This author duo doesn’t do half-assed. Period.

It should come as no surprise that I’ve been enjoying this series a lot, but I haven’t LOVED any of the installments yet, until now. When I first discovered that this final book featured a healer as the main heroine, I had some qualms as to whether Charlotte would be able to achieve the level of badass-ery that I’ve come to expect from Ilona Andrews. Case in point, FATE’S EDGE’s Audrey Callahan wasn’t a fighter either, and ended up being my least favourite THE EDGE female protagonist. All of my doubts quickly flew the coop though when I learned that de Ney’s abilities could also be used to harm, and I’m not talking little ouchies here, but mass murdering plagues. Never have I been so happy to eat my words! The world-building, narration, secondary characters, and storytelling absolutely rocked too. This was the series finale after all, and this author duo doesn’t do half-assed. Period.

I liked that the protagonists were older; they’ve both been married once already, are individuals first, and a couple second. Charlotte and Richard have been around the block a couple of times, and as a result, were unwilling to settle for anything less than true love. It made them both more accepting of their respective faults; the flash fire romance was believable on account of them knowing exactly what they wanted in a partner, and not being afraid to go after it. I loved de Ney’s flawless poise vs. Mar’s backwoods mannerisms, and her raw power to his skill with a blade. She fears transforming into a bringer of plagues, while as he’s worried that he’s not Blue Blood enough for her. When they finally opened up their hearts to a relationship, it was like two puzzle pieces sliding home.

The Andrews’ skillfully wrapped-up this series’ story arc while still weaving a captivating story about slavers, political intrigue, and also tying up several loose ends secondary character wise. Jack and George play a vital role in this installment, and I loved how they were able to get some closure with regards to their father’s abandonment. Sophie gets a piece of Spider for fusing her mother, and even Rose, Declan & Kaldar had brief cameos. As much as I enjoyed the action, I actually liked Charlotte’s poised manipulations and tutelage of Lark more. It takes finesse to defeat a foe with a sword, but even more so with words, and clever artifice. However, not everyone got their HEA unfortunately, poor sweet Éléonore… And, was it just me, or were there sparks between George and Sophie? Potential spin-off?

I’ve now had the pleasure of listening to eleven audiobooks from Ilona Andrews and Renée Raudman, and let me tell you, the experience is in no danger of getting old. There are many reasons why this trio makes up the bulk of my Audible library including spellbinding performances, flawless pacing, and masterful tone. Raudman is the voice behind the Andrews’ written word, breathes life into all of their memorable characters, and makes listeners feel like they inhabit this author duo’s fictional worlds. If you’re still on the fence about audiobooks, I highly recommend that you give these a try, you won’t regret it! In fact, your house may end up cleaner than it has even been because you’ll find yourself actively seeking out excuses to read hands-fee.

STEEL’S EDGE was the ultimate epitome of go big or go home! My god, am I ever going to miss these characters!

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23 les gens ont trouvé cela utile

Great addition to the series! :D

This was a really good story. I've read the previous books in the series and love the series. While this isn't my favorite book in the series (Fate's Edge was my fave) it was extremely enjoyable and I'm really glad I read it.

Charlotte is pretty cool. She's a healer that goes to live in the Edge after a problem marriage. She's happy there until an encounter with slavers destroys her life and makes her vow to take the slavers down. During this time she meets Richard. He's on a mission to take down the slavers and she convinces him to let her help him on his mission.

Richard is a pretty good hero. He's been in the previous books but I never thought "Oh wow, Richard's so cool he should have his own book"...regardless of this, now that I've read it, I'm so happy that he did get his own book! For a number of reasons Richard decided to take on the slavers and take them out. When he meets Charlotte he doesn't want to take her with him because of what the fight against the slavers will do to her but she gives him no choice.

Richard is attracted to Charlotte but considers himself a monster for what he has to do to take care of the slavers so he doesn't think there's any way she'd want him in return. The funny thing is that she feels the same. She is very attracted to Richard but feels she's an abomination for how she's using her magic against the slavers and feels unworthy of Richard. Fortunately they eventually realize the mutual attraction and succumb to it. This does make their mission harder though because now they have something to lose and aren't as eager to risk each other. It's good to see their feelings grow for each other. It felt like they both needed to indulge in their feeling for each other to keep themselves from getting buried in the darkness (emotional darkness) that surrounded them. And those feelings ended up being their salvation later in the story.

The story is fast paced and pretty interesting. Charlotte and Richard are constantly on the move trying to accomplish what they need to. I loved seeing most of the characters from previous books in the story as well and some of the old story lines getting completed (so to speak).

