Terminus

The Transcendent Trilogy #3

by K.A. Riley

After their overseas missions, Kress and her Conspiracy return home to a divided nation.

The East and West Coasts have become fragile havens from a dystopian middle America, which remains mired in fear, poverty, and the most sadistic brands of vigilante violence.

All Kress and her Conspiracy have to do is embark on a cross-country road-trip from Washington, D.C. to the Valta in Colorado, dodge the deadly Cult of the Devoted and the Army of the Unsettled—two groups battling for control over a land that might not be worth saving—and complete a perilous rescue mission along the way.

What could possibly go wrong?

Join Kress and her friends—new and old—for one last adventure of sad losses, happy reunions, deadly encounters, and heartbreaking departures.

The end is here!

But what new beginnings will the finale inspire…?

Genres: Dystopia, Young Adult

354 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 16, 2020

About the author

K. A. Riley is a writer of speculative and science fiction, dedicated to creating worlds just different enough from our own to be entertaining, intriguing and a little frightening all at once. For Riley, writing isn't a job. It's a laboratory where readers can wander into a land of ideas; it's a playground where they can scamper around, giggling, gasping, and freaking out to their hearts' content.

Riley is the top-secret pen-name of a NYT and USA Today best-selling author.

Reviews

[Kari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book in the series

The end had me almost sobbing. The next installment of books just won’t be the same without Manthy and Cardyn.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

What was originally advertised as the “end“ is clearly not. While some loose ends are tied off, what I would consider the main plot of the story, is left completely open ended. The whole book was great and full of action and dystopian themes, up until the last 10% of the book when we went back into dream theories. I think I finally figured out what’s bothered me so much about this series: that it tries to work with too many themes. It bounced back-and-forth between a dystopian future with genetic advancements to sci-fi with quantum physics and dreams, but the two didn’t really connect to one another except for in a forced manner. It felt like the entire series could’ve still existed without any mention of dream theories and alternate dimensions. I did like that, at least in the beginning, the characters fatigue and emotions have finally caught up to them. We as the reader, just like the character, view them as adults and these brooding emotions are a stark reminder that they’re not. They referred to the juvens as “the kids“ and forget that they are not that much older than them. But they’re still kids too. This book felt different from the others, better. The emotions, the action, the task. Unlike previous missions, this one wasn’t so unrealistically easy. I think the failure made the plot better. Then there’s more talk about Lyfelyte which is the hub or access point to alternate realities. It kind of reminds me of the subtle knife in the Golden Compass series. But again, it felt like two competing themes. And why does Manthy have to go back to her “right” dimension to not die, but Cardyn will be fine in the “wrong“ one with her? This was a close five star for me, but the ending threw it off.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have loved this series above all series I have read this year. However, this finale does not do justice to the series and it's heartbreaking. It feels extremely rushed, especially towards the end. There doesn't even really feel like a big story arc, just a few little arcs that are not elaborated on for more than a few chapters at most. I was 80% of the way through, still waiting for a big exciting moment that never came. The ending section time jumped so much without even stating it most of the time. I'm not talking hours either, it jumps ahead days, weeks, skipping over stuff that would be actually interesting to read. I like how the story ended, but how it got there was just terrible.

I was in tears because I felt so ripped off by this book. It shouldn't be its own book. Book 8 should have had a few extra chapters, and then an epilogue. I could go on and on for at least an hour about everything that made no sense. But I am not a big fan of writing spoilers in my reviews.

I guess the biggest spoiler here is to prepare for disappointment.

[Brooke Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I truly enjoyed this book as much as the first!
Kress and her Conspiracy have two final missions. Find their friends and find the “academy”.
Along the way, they face fierce adversaries and friends who are foes. I am so very happy with the ending, it was a mix of “exactly what I wanted” and “what I didn’t want” but I was not upset. It was perfect.
Riley did a great job over the nine books of developing the relationships in a genuine way. We saw relationships thrive and struggle and have honest feelings, it wasn’t all sunshine a rainbows.

Of course there is another series based with the same characters….so what to do? Read them of course. I will take a little break however, the stories although different were similar enough that got a tad bit bored and lazy while reading.
Overall. Great. Glad I bought them. I’ll reread them, and share them with my middle school students.

[Bee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maybe others didn't like the ending but I thought it was just right.

Without giving away any spoilers there were some tears shed but I wasn't surprised by what
happened in the one chapter towards the end.

I'm glad I stuck with this series. There were some books that I felt could have had either
more of a back story about the reasoning behind how/why the emergents came about or
even more about their parents and those involved with the scientists...

