!

My biggest criticism for these books is the naming, I think the author chose many similarly sounding words (Aelric, Aelrith, Alaris, Alcesh, Alita, Ana, Andrael, Andras. Aniria for example of words that start with A) which was not really necessary. The plot is complex and it involves time traveling and shape shifters and characters with multiple names so keeping up with all of this was very hard and all those similarly sounding things made it even harder for me -A guy who depends on visual memory- a torture to keep who was who in mind.

The writing was good and I just appreciate Islington’s writing the more I read of it. I specially like the descriptions and the dialogues which are realistic! The book is a huge one, almost 900 Pages but I think all of those were needed. We kind of got the ending in the last book so this was more of an explanation of what happens and how it happens. The Epilogue is probably the best epilogue I have ever read and that alone puts the story on a whole different level!

Summary: I think this is the kind of series and finale that needs patience and commitment. The more you give it, the more you will receive from it! Everything was as good as in the last two books so if you enjoyed those, you will like this one. For me, it was more complex and kind of hard to follow. I think I would like to reread the whole series one day and focus more while doing that and I am sure then it would end up being a 5 stars and I will catch many things I missed in my first read through!

[Maddie Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

RATING BREAKDOWN
Characters: 4.5⭐️
Setting: 4⭐️
Plot: 4⭐️
Themes: 5⭐️
Emotional Impact: 5⭐️
Personal Enjoyment: 4⭐️
Total Rounded Average: 4.5⭐️

Wow! I was SO blown away by this conclusion. Everything was set up to pay off with a chef's kiss! The epilogue had me bawling! I loved it so much.

I will say, this is the longest installment in the trilogy, and aspects felt tedious and side-questy, so to anyone reading with some skepticism and worry, as I was, TRUST ISLINGTON! Nothing is by accident. He really knows how to close loops.

Also, there is a whole side plot that is left out of this book, which Islington addresses in an afternote. I highly recommend reading that to understand why some characters disappear for much of the book for unknown, mysterious reasons that are never fully explained.

Overall, I'm such a fan of this series. I love the central themes that people can change, because morality is tricky, and understanding is always expanding. People make easy targets when they're low, lost, grieving, and afraid. I love that the characters are able to explore more complex ideas of morality across different dilemmas through the series. And as each plot loop closes, it's SO SATISFYING.

I loved this. I highly recommend the trilogy!

[Jade Ratley · Rating 5 out of 5]

9.57 on CAWPILE.

I have so many feelings.

[Melissa ♥ Dog/Wolf Lover ♥ Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾

[Em Lost In Books · Rating 1 out of 5]

Giving up on this at 65%. I tried my best but even the guilt of not reading a finale could save this one.

[Benny Hinrichs · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ah, man. This book. It...did not deliver on what I had been hoping from book one. You might notice that I have over 70 highlights/notes. A lot of those are me asking, did we know about this before? It had been 5-6 months since I finished book 2, and there were quite a few things that I didn't know if it had already been explained in a previous book or if it was only then getting mentioned. I usually don't have that problem.

I can't remember if I've said this before, but I have to get it out of my system. The names sound like someone who's read two fantasy books came up with them all, and so many of them are too similar. Desriel, Dareci, Deilannis, Devliss (all place names). Taeris, Terris, Feris. Asha, Asar, Alaris, Aelrith, Aelric, Alchesh. And for crying out loud, one of the primary characters' names is Caeden. The bulk of characters have non-real world (English) names, but the central character is named Caeden. I just...

I got the feeling more and more that the magic could do whatever it needed to in the moment. Like Davian embeds those kan devices in himself, and although it talked about limits, he seems to be able to use them without repercussion. We need to throw in some tension because they're just traveling? Our characters run into Echoes, which aren't a problem in the future books. We got a ton of eletai bearing down on us? Ishelle can kill them all with her mind. The Blind are here destroying the city? Caeden kills them all with Licanius, but in later books he does nothing near as impressive with it. We've never seen any shapes coming out of a time rift? Well right here at the end now there are just some hands poking out and it's screaming.

The prose is nothing special, which isn't a problem to me as long as the other elements hook me. But since they weren't, I noticed things like, "Wirr restrained a scowl—he was quickly coming to the conclusion that he didn’t like the man—and strode over, scanning the paper quickly." It's clunky to use 'quickly' twice in one sentence, and the entire parenthetical was unnecessary. Trust the reader more. Let us figure out that Wirr doesn't like him through his actions rather than telling us directly.

I wasn't really sure about this point. There are 13 connections to the forge, thus always 13 Augurs, right? So when Scyner died, how did that help anything? Wouldn't another Augur just be born somewhere else? Did they ever actually kill that one sha'teth? I can't remember.

