hoarderreader's review
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
emiling256's review
3.0
The Chaos Crystal by Jennifer Fallon
***3.5***
Well, upon re reading this series I actually think I have to lower my initial rating with that ending, not exactly what I remembered. I'm torn really, because there were aspects of this book that I really loved. There was still lots of humour (thought this time not much from Tiji)
"Naturally. Because if we can't trust Lukys with unlimited power, the obvious choice is your sexually frustrated daughter," Jaxyn suggested.
Cayal's reactions to Elyssa were priceless.
Don't worry, lover. I'll never leave you behind. Not ever, she'd said.
"Don't you threatened me," he muttered.
I was truly laughing out loud at parts of this book. Unfortunately I laughed the hardest when I reached the end. That ending, just....wow. I've read these books before, so I knew how it ended. At least I had a vague memory of how it ended and I was ok with that. I really caught on to the foreshadowing in the book this time.
This isn't the first, or last clue in the book as to how it will all turn out for our immortal friends. And again, parts of me were ok with the ending. These characters are immortal after all. Fallon quite deliberately went into detail about the immortals and the myriad ways Cayal had tried to kill himself, or others had tried to kill an immortal only to end up torturing them because they can't be killed. They're immortal. All that was good. And the foreshadowing of how an immortal might be killed was clearly laid out, even though it spelled doom for our beloved characters (and by characters plural I'm talking like maybe three....). But the way in which said ending came about......
I almost had tears in my eyes I was laughing so hard. Unlike my co-buddy readers I was not angered by this, I just couldn't stop laughing. So as much as I loved the series as a whole, and the last book was still ok but not nearly as gripping as its predecessors (particularly book three) I just can't find it in my heart to keep this rating at a four star. The last quarter of the book was really dragging for me and then to top it off with that ending. I'm disappointed for sure. Do I still think this series is good and worth a read? Yes, I actually do. But I once again challenge you to create your own ending to this wonderful series.
**********Original Review*************
I love Jennifer Fallon, so all I can say is that this was an extremely disappointing ending to an absolutely fantastic quadrilogy. I loved the entire book and all of its prequels up until the very last chapter. A lame cop-out to an otherwise great story. Even though the ending angered me, I still think this is a story worth reading. Jennifer Fallon is an exceptional story teller and this is no exception. Just make your own ending. So close to five stars it's depressing.
***3.5***
Well, upon re reading this series I actually think I have to lower my initial rating with that ending, not exactly what I remembered. I'm torn really, because there were aspects of this book that I really loved. There was still lots of humour (thought this time not much from Tiji)
"Naturally. Because if we can't trust Lukys with unlimited power, the obvious choice is your sexually frustrated daughter," Jaxyn suggested.
Cayal's reactions to Elyssa were priceless.
Don't worry, lover. I'll never leave you behind. Not ever, she'd said.
"Don't you threatened me," he muttered.
I was truly laughing out loud at parts of this book. Unfortunately I laughed the hardest when I reached the end. That ending, just....wow. I've read these books before, so I knew how it ended. At least I had a vague memory of how it ended and I was ok with that. I really caught on to the foreshadowing in the book this time.
Spoiler
Haven't you figured it out yet, Lyssa? We're not like the characters they put in children's stories who are immortal right up until they change their mind. Or they're killed in single combat--a battle some noble hero is destined to win because his heart is true, or some such nonsense. The power to destroy one of us is the stuff that unmakes worldsThis isn't the first, or last clue in the book as to how it will all turn out for our immortal friends. And again, parts of me were ok with the ending. These characters are immortal after all. Fallon quite deliberately went into detail about the immortals and the myriad ways Cayal had tried to kill himself, or others had tried to kill an immortal only to end up torturing them because they can't be killed. They're immortal. All that was good. And the foreshadowing of how an immortal might be killed was clearly laid out, even though it spelled doom for our beloved characters (and by characters plural I'm talking like maybe three....). But the way in which said ending came about......
