As much as I wanted to like this book, it was simply ok. As someone who absolutely loved the first book in the series, I feel as though the series as a whole has been on a steady decline since the first book. As an ending to the series this book is fine, but I feel as though I can recall maybe 2 or 3 major things that happen in this book and even then it felt very bland. One of my theories for this may be because the series has been dragged out? I feel as though this could have been condensed into three books rather than four as not much happened, or at least not enough to warrant 4 books. Though, I did enjoy the romance and the fmc’s healing journey she’s been through since book 1.

OH. MY. GOSH. This is the last book in the series, so if you haven't read the other three, go read them. It starts with A Broken Blade. All of the books in this series I rated 4.5 stars or above. This series gave me that feeling that I always chase when I read a fantasy series. I literally devoured these books in a day, EACH. Like seriously, this was such a good series!!

This was such a good final book for this series. It gave me everything I wanted in a series conclusion. I will say, I knew the big twist almost immediately but it didn't lessen my feelings on well this series ended. I cannot put into words how awesome this series is, so please just go read it!

Disclaimer: this series does deal with substance abuse, self harm, and violence pretty heavily. So if those aren't for you, I would skip this series.

Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

I loved this book! I'm so sad that the saga has ended but I loved watching Keera's journey! I will never stop recommending this series to people. I thought Keera and her gang were going to go on a different journey and even though it wasn't what I thought it was going to be I enjoyed every second of it.

~SPOILERS AHEAD~
I thought this book would be very war heavy. I was prepared to watch an entire war happen for the majority of the book. I was taken by surprise that the fight was just the last 10-15% of the book. Though I still loved the book and what happened. I also was frustrated with Nikolai. He is grieving the loss of his mother when she didn't need to die. But to come back and blame Riven for everything and treat him terribly didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. Riven and him were like brothers and it just seemed to come out of no where. I also think that for a final book it did drag on a little bit. There was some training that maybe didn't need to be shown. Overall it wasn't the book I expected but it was what Keera deserved. I was NOT ready for Gwyn to absolutely steal her thunder and ruin Damien in the most brutal way possible! It felt like she was following in Keera's footsteps but she hopefully won't have to endure everything that she did over the years. In the end we lost a few beloved characters but everyone got the ending they deserved and I love that!

The perfect ending to the Halfling Saga. The struggles Keera faces and the end results of her decisions lend a perfect story of the oppressed overcoming the evil of a king that only wants a throne. Melissa Blair perfectly writes of found family, substance abuse, devastating loss, and the hope for a free future in the most beautiful way.

Honestly, this was pretty bland to me. The characters and plot were uninteresting. The writing was fine though, as was the worldbuilding.

Now THIS is how you write a fantasy book!! I have adored watching Melissa Blair's journey in first secretly promoting this series, to it getting self-published, to it getting traditionally published. I was eagerly awaiting for the conclusion of this series after the ground-breaking reveal of *spoiler*'s secret in A Vicious Game. The characters, stakes, politics, themes, world, and magic that Melissa Blair has skillfully crafted in these four books is so wonderfully done. Reading A Vicious Game reminded me so much of why I love the fantasy genre, and how much I love this cast of characters. Keera's journey has been life-changing and I truly don't know how I'm going to say goodbye to these characters. I can't wait to see where Melissa goes next with her craft!

Wow. What a conclusion.

This is a POWERFUL pounding ending in this resoundingly strong quartet.
I cant help but FEEL the themes of colonialism dripping from the pages of this book, and all the books in this series, creating a really strong commentary that is directly mirroring things that we are seeing or have seen in real life, especially in Canada, where myself and the author are from.

I see shadows of oppression, residential schools, forced assimilation, and tyrannical leadership in this book. I FEEL the generational pain in every character. This book is a masterclass in spinning real life issues into fantasy fiction, giving readers like myself insight into what the world looks like for the victims of colonization. I also feel that this book, my reading of this book, and the timing of world events hits rather hard. Reading is inherently political and I feel privileged to see a point of view like this one through my reading endeavors.

Now to get more into the meat of what made this book great and what I think that could have been a bit stronger.

One of my favorite aspects to this book and the series as a whole was how much we grow to love and value each character. At times I would get a little overwhelmed with the amount of characters at play but truly they were all unique and needed and very important as a whole. The losses of some of the key players tore me apart and I love that. I love feeling so invested that the losses hurt that much.

I really enjoyed finally feeling that Keera was able to harness and understand her powers to an extent that she didn't immediately burn out while using them. She was strong and tempered and incredible. She carried an unimaginable burden, and TOGETHER, with the help of her friends, they overcame all odds. I am so proud. I also really enjoyed the subtlety to her and Riven's relationship. They were SO realistic in the way that their whole world didn't revolve around each other in the way that so many romantacies do. They were a part of something so much bigger than just the two of them and watching the ebb and flow of their relationship was really great. No spoilers but I was super satisfied with the ending.

The only real thing that I would have liked to understand better is WHY Damien and his father were SO horrible. They were just killers and tyrants for the sake of being killers and tyrants. I know that in this commentary they are colonizers and in a lot of real history colonizers are only in it for power and spreading their beliefs and views forcibly over others but I would have liked to see more subtlety and depth to that hatred and anger so that as readers we could understand the complexity that is colonization from the oppressor's side.

Overall this series was PHENOMENAL. I am so proud that this came out of Canada and is truly thought provoking for readers. I hope that all readers have their critical brains about them while reading this series and can draw conclusions to real life events. I will be thinking about this series for a long time to come. I am SO grateful to have been given the chance to read and advance readers copy and will be picking up a physical copy as soon as its out to complete the set in my personal library.