The Desrielites had those Essence eating towers. Why didn't they make an earlier push to take them up to the Boundary sometime in the past few centuries? They have the backing of the Venerate.

The whole Dezia and Aelric thing. I know he had an afterword where he said he was going to write a whole novel about their adventure. But considering the work as it stands, that was completely deus ex machina. With how much Wirr ended up doing after getting rescued, it probably would have been better (plot-wise) if he'd just died.

There's a bunch of other small points that I could comb through, like when Asha is pretending to be a Desrielite and they don't notice her accent. But I think I've said enough to get across the point that this book just didn't quite do it for me. Definitely finish it if you enjoyed the first two though.

[Mike's Book Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really great ending to a particularly good debut trilogy for Mr. Islington. The first half of the book was a real drag and that brought my rating down, but this is about as satisfying of an ending as you’re going to find in modern fantasy. Could have been shorter due to that beginning, but stick with it and you’ll find the trip worth it.

[TS Chan · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC provided by the publisher—Orbit—in exchange for an honest review.

A breathtakingly audacious masterpiece of epic fantasy, The Light of All That Falls is an emotionally satisfying and flawless conclusion to the phenomenal Licanius Trilogy.

I am utterly astounded and in awe. The Licanius Trilogy is one of the most incredible trilogies I've ever had the pleasure of reading, and I think that James Islington is an extraordinarily gifted epic fantasy writer. I almost couldn't believe that this was a debut series as it was ambitious beyond belief, and yet Islington was able to masterfully wrap and tie up every crucial thread and loop; pulling off an amazingly perfect finale that kept me thinking about it long after I've turned the last page. I would be harping on similar things that I've mentioned in earlier reviews, but all these need to be said. As I would not be able to mention nor describe anything about this book in detail without potential spoilers, I hope that these broad strokes would be sufficient to convince others to pick up this spectacular series.

Firstly, Licanius fits the vein of a classic epic fantasy told in a modern voice, and it is one of the best ones I've read in recent years. Its epicness could be found in the worldbuilding where the history of the world is steeped in myths, lore and legend of thousands of years, the scope of the story which was centred on world-shattering consequences, and the stature and/or powers of the key characters. Let's face it, most of us who fell in love in fantasy did so because no other subgenre could quite give us this same epic feel. As much as I do enjoy the variety of fantasy subgenres that are available nowadays, nothing feels quite like going back to epic fantasy. Islington not only succeeded in creating a truly compelling story in this subgenre, he managed to do so successfully with a level of complexity that I've rarely come across.

"Nothing is truly beautiful unless it can be lost."

A clear example of its grand scope would be the history and summary recap of the story so far that could be found at the beginning of The Light of All That Falls; this was 21 pages long! There was just so much to learn about the world, its histories and lore, as well as the magic systems of Essence and kan. Coupled that with the intricacies of multiple storylines to follow, these books are not meant to be breezed through. It was actually a good thing that the writing was direct and simple enough to make it easier to absorb all the details. This trilogy is made for binge-reading, or at least each book should be read as close to each other as possible. Even with the recap at the beginning of the second and third books, it would not be possible to remember all the important details.

"Truth can be a burden, but secrets are poison."

I found it remarkable as to how Islington managed to so deftly wove the required exposition into each main character's point-of-view, and hence avoided the dreaded info-dump trap. The many, many revelations were well-paced and well-timed throughout all three books, a lot of which came from a series of flashbacks. I'm aware that some readers find flashbacks disconcerting as it takes them out of the current timeline. However, I found that all the flashbacks in the series to be some of the most engaging and fascinating parts of the overall story as it fleshes out a lot of the history and lore of the world.  And as if it's not already complex enough, we also have time travel in the story, one of the trickiest storytelling elements to ever have been invented in the history of speculative fiction. I was initially worried when I first came across time travelling in the first book, as it is one of the most common ways of losing control of the narrative to logical inconsistencies. Just for this one single aspect alone, I applaud Islington for not abusing time travel as a plot device but staying true to its concept established from the beginning.

"A world where all possibilities are promised is, by necessity, a world in which God cannot take part. Cannot choose to affect the world in any way. If He exerts his will even a fraction, He is by definition changing how things could have been. He is removing possible outcomes."

