(The Winner’s Trilogy #3)
Publication
Date: March 29, 2016
Hardcover, 496 pages, Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Genres:
YA, Fantasy
War has begun. Arin is in the thick
of it with untrustworthy new allies and the empire as his enemy. Though he has
convinced himself that he no longer loves Kestrel, Arin hasn’t forgotten her,
or how she became exactly the kind of person he has always despised. She cared
more for the empire than she did for the lives of innocent people—and certainly
more than she did for him.
At least, that’s what he thinks.
In the frozen north, Kestrel is a
prisoner in a brutal work camp. As she searches desperately for a way to
escape, she wishes Arin could know what she sacrificed for him. She wishes she
could make the empire pay for what they’ve done to her.
But no one gets what they want just
by wishing.
As the war intensifies, both
Kestrel and Arin discover that the world is changing. The East is pitted
against the West, and they are caught in between. With so much to lose, can
anybody really win?
My Review
I really don’t know what to say about this book other than
it’s all over now. I seriously can’t believe that this trilogy is finished. No
more Arin and Kestrel. No more Roshar, who I was just beginning to really
enjoy. And, more importantly/devastatingly, no more Arin.
I have to admit, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the first book
in this series. The Winner’s Curse
just didn’t draw me in as much as it seemed to draw in everyone else, but once
I picked up the second book, I was hooked. I think most of my issue revolved
around the character development, but in the second book, Kestrel and Arin
really start coming into their own personalities more. And, in this last
installment, they’re practically completely different people. In a good way.
While The Winner’s
Crime left off on a rather large cliffhanger, things get resolved there
pretty fast. Actually, a lot of major events happened a little too fast in some
cases, like the ending and the beginning. The middle was just the right speed,
though. I’d have to say that this was my one major qualm with this book. However,
Rutkoski does a fantastic job using the two separate and very distinct voices
of Arin and Kestrel to weave an amazing fantasy tale. Arin’s storyline practically
had me drooling, and Kestrel always managed to spout out some amazing piece of
dialogue.
Beyond just the plot and characters, I have to say that this
story was very different from the way the first two books were told. This arc
wasn’t about political issues anymore; instead, all of the characters are in
the thick of the action. Even Kestrel, who doesn’t like violence, is managing
to turn herself into what she believes is necessary for her own survival. It
was an interesting development that I didn’t expect to resonate with me so
much.
All in all, this review is one of my shorter ones, simply
because I don’t know what to say. This was a fantastic ending to a beautiful
series, and I wish I could read a few more books from Kestrel and Arin’s point of
views before Rutkoski called it quits, but, alas, that’s just the reader’s
dilemma.
*Note: I borrowed
a copy of this book from my library. This in no way affected my opinion/review.
