Thank you for the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I really wanted to like this book, maybe too much, but quite the contrary ended up happening. I don't like the characters or the pace of the book, but I do like the author's writing.

This YA fantasy was so good! I loved the gothic elements! Loved the writing style! I highly recommend this book!

The author was extremely kind to email me some fanart and a short story on the day of publication and it was just the sweetest!

The story was quite spooky, considering the inclusion of gothic elements, but the cover didn't quite portray any of that. I didn't even realise this book would be a fantasy until I read the synopsis and that's not the purpose of a cover right? However, loved the writing style, good work Handman :)

Sequels and finales, especially in the YA genre, often seem like a mixed bag. Either events are rushed through or made too convenient. Not so in I WALK ALONE

The story picks up a few months after the big confrontation, and shake-up, in IN RESTLESS DREAMS and Sylvia is not only trying to re-integrate into her life, balancing the two sides -- the fairy world and her human world -- but also shouldering both the decisions she's made for a whole people and also the damage that she, herself, was dealt.

I can't remember if I had mentioned this in my review for book one but I really appreciated that Handman took pains to not neglect Sylvia's every day life. Yes, she finds school to be dull and a chore, especially when compared to her adventures and her magical boyfriend, but those doldrums, her responsibilities, aren't glossed over. We see the struggle to fit in, to balance home work, the repercussions for her slacking off, her lies, and it keeps not only her but the reader grounded. I can barely handle multitasking facetiming and cooking at the same time and yet she's submitting homework, being a good friend and sister, a caring daughter, nurturing a new relationship, and going on adventures. She doesn't do it all successfully, which.. I mean, good, because that wouldn't be realistic!; but we see her try.

Just as she tries to navigate a world, and a people, who are both terrified and resentful of her choices, her power, and how that spills over into her relationship with her boyfriend who is very much part of that same world. All while a prophecy hangs over their heads.

The conclusion to this series, and the resolutions, unraveled so well. As with book one, the story is layered with the themes that come full circle at the end, so you see the slow unfurling of what is to come and how it isn't just an impulse decision or a convenient epiphany at the moment it's needed. I thought it was brilliantly done.

If you're looking for a fresh take on a fae-based YA fantasy, look no further.