I have really loved this series. The action is top notch! I was completely engaged in the Sentinels mission to save humanity by finding the cure to Augustus Mercer's genetically engineered plaque. There were plenty of twists in the plot and I really enjoyed the pacing overall. The characters and their relationships are the real heart of this series.

The audiobooks for this series have been wonderful. I really enjoyed listening to them.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillian Audio for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

This third book in the Divide series is just as suspenseful and emotional as the first two books. This starts where we left off in book two- The Exiled Fleet- with Cavalon, Jackin, and Rake working against the clock and the odds to save humanity and the universe! Well narrated by three distinct voices- I was engrossed by it and excited to listen! You’ll definitely need to start with the first book - The Last Watch- to fully understand, appreciate, and enjoy this series. Great for fans of The Expanse series by James SA Corey and The Wayfarers series by Becky Chambers.

In the book The Relentless Legion, author J. S. Dewes continues the Divide series with book three. The Sentinels have rallied and are working to uncover what is really happening in the universe. But the human race is still on the brink with the virus laying dormant inside the DNA and ready to kill the human race. What is really behind the virus? And where can they find a cure? Will the cure come from research in our own universe or maybe an alternate universe holds the key to everything. This was a great addition to the story. But it kind of just ended and I have so many questions. Maybe a book four? I would recommend this book. The audio-book narration was very good with different people doing the voices. I received a copy of this audio-book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

5 supernova stars 🌟

Audiobook is wonderfully read, with great characterizations.

Smashing finale to this amazing sci.fi trilogy! As with the previous two books, the plot twists were unexpectedly sideways, and the best characters continue to grow throughout. Not sure if i have previously mentioned it, but this world is one where women ACTUALLY seem to be equal (unlike SO much speculative fiction which says all are equal, but goes on to actually disprove such by maintaining many of the undermining facets of our own deeply skewed society).

So well written!! The wins are epic, and the pain as devastating as expected - with a running banter that lapses into deep truths occasionally. I love that while there is a smattering of romance, it doesn’t overwhelm the entire storyline (though unfortunately does tow a mostly heteronormative line).

I can see this growing into a much longer series, with new trilogies blooming from this original one. And also, the third book eventually (after much shaking of the ground beneath our feet), ties some of the most epic quandaries up nicely.

I am a huge fan, and will absolutely be revisiting this entire audio-trilogy sometime in the very near future.

Huge gratitude to NetGalley, and the publisher Macmillan Audio, for a copy of the audio-ARC, in exchange for my honest review.

4.75

I read the first two books of The Divide in 2021 and I have been eagerly anticipating this continuation ever since I finished The Exiled Fleet. It's been a couple of years since then, so I did reread the first two before jumping into this one and I would recommend going that route. Or at the very least reading the recaps Dewes has published on her website because this book picks up only a few months post The Exiled Fleet.

In The Relentless Legion, we see Rake, Cavalon, and the Sentinels race to foil Augustus Mercer's plot to "save" humanity by killing the majority of them in a genetically engineered plague. The plot almost solely focuses on the fight against Augustus who is textbook genocidal maniac and honestly I found getting lost in this fictional fight against corrupt powers to be really cathartic. We also get tidbits of more aliens and other universes and some really cool technology and worldbuilding that leaves me eager for more.

I'm not sure if there are plans to continue this series, because this book wraps up a pretty big plot thread; however, there is still the mystery of the collapsing Divide and considering that's the series title I am hopeful for more!

Where the first two books have a dual narration, this installment keeps Andrew Eiden as Cavalon and Nicol Zanzarella as Rake but also adds Anthony Rey Perez as Jackin. I continue to love Nicol and Andrew's performances (and the friendship between Rake and Cav) and loved to see Jackin's POV considering where he was left at the end of Book 2. Unfortunately I did not love his narration quite as much as the other two. I think the acting choices fit his personality, but the gruff/gravely voice started to become grating for me towards the end of the book.