The dominant theme of this series is centred around beliefs and conflicting religious views between fate and free will. Should we believe in a god that allows humans to have free will in choosing their own paths, or one that is guiding us to make the right decisions to a pre-destined outcome? Out of all the main characters, the one who embodied the core theme the most is Caeden. What an extraordinary character he turned out to be; Caeden is not only my favourite of the entire trilogy, he is also one of my all-time fantasy favourites. His arc was an insanely captivating, emotionally powerful and empathetic story about having to live with immense guilt and shame, deep regrets and sorrow while seeking and aspiring to be a better man. There isn't much more that I could mention because his story has the most number of pivotal revelations. All I can say is that Caeden has one of the best redemption arcs I've come across.

"Remember that your past does not define you - no matter the consequences. Choice is meaningless without consequences, and a privilege we do not deserve if we will not face them."

I love reading a series where I'm so thoroughly invested in almost all of the characters; I even care for quite a few of the supporting ones. Davian, Asha and Wirr, the three main characters aside from Caeden, have compelling and strong character arcs throughout the entire series. All of them have come so very far that it didn't even initially occur to me that only one and a half years have gone by since we've first met them in the first book. As each of them faced their own trials and tribulations, they were pushed to their limits of what they were capable of being while staying true to themself. Individually they were great characters, and collectively they were formidable ones. The love and friendship between Davian, Asha and Wirr made their stories even more wonderful. We don't actually get to see them together very much, which made those moments even more precious.

"It's not enough to fight for the right side. You have to figure out how to fight the right way, too. If winning is all that truly matters, then we've lost sight of what's actually right and wrong in the first place."

I can't say this enough; the payoff from this trilogy, and especially in The Light of All That Falls, was tremendous. The complexity and intricacy of the plotting of all the storylines right from the beginning of the series work towards serving the ultimate endgame; what may have appear to be fillers at first glance eventually turned out to be important. Islington employed foreshadowing exceptionally well; sometimes it is so subtle that it could be easily overlooked. He also saved the most jaw-dropping revelation for last. Right until the last chapter, I felt that something was still missing. Then the Epilogue delivered a flawless conclusion by executing one of the finest closing acts of a series I've ever read.

"Be the man I aspire to be."

We also get more heart-pumping action scenes and displays of immense power, and these were more reasons why I thought this was such an incredible final book. I think Islington writes around the action more than writing through it like Brandon Sanderson or John Gwynne. However, even without any major action, he was able to craft some thoroughly intense scenes that kept me on the edge; where I was the verge of grinding my teeth or taking deep breaths to calm down. And to top it all off, the emotional resonance was enormous. It's been a while since I've felt so much heartache and sobbed uncontrollably while reading epic fantasy. But at the same time, there was so much hope and goodness that it made my heart feel full as well. In short, I was an emotional mess that felt completely wrung out when I finished the book.

What more can I say? One thing's for sure, I would eagerly read anything that Islington writes in the future. The Licanius Trilogy has become one of my all-time favourite trilogies. This is a rare feat for a debut trilogy of such vision and ambition, and I cannot recommend this highly enough for fans of epic fantasy.

You can order the book from: Amazon UK | Amazon US | Book Depository (Free shipping | Bookshop.Org

You can find this and my other reviews at Novel Notions.

[Krysta ꕤ · Rating 5 out of 5]

“It’s not enough to fight for the right side. You have to figure out how to fight the right way, too. If winning is truly all that matters, then we’ve lost sight of what’s actually right and wrong in the first place.”

wow. what an epic end to this trilogy, i loved every single minute of it. the characters have all come so far from where they originally started and the amount of turmoil they were put through in here as everything they were fighting for came crashing down was truly an experience to read. there’s a specific element in this book that i LOVED but i don’t know if it’ll be a spoiler to speak on it so ill be vague, it was basically the whole plot points for Davian and Caeden specifically so (iykyk). i also cared so much for the side romances and once again.. that. epilogue. ?! I MEAN, COME ON?! im in awe honestly, ill never get over how much i adore this authors books.. this deserves all the stars in my head.

“if our actions are driven only by reward or punishment—eternal or otherwise—then they are motivated by greed and selfishness, not faith or love.”

Caeden is one of the most complex characters I’ve ever read and i loved everything about his journey in this series. im a sucker for a character that doesn’t lean too clearly to either side and his chapters stood my favorite throughout all 3 books. Davian is another character that i was attached to and he was fighting for his life in this book to the point that i didn’t even want to continue cause the anxiety was REAL !! i loved the talk on morality and how doing the “right thing” can look differently for each person and it’s how they move forward afterwards that shows who they really are at their core. i don’t even know how to express all my thoughts cause there’s so much i want to say, but if any of you are interested in this series please try it out !!

”The old saying is wrong, you know— a common enemy does not a friendship make. You can only ever be as good as the people you are willing to fight beside.”