I enjoyed the art work that was put in this book as well. It helped to have images to go with
Kress and the gang. Obviously, not everyone has the same "vision" of what a character looks
like unless they're displayed on the cover of the book. Even when they do, not all characters description match what you read..

[Agnieszka · Rating 2 out of 5]

The final instalment of the Transcendent trilogy.
The Conspiracy set out to find and rescue their missing friends.
What dangers will they encounter?

I was really looking forward to the conclusion of the Conspiracy enneaology, but unfortunately, this book didn't meet my expectations.
It was an OK read, but I didn't find it very gripping and was struggling to get into it. I found the story a bit bland and considering it was the big finale, I think it lacked the wow factor.
Still, the series, on the whole, is a good one, and although I don't think it should be continued, I will be checking out the next book when it comes out.

[Spencer · Rating 3 out of 5]

The ending was good enough but I seriously found it lacking in terms of concluding things nicely. I found the “mystery” of this book to be more disorienting than exciting because of that. Also I hated the inconsistencies in this series. Like if Manthy has to return to wherever she came from to live, why did Cardyn go with her? Won’t he die too eventually in the “wrong world”!? Too many things like that. Again this series was entertaining enough but honestly I feel a bit sad I stuck with it for this long just to feel this kind of let down.

[Jen Harvell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing storyline

I have read every book in the emergent series. Dystopian novels are not my normal reading material but I took a chance with the first book in this series and haven’t been able to put them down. I love the characters they are well written the storyline has enough cliff hangers to keep me on the edge of my seat. I definitely recommend giving these books a chance! But definitely start at the beginning.

[Annie Kosar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tragically Beautiful & Inspiring Dystopian Action Packed Thriller!!:-)

I don’t even have words for how GORGEOUS & BRILLIANT this one is!!!:-). The characters are unforgettable, the writing is SUPERB….and the action is engrossing in the BEST WAY POSSIBLE!!!:-). LOVED LOVED LOVED IT!!:-)

[Michelle Clem · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Very Satisfying End to a Fantastic Series!!

I just feel like giving a standing ovation to author, K. A. Riley!! I really, really loved these characters! I’m so glad you are continuing their adventures with these inspiring characters, even if they are little novellas! I’m forever grateful that I found your series!

[Marnee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good but…

I enjoyed this but feel it could have been so much more. I really enjoyed the characters. I just want a more, deeper knowing of them. Felt like you are heading toward something exciting but never quite get there.

[Wendy Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book.

Last couple books made this series worthwhile. There was alot of action and truth within these pages .
Although I felt a bit misled to find the trilogy, was much more of a series.
I probably wouldn’t have chose to read it had I known.

[Colina & · Rating 5 out of 5]

terminus

And on to the next of this amazing tale. I feel like I know and can see the characters in my minds eye and can’t wait to keep up with their journey. I also can see that this could easily be our story because of the way our world is going.

[Deenita Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let's put it this way, I was in complete tears!

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sad to see it end

I'm wanting more and more. You truly have sucked me into Kress' world.
Please do a follow up with manthy and card. Please pretty please 🙏

[CHRIS VOGT · Rating 5 out of 5]

thought provoking

A fun book with interesting characters and some thought provoking ideas. Can we slide into other worlds? Let’s find out!

[Robert Richey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Figuring story

Render is so cool. I love that they have finally gotten time to be themselves. So curious to see where life takes them.

[Robyn Holt · Rating 4 out of 5]

buttoned up nicely

This was a slow start, but once it got into the meat of the story I was hooked again. The ending was nice and give a way to continue the story.

[Heather Walski · Rating 3 out of 5]

was okay. disappointing ending, and all of the problems they ran into had solutions that seemed too easy

[Carol Stevenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

End of the Line

The trilogy finished up where it started…The teenage wonder children have grown up to becoming the young adults of a new generation and have students to teach

[Nathan D Rust · Rating 5 out of 5]

5/5 stars

I loved it. Passion and simple. I've read every book of the series and this is the best ending to a book I've ever read.

[Isabella Anguiano · Rating 4 out of 5]

wanted more from the ending but nice conclusion! the found family in this is chefs kiss

[Cristiana Pinto · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t know what I expected the end to be but not this?
It was good but there’s a lot of loose ends I feel didn’t get sorted.

[Raelyn Vandercook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written as usual

[Lala Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

The end seemed rush, like she just wanted it over. There was no true lead up to their leaving, and the relationship.
Also, felt that what they did in the epilogue seems like they didn’t get much done over five years. Just…. A bit disappointing really.

[Emily Daniels · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic plot! It’s enough to keep you going through the 9 book series! I am so excited to start Emergents Academy next!