Spoiler
Cayal grabbed a chunk of Amyrantha that was floating in space and tossed it to Earth in anger when he realized that he hadn't died, thus killing all the dinosaurs......??? What? And the plagues and diseases that have ravaged Earth in the past were the Immortals? They've been on our planet for 65 million years? I mean....yea, they're immortal....but come on, lol.I almost had tears in my eyes I was laughing so hard. Unlike my co-buddy readers I was not angered by this, I just couldn't stop laughing. So as much as I loved the series as a whole, and the last book was still ok but not nearly as gripping as its predecessors (particularly book three) I just can't find it in my heart to keep this rating at a four star. The last quarter of the book was really dragging for me and then to top it off with that ending. I'm disappointed for sure. Do I still think this series is good and worth a read? Yes, I actually do. But I once again challenge you to create your own ending to this wonderful series.
**********Original Review*************
I love Jennifer Fallon, so all I can say is that this was an extremely disappointing ending to an absolutely fantastic quadrilogy. I loved the entire book and all of its prequels up until the very last chapter. A lame cop-out to an otherwise great story. Even though the ending angered me, I still think this is a story worth reading. Jennifer Fallon is an exceptional story teller and this is no exception. Just make your own ending. So close to five stars it's depressing.
ashybear02's review
4.0
4.5 stars. Awesome ending to the Tide Lord's quartet. Loved the end part of this. Really wasn't expecting it (although I know I probably should have). This was probably my favourite of the four. I only wish there was another one, because I want to know what happens!! But then again, a good story should always end with unanswered questions. Loved it.
jtone's review
3.0
The ending felt weak and rushed. It didn't answer a lot of the questions and didn't even resolve the triangle.
marktimmony's review
3.0
Picking up from the cliffhanger ending of book three, this story races across the face of Amyrantha as the King Tide comes and immortal megalomaniacs face off against each other and the humans they had once ruled. Fallon does a masterful job of weaving the various storylines into a compelling yarn that kept me up until the wee hours - and finished off with one of the best endings I’ve read in a long time. If you haven’t read her work before, pick up this series, it’s great!
cindya's review
5.0
Brilliant finish! I love how she treated the transition from Amyrantha to earth and how earth’s faith/future/history (however you want to state it) is tied to the Tide Lords’ influences and actions (e.g. the destruction of the dinosaurs). This was a very humorous, imaginative and fitting end to the series and I loved it! I love the attention to details e.g. the switch from “my Tides” to” my God”; the way people were created on Amyrantha and its correlation to earth’s creation story. I love how my favourite Tide lords were future in the end (Cayal & Declan) and how she allowed our imaginations to take over with respect to what happens next between our two heroes and Arkady. Once more I must say Brilliant!
sarah42783's review
2.0
🗡Let's See How Much Malevolent Villainy and Evil Scheming Fallon Can Pack Into This One Buddy Read (LSHMMVaESFCPITOBR™) with my fellow BB&B Falloniacs Choko, Emily and Robin🗡
🔥 Disasters of Epic Proportions Productions proudly present 🔥
The Chaos Crystal of Spontaneous Series Combustion (CCoSSC™)! An endeavour so disastrous it nearly rivals the Sirantha Jax Debacle of Complete and Total Ruination (SJDoCaTR™)! Okay, I might be slightly (and very uncharacteristically, of course) over-exaggerating here. Because no book can rival the SJDoCaTR™. That is just not humanly (or shrimpily, for that matter) possible. Come to think of it, if such a book was indeed written, I’m pretty sure it would it would mean utter and absolutely annihilation of all life on this planet and its neighbouring galaxies and stuff. But I digress.
Okay, I have a question for Ms. Fallon, whom I have the most shrimptastic respect for because she wrote the Second Sons trigoly which I kinda sorta enjoyed a little and also because the first three instalments in the present series where kinda sorta entertaining and damn it all to decapodic hell WHY WHY WHY but excuse me it seems I’m getting ahead of myself and I better ask my question before this paragraph reaches unprecedented lengths and you all fall victim to slow painful death by total lack of punctuation and stuff:
WHAT
THE
BLOODY
STINKING
FISH
WERE
YOU
THINKING,
JENNIFER FALLON???!!!
