Forest of Ruin

A thrilling end to the Age of Legends trilogy, this book brought everything I expected and wanted. The series' strongest element is the characters and their relationships with each other, and the theme continues in this novel, as we get to hear Gavril's story, see Ashyn and Moria continue to develop as separate characters, and watch Tyrus and Ronan continue to grow. The world building continues, and helps fill in gaps from the first book. This book and series are almost a perfect 5-stars. I dock a half star on this one for the same reason as I did in the second book - world building. Though the world building is good, I can't help be a little distracted by the fact that we never learn the name of the Empire, and the Imperial core (and show more many of the warlords and other characters) seem to be Japanese-inspired, with the clan names being all of Japanese origin, but then having characters with very European first names. This is a small thing in the grand scheme of it all, and easy to put aside to enjoy the story, however. show less

This book concludes the Age of Legends trilogy. When the book begins, Ashyn and Moria are separated on each on dangerous missions. They are both trying to keep away from Alvar Kitsune and find a way to defeat him and his shadow armies.

Moria is traveling with Gavril Kitsune who is Alvar's son. They are still trying to get over events in the last book and Gavril has lost Moria's trust because of his actions. He struggles to deal with his father's treachery and feels guilt that he ever supported his father.

Ashyn is traveling with Ronan. She is the one who encounters a man who says he is her grandfather and who wants to use her to wake some sleeping dragons. The dragons are the emblem of the imperial family and a dragon could be seen as an show more omen from the gods that they favor the emperor over Alvar Kitsune in the upcoming war. Ronan is a casteless thief who wants to regain caste as a warrior.

When the characters along with the emperor's bastard son Tyrus reconnect, they do their part to end the revolt led by Alvar Kitsune but not before they face many dangers and many losses.

This is an engaging epic fantasy series with strong characters, both male and female, and lots of adventure. While there is romance too, it is not the happily ever after sort which seems most realistic for the premises of this story. show less

This was a decent conclusion to the Age of Legends trilogy. I really enjoy Armstrong’s writing style; it’s very engaging and readable. As for the story itself, it did an okay job of wrapping things up...although the ending felt a bit unfinished to me.

Moria and Ashyn spend the majority of the book apart from each other which allows them to grow and gain confidence as individuals. This was fun to see and read about. I also loved the inclusion of the dragon, this was very interesting and cute as well.

This story was engaging but also felt a bit unsatisfying. There weren’t a lot of surprises here and it was more like events were just playing out as expected and being put down on paper.

I was also a bit disappointed of Ashyn’s blind show more acceptance that this strange old man was her grandfather; she blindly puts a lot of trust in someone that she doesn’t know all that well. It was a rash move for Ashyn and a bit out of character.

I did enjoy the interactions between Ashyn, Ronan, Moria, Tyrus, and Gavil. This cast of characters forms such an intriguing web of friendship, loyalty, and romance.

The book ended okay; I felt like a lot of things were left kind of halfway wrapped up. Although it was a realistic ending for the story I was a bit disappointed that things weren’t wrapped up a bit more completely and neatly.

Overall a good conclusion to this trilogy. The book is engaging and easy to read and I enjoyed the story. I thought the story was fairly predictable and was a bit disappointed that the ending didn’t wrap things up more completely. I did enjoy the series as a whole and would recommend to those who enjoy YA fantasy. show less

What I Loved

I’m 99% sure it’s impossible for me to not love a Kelley Armstrong book. Seriously! Or maybe she’s just that incredible (which I’d believe). I loved the sister relationship in this book. I don’t think there’s enough of those, especially in fantasy. Sometimes there’s the whole younger.older sibling thing going on but it was nice to see sisters as equals. I think that’s probably my favourite part of this whole series. These sisters really work together and know each other. Also they eat have a special guardian (a pet) who helps watch over them and I really love how they interact with everyone.

What I Didn't Like

I had nothing wrong with this whole series, not just the book. I did wish that my ship would have won show more but we can’t always get what we want, can we? I maybe wish that there was a little something more to this series but it was still good. Not unbelievable or amazing but really good and I’m happy with how it turned out.

Who I'd Recommend This To

I’d recommend this to anyone looking for an easy fantasy book to read. This one isn’t too complicated or long which makes it pretty easy to get swept into. It would also be great for anyone just starting out in fantasy that wants to get a little taste of the potential of the genre.

See the full review on Books for Thought! show less

This is book three in the “Age of Legends” trilogy. Generally I love Kelley Armstrong, but this book was somewhat of a disappointment. Much of it felt more like tying up the ends so as to get the trilogy over with, than a commitment to the characters and plot. (Although some of the ends were not in fact tied up.) In addition, the final actions of Alvar did not seem in character, and the resolution with Gavril was unsatisfying for a couple of reasons.

Actual rating 3.5 stars but I rounded up. This is one of those books that you want to love more than you actually do. It had all the elements I usually love in a book. Romance, fantasy, adventure, mystery. But something was just missing from this book. Also, I'm not super happy with who Moria ended up with. That's just my opinion though. This book wasn't bad or anything. Far from it. I think part of the issue was that it was a slow-moving book. But it wasn't just that. The plot was all over the place. There are things that were started but just never finished and then it all came to an end a bit anti-climactically in my opinion.


How I choose my rating:
1* Didn't like it at all. These are rare as I usually just don't finish any book I show more dislike this much.
2** Didn't like it. Again usually DNF if I dislike it this much, but occasionally I feel it still has potential and I try to stick with it to the end.
3*** I liked it. It wasn't great but it was enjoyable enough. It is unlikely I'll ever reread it but I'll probably finish the series if it is a part of one.
4**** I really liked this book. Maybe not a work of genius, but highly entertaining. I might reread this at some point, and I will finish the series if part of one.
5***** I loved this book. I found little to no issues with it at all. I will probably reread this and possibly more than once. I will finish the series if it's part of one. show less

-- Want to know if the whole series is worth reading? Read my overall review of the whole series at seriesousbookreviews.com! Spoiler Free!

This finale was one of my most anticipated reads of 2016 and it did NOT disappoint!

I was hooked from the start right through to the end. Everything that had been amped up from the previous novel kept pace and continued to blow me away. From the lore to the politics to the action to the romance--it's all on point here and fans of the series will love this grande finale. It was a wild ride thanks to all the plot developments and their awesome twists. I loved the unpredictability this novel had and it made it that much more enjoyable to me.

It was just a fantastic way to end this series and made me SO show more GLAD that I didn't drop it after the slower start that was Sea of Shadows :)



Check out more spoiler-free book and series reviews on my blog SERIESousBookReviews.com as well as read book series recaps!

Full Review: http://wp.me/p7hLUw-uk
Actual Rating: 5/5 show less