This is the 6th and the final book in the Spellslinger series and is the book I came into as a beginner of Mr. de Castell's work. While I am sure the 5 books before this one would only add to the story, I found that this could also be a stand-alone book. The writing is authentic and genuine, and, very well done. The main characters are well defined and kept interesting. I kept thinking, “Why is this story so familiar? ” That question still bothers me.

I am not sure how many spoilers will come forward in this review so I will not name names and try to be vague as to location. The story centers around a young man who everyone is trying to kill. A bounty is placed on him because of his rebellious nature. He must convince a group that follows the same calling to lead them, with the added complication that they are all fiercely independent. Added to this, his father, a mighty and powerful leader will either bend him to his will or kill him. Will his equally powerful sister save the day?

I believe this is a good YA series. If you find yourself with time on your hands you should explore the series as, based on my reading of the 6th book, well worth your the investment.

https://lynns-books.com/2020/02/28/crownbreaker-spellslinger-6-by-sebastien-de-castell/
Coming to the end of a series is such a mixed bag. On the one hand I’m pleased with myself for completing the whole series but on the other I’m sad to see it end and with the Spellslinger series I genuinely think I could have read a few more adventures starring Kellen and Reichis. That being said, I really applaud the author for knowing when to draw a line under things rather than delaying and have readers lose their motivation to continue – which does sometimes happen after all.

This has been such a good series. At its core I’d say these books are a feel good exploration of good vs bad with some very funny moments usually provided by a crazy critter. More than that they’ve provided intriguing plots and excellent character growth for the main character which in my opinion is the winning element of this series. I’ve really loved watching Kellen grow into this final iteration – his journey isn’t over of course, this is only the start for him (even if it’s the conclusion for us readers), but he’s a lot more self assured and happier with himself.

When we began this journey with Kellen, he was still a young boy, on the brink of being magically tested and worried about the loss of face if he didn’t succeed. As it happens, failing at magic is probably Kellen’s greatest moment and certainly sets him on a path that will define him and help him to become a much more rounded character than if he’d stayed at home. Anyway, I’m getting ahead of myself.

Crownbreaker surprised me in more ways than one to be honest. Kellen has finally found a place and role that suits him and I think I almost went into this read wondering what shenanigans were going to be thrown at him. I did wonder whether things might be a bit more pedestrian but I needn’t have worried. It seems Castell had plenty in store and more than that he really did have the long picture in mind with some of the earlier instalments as you’ll find out when you read this. Little light bulbs were pinging on inside my head as I realised that elements from earlier in the series were all playing into the storyline – in a most satisfactory fashion I might add.

I’m not going to describe the plot at all as I don’t want to spoil this final instalment. I will only say that war is looming, Kellen will have to make a very difficult choice and characters from the past will be putting in appearances. Okay, one small spoiler – Ferius makes an appearance and it was so good to have her back that it made me realise how very much I’d missed her.

In terms of criticisms. I have nothing. Taken as a whole this has been a wonderfully entertaining series. A strange combination of wild west frontier meets magic, with assassins and all sorts of different cultures thrown into the mix for good measure. And I may have had the odd book that I didn’t like quite as much as the rest but this was only a very slight dip that in no way affected my enjoyment.

I highly recommend the Spellslinger series. It’s thoroughly entertaining, superbly written, has so many characters that you can fall in love with, great settings and some cheeky sidekicks – that I hope don’t hear about me calling them sidekicks! *gulps*

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

My rating 4.5 of 5 stars

P.S – word to the wise. You know that time you went to catch a movie and as the credits were rolling and everyone was leaving, and you thought you’d just chill and wait for the stampede to be over – and then a sneaky bit of something extra appeared on the screen making you feel totally smug. Well, I’m just saying. You might think it’s over but is it really over??

I'm not entirely sure what happened. I wish I had enjoyed these last 2 books more but the story felt out of place. New villains popped up I didn't see the point of, new characters appeared who I was supposed to just like for no reason. The story I was so invested in during books 1-4 disappeared and books 5 and 6 felt like it just ditched all that progress.

For example, a character who is known as God appears in this installment and he's suddenly Kellen's (and the worlds) focus but I had zero time to know this character and the ending was based on him. What happened to the other plot points from the earlier books? They just weren't wrapped up.

The plot line I was invested in the most doesn’t get resolved. There’s even a postscript chapter at the end with the author saying “I promise, the answer is waiting for you inside your own imagination.”
NO.

I did binge read this entire series at once so maybe I’m seeing these problems a lot more because of that.

Great book - excellent end to an excellent series. Felt like finishing up a beer and a long conversation with an old friend you haven't seen in a while. Loved the character growth for most of the characters, and loved the Postscript by the author even more. Review will be posted on vampirebookclub.net.

In some ways, Crownbreaker is almost like a reckoning. de Castell has built the tension throughout the last books to the point where we wonder is Kellen can truly keep living the way he has been. Even as he comes more and more to terms with his shadow black, his past, and his family, what does Kellen really want at the end of the day? Is there not a small part of him that hungers to be powerful? A sliver of him that still thirsts for approval and a different future?

A question you always have for the ones who escape death time and time again is how many tricks does Kellen have left? What if he finally runs out of tricks? And what kind of life is that where you look over your shoulder all the time for snares? Home is a tricky thing. You can think you're past it, moved on and used to a new life, and then a sniff, a piece of fabric, and a memory will make you crawl back.