Andrea Stewart's The Bone Shard War, the final book in the Drowning Empire series, is a thrilling conclusion to an epic fantasy series. The story follows Lin Sukai, who has become the Emperor, but finds herself short on allies as she faces new threats to her reign. As she navigates through political intrigue and betrayal, she discovers that her old enemy Nisong has joined forces with the rogue Alanga, Ragan, who seek her death.

Lin's only hope lies in ancient legend that speaks of seven mythic swords that could turn the tide of the war. With time running out and enemies closing in, Lin embarks on a quest to find the swords before her enemies do, risking everything to save her dynasty and the empire.

Stewart's writing is vivid and engaging, drawing readers into the world of the Phoenix Empire and its characters. The magic system is unique and well-developed, adding depth and intrigue to the story. The pacing is excellent, with plenty of action, suspense, and plot twists that keep readers on the edge of their seats until the very end.

Overall, The Bone Shard War is a satisfying conclusion to the Drowning Empire series. Stewart has created a rich and complex world full of fascinating characters, and this final book does not disappoint. Fans of epic fantasy will love this series, and The Bone Shard War is a must-read for anyone who has followed Lin's journey from the beginning.

This book is a good end to the Drowned Empire trilogy, but longer than it needs to be.

There are large swaths of this book that were so boring, I almost gave up on it. The protagonists are just sailing from place to place, running into a villain, trying to talk it out with them, and then exchanging a few blows. And rinse, repeat for hundreds of pages.
At some point, Lin asks, "[Are] we truly negotiating in the middle of a battle?" And I'm like, EXACTLY, YOU GET IT! Because after many confrontations that were just people talking in circles, I was irritated with the pattern.

What truly delighted me with this book is that the magic/lore was deepened in surprising ways. There were some interesting plots twists that explained the mysteries in the magic, without feeling like cheap tricks. I think that fans of the magic system in these books will be delighted.

This novel does solid romantic relationships so well. There are stable couples in this book, simply loving each other with very little drama. It's somewhat refreshing after reading other novels with lots of drama in the romance.

The audiobook was great. There are different narrators for our POV characters, and they all do their performance well.

Reviews of this book will be posted on Youtube and Goodreads closer to its release date.

Thanks to Orbit and Netgalley for a copy of this book to review. All opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley, Hachette Audio, and Orbit for an arc of this audiobook. Below is my honest review. I apologize if misspell any names or locations, I read this via the audio narration.

First of all, I have to say the cover of this one is stunningly beautiful! Secondly, I’m not going to have my usual short description of the beginning of the book…this is the final book of the trilogy. You need to read the first two before reading this one. Otherwise you won’t have a clue what is going on. I didn’t reread the first two though, and I was fine. If you don’t recall previous events, especially the ending of book two, I recommend a refresher. I will admit that I was confused, at first, because there is a two year gap since the end of the previous book.

This book was a solid ending to the series. It had everything I was hoping for and more. Although it started quite slow, the second half was incredibly strong. I struggled to put the book down to go to work. The characters remain the strongest elements of the book, followed closely behind by the unique and ridiculously awesome magic system. I enjoyed being back with Lin, Jovis, and Ranami. My heart broke when the characters were going through the trials and tribulations of being separated from their loved ones while battling their own demons … both real and internal.

Oh and Mephi! Mephi! Mephi! He remains my favorite character. (Sorry Thrana… you are a close second though)

I highly recommend giving this series a read if you are a fan of unique magic systems, well developed large casts, and the absolutely cutest osselen. It has a fabulous ending and will not disappoint.

Thanks to Natalie Naudus, Feodor Chin, and Emily Woo Zeller for a sensational narration!

Ahhhh I’m so emotional now that this trilogy is over. This final book was jam packed with action, hard choices, heartbreaking moments, tender interludes, and surprising reveals. We also see so much character growth from Lin, Nisong, Ranami, and Jovis. The battles (of which there were many) were all epic. I teared up and fully cried several times.
This was such a beautiful and epic end to the story. We earned all the endings we got, and I’m happy with where everyone ended up, even if many tears were shed to get there. And Mephi will always have my whole heart.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a requested copy to review. All opinions are my own.