[Choko · Rating 4 out of 5]

*** 4.44 ***

"...“Because hurting someone is not teaching them a lesson, Davian. As you pointed out earlier-we can hate what they do, but we should never hate them." He shifted. " And I'm not 'better' than you. That's not how this works. Believing in El, trying to follow His rules, doesn't make you in some way superior. If anything, it makes you more aware that none of us can claim to be truly good. That's why forgiveness is so important." He saw Davian's dubious expression and shook his head. " I'm not suggesting that enemies should suddenly be friends, but I am choosing to forgive. Because if I don't, I am nothing more than empty words.”
― James Islington, The Light of All That Falls..."

Sooo close to 5 stars, if only Islington was just a tad more to the point at times... There is such great talent and wonderful story, but there were some major issues with pacing for about 65% of the book. The characters were great, the story is wonderful, I recommend this series to all Fantasy lovers, but be prepared for quite a bit of meandering storylines, before getting to the meat of it.

"...“Faithful people suffer and evil people prosper all the time, Davian—you must know that is true. Besides, if our actions are driven only by reward or punishment—eternal or otherwise—then they are motivated by greed and selfishness, not faith or love. That is where so many people go wrong, even those who say they believe in El. They obey because they think it will make their lives better, rather than themselves. And that is very much the wrong reason.”
― James Islington, The Light of All That Falls..."

[Robin (Bridge Four) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 You Can't Change the Past Stars

The best and worst things about trilogies are they are done in three books. The Licanius Trilogy had pretty long books but still there are only three and this was a solid conclusion to the story that did and didn’t go as I expected. The tale has come full circle and I will say it was a satisfying ending. Not everything was answered but most was leaving just enough space for a spin off perhaps.

“Evil men rarely convince others to their side by asking them to perform dark deeds for no good reason. They will always start with the lightest shade of gray. They so often use what seems like a good cause."

Caden started this series playing for the wrong team back when he was called a different name. But starting over with no recollection of his past we was able to shape himself into a new man with the help of Davian and Wirr he was a new man, if he can remember how to remain that man until the end their might be hope for the world.

“Your choices, Tal. Always your choices. Influences don't get blame or credit”

Davian, Wirr and Asha all have huge parts to play as they search for a way to fight the Godlike creature Shammaeloth, pretending to be El. As they go up against different members of the Vennerate there will be some heavy casualties along the way.

Davian starts as a prisoner trapped in Talan Gol. They’ve done everything they can to get him to switch to their side, including showing him his future death at the hands of a friend. They know they can’t kill him but that doesn’t mean they aren’t putting him in very dangerous positions to see just how far they can push him.

The best thing about Davian is his steadiness and resolve. He is loyal and remains true to his friends. While most of the time we’ve see is with he and Asha apart, I couldn’t help hoping that one day they’d get their time together. He stays strong in hopes of protecting her and vice versa.

“It’s not enough to fight for the right side. You have to figure out how to fight the right way, too. If winning is truly all that matters, then we’ve lost sight of what’s actually right and wrong in the first place.”

Asha has become such a strong character. Her chapters in this were some of my favorites. She has become stronger in the dok’en over the last year. She has used this time well reading the books and knowledge there to practice and expand on using the reserve of power entrusted to her. But she isn’t safe either locked away, a member of the Vennerate has found a way in and Asha is going to need not only some luck but some training and help from Caden as well.

Wirr is left in Andarra to be the North Warden. After the events in the last book he has at least convinced the council that he is needed. They know about the oathstone though so he is under some watchful eyes. Wirr is trying to save his people from the prophesized destruction and find a way to help his friends as well.

This is an EPIC conclusion on a grand scale. I do think there is an additional side story that still needs to be told with Aelrik and Dezia. I think this is where some of my questions about Cyr will be answered since that is a thread that happened elsewhere. But, I honestly didn’t see a way to add that story into The Light of All That Falls quotes. Here is hoping for a 3.5 or 2.5 with that information in it.

Overall, I guessed a couple of the twists for the ending. I’m glad to say I was correct in one of my bigger theories. One of my favorite reveals was who Davian’s parents were and how he came to be at the school. Even though I was able to guess a few things there were so many other surprises and twists that kept the story very interesting. Nethgalla for instance surprised me again and really it shouldn’t have, but man I was floored by one of her actions, yet again.

This is a tale on a grand scale with so many characters, places and times. It is a story that I think if I were to read it again, I’d find even more details missed the first time around. Sometimes when you know the destination you can focus on the scenery just a little bit more. I look forward to a future reread just for that purpose.

