Fantastic end to an incredible series. I simply couldn't put this down - Peaky Blinders in a fantasy world ends with a bang you won't want to miss.

The end has come. One of the most original fantasy series I have ever had the pleasure of reading, striking that difficult balance between a grim world full of horrible people and a cast of characters that you actually come to love despite their brutal nasty natures.
In this final book of the series Thomas Piety is struggling against his new role as Lord and spy and having to do the right thing for the wrong reasons for the wrong people. As he starts to push against the hinted corruption he starts to be sidelined, making him push back harder.
The action is toned down to an extent when compared to the brutal territorial battles of the beginning of the series, but when it comes it is wonderfully immersive and visceral. in place of the action, we have political intrigue, but Piety's complete disinterest in joining in with it gives the reader a number of different angles to approach the plot from.
While the culmination of the book is somewhat given away by the title, the way it comes about is superb, as the reader follows Piety and his family and crew through the mirk and trials and tribulations of this selfish hopeless world.
I was sad to finish this book and the series, which I think is why I waited so long to read it, and cannot wait to read more from McLean - I personally would love a prequel novella or two.

I received an advance reading copy from the publishers and netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Tomas Piety, has become deeply embroiled in Dannsburg politics, desperate to avoid war with Skania. He's risen to be a knight on the ruling council, but has come to realised that Dieter Vogel is more like a gangster than a politician in his methods and begins to have deep suspicions about the man. Tomas receives information that changes everything, if only he can bring himself to trust the Skanian who delivers it.

The capital is groaning under the weight of religious nutters who believe the little queen (who was killed by her own out-of-control magic) has ascended as a martyr. They aren't above riots and acts of terrorism, but they might be just the people Tomas needs if he's going to foment a revolution. There's a high price to pay for what Tomas wants to achieve.

I ate up this quartet of high body-count books and though there are places where the pace drops a little and there’s a lot of violence, Tomas is a sympathetic thug. (Yes, he’s still a thug despite all that happens – but he’s a thinking thug.) His successes are balanced by his tragedies and it’s a bittersweet, but satisfying, ending.

Con Priest of Crowns llega el final de la tetralogía War for the Rose Throne, planteada inicialmente como trilogía. Como ya dijo Peter McLean en su momento, la historia que inicialmente tenía planeada como tres novelas se desbordó hacia el final y tuvo que escribir otro libro para terminarlo todo bien. Creo que fue una decisión acertada, porque este cierre de la saga lo deja todo cerrado y bien cerrado y alcanza unos niveles de dramatismo a los que quizá no habría llegado en una resolución más apresurada.


Seguimos con el punto de vista Thomas Piety, un narrador que tiene una voz muy personal y atractiva, aunque me temo que en ocasiones abusa de las muletillas y puede llegar a resultar un poco cargante (no he leído en toda mi vida “And no mistake” y “And that was that” tantas veces juntas). En esta entrega asistiremos a su ascenso cada vez más acelerado en el entramado político del reino, pero creo que el autor deja muy a las claras el precio que hay que pagar cuando se alcanza el poder.

Me gusta especialmente el tratamiento de la magia de este universo, el “cunning” como algo poderoso pero devastador, que siempre tiene consecuencias negativas para quien lo usa. Además, el hecho de mezclarlo un poco con la ciencia nos da una idea de lo que puede suponer una revolución industrial en el arte de la guerra. En este sentido se trata de un elemento que proporciona el necesario desequilibrio entre las fuerzas enfrentadas para una resolución “menos sangrienta”.

Creo que el autor ha hecho hincapié muy acertadamente en el aspecto emocional del libro, ya que se trataba del final de una saga de volúmenes no especialmente cortos, de forma que se ha ido desarrollando una relación empática entre el lector y los personajes. En especial los últimos capítulos son para leer con el corazón en un puño.

Priest of Crowns no pasará a los anales de la fantasía como un libro original, ya que se utilizan las intrigas políticas como armazón para sostener la historia y el uso del trastorno de estrés post traumático para veteranos de guerra es algo que hemos visto en innumerables ocasiones. Pero no por ello se puede dejar de recomendar una serie severa y pragmática que merece el reconocimiento del público.

