We can’t let the wild win.

Despite everything I’ve done, my kingdom is falling apart. To overturn the murderous sorcerers determined to remake the realm into something wild and cruel, we must rely an unexpected heir to the throne.

But the first fault lines started dividing our country centuries ago. We can’t reach toward the past for absolution.

The men I love and the allies we’ve gathered will have to build a new future. And I’d sacrifice anything to know I’ve finally set things right… even my hard-won happiness.

It’s time to find out whether I’m worthy of staying in this world I’ve fought so desperately to save.

I came into this strong. I knew the characters, I knew the general plot, I thought I knew which way the story was going to go. As the last book in a series, there were plenty of twists and turns that led me to unexpected places. I was reading on kindle and as I reached 71%, I was thinking that perhaps this wasn’t the last book in the series, I wasn’t sure how everything would fit in neatly to the end.

By this point in the series, surprises are expected because there is a lot of information that has yet to be answered, and the characters have grown enough to value and accept the answers given.

I had foreseen many scenarios that the book could move towards. In having Ivy instrumental in the final outcome but not the ‘crowned’ final outcome opened more possibilities as to where her character and her quartet of men could go. I think it also takes a little bit of pressure off the character. Having Petra as the one to conquer come the finale shapes the characters in a better way.

I’ll admit, I didn’t see the Petra bit coming. She had been a character from the first two books who I didn’t spend much time thinking on. She was more of a fly to bat away. So, to see her come front and centre was interesting and unexpected. Seeing her dynamic with Ivy was a breath of fresh air that I hadn’t realised I needed.

Ivy’s situation has always been precarious. Magic in a land where magic is feared. Riven when rivens are executed. Outside of her four men, very little people trust her and what she can do. I can’t imagine having the weight of all that judgement on her. I can’t imagine the feeling that everyone is just waiting for the one wrong move so they can condemn her.

Overall, in terms of Ivy, I think this addition to the series reminded her of what she can accomplish outside of her magic, and that she is more than the magic trapped inside her. Obviously, her magic is a problem, but for many of us in real life who manage life with various problems, coming to the realisation that you matter outside of that problem is incredibly relatable.

Lother … well for the main villain his series ending was justified and slightly comical. As Ivy posed questions to him, I came to the same realisation as she did, and I realised that yes, I’d never noticed the inconsistencies either.

I suppose the main aspect of the plot was always going to be Ivy unleashing her power to ‘save the day’. From the set up of this event, even all the way back in book one, I was uncertain as to whether she would survive the ordeal. I think Eva Chase did a good job of misdirecting the reader into multiple possibilities before revealing the truth in the climatic end.

Ivy, Stavros, Alek, Casmir, and Rheave have come a long way as characters. Ivy we’ve already talked about. Stavros seemed to remember how to have fun, how to be happy, and how to continue being a General without relying on his gift to get him by. He became acceptant of Ivy’s magic and while he was the last of the original trio to fall for her, his character evolution fitted nicely.

Alek learned to appreciate himself for just that. He learned to love his face, scars and all and to not let the opinions of others tear down his confidence. As a scholar I saw him struggle to find his place in the quartet and to work out what skills he could bring to the table. With Ivy, he opened up, he became unguarded. He began to feel important and ultimately got to the point where he appreciated himself and the life he had been given.

Casmir the courtesan. Well, he learned that he didn’t have to be a courtesan. He learned that his gift could be put to others uses. That his ability to please people didn’t have to be sexual. He learned that he didn’t have to hold the burden of his mother’s teachings over his head and that he could be unapologetically himself. With Ivy he learned to unwind, to appreciate being pampered also. He learned other ways of using his gift.

Rheave, the last of the quartet, the daimon spirit. There are so many things that Rheave learnt. Things that we take for granted that to him were so wonderful first-time experiences. He was good for Ivy, he made her appreciate the little things, to find acceptance where there is none. He learned to be human.

I enjoyed this series, it wasn’t as hot and heavy as some of her other series, nor as long but I enjoyed the plot, the characters and the spattering of smut.