[Tori · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great final book to conclude one of the most ambitious, epic trilogies I’ve ever read. That being said, I found this last book growing overly complicated in a way that wasn’t always enjoyable to follow at times. I think a lot of it had to do with the fact this was Islington’s debut series, and the exposition wasn’t always as strong as it needed to be for a story and structure of this magnitude. This final book demands a lot of the reader, and while the journey didn’t always feel the smoothest, Islington still manages to stick the landing with an unforgettable epilogue. Overall, great series that I recommend sticking with for the payoff!

[Clare S-B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, that trilogy was amazing! The ending got everything perfect and I couldn't be happier. Amazing characters and even though there is all this time travel it makes sense and can be followed. The whole story is so suspenseful and page turning and epic! I'll be looking forward to anything else James Islington writes in the future. The last book can really make or break a trilogy and this one made The Licanius Trilogy better!

[Andrei(Drusca) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Could have been shorter, but the ending is worth the journey.

[Deborah Obida · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truth can be a burden, but secrets are poison.

That was awesome. I'm glad I finally finished the series although I'll miss the characters. I need a novella in this world so badly, the whole thing with Nia cannot just end like that. Don't let the above comment scare you, the author tied all loose ends, I just want more.

“It’s not enough to fight for the right side. You have to figure out how to fight the right way, too. If winning is truly all that matters, then we’ve lost sight of what’s actually right and wrong in the first place.”

This book has a one year jump which isn't bad, if I'm been sincere I wish it was longer. We remember that all our protagonist are in one peril or the other, before I started this book I thought that Wirr was the lucky one cause his isn't a mortal peril but political manoeuvring is as bad as that.

“Simply put—do you believe that mankind should have no authority higher than itself?”
“Surely… surely that’s not what the Venerate are suggesting.”
“It is—and they would tell you the same. It is exactly what their version of El is offering. A world where all possibilities are promised is, by necessity, a world in which God cannot take part. Cannot choose to affect the world in any way. If He exerts His will even a fraction, He is by definition changing how things could have been. He is removing possible outcomes.” Raeleth held Davian’s gaze, calm certainty in his eyes. “They are trying to convince everyone that our creator wished to create a world in which He could not take part. Could not help, guide, or save. In which He was functionally irrelevant.”

There was an abundance of fight scenes, friendship, romance, weird creatures, explanatory magic and finally philosophical and religious questions. I for one loves it when a book makes me question life, and this book did just that.

“A common enemy does not a friendship make. You can only ever be as good as the people you are willing to fight beside."

The world building and writing is also admirable, I adore them it made reading this book not only fun but addictive. Without spoiler the plot summary will be really short, Davian is trying to find a way to escape the Venerate prison, Asha is trying to hold the boarder while been attacked, Caeden is putting his plans to action and Wirr is trying to convince the nobles to evacuate and that the threat isn't over yet.

“Remember that your past does not define you—no matter the consequences,” he said gently. “Choice is meaningless without consequences, and a privilege we do not deserve if we will not face them.

Finally the characters, they are one in a million, its fantasy so of course we lost some lovable characters which is so sad. Their impact in the plot was neccessary, its not one of those characters that are just brought in to be killed off.

So if you are thinking of reading this book but sceptical, I assure you that it'll be worth your time.

[Krell75 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Conoscete la storiella della carota appesa davanti al muso dell'asino?
Bene, la carota è questa trilogia e io sono l'asino che ci è cascato.
Spazio in libreria e soldi sprecati.

I personaggi, come nei due romanzi precedenti, continuano ad essere trascinati dagli eventi, incapaci di comprendere cosa stanno facendo e perché.

Sono rimasto esasperato e stordito dalle infinite spiegazioni presenti, quasi in ogni pagina, utilizzate per chiarire gli eventi e dargli una logica, che in effetti, necessitano di infiniti chiarimenti tanto sono nebulosi.
Islington non mostra, spiega. E noi alunni tentiamo di capire ma la sua lingua è incomprensibile e noiosa.

Il mio livello di empatia con i suoi personaggi e la sua storia è diminuito in modo esponenziale, stanco di seguire le spiegazioni e mettere ordine invece di godermi il racconto.
I personaggi principali, sono sempre protetti da espedienti narrativi e mai, in un solo momento, si dubita che non possano sopravvivere.

La trama non fa che intrecciarsi su se stessa, si ha l'impressione che lo scopo dello scrittore sia quello di rendere tutto ciò che presenta il più complicato possibile.