This entire series has been Grimdark with a slightly soft underbelly and this was a fitting and excoriating end. Thomas Piety has gone on a long journey through the previous three books and I was desperate to see where he ended up. No spoilers but this was an ultimately satisfying conclusion.

Another good entry in the series, a very grounded story in a fantasy setting. It's recommended to read the four novels in order to fully aprecciate the evolution of the main characters. Kind of Peaky Blinders with a fantasy setting. Recommended.

Please note Priest of Crowns is the fourth book and final book in The War for the Rose Throne series. If you have not read books one, two and three, what follows is likely to contain more than a few spoilers. Consider yourself duly warned!

‘Praise be to Our Lady of Eternal Sorrows, and blessed be the Ascended Martyr.’ Those were the words on lips of the faithful: Blessed be the Ascended Martyr, and woe betide you if you thought otherwise. The word Unbeliever had become a death sentence on the streets in those days.

Gangster, soldier, priest. Governor, knight, and above all, Queen’s Man.

Once, Tomas Piety looked after his men, body and soul, as best he could. Then those who ran his country decided his dark talents would better serve in the corridors of power.

Crushed by the power of the Queen’s Men and with the Skanian menace rising once more on the streets of Ellinburg, Tomas Piety is forced to turn to old friends, old debts and untrustworthy alliances.

Meanwhile in the capital city of Dannsburg, Dieter Vogel is beginning to wonder if the horror he has unleashed in the Martyr’s Disciples might be getting out of control.

With revolution brewing and tragedy and terrorism running rife in the cities, Piety and Vogel must each weigh the cost of a crown.

So here we are, the finale of Tomas Piety’s illustrious rise in power. From street tough to the very highest levels of society. The one-time leader of The Pious Men faces his toughest challenge yet, the outcome of which will reshape a nation.

When I first started reading this series I thought the same as a lot of other readers. Ooh, it’s a fantastical take on Peaky Blinders, but that’s just Peter McLean being a sneaky old so and so. Tomas Piety’s journey is far more than just a homage to another genre favourite. It is its own unique beast. Not only has McLean created a riveting fantasy world, with some deliciously crafted world-building, there is also a wealth of insight into the human condition. There are important points to be made about all manner of topics. Everything from post-traumatic stress and religious extremism to gender equality. I was particularly pleased with the matter-of-fact way single-sex marriage is handled.

Lie with whom thou wilt, so long as both be willing

If only the real world were as enlightened.

In the midst of all this societal and political chaos Tomas Piety brings his own unique brand of intellectual discourse to the streets of the nation’s capital.

I’m an absolute bastard aren’t I?*

I think this is the thing I’ve enjoyed most of all. Throughout the entirety of The War for the Rose Throne Tomas Piety has been a brutally blunt constant. In many respects, he is the basest of creatures. Airs and graces do not impress a man like Piety; he does not suffer fools. Piety is a man of direct, and very often bloody, action. His fictional memoirs don’t sugar-coat anything. Its Piety’s often pragmatic worldview that has made him such a fascinating protagonist to follow. There is also a certain amount of irony in the fact that the higher he climbs in society the more Piety realises that villains are villains irrespective of where they were born. The higher classes aren’t better people, they’re just dreadful in a different way. At least when he was the leader of The Pious Men there was less treachery. Any backstabbing when Piety was a gang boss would have involved actual knives.

I could wax lyrical about Tomas Piety all day but, who am I kidding, I’m going to miss all the characters. Bloody Anne, Beast, Jochan, Billy, Mina, Rosie, Cutter. The list just goes on and on. Hell, even the utter bastard that is Dieter Vogel has been great fun.

Part of me has a burning curiosity about where Piety’s story goes next. The book ends in a bittersweet fashion and I was left with the impression that getting what you want does always equate to getting what you actually need. I’d love to revisit this character twenty years further down the line. What’s that quote from The Dark Knight? You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain. As The War for the Rose Throne unfolded, it has become clear that our protagonist exists in a morally grey area. As events have progressed, Piety has evolved into someone new but at what cost?

If like me you’ve enjoyed this series, then you’ll be pleased to hear that Tomas Piety’s swansong is everything you could hope for. Revelations**, revolutions and resolutions abound.

Priest of Crowns is published by Jo Fletcher Books and is available from 4th August.