WHY make us go through all this only to have it all end like THIS?! What was the bloody shrimping point of us reading the series to have it come to THIS conclusion?! Why create this fantastic, creative world full of amazing characters—and so NOT amazing characters they should have died in the first 10 pages but more on that later *waves at Arkady*—only to bloody fishing RUIN IT ALL in the very last chapters?!
I believe this is live footage of the author shooting herself in the foot while writing The Chaos Crystal of Spontaneous Series Combustion.
Swear to my murderous shrimpy god, this book has to be one of the most infuriating, unsatisfying, uninspired, ridiculous, frustrating, mediocre series finales in the history of most infuriating, unsatisfying, uninspired, ridiculous, frustrating, mediocre series finales. Not to mention one of the major cop outs in the history of major cop outs. Then again, this is a perfectly understandable move on Fallon’s part. I mean,why bother to resolve the plot you just spent FOUR BLOODY SHRIMPING BOOKS developing, when you can just gloriously end it all by@%$”* person ?! I wanted to have her chameleon babies! And have them become Boots and Warlock’s pups’ playmates! The crustaceans were super excited at the thought of babysitting cute Crasii babies! And now they will surely die of heartbreak because of you! And so will I! BECAUSE YOU MERCILESSLY SLAUGHTERED EVERYONE. I am not amused, Ms Fallon.
No, I’m not angry at all. Absolutely not. I just need a little exercise, that is all.
WHAT
THE
BLOODY
STINKING
FISH
WERE
YOU
THINKING,
JENNIFER FALLON???!!!
And what the shrimping hell is up with that
Sorry, what? Arkady is still alive, you say?! After all these millions of years?! Despite her puny-human-and-therefore-not-quite-totally-immortal status?! She’s been in some kind of magical stasis all this time?! And floating through space?! On a meteor that used to be a piece of Amyrantha pre-boom-oops-poof-gone-for-good?! I’m so blissfully happy right now my exoskeleton might blow up any second (like, you know, Amyrantha and stuff)! Because I love Arkady SO much! She is probably my favourite character in the series! It would have been such a damn shame to see her die! I am positively ecstatic that she, of all people, survived! Because she is NOT a selfish, arrogant, stupid, self-righteous, heartless, capricious, harebrained nitwit with no self-respect whatsoever! Absolutely NOT!
Nothing she does is ever wrong, foolish, degrading, infuriating or just plain wrong! And she is definitely NOT the queen of fucked up decisions, either! And it’s not like she has less sense than Nyah, the teenage princess who DIED when Amyrantha went poof because what’s the point of having the one likable, vaguely rational mortal female character in the whole series survive anyway? WOO BLOODY FISHING HOO! It is time to be glad and rejoice, for Arkady is alive and kicking indeed! And therefore free to resume her “Cayal is a selfish bastard and a manipulative asshole I hate him oops I think I slept with him again didn’t mean to do that oh well hey look there’s Declan aka my first love who would do anything for me and nearly died trying to save my Stupidly Stupid Silly Ass (SSSA™) twenty thousand times and a half but I’ll just give him hell to eternity and back because I can and I’m selfish bitch like that oh wait why don’t I sleep with him to pass the time having sex is my go-to solution for getting myself out of tricky situations anyway so why the fish not hey here’s Cayal why don’t I…aaahhhhhh” shenanigans! Arkady. I 💕lurves💕 thee. SO MUCH. I really do.
WHAT
THE
BLOODY
STINKING
FISH
WERE
YOU
THINKING,
JENNIFER FALLON???!!!
Thought I’d ask again. You know, just in case and stuff.
➽ And the moral of this Now If You’ll Excuse Me, I’ll Go Dive Head First in a Barrel of Single Malt Whisky Pretty Sure It Will Make Up for the Time my Black Withered Heart Wasted Getting Emotionally Involved in this World Then Again Maybe Not Crappy Non Review (NIYEMIGDHFiaBoSMWPSIWMUftTmBWHWGEIitWTAMNCNR™) is: were you thinking of reading this series, my Little Naïve Arthropods? Do your little selves a favour. Don’t.