Faccio presente che tutti gli eventi principali e alcuni dei protagonisti si muovono sulla base del "paradosso del nonno", quindi in definitiva senza alcun senso. Tutto è possibile ma nulla è credibile.

Il sistema magico è stato indigesto come un macigno. Una vera agonia per me.
Dove Brandon Sanderson utilizza sistemi magici complessi e strutturati nella forma ma in fin dei conti sempre in secondo piano rispetto alla trama e ai personaggi, appare un semplice principiante alle prime armi di fronte all'eccessivo e complicato lavoro di Islington.
Qui non c'è la "solita semplice magia" ma un vero meccanismo scientifico, con serbatoi, flussi morbidi e induriti, diagrammi di vario genere, calcoli infiniti, sistemi di avvio, estremità e parti interconnesse, riserve di energia, Essenza e Kan, tutto descritto minuziosamente attraverso i vari processi meccanici ad ogni suo utilizzo... Ho bisogno di una flebo per favore!
Eccessivo e noiosissimo, per me che amo leggere della magia più come fonte di meraviglia e mistero, una vera tortura da digerire.
Anche perché, alla fine, gli effetti risultanti sono assolutamente banali, si limitano a semplici scudi e scariche energetiche, invisibilità, lettura della mente, metamorfosi e poco altro. Quindi a cosa serve complicare il processo se il risultato è qualcosa di banale e già visto?

L'utilizzo imbarazzante e continuo dei termini CONTRITO e GRUGNISCE, forse per scelta del traduttore non agevola il voto finale.

-------------------
Do you know the story of the carrot hanging in front of the donkey's face?
Well, the carrot is this trilogy and I'm the donkey who fell for it.
Space in the bookstore and wasted money.

The characters, as in the two previous novels, continue to be dragged by events, unable to understand what they are doing and why.

I was exasperated and stunned by the infinite explanations present, almost on every page, used to clarify the events and give them a logic, which in fact, require infinite clarifications as they are so nebulous.
Islington doesn't show, he explains. And we students try to understand but his language is incomprehensible and boring.

My level of empathy with his characters and his story has decreased exponentially, tired of following explanations and tidying up instead of enjoying the story.
The main characters are always protected by narrative devices and never, for a single moment, is there any doubt that they cannot survive.

The plot does nothing but intertwine on itself, one gets the impression that the writer's aim is to make everything he presents as complicated as possible.

I would like to point out that all the main events and some of the protagonists move on the basis of the "grandfather paradox", therefore ultimately without any sense. Everything is possible but nothing is credible.

The magic system was as indigestible as a boulder. A real agony for me.
Where Brandon Sanderson uses magic systems that are complex and structured in form but ultimately always in the background to the plot and characters, he appears a simple novice beginner in the face of Islington's excessive and complicated work.
Here there is no "usual simple magic" but a real scientific mechanism, with reservoirs, soft and hardened flows, diagrams of various kinds, infinite calculations, starting systems, interconnected ends and parts, energy reserves, Essence and Kan, all described in detail through the various mechanical processes with each use... I need an IV please!
Excessive and very boring, for me who love reading about magic more as a source of wonder and mystery, a real torture to digest.
Also because, in the end, the resulting effects are absolutely banal, limited to simple shields and energy discharges, invisibility, mind reading, metamorphosis and little else. So what's the point of complicating the process if the result is something trivial and already seen?

The embarrassing and continuous use of the terms CONTRITED and GRUNTS, perhaps due to the translator's choice, does not facilitate the final grade.
​

[Niki Hawkes - The Obsessive Bookseller · Rating 5 out of 5]

[4.5/5 stars] A superb conclusion to one of my new favorite fantasy trilogies!

My reread of the first two book in preparation for the finale was definitely a highlight of 2020. It hadn’t been that long since I’d read them initially, but there’s a lot of complexity to the story and the characters that made the refresher necessary. The added benefit is that the books were even better upon my reread, as I was able to retain all the details.

I’ve said it before, but part of the reason this series appeals to me so much is the overall writing style. It takes classic fantasy elements and then twists and enhances them into something modern and complex. I felt the comfort you only get from old novels of the genre, but was completely engaged in the endless plot dynamics. The series definitely requires more concentration than normal. Not quite Gardens of the Moon level, but up there if you want to appreciate all the nuances. I wish the first time around I’d paid more attention to name distinction because it was really easy to slip into character confusion (via audio, anyway). It’s not a light read by any means, but it’s well worth the effort.