My musical recommendation to accompany this novel is the Gangs of London soundtrack by Aria Prayogi and Frajar Yuskemal. It perfectly captures the tone of the novel and I’m sure Piety would approve of anything gang-related.

*The answer is a resounding yes but in the best possible way. Who doesn’t love an anti-hero?

**I’ll even go so far as to admit there were a couple of moments where I turned the air blue with some choice expletives. Put it this way, there are some very definitive conclusions for some of the characters.

An incredibly strong finish to a an all round excellent series.
I am a big fan of Peter McLEan hyaving read his previous works but this finale truly swings it out of teh park. Fast moving, witty together with real sadness and loss.
The characters continued to develop well over the arc and I was sorryt o reach the final page, Stands deservedly amongst some of the very best Grimdark fiction I have read.

Actual rating: 4-4.5*

I actually only read the first three books in the series a few months ago, and to say I was eagerly anticipating Crowns was an understatement! Daily checks of NetGalley certainly paid off 😂

Simply put, the final instalment was very good, with an ending that suited the characters and plot. It didn’t hold any punches and I kinda liked that in a way. But! Sadly, it was not *quite* everything I was hoping for.

Ultimately for me, the repetition was just too great in this one. It was one of the things I actually loved previously, a reflection of Tomas retelling his story, of course there would be an inevitable repeating of facts and phrases as one does naturally. This was (is) a style and voice I loved! But, this time I just felt too much time was spent retelling facts that we had only just read a few pages before. And for a fantasy that in my option is short, I felt that page time could’ve been better spent giving us a little more fleshed out plot, or more sub plots or even more page time with the antagonists which would have been brilliant. I very much missed Ailsa and dare I say even Vogel!

Also, I wanted more of an epilogue. I was just desperate for that little bit more!

But all in all, I did still very much enjoy it and it will still go down as one of my favourite series of the year. Tomas, Bloody Anne and Billy the Boy are now some of my all time favourite characters for sure and I hope one day McLean will revisit this world.

Talking about this book is not easy, not easy at all. I was here for the first book, with Tomas and the Pious Men, and I was there while their story developed. And now I am here for the end. And I was excited. A lot. And happy, too. But I was also scared. So so scared. And sad. Because, sure, all good things have to end, sooner or later, and I am grateful to have been here to see the end of it, and to be with these amazing characters once more, but it is also sad to have to say goodbye to all of them.

But being with a series from the start, to see it growing and becoming popular, to see it developing and fly, if I can say so, it is always an amazing gift, and for this I am grateful. And you grew really attached to it, too, because you just have to feel for the characters, especially since we have some really amazing characters here. You just have to meet them all!
Sure, Tomas is an amazing MC, and I loved to have him as the narrator of this story. He tells us what happened with his unique voice, and the author did an amazing job with this. There is a lot of things to love in this series, but this one was one of my favorite. The way in wich an auhtor choose to tell us their story is important, and sometime it can make or unmake the whole book. In this case, it makes the experience more engaging and you are drawn into the events and into the story without even noticing it. One moment you open the book and start reading. the next one you are there with Tomas and Bloody Anne, walking the street of Ellinburg, or Dannsurg, with them.

