I opened this last instalment of the Redwinter series worried how author Ed McDonald would wrap up this big story. Well, I needn't have been concerned, as McDonald keeps tight control over his narrative, and brings home the conclusion with confidence.

Book three opens with Raine, Esher and Sanvaunt stuck in another dimension called the Fault, full of terrifying monsters and demons. They've survived for six months, or so they think as they have no clear sense of how much time has truly passed, fighting hard to the point that the trio make a highly efficient killing unit. They’re desperate to get back home to Redwinter, as they know that a powerful demon from the Fault has started war in their land as a way to break through into it, but they can't find a way out. Then, Raine decides they need to find the Queen of Feathers who might be able to get them out or aid them against the demon, so they begin their quest, travelling through much danger, meeting a cyborg who gives them some rest and weapons, and a chance to rest.

It's at this point that Raine manages to break partly through back into their world, and sees a place riven by civil war, with Castus leading a rapidly dwindling army against Ovitus' forces. Desperate to save him, Raine splits herself in two, stripping off all that is soft and compassionate of herself so that the part she leaves in her home dimension can be utterly pitilous against the enemy. The Raine left in the Fault is now without access to her magic, but is all softness, kindness and love, and finally able to express her feelings for her two close companions.

Back at home, Raine, now just known as the Witch of Redwinter, fights and fights, and all the while, she and Castus' army gain ground on Ovitus' forces, though lose shocking numbers of troops.

These two story threads both charge towards a massive conflict in each dimension, with horrors and heartbreak on each side. But, a critical decision is made in the Fault by the three friends (that I had surmised might be the answer to one of Raine's biggest questions since book one), and allow Raine, and the Witch, to conclusively deal with the outrageously strong foes harming her land.

McDonald wraps up the story (leaving a few small things open) in a way that makes a lot of sense, and that was totally satisfying, but also left me feeling a sense of melancholy. I've come to love this series and this world, and the characters in it, and was not ready to say goodbye by the time I got to the very end.

Was I impressed McDonald :
-kept the pacing efficient? Yes.
-gave the characters numerous opportunities to shine? Yes
-gave Raine a chance to finally deal with her baggage? Yes
-gave me the romance and adventure I wanted? Yes
-paid off the stakes and tension that have been built from book one? Yes

Needless to say, I loved this series. I listened to this instalment and voice actor Samara MacLaren, who has narrated the previous entries also, does an outstanding job inhabiting the characters. I loved how she used a subtle approach to distinguish between Raine and the Witch, while Castus' wry humour and confidence came through nicely, again. MacLaren (and McDonald's writing) made me fall in love with Esher and Sanvaunt, and though I won't get to read about them again (until I return to this series), their frustration, anger, and love were beautifully charted by McLaren over the series.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Macmillan Audio for this ARC in exchange for my review,

Wow ok, I had to read the first two books so I could understand what was happening in the book. When I grabbed it I had no idea that it was last book. I enjoyed the first two so I had decent hopes that this would be just as good. As far as writing style & story line everything worked out really well. I did get a little bored in the middle cause there was a lot of plotting going on & not much else. The ending was ok, I felt like maybe it was lacking some grandeur but I’m not sure how else that would be achieved. All in all this was 3 1/2 stars for me. I would recommend this to those that like intricate plot lines & lots of details.

Gothic, gritty, and unrelentingly, dreary, this conclusion ties up the series in a way just a unique as the rest of the story. But it also bogs down in several places, especially in the beginning, with pity party soliloquys and teen romance angst. That never detracts overmuch from the uniqueness and wonderful nuances of this series.

Story: Raine has escaped into the Fault with Esher and Sanvaunt, beaten and with one mission: find the Queen of the Feathers. Meanwhile, Ovitus has gathered his forces and with the help of his mysterious hound, is threatening to destabilize their world. Can they find their way out of the Fault to confront him?

McDonald is great with characters and certainly these have been interesting to follow through the three book journey. With this third volume, we get even more distinct characters: Malduin, Mathilde, the return of Castus, and more. All are wonderfully flawed and never idealized or pat.