Overall, if you are also disappointed by the continued removal of "genre science fiction" in things like the Goodreads Choice Awards, I highly recommend trying out this series! It is full of loveable idiot characters and detailed world building and weird science and I cannot recommend it enough!

Thank you to NetGalley and to MacMillan audio for the ARC of The Relentless Legion by J.S. Dewes.

The three years since the previous book were long, but The Relentless Legion picks up four months after the end of the previous book and is well worth the wait in every regard. That being said, if it's been awhile since you read the previous book, it may help to refresh yourself on what happened in the previous novel, because the plot here is so go-go-go there isn't much reflection/reminder on what happened previously (this was one of the few times I wish the book had started similar to how Pierce Brown books do, with a brief recap of where the last novel left off -- maybe the written version does this, not the audiobook?). If you haven't read the first two, you need to in order to understand any part of this book.

The narration of the book was fantastic. We have three distinct POVs for narration, and Andrew Eiden; Anthony Rey Perez and Nicol Zanzarella do an excellent job of each distinctly capturing the character and the action of the story from that perspective. I really enjoyed listening to them - they made the story incredibly engaging -- especially Nicol around the 56% mark - I was so anxious at that point that she nearly had me in a tailspin between her emotion and the actions of the story. I actually had to take a break because I was feeling so much of Dewes story in the narration.

Back to the story - again, it picks up 4 months after the events of The Exiled Fleet, and Rake and Cavalon are trying to build their army while still searching for a cure for the genetic mutation humanity suffers from before Cavalon's grandfather unleashes a genocide. It's hard to say more because there is so much at play, and so many surprises and heartbreaks in between.

What drew me into the first book was Dewes' plot about a collapsing universe, and I was actually temporarily disappointed with The Exiled Fleet because it took us away from that very interesting plot, and instead focused us on the political machinations of a genocidal narcissist and how our crew needed to fight him first before they could move forward. Both were incredibly engaging, but I think I was more absorbed by the plot of The Last Watch than the Exiled Fleet. The Relentless Legion changed my feelings on this front, because it goes 100% at resolving the genocidal maniac plot, and it does it in a heartfelt tribute to each of the characters we have come to love and their relationships with each other, while also being action packed and tying up a lot of loose ends. You are so focused on everything pressing down on Rake and Cav on this front that the mentions of the universe are in the periphery, waiting for their moment, which is why I can't possibly believe this is the end of the series, because we still have so much more to learn. In a way, it now reminds me more of the flow of James S.A. Corey's Expanse series, in that the first three books are this universe-wide-political-miasma and then from there it's off to explore what else is out there. I'm here for it if it happens, because I feel like this can't be the end. That being said, if this part is its own stand alone trilogy, any fan will feel like they have resolution on our cast of characters and on humanity in general, in a way that is really fulfilling.

I think Dewes is the next big thing in space opera, and has been since The Last Watch dropped - James S.A. Corey can stand aside. She provides detailed plots, interesting and multi-layered characters, and high stakes consistently - she has a deep understanding of the genre and she has a carved a place for herself starting with The Divide. Any space opera fan should have this trilogy on their TBR.

*** Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook ARC!

AUDIOBOOK RATING (production, narrators, etc.) - 5 stars
BOOK RATING - 5 stars

I loved this series, and I'm so sad to see it end. The characters and their relationships (platonic friendship and romantic) were top tier. The way the characters argue/push/support/love/fight for each other was a treat to read and kept me thoroughly entertained. While this story does come to a close, there could be a sequel series (please let there be a sequel series) if the author and/or publisher wanted.

The audiobook has a different narrator for each POV character. They were each fantastic. I read this series via audiobook with the exception of parts of book 1, and I would recommend them.

My thoughts while listening:
Friendship between Rake and Cav 👌🏼
Narrators are absolutely suited to the characters
Nearly lost me in book 2 due to the slow pacing
The tension! A+J JUST KISS ALREADY
What the h*ck, J?!
“Reflect on the veracity of that statement”🤣
I want to know more about Rust
Stargate vibes
Yessss!!! Finally!!
Gah. The friendships. 🥰
Sequel series?!