And, as I was saying before, you’ll meet some really intriguing characters. That you do! Tomas is my favorite, he is the MC, he is the narrator, and he is also a whole lot of different things: he is a priest, for one, and he is a gangster. He is also a noble of sort. And he is a Queen’s Man. And more. Also, he suffer from battle shock. And he is not the only one. The PTSD and related problems are up center in this series. We have a lot of veterans of different wars in this series, and they all suffers for the things they have lived through. And this part has a lot of relevance in the story, and I really liked to see it. It is important to speak about mental health, and about the terrific price that war has. And not only because going to war is an expensive matter, but because it is extremely costly in human lifes. And it is not only about the people who die in war, it is about the people who come back from the war. And I think that talking about that, remembering that surviving a war is a complex and heavy thing, is important. It is fundamental. Especially today. So, kudos for this, really!
But I was speaking about the characters. I love that with each and every book in this series we get to know more about these amazing and complex characters. Even the secondary ones are not forgotten, and we get to see them more, and we learn more about them. Every single one of them has a personality, has dreams and levers and habits and whanot. They all are alive, not one of them, primary secondary or tertiary characters, is plain or bidimensional. Every single one of them has characters. And this is an amzing thing. And a feat for the author, I am sure. But I am so glad that he did an amazing job here.
We have Cutter, for example. He is an amazing and complex character. He was one of my favorite, and if you haven’t started this series yet, well… go for it. You need to meet Cutter. He is quite the morally grey character, to be kind. But to be honest, we don’t have black and white here, we have fifty shadows of grey, and even more! So Cutter is in line with everyone else around him. But he is worth meeting!
And then we have Billy and Mina, and these two… oh guys, these two! This is a low fantasy, we don’t really have a lot of fantasy things going on, and the magic system is not really something that we get developed. But this is not bad, at all. I am not complaining, I think that it is perfect for the series as it is, but it is not something really “systematic”. It is there, we have magic, of a sort, but nobody know jack about it. Even the ones who use this magic. It is just there. And I loved this. Sure, I am a big fan of interesting and complex magic system, mind me, but sometimes it is good to see different things, and I firmly believe that in this case we get the right one. And seeing Billy and Mina with their magic, and the cost of it, and the difficulties and all, is intriguing.
And then we have Bloody Anne. She is quite the character. And she is right there, beside Tomas from the start. And their relationship is one of the more beautiful, if I can use beautiful in this case, I have saw in books. And it is so because it felt real, and because at the center of it we have two complex and deep characters, that are humans in all the ways, and we get them all. There is nothing hidden or sweetened between these two, it is a hard friendship for a hard world.
And there are really a lot of other interesting characters, so please, go and read this series. They all are worth meeting.

And now we have the hard part. The ending. This book is the end of this series. And it is a complex and fascinating series, with great characters, a lot of intrigues, a lot of action and fights and betrayals and surprises and unexpected alliances and everything. And it is so hard to talk about the ending. On one hand it is difficult because I can’t do spoilers, and on the other hand… I am a bit thorn. Mind me, I loved the ending. And I think it is just the perfect one for this story. It really fits. It is proper. And it is amazing. And it was sort of unexpected. But even if I really like the end, even if I think it proper and I have no complaints, I was hoping against all hope for something different. And again, on one hand it is not as bad as I was fearing, and for this I am grateful beyond words, really, but on the other hand, I was hoping for a little more of sunshine in there. Even if, as I said, it was a hope against all hopes, because this is a harsh world for sure.

Priest of Crowns by Peter McClean is a comfortable finale to the War for the Rose Throne series. It does pretty much everything you’d expect from this gritty, distinctively voiced fantasy crime series, and barely a lick more.

Thomas Piety is back, and more conflicted than ever. Fully entrenched in his role as a Queen’s Man (the spies, fixers and inquisitors who ‘protect’ the Kingdom with near unlimited powers) he starts to find himself at odds with nearly everyone in his life as he starts to leverage his friends, family and crew in service to the crown. His antagonism with the leader of the Queen’s Men, Lord Vogel, comes to a head in this book, with Vogel grasping for the highest powers in the realm.

For those who have read the first three books, there’s everything you’ll remember- raids against gangs backed by Skanian magicians, lots of PTSD, rough political maneuvering, secrets, Billy freaking everyone out with his powers, and of course, explosions. Piety’s strong narrative voice rings as strong as ever, the sense of continuity in this series being especially pronounced.

My first complaint, much like last time, is that too much time is spent in Ellinburg. The events there feel like another retread, and it takes far too long for Piety to discover certain things that I thought were blindingly obvious in the last book. It meant that the second half of the book moved too fast for me, with the finale feeling pretty abrupt. I wasn’t expecting long drawn out fight scenes – that’s never been the style in this series – but honestly the resolution was mostly a little too predictable? Not unsatisfying, but I’d hoped for something more.

Some characters get the short shrift in this book – especially Ailsa, who was such a vital part of the series before. She’s barely in this book, and while she does play an important role, I wished we could have had her featured more before her last scene. Even Vogel, a major antagonist, doesn’t get that much page time all told.

While not an ignoble end to the series, I wish I could have more good to say about Priest of Crowns, other than that it does the same things (the admittedly brilliant) other books in the series do. I can’t help judging books (and series) by their endings though, and as an ending, this book underdelivered. I expect those who love the journey to find less faults, and it’s always great to be in Thomas Piety’s head.