But at the same time, a lot of the pages in this book are given to Raine constantly speculating on being in love with both Sanvaunt and Esher at the same time. And if not waxing on and off about those relationships then it is about her own failings and shortcomings. It made for a lot of 'filler', especially considering so much of the book is about mindlessly fighting to get out of the Fault.

I greatly enjoyed this series with the caveat that it is very heavy - there are no light moments and it can be a hard weight to bear at times. It felt very fatalistic, enough so that I never went into it if I was down. That said, it is a rewarding read.

Note: I listened to the audio version and the narration was excellent. It really elevated the story to hear it with a Scottish accent. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.Gothic, gritty, and unrelentingly, dreary, this conclusion ties up the series in a way just a unique as the rest of the story. But it also bogs down in several places, especially in the beginning, with pity party soliloquys and teen romance angst. That never detracts overmuch from the uniqueness and wonderful nuances of this series.

Story: Raine has escaped into the Fault with Esher and Sanvaunt, beaten and with one mission: find the Queen of the Feathers. Meanwhile, Ovitus has gathered his forces and with the help of his mysterious hound, is threatening to destabilize their world. Can they find their way out of the Fault to confront him?

McDonald is great with characters and certainly these have been interesting to follow through the three book journey. With this third volume, we get even more distinct characters: Malduin, Mathilde, the return of Castus, and more. All are wonderfully flawed and never idealized or pat.

But at the same time, a lot of the pages in this book are given to Raine constantly speculating on being in love with both Sanvaunt and Esher at the same time. And if not waxing on and off about those relationships then it is about her own failings and shortcomings. It made for a lot of 'filler', especially considering so much of the book is about mindlessly fighting to get out of the Fault.

I greatly enjoyed this series with the caveat that it is very heavy - there are no light moments and it can be a hard weight to bear at times. It felt very fatalistic, enough so that I never went into it if I was down. That said, it is a rewarding read.

Note: I listened to the audio version and the narration was excellent. It really elevated the story to hear it with a Scottish accent. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

I picked this book up without realizing it was book 3 in a series. However, I do feel it gave me some fairly good recap to understand what was going on and I was able to follow the story well. I think my biggest hindrance with this story was the relationship angst between the three characters. If this had been book one, it could have been setting a stage for something more, but discovering it was the third in a series made me feel we should be past this particular aspect of the group dynamic.

I was drawn to the story due to the magic and the necromantic elements within. Raine is a pretty cool character and I am interested to find out more about that in the first two books. The trio is also in a dark place called The Fault which is almost a sort of Hellscape they need to try and escape to return to their realm and continue their fight so all is not lost in the war which is still raging.

I will say the author has a really great way with words and his turn of phrase is one I admire. The world he creates is dark and gritty which is quite a perfect compliment to the magic systems he's focusing on. The reader can feel the eerie vibes as well as the emotion of the characters. I do think I would have loved to see more focus on the end of the world rather than the love triangle but perhaps that's my thought and not the general consensus.

*** Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher - Tor Publishing Group - for this ARC in exchange for a review.

AUDIOBOOK RATING (production, narrator, etc.) - 5 STARS
BOOK RATING - 3 STARS

This was an okay conclusion to an okay series which pains me to say. I wanted to see what Ed McDonald would do with a different magic system from that found in the Raven’s Mark trilogy. The Redwinter Chronicles’ magic system is fascinating, and the world proved to be as dark as McDonald’s previous trilogy, but this series is not a favorite and probably won’t stick with me.

There’s a time skip between book two and this one. While there’s a summary of prior events at the beginning of the book, I still felt lost trying to understand what was happening. The writing style relies heavily on info dumping, and the magic in this world is nebulous and difficult to understand.

Raine is so full of angst it’s painful to read. It’s not a problem in the first book because she’s still acclimating to her circumstances, but it builds with every book. The first third of this book focused on how attractive she found her friends, how much she loved them, and how she just did not deserve their love or friendship because of the awful things she’s done (and plans to do).

The relationships took precedent to a purpose which isn’t revealed until the latter half of the book, but by then it was too late. I still felt nothing for these characters, nor did I feel the romantic tension. Or maybe it was that I was more intrigued by the world (it’s literally ending) and magic (necromancy) rather than the characters.

I'd recommend the audiobook which was read by Samara MacLaren; however, I'd definitely recommend immersion reading over just listening.