Epic conclusion to one of my favorite fantasy series of the past few years. Deep and unique world building and great characters really make this a must read series. Jovis goes down as one of my favorite characters of all time. A Must Read series for fantasy fans.

Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit Books for sending me an audiobook arc of this title.

Audiobook ARC provided by publisher in exchange for review

9/10

The Bone Shard Daughter was one of the books that got me back into reading, so this series holds a special place in my heart, making me even more glad to get early access to the final installment to review. That being said being as unbiased as I can I believe that this was an excellent conclusion to the series.

It is hard to go into much detail without spoilers but what I can say is that the characters, plot, and world building were as excellent as in the previous books. The ending also did not disappoint. Admittedly the two year time jump at the beginning of the book did come as a bit of as shock and took some time to adapt to, but I understand the reasoning behind it, events like these don't happen in a day after all.

Characters - The cast of characters you would expect to return after The Bone Shard Emperor all return. They are varied in every way imaginable and each have their own motivations and goals. The interactions between them, for the most part, feel real and relatable. We also learn a bit more about some of them throughout this book, and experience some truly great character arcs.

Plot - The build up over the last two books between The Empire and The Shardless Few (plus some other groups) is finally coming to a head, and must be resolved, one way or another. Lin fights to hold onto her empire, and try to protect her people. Nisong fights to become emperor and take back the palace she sees as hers. The Shardless Few fight for freedom, and others like Ragan have more obscure goals. I won't go into detail about how everything unfolds but I will say that each character plays an important part that leads to the final conclusion, which IMO was excellent.

World Building - Andrea Stewart has crafted a truly unique world here that just feels fantastic. Almost everything about the world is different than out own. The world is made up of many island in The Endless Sea, seasons are split between the wet season and the dry season. Each can last years, and has more of an impact on the world than just the rain. The politics between the Empire and its governors feels authentic and as precarious as one might expect. Different cultures and social classes (and even an order of reclusive monks) lend to the diversity of the world and drive many of its central plot points. Moreover many of the questions you may have been asking yourself throughout the previous two books about the world and its workings will be answered in this book, and the foreshadowing on some of those answers is excellent.

There are several more important characters and plot points that I did not even mention in this review, there's just simply that much going on and I would hate to ruin any of the satisfaction of finding out it all for yourself.

In summary, if you have read the first two books of The Drowning Empire you will not be disappointed by the trilogies conclusion (although you may be sad that it's over and now you've read it all). If you have not read the first two books in The Drowning Empire, then 1. Why are you reading this and 2. You should go do so now!

Audiobook notes - The cast did a great just as expected (they did a great job in the previous two after all). The production was great, and the voicing of the myriad of characters was done in a way that made it easy to distinguish who was speaking at any given time. While the full cast did a great job I would be remiss not to add that Emily Woo Zeller is IMO one of the top audiobook narrators in the game and was an excellent choice here.

3 stars

This book excels at it's consistency. The characters are going to pull you in, there are going to be some emotional twists, and good enough writing to get you through the first whole half that is ALWAYS so slow. This last book certainly didn't read like a last one, with the first 350 pages, an average book size, just setting things up and having to fill you in on everything that happened in a time jump nobody needed or asked for. Luckily Stewart's prose and characters keep me going. Storylines are then wrapped up, and some questions answered. The islands revelation was very satisfing to me as it was what I expected. I didn't think Ranami's POV was needed at all, I would have loved to see this final book narrow things down. If you want a predictable ending, you aren't going to get it! As a reader, and someone deeply moved by Jovis and Lin's storyline, it wasn't very fulfilling to me; but if you've made it this far into the series you may be prepared for the rug to always being taken out from under you. I would have loved more time spent with the other animals (and ohhh I didn't like the final information we find out)- but all in all, a solid three star fantasy read.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was an amazing and epic conclusion to a series. I was in awe and am speechless.