Rating: 8/10

It’s been nearly four years since I read Priest of Bones and it surprised me as I wasn’t a fan of grimdark fantasy.
Thomas Piety, Bloody Anne, and all the flawed characters who can be lovely or be involved in the most heinous acts. They’re all strong characters and you cannot help to root for Thomas even if you wouldn’t be happy to meet him in real life.
So this is the end of this series and I cried my good byes, was surprised by the twists, and felt for the characters.
It started as a sort of gangster story (sort of fantasy Goodfella) and it became more political intrigue showing us that gangsters and political plays shares more a lot of common traits.
This is the best book in the series, a page turner that I couldn’t stop reading, and I think that Peter McLean storytelling went from very to excellent.
The world building, the character and plot development are great and I was thinking of reading again the entire series.
If you never read any book in the War for the Rose Throne please start and you will surely love this series.
On my side I strongly recommend this book and the entire series.
Many thanks to Jo Fletcher Books and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Who would have thought that I would be crying over this book?
Not me

This story holds such a strong voice that I can’t help but be sucked in.

It starts off much the same as the other books and I did expect it to be a little more than gang fighting but I also enjoy the gang fights.

The characters and their relationships are well crafted for people who have suffered and aren’t the best of people. It’s the characters that drive this story, on the decisions however bad they make. I love the messy relationships and the connection Tomas Piety has with his adoptive son Billy.

It’s nice to see on page how veterans deal with the war and PTSD or as it’s said in this book Battle Shock.
I have never suffered with anything of the sort but it came across off page as real and I feel for Tomas for suffering with it. The understanding of others and also the shame around it too.

The ending held a suspense for me and I almost saw it coming. I knew someone was going to betray someone and things were going to go tits up and I was right. It was still fun to read.

But oh how I cried at the end. A bittersweet ending for Tomas Piety.

Priest of Crowns is the excellent culmination of the War for the Rose Throne series, tying up all the threads and leaving the reader with a bittersweet ending, which you all know I love.

If you remember, the previous book ended with the immolation of the ruler and this book spends most of the time dealing with the aftermath of that. The big bad of the series is pretty obvious. If you’ve read the other books, you’ll get it straight away but it’s very satisfying to read what happens. The final battle is suitably epic but it’s what happens at the end that is the most unexpected and tragic.

I loved the ending, it’s what pushed this book up to a five star read. It’s dark, tragic and very bittersweet. Tomas gains a lot but loses more and it is fantastic to read. I love Tomas and all the other characters so the events that happen in the novel hit really hard when you’re as invested as I am.

McLean has created a wonderfully dark world, full of violence but also full of compelling and interesting characters. You can really root for them even though everyone is morally grey and would kill you if you got on the wring side of them. I love characters like that. I really enjoyed reading this series, it’s easy to digest but there’s a lot to love about it. The books aren’t too long so if you’re wanting something new to try and you like Peaky Blinder inspired fantasy that’s just as dark, funny and violent as the tv show but with a little bit more magic.

I probably don’t reveal a big secret if I say Priest of Crowns was my most anticipated release of 2022. The War for the Rose Throne series had become one of my favorite series over the years and I was super excited to see where McLean intended to take the finale. I’m happy to say I was not disappointed by the delivery at all and if you’ve been following the series thus far, then you definitely don’t want to miss the ending. Believe me. I know. And I want to talk about ALL THE SPOILERS BUT I CAN’T.

I literally read 90% of the book over a weekend, so that probably will tell you everything you wanted to know, but nonetheless, I’ll try to put my thoughts into a somewhat coherent review, trying not to spoil Priest of Crowns itself. However, spoilers for previous books might be found, so proceed with caution!

With the queen’s death, Vogel and the Queen’s Men face a problem no one saw coming: the rise of a zealous religious group claiming her to be a Martyr. Things in Dannsburg are already near to the boiling point and this doesn’t help matters at all. It also gives Vogel a new pretext under which he can get rid of people who might be dangerous. Things between Tomas and Vogel get icier by the day too, and Tomas is ready to set his plans into motion. And we know there are factions within even the Queen’s Men.

In the meantime, Ellinburg knows no piece as atrocities between the Northern Sons and the Pious Men become a daily occurrence. Once again, it’s down to Tomas to get the city under order to keep the country safe from the Skanian threat and pay the price for it.