Overall this was a really good story. I really enjoyed it and thought it was a great addition to the series. I hope there's more of the series because it's so good I'd hate to have it end. Ilona Andrews is a great writer and I'd recommend this book and the whole series. I'd buy them all again without hesitation. :D

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10 les gens ont trouvé cela utile

End of the Series

I hate to see the series end. This is the final book and while it does tie up alot of loose ends it also leaves you with unanswered questions. I would love another book when George and Jack are adults. I guess I can dream on. The writing is what we have come to expect from this writing team, very good. The narration is great. If you are not familar with this series, I would recommend starting with On The Edge.

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6 les gens ont trouvé cela utile

Inconsistent Narration and Character Details

All the Maurs used to sound like they were raised by blue bloods. Suddenly in this book, Richard, Sophie and Kaldor all talk like illiterate swamp rats. What is more disturbing is that two additional characters sound just like Jack and both get killed. I find it confusing and annoying. There are also several inconsistencies in this book. Previously Richard and Kaldor's mother abandoned them. In this book she is reported as having died when they were small. Ages of characters keep changing as well. Previously Sphie insisted on being called Lark after she was taken by slavers. This book erroneously reports she changed names after her mother died. Previously Richard and Kaldor's brother died. Now he is reported as having left. Then a character is mentioned as looking like their family. The long lost brother? Nope his mention was apparently merely an inconsequential red herring.

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4 les gens ont trouvé cela utile

Fun diversion

Any additional comments?

This series is a fun diversion. Unfortunately, it isn't as good as the Kate Daniel's series, but it is still entertaining. George and Jack are front and center in this installment which makes the story worth the listen. Renee Raudman is excellent again.

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4 les gens ont trouvé cela utile

It does not feel like the End!

You know the story is good when you can't believe it is ending. After the long hours posted I thought I was going to have a good long time to get use to the end of the series but DAMN the luck it was just too quick...

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4 les gens ont trouvé cela utile

Jagged edges cut the deepest

This book closes out the series by mixing the formula up a bit. Next to the first book, this was my favorite for unique characters, magics, and plot. Jack and George again play a significant role, but unlike the last book, I didn’t feel like they upstaged the H/h. This was a bit brutal with the slavers plot. There are several violent scenes, multiple traumatic backstories, and at least one significant death. But, that’s part of what made this book so great: the best stories cut deep.

On the romance side, Charlotte and Richard were older and wiser, avoiding silly games and stubborn posturing. I loved that Charlotte is a refined blueblood with steel in her spine; her grace and unique life/death dealing magic were a welcome change from the scrappy Edge females starring in the last three books. I also loved that Richard was a a brusque widower, convinced that an HEA was beyond him; watching him lose his heart was funny and endearing.

The intrigue side also changes up the formula. In the three prior books, the urban fantasy plot revolves around quests to recover a Macguffin, some powerful thing that could win a magical war. This book finally embraces political and palace intrigue, not to mention pirate intrigue … and it turns out covering the three Ps of intrigue scored a home run for me.

Were there some disappointments? Sure. I would have liked for more characters from the prior books to have contributed to the series closer. This book is set entirely in the Edge and the Weird, and the measly references to the Broken felt like a lost opportunity. And I still feel like the villains were one-note (the formula of having little good-bad guy interaction until the end sadly continued). But, these were minor flaws in an otherwise epic adventure.

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2 les gens ont trouvé cela utile

Loved this series

I'm only sad that this is the end of the series. If you haven't read the others, you'd do well to start at the beginning. I was glad to see a good ending for Richard and Charlotte. They might be my favorite characters. :)

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2 les gens ont trouvé cela utile

Best in series

This is my favorite of the Edge books, as it has the most likable male and female protagonists. There’s a few plot weaknesses, but not bad overall.
I’m going to be rereading my Innkeeper books to check on future George and Jack.
This series is ok if you’re an Andrews fan, but if you haven’t read any author’s books before, start with Kate Daniels or Hidden Legacy.
I’m a Raudman fan and enjoy her narration. She’s got character differentiation and emotions mastered.

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1 personne a trouvé cela utile

Shockingly, it's boring!

Would you try another book from Ilona Andrews and/or Renée Raudman?

Absolutely!

What was most disappointing about Ilona Andrews’s story?

All Ilona Andrews' books have the same formula - strong, intelligent female character with an animal, but no children of her own, so she adopts a troubled kid along the way; a "superman" with excellent physical prowess and intelligence, a killer with moral values, yet a lover as well in search of a woman who can be his equal. Even though they all the same in premise, Ilona Andrews makes them all very entertaining and one isn't bothered by the repetitiveness in the slightest. Yet this book is just plainly boring. Story is extended beyond usual length for the writer and the push to add more content while extending the time in which the main characters fall for each other and open up to one another, makes one loose interest pretty early in the story line.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Renee Raudman is an excellent reader.

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