Spoiler-free, I found the conclusion really satisfying. The ultimate resolution was something I predicted, but it was written so well that I still had all the feels (that’s a mark of a good author – even when you know it’s coming, you can still experience the gut-punch). Overall, I think in this case the quality of the ending and conflict resolutions was weighted more heavily for this series because of how layered the plot had been. I’d been so patient, trusting that the payoff was worth wading through the complexity, and I was not disappointed. There were so many fantastic “reveals” in this book, and I can’t help but feel a little like a gushing fangirl whenever I talk about them.

Recommendations: I was holding out for the conclusion before making my final assessment, and it absolutely did not disappoint. The Licanius Trilogy is now a favorite and an official Obsessive Bookseller recommend. I’d hand it to anyone who loves classic fantasy but wants more complexity and dynamics in their novels.

Via The Obsessive Bookseller at www.NikiHawkes.com

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[Ham · Rating 1 out of 5]

Book one was great.
Book two, mind-blowing.
Book three... What the Blue F*@#????

At one point a character thinks, "This defense was nothing more than a stalling tactic." That statement encapsulates this entire train-wreck of a book. The ONLY good thing about this addition to the series was the epilogue. EVERYTHING else was awful, nonsensical filler.

Let's start with what I liked about the series in general. (I feel I owe the author that much.)

I loved that he made time unchangeable. No matter what time-travelers tried to do, it always came to pass. This is very hard to pull off. Last time it was done well was in HP #3. This third book by Islington fumbles that completely.

I loved the world building and the mind-blowing revelations. But Islington seems to suffer from Orson Scott Card syndrome--Great set up, but loses the point halfway through, and fails to bring it all together in a satisfying (credible) way.

He made this series so complicated, that I expected book three to be the sorting of everything out and continuation of the conflict. Instead, he introduces more complicated elements that have nothing to do with the previous plot, and then fabricates conflict out of nothing. (Also solutions. SO much deus ex machina.) And so many arbitrary "rules". Something doesn't make sense? One of the character quickly explains it away with a touch of heretofore unknown details. Something impossible happen? Someone explains that the rules don't apply in this situation because blah blah blah.

Sorry, I'm supposed to be starting with what I like.
Well, that's about it. Now to the rest:

Islington's favorite word is dazedly. If you took that out the book would be twenty pages shorter. And his characters walk around showing every minute detail of their emotions on their faces, and also perfectly gleaning the other character's inner thoughts simply by their tone of voice or expression. It made me absolutely CRAZY that he spent pages and pages telling the reader exactly how each person felt in every situation (not showing, mind you, just tacking adverbs into dialogue tags.) The ADVERBS. And only slightly less annoying, those PRESENT PARTICIPLES. Islington started sentences with ing verbs so much I felt like shoving my iphone up my nose. Of course all three books have this same awful prose and propensity for amateurish "telling". But in the first two I was able to overlook the painful writing to enjoy the characters and plot.

Book three had none. No real plot. Just a bunch of "exciting battles" that had no real purpose. Some time-travel thrown in for excitement? But then a hundred pages of Davian scavenging metal???

By the end of this book, I didn't care much for the characters anymore. Everyone was suddenly super-powered and melodramatic. It felt like an episode of Power Rangers. Then the forced cloying emotion at the end. Everyone was swallowing lumps in their throat and saying sappy crap and wiping away tears and looking off over the landscape.

Why James? WHY? I haven't been this disappointed since A Wise Man's Fear. This series was like a parade of amazing floats and acrobats, but then it ended like a drunken clown falling off his bicycle and being run over with a lawn mower....And the spectators eating the clown's entrails for no apparent reason.

Have I expressed enough how let down I am by this capstone to a (formerly) incredible series? If you're still not convinced, call me up. I'll talk for hours about how Islington botched his trilogy.

Meanwhile, steer clear of book 3. If you've already read books 1&2, just imagine your own ending. It will no doubt be better than the drivel Jimmy has concocted.

And with that, I dazedly finish my passionate review of "The Light of All that Fails."

...wait, did I get that title right?
Yes.
Yes, I did.

[Constantine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ½
Genre: Epic Fantasy

This is the third and last book in The Licanius Trilogy. A lot happens in this novel. In this part, there is a time gap between the events of this book and the ones in the previous one. The period could be several months to a year. It is very hard to talk about the synopsis here without spoiling books one and two. Instead, I'll attempt to discuss the series as a whole.

This is one of those series where all three books are filled with events and actions. My favorite remains book one. Books Two and three are not far behind, though. One of the criticisms of this series is that some of the side characters' names are quite similar, which can cause some confusion. This is a legitimate complaint, in my opinion, as I personally experienced it while reading.

One of the series' finest aspects is the development of the characters. Even though there are only three books, each character has seen a significant amount of growth. You will experience this vividly not only between the novels but also within each individual book.