I won’t go into further details regarding the plot, let’s just say Priest of Crowns ties up all the plotlines and events giving a satisfying closure. It has some damn powerful emotional moments, some of which still make me reeling, a healthy amount of political intrigue, more than a few (gruesome) deaths, and a couple of revelations. In short, everything that the previous books brought to the table and then some more.

The fourth book didn’t put many new people on the board, mostly side characters, some of whom proved to be an essential driver for the plot, and one who is important to me on a personal level. All I’m going to say is, go and see if you’ll find a familiar name 😉 And then there is Sister Galina, the leader of the new religious group, who used to work for the crown before becoming a cult leader. Her inclusion and the way she is used in the plot is just pure genius. I loved it. But then, I really enjoyed the addition of the religious aspect as it’s totally in my wheelhouse.

As for the older characters, all of them – who are alive yet, that is – make an appearance. Such as Johann, Cutter, Aunt Enaid, Lady Lan Yetrova, Ailsa, Mr. Shapoor, and all of the Queen’s Men and Pious Men. Bloody Anne continues to be Tomas’ voice of conscience, although it proves to be more difficult by the day. She is indeed the best friend a person could ask for. She stands by Tomas no matter what, even if she doesn’t always agree with him. But she also has the balls to tell him off when she has hard feelings. Bloody Anne continues to be one of the greatest characters in this series.

I also want to mention Ailsa with whom I had a kinda love/hate relationship. I never warmed up to her, although I tended to have my doubts as we saw things progressing through Tomas’ eyes, who clearly loves her. She was the only one who kept me guessing until the end. I saw two possible ways her character could go and McLean definitely didn’t disappoint there. I had my questions and they got answered magnificently. The right man, for the right job, indeed.

My personal favorite still remains Billy though. He got me worried all through the book with his mysterious illness. And my favorite moments were those that showed the connection between him and Tomas, as father and son. Tomas might not be the most virtuous man or even a good one for that matter, but he definitely has a soft spot for Billy, which makes him all the more human.

That said, halfway through the book I started to have very conflicted feelings about Tomas. I always liked him as a character – not that I would want to meet him in person – and I mostly did here in Priest of Crowns too, but as we got nearer to the end, I started questioning if I really do. I definitely didn’t agree with some of his decisions, and while I could see his reasoning, I wasn’t sure he got the right of it all. Now I finally understand while McLean says he is the villain because he really is. It’s interesting how much about a character’s actions you can write off until it becomes just one too many things where you start to see them differently. Just like in real life, I guess. And even so, until the very end, I didn’t really think he would do what he did. And still, it just makes perfect sense.

Reaching the end of a series is always exciting because every piece gets into place, questions get answered – mostly – and you get affirmation whether you were right or wrong about certain things. One of my suspicions I had since Priest of Lies just got confirmed, which was pretty satisfying even if it didn’t come as a big surprise. I saw it coming, but it gave me a victorious feeling because I was totally right. That’s not to say I didn’t get a surprise or two – or rather a punch in the gut or two – because holy shit, I did. Did I mention I’m still not over the book? Because I’m not, and that’s all McLean‘s fault. It’s such a shame we have to say goodbye to these characters.

As I said, Priest of Crowns is an absolute page-turner, and through the last 80%, I literally sat on the edge of my seat. I had absolutely no idea where things will land and it all came about with a BANG. Is Priest of Crowns a perfect book? No. The ending seemed a bit rushed and at places, the prose was a bit repetitive, but on the whole, I didn’t fucking care about that. And I already can’t wait to reread it in audiobook format, narrated by the most amazing David Morley Hale.

Peter McLean brings the War for the Rose Throne series to a gut-punching end with Priest of Crowns, one that will be remembered for a long time coming. One of the best books of 2022 for sure. Praise be to Our Lady.

Priest of Crowns was one of my most anticipated books in a series this year. I got approved for the eARC and immediately read it in two sittings.
While finishing it in two sittings generally speaks for a book, I was disappointed with quite a couple of things in this last installment. First of all, I felt that many of the characters acted out of character or against their motifs in order to move the plot in a specific direction. The ending while satisfying (and predictable) felt super rushed to me, almost as if the author was glad to be done with the series. As always, those are just my opinions, but I'm still looking forward to anything Peter McLean writes in the future.

