Would you save a life if you knew it would destroy another? In the deeply divided world of Caldera, nothing is as it seems. Taken captive by a faceless enemy, Sephone Winter fights to reclaim her soul as her gift spirals out of control and the deadly poison coursing through her veins begins to exact its terrible vengeance. Meanwhile, Dorian and Cass are forced into an uneasy alliance in order to find the woman they both love . . . a woman who has all but vanished from the face of the earth, along with the Reliquary. Finding her becomes impossible as the identity of their greatest adversary continues to elude them. When Caldera's past catches up with the trio's future, Sephone, Dorian, and Cass are forced to make decisions that threaten everything and everyone they care about. Each of them is offered a chance to sacrifice their own happiness for the sake of the other--but will they take it? And what will it cost them in the end? The Nightingale Trilogy is a fantasy transformation of Hans Christian Andersen's beloved 1843 tale The Nightingale, with echoes of the myths of Hades and Persephone.
"There is sometimes doubt. But the path of doubt, if walked honestly, leads only to greater faith."
I did not see it coming. This third and final book in the series totally, delightfully, and charmingly blindsided me. Book 2 left us dangling with despair and I wasn't sure how the author would turn it around. Wow, did she turn it around. This book is a blinding dazzle of hope, faith, and courage and the allegory becomes evident halfway through the book. Sephone still has her first person voice and Dorian keeps his third person voice. The mystery person from the previous books finally shows up in this book and has a first person voice as well. The plot is action-packed with twists and turns in almost every chapter. The betrayals and unlikely alliances will shock you as you come upon them. Dorian's martyr-like perspective was a little tiresome and the love triangle was somewhat frustrating (since I do not like love triangles), but this finale was one of the most riveting books I've read in a while.
And it looks like there may be an off-shoot of this series in the works and I'm completely thrilled to continue the journey in Caldera.
I received a complimentary copy courtesy of Enclave Publishing via Celebrate Lit Tours and was under no obligation to post a positive comment. All opinions are my own.
ThriftBooks sells millions of used books at the lowest everyday prices. We personally assess every book's quality and offer rare, out-of-print treasures. We deliver the joy of reading in recyclable packaging with free standard shipping on US orders over $20. ThriftBooks.com. Read more. Spend less.