Harper The Fate of the Tearling

This series has felt like a big lie. It started off being fun, interesting, somewhat complex and it was carried by incredible representation of friendships. Some of the most successful books, arguably, in literature have built their success in some small part from the dynamics between their characters. I think of the love I had for Gimli and Legolas, despite them having little love for each other, or at the other end of the spectrum the familial bond authors like Sarah J Maas sell their books on. When you read about characters who feel like real people, who interact like real people, you genuinely feel part of their world.I thought that Kelsea and her guard Mace might have at the very least shown a sign of that in the first book. That is genuinely why I was so excited to continue with the series. But, with that stripped back entirely from the second and now the final book in this series I've come to realise that was the only reason I had continued reading, because what remains is drier than a cracker in a desert.This final book, from this trilogy at least now that Beneath the Keep has been published, should have tied off a lot of loose ends. Do you know that we've been waiting for 1500 pages to find out who Kelsea's parents even are? Do you know that we still didn't understand for at least 1200 pages the answer to that (it's underwhelming) or for the same amount of time we didn't know why we were even reading an enormous story written in the past about some girl called Lily and her friend Katie. I still don't know that I confidently understand why this was written. Despite that, I might have gotten over the wait had it been an amazing reveal, but the ending was just weird!I read the acknowledgments from the author at the end of the book, and she essentially says part of the real world is not always having the answers. I genuinely don't mean to be rude, but we sort of do deserve the answer from the fictional world when we've dedicated so much time to riding it out to discover the answers. So much was left unsaid, and I really respect when fantasy authors build something so complex that we can't always get the answers to absolutely everything. I suppose in that vein it becomes endearing, and indeed realistic as this author suggests. But this is not a complex world. It's confusing, but not because it's complex.The Fate of the Tearling has genuinely left me with a bad taste in my mouth. I wouldn't recommend it.

The best fantasy series I’ve read in years. Erika Johansen is an excellent story teller, of a new world which envelopes you so completely.Each book brings a new twist and mix’s past and present beautifully, slowly unfurling the history and secrets of the Tearling with each discovery, stride and mistake our heroine Kelsea makes.I’ve not fallen in love with a book series so much since Garth Nix’s Abhorsen series.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Captivating, exciting, interesting. I couldn’t tell where the story would go but all the story lines were brilliant. The characters seemed that real and the scenes about that you could visualise them.

I forgot just how great this series is! I can’t believe how long I left it to finish the trilogy. This definitely needs more hype, as it feels like a truly unique series which is rare!

A very good trilogy. Lost 1 star when time travelling appeared in book 2.( my pet hate)