Thank you Netgalley and Quercus for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

If you're going through Hell, walk like you own the place. Walk like the devil.
Aye, I could do that.

I can't say I'm not still just a tad miffed about the giant twist that was the last half of the previous book, but it took us to this ending, and that was freaking perfect.

I loved watching Thomas Piety manipulate his way to where he ends up (finding the levers that move people is all I'm saying, and boy did he find his own), and it was -as ever- a brutal, fascinating, and enthralling journey. It's a fitting ending for his journey, and although I'm still not sure exactly how McLean did this, I'm going to miss the old bastard.

4.5 stars

Once, Tomas Piety looked after his men, body and soul, as best he could. Then those who ran his country decided his dark talents would better serve in the corridors of power. 

Crushed by the power of the Queen's Men and with the Skanian menace rising once more on the streets of Ellinburg, Tomas Piety is forced to turn to old friends, old debts and untrustworthy alliances. 

Meanwhile in the capital city of Dannsburg, Dieter Vogel is beginning to wonder if the horror he has unleashed in the Martyr's Disciples might be getting out of control.

“Priest of Crowns” by Peter McLean is the fourth book in the War for the Rose Crown series and an excellent addition to the series. Historical fiction is my go to genre, mainly because it contains all the things I love in my books - intrigue, suspense, revenge, backstabbing and in some rare cases, loyalty. Books set around The Crown particularly appeal to me. When they are well written with believable characters, they are immensely enjoyable and nothing beats travelling back in time and getting swept up in the story.

I would recommend this series to all fans of historical fiction and also readers who enjoy fantasy.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for an unbiased review.

4.5/5

War for the Rose Throne is one of my favorite series of recent years. Considering how much I enjoyed the first three books, my expectations for Priest of Crowns were certainly high. Fortunately, it more than met them.

The series started as a brutal gangster family drama but evolved into a complex political thriller as the plot unfolded. After the events depicted in Prince of Gallows, Thomas returns to Ellinburg to sort things out and perhaps find proof of something he suspects.

Fans of the series know Thomas. He's a complete bastard, BUT McLean makes you root for him and his companions. He is also the archetypal gangster, the abused child, and the traumatized war veteran who has risen in society through violence. Archetypal gangsters usually die or go into politics. Thomas chose politics.

He fits in well with other politicians. In McLean's world, government and organized crime aren't so different. Perhaps ambitious politicians who seek ever more power are even more despicable. For them, people aren't even pawns, but mere cannon fodder and means to an end.

Thomas likes to understand people and the levers that move them. In Priest of Gallows, he admits that his levers are respect, power, and authority. Sure, he's gained some power, but not all. And there's a chance to get more. All it takes is a bloody rebellion. No spoilers but if you know Thomas Piety, you know what to expect.

The thing is, the price for more power may be too high in this case. I loved Thomas' distinct voice and his way of describing events. His voice remains rough and brutally honest. Thomas knows he's not quite right in the head and makes no secret of it. He knows who he cares about, though, and the moments he spends with his friends and adopted son add some lightness to the otherwise dark story. Well, at least until it becomes an even darker story.

Priest of Crowns provides a fitting (if brutal) ending to the series. It offers an excellent conclusion to Thomas Piety's story but leaves plenty of room to explore the world of the Rose Throne. If you love classic gangster movies, dark fantasy, amoral politics, and sympathetic anti-heroes you sometimes despise, you can't miss it. It ranks right up there with the best the genre has to offer.

PS: a word to the publisher - I'm not sure if it's possible, but offering ARC in protected .epub format would improve the reading experience DRAMATICALLY. Reading protected .pdf files on e-readers is cumbersome and may discourage some readers from finishing the story.

I saw that one Netgalley reader gave this 1 star due to being unable to download the book in its entirety 🤔 I also had this problem but by reloading it got the whole book but I would not have scored it 1 regardless simply because of the previous books of the Pious men actually being very bloody (literally) good and Peter McLean has not dropped the standard with this book, as always it’s bloody, it’s Machiavellian, it’s got romance (you can be Grimdark and in love) it’s just a really good book, my only caveat is that sometimes (ok a lot) we get reminded again and again of information already given but it does not detract