Author: Rosamund Hodge
Genre: High Fantasy
Source: HarperCollins
Goodreads
In the last days of the world, the walls of Viyara are still falling, and the dead are rising faster than ever.Review by Nara
Juliet is trapped—ordered by Lord Ineo of the Mahyanai to sacrifice the remaining members of her family, the Catresou, to stave off the end of the world. Though they’re certain his plan is useless, Juliet and her former friend Runajo must comply with Lord Ineo’s wishes—unless they can discover a different, darker path to protecting Viyara.
Romeo is tortured: finally aware that his true love is alive, he is at once elated and devastated, for his actions led directly to the destruction of her clan. The only way to redemption is to offer his life to the Catresou to protect and support them . . . even if it means dying to do so.
When Romeo’s and Juliet’s paths converge once again, only a journey into Death will offer answers and the key to saving them all—but is it a journey either of them will survive?
After the ending of Bright Smoke, Cold Fire, I was very curious as to what direction Rosamund Hodge would be taking the sequel.
I felt that initially events crawled at a snail's pace overall, meaning there were unfortunately a lot of points, at least in the first half, where I felt quite bored. However, Hodge really turns it around in the latter half, with a lot of major events occurring quite early and then snowballing forward into subsequent rather unexpected events.
Her writing is still as gorgeous as ever, really giving the novel that fairy tale feel. There was a section where lots of small short stories were included, which I really enjoyed reading. Hodge's short stories/novellas are definitely one of her strengths, and if you enjoy her writing I would say that you should definitely seek out some of the ones she's written (they're free online).
Overall, a solid conclusion to the duology. I still think that the Cruel Beauty duology was probably better, but I would recommend this series too.
Really liked it
RatingsOverall: 8/10
Plot: 3.5/5
Romance: 2.5/5
Writing: 4/5
World Building: 3/5
Characters: 4/5
Cover: 4/5