What a beautiful end to a truly amazing book series! From the start, Melissa has gripped me with her characters, world building, and plot of this Saga. It was magical, adventurous, and gripping of a read. While I'll be sad it's ending, I loved this book and the way things felt so wrapped up so beautifully.

The finale of this saga was truly action filled, healing, and just absolutely satisfying to see the way this came to such a perfect ending for all our favourite characters.

This was the ending we needed for the Halfling Saga, perfection.

Thank you NetGalley for an eARC!

4.75

I think this was my favorite book of the series, and a very satisfying conclusion.

I really fell in love with every character. They were all distinct and flawed. They showed growth throughout the series. It was easy to feel for them. The stakes were always high, but I really appreciated how the author was able to balance out all of the death and danger with real heartfelt moments and moments of connection between everyone.

I am not usually a huge fan of battle scenes in books, but I have never had a problem with them in this series. The finale was action packed and I was riveted the whole time. The ending was full of gut punches and twists, but extremely compelling and satisfying.

I am sad that it is over, but happy to have gone on the journey. I will happily be recommending this series to all of my fantasy and fantasy romance customers and followers. I'm grateful for the opportunity to have read this early. I have already pre-ordered my copy and can't wait to have it on my shelf.

I can’t believe the time has come to say goodbye to the “Halfling Saga” this series has been wild ride for the last two years. It’s definitely bittersweet to say goodbye to this world and these amazing characters. Melissa Blair’s ‘An Honored Vow’ is a fantastic finale that did a great job wrapping up Keera & Rivens story.

You’re probably wondering, lexie if it was so amazing why didn’t you give it 5 stars?!? Well friends even though I greatly enjoyed this finale. I still found some moments to be really slow. To the point of being painfully slow. There was a lot of training montage moments for a finale book. And yes I do understand why they were needed but at the time I felt like I had to force myself to keep pushing on.

But I’m glad I kept pushing on, because seeing everything Keera has endured come full circle is truly rewarding. Keera is such a bad ass in every single book. In the fourth book seeing her embrace her role as a leader and choosing to lay it all on the line for her people truly shows her strength and personal growth. I also loved seeing Gwyn, Murray and Gerarda become powerful warriors in their own rite. The found family bound they all form is not one to miss and you can’t help but root for them.

The finale was action packed, full of many twists and turns along the way. I 100% believe the series ended perfectly and will leave fans extremely happy. I highly recommend anyone check out this book and the series as a whole. Lastly big thank you to NetGalley & Union Square Publishing for giving me an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

I am positive that this book is going to be a 5-star read for me. I adore Melissa Blair and her work and am so unbelievably excited to read this. Unfortunately, her publishing company kind of failed her in releasing this galley in its current state. This galley is missing chunks of sentences and paragraphs and continues random dropped sentences pages later. Melissa Blair deserves better than this arc being released to the world unfinished, and how people are reading it in this state is beyond me.

5⭐️ Finishing ‘An Honored Vow’ was bittersweet as this series was truly amazing and I’m sad to say goodbye. With a cast of characters who have my whole heart and the detailed world building threaded through all four books, it means that a regular re-read will hold onto the joy forever.

One of my favourite parts of The Halfling Saga was watching Keera’s character arc from barely surviving as a reluctant and shut down human weapon to choosing to lead and to love.

We met Keera in book 1 as she held the trauma of her past and her role as the King’s Blade and watched as she grappled with the addiction which helped her cope. In book 2 we witnessed Keera start to let people in, although still with very little trust and eventually make some connections as she started to create her own family around her. Already a warrior, in book 3 we watch her grow into a powerhouse while still exploring her insecurities and healing her trauma. Finally, in the fourth and final book we see Keera choose to lead the people towards a brighter future. Despite such personal growth, she never loses her strong, badass nature.

Alongside Keera, we also see so many downtrodden characters take the opportunity to step up and into new roles for themselves. It’s so heartwarming to see the strength rising from within characters such as Gwyn, Myrrah and even Gerarda as the already powerful warrior settles into her own leadership role. As they form a solid found family they all become pieces of the puzzle needed to rise against the evil King.

An Honored vow took us slowly to the finale, savouring every moment of training the new warriors, developing a deep understanding of the world as it was and as it wants to be and allowing each character to find their own story. I relished the slow journey with characters who have my heart as it made for a solid end where all loose ends were tied up, no questions were left unanswered.

The finale was action packed, unpredictable, full of believable layered twists and I was wholly satisfied.

If you have read the first three books and are hesitant to complete the series, fear not… this was the ending we needed.

If you read this review without having started The Halfling Saga, go and buy book one now! You will not regret your time spent with Keera and every instalment is perfection.

Forever one of my favourite series of all time.

This was fantastic. While I’m going to miss this series, this ending wrapped up everything perfectly and I can’t say it missed a single thing.

This is by far my favorite series and this ending, while bittersweet, did not dissapoint. Melissa Blair created something special with the Hafling Saga and I am so thrilled to have experienced it.

Keera really came into her role as a leader in "An Honored Vow" and it was very satisfying after being on the journey of recovery with her. After how the last book ended, I didn't know where Keera would be mentally but I am so glad she continued to grow on the path she was on.

I love every single character in this book and how they impacted the telling of the end of this saga. My heart has been completely ripped out by parts of their story and healed by others. I will think about these characters for years to come.

I highly recommend the Hafling Saga to any fantasy reader.

Rated 5 stars. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC ebook.