Rich world-building is essential for a fantasy to have a lasting impact. The Licanius Trilogy receives a perfect score in this department. The world-building is intricate and fantastic. It demonstrates that the author must have engaged in a lengthy brainstorming process before deciding how he wants his universe to develop. The book's conclusion was satisfactory and neatly wrapped up the plot. The epilogue, which I occasionally find superfluous in other stories, was also something I admired.

Overall, this is an excellent fantasy series and worth your time, so give it a chance.

[Ivana Jacobsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

FINALLY!!! Pre-ordered and now we wait :)


What kind of a perverse creature you have to be to actually review a book that hasn't been published yet??!! Shame on you! Some of us out there have a rule against starting a series before they are finished. The reason I'm using the app is to have a quick overview before I start reading something. But no, some wannabe smart asses actually had to review it before its published and get me on the wrong track. Thank you so much...

[Jim Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow what a breathtaking ending to this wonderful series

The Licanius Trilogy was a fantastic success of world building, friendships and redemption. Throw in a lot of time travel and superb intricate plot weaving and you end up with this fantastic fantasy trilogy which I would recommend to everyone who likes high fantasy.

Seriously if you are a fan of Sanderson, Gwynne, Jordan or any of the other fantasy heavy weights I think you will really enjoy this series.

The characters are great, you end up rooting for the lot of them, even the ones who are seemingly going against our heroes. This is because Islington has done a great job with all the friendships over thousands of years coming together into a complex tale of who is right and who thinks they are right. I loved all our main characters - Davian, Ashalia, Caeden, Wirr and also a whole bunch of the secondary characters like Dezia, Aelric, Taeris and even some of the Venerate like Alaris. They all brought their own warmth, humour and at times intensity to move the plot forward.

I also loved the world Islington built so much. The creatures (especially the banes) were awesome in detail and power and the world they inhabited was dark, believable and unforgiving. The places visited throughout the series were magical and grand at times in scale and concept. I really loved some of the cities, some long lost, that our heroes trekked through or returned to in other times. Zvealar as an example was simply brilliant in concept I thought.

It also all ended so superbly. The last 10% of this book I probably read in an hour as I just plowed ahead to the breathless last couple of chapters. There was a tear and also a whoop of triumph as the book winds up and to me that's the best kind of book. One that can provoke joy and sadness both at the same time.

Thanks to all who cheered me on through this journey. Islington has a really positive group of fans who cannot wait for you to experience his world and after reading his books I can see why.

[Audrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

The licanius trilogy is now definitely one of the most Incredible saga I ever read.

Words can’t describe the masterpiece this saga is. The author had say that he had undertaken this trilogy after reading the stormlight archives but in a way only a smith can forge his own swords after learning from his master James Islington forged his own sword and call it Licanius.
When someone read the plot of the first book it may be deceiving to believe that this trilogy will become an other regular saga but the author has many hidden cards into his sleeve.
First you should be warned you can’t read this trilogy partially because if you do you will stay in the dark. Visualize this saga as a big oignon and each layer a plot with a big core eventually. Some mysteries from the book 1 entangled themselves in book 3 !
Some people I read told that they felt lost when pick up the book 2 or 3 but let me tell you even though I read all the books in a row I felt as clueless as anyone. And now that I’m finished this trilogy I pretty sure that was the ultimate goal from the author , nurture us with plot but in a more hard way than usual.

The strength of the books are easy to praise , the story is enthralling amazing and deliver in the most clever way I ever see. James Islington isn’t someone who likes shortcuts he knows perfectly when and where he wants to take us.
It’s also very rare to read a story with such driving characters, people I appreciate to learn knowing and of course each one battling with his own flaws desires and doubts. Caeden I may say was the center around everything was revolving. But we can’t dismissing Wirr, Ash and Davian. Their unwavering friendship and loyalty was the ciment of the book and nothing would have been the same without them.
The world building and the magic were too the foundation of this trilogy. The author had a complete mastering and understanding of everything he had created.
Finally I can say that I noticed an improvement of the action in the book , more battles more fighting... the last half of the book was devouring in two days as it was so enthralling.

The only minor flaw I feel compelled to say is the licanius trilogy must and have to be read with a full commitment and possibly by weathered fantasy readers. It’s a story hard to grasp and asking over and over to think and second guessing everything but it’s a big reward to turn the last page.
I never knew an author who kept revelation until the last page that’s unbelievable !

The licanius trilogy had been a wild ride among the actual circumstances but provide me a safe lock room where I can evade. I can’t wait to read everything James Islington will write in the future.