• Book 1: The Immortal Prince ★★★★
• Book 2: The Gods of Amyrantha ★★★★
• Book 3: The Palace of Impossible Dreams ★★★★★
[Pre-review nonsense]
What the bloody fishing kind of a stinking ending is THAT?! We went through all this for THIS?! Seriously?!
I'm somewhat slightly angry right now. Not much, mind you. Just a teensy little bit.
➽ Full Jennifer Fallon I Am Not Amused Crappy Non Review (JFIANACNR™) to come.
🔥 Disasters of Epic Proportions Productions proudly present 🔥
The Chaos Crystal of Spontaneous Series Combustion (CCoSSC™)! An endeavour so disastrous it nearly rivals the Sirantha Jax Debacle of Complete and Total Ruination (SJDoCaTR™)! Okay, I might be slightly (and very uncharacteristically, of course) over-exaggerating here. Because no book can rival the SJDoCaTR™. That is just not humanly (or shrimpily, for that matter) possible. Come to think of it, if such a book was indeed written, I’m pretty sure it would it would mean utter and absolutely annihilation of all life on this planet and its neighbouring galaxies and stuff. But I digress.
Okay, I have a question for Ms. Fallon, whom I have the most shrimptastic respect for because she wrote the Second Sons trigoly which I kinda sorta enjoyed a little and also because the first three instalments in the present series where kinda sorta entertaining and damn it all to decapodic hell WHY WHY WHY but excuse me it seems I’m getting ahead of myself and I better ask my question before this paragraph reaches unprecedented lengths and you all fall victim to slow painful death by total lack of punctuation and stuff:
WHAT
THE
BLOODY
STINKING
FISH
WERE
YOU
THINKING,
JENNIFER FALLON???!!!
WHY make us go through all this only to have it all end like THIS?! What was the bloody shrimping point of us reading the series to have it come to THIS conclusion?! Why create this fantastic, creative world full of amazing characters—and so NOT amazing characters they should have died in the first 10 pages but more on that later *waves at Arkady*—only to bloody fishing RUIN IT ALL in the very last chapters?!
I believe this is live footage of the author shooting herself in the foot while writing The Chaos Crystal of Spontaneous Series Combustion.
Swear to my murderous shrimpy god, this book has to be one of the most infuriating, unsatisfying, uninspired, ridiculous, frustrating, mediocre series finales in the history of most infuriating, unsatisfying, uninspired, ridiculous, frustrating, mediocre series finales. Not to mention one of the major cop outs in the history of major cop outs. Then again, this is a perfectly understandable move on Fallon’s part. I mean,why bother to resolve the plot you just spent FOUR BLOODY SHRIMPING BOOKS developing, when you can just gloriously end it all by
Spoiler
blowing up the WHOLE FREAKING PLANET and killing dead 99% of the characters on it??!! For shrimp’s sake, woman, you killed the only characters actually worth saving and saved the ones who deserved to die a slow, painful, horribly excruciating death! I love my scheming bastards and devious assholes and ruthless bitches as much as the next nefarious overlord, but this was just too much even for my fucked up moral compass! To have the most unlikable characters in the story survive at the expense of my beloved Crasii was uncalled for and despicably cruel! Even I would never go to such vile lengths. And that is saying something right there. How could you kill my Tiji dead, you heartlessNo, I’m not angry at all. Absolutely not. I just need a little exercise, that is all.
WHAT
THE
BLOODY
STINKING
FISH
WERE
YOU
THINKING,
JENNIFER FALLON???!!!
And what the shrimping hell is up with that
Spoiler
“let’s just jump a million years forward in time and have the characters reappear in a ludicrously preposterous modern-day, earth-like setting, complete with super successful trillionaire businessmen (Rolex-type watch included), immortal board-type meetings, GPS, helicopters and space travel” thing?! Can I shoot my little self in the little head right away or should I wait and see if you manage to screw this up even more? I should wait? Oh, goody. Please do go on with your crap then I’m all ears and stuff!Sorry, what? Arkady is still alive, you say?! After all these millions of years?! Despite her puny-human-and-therefore-not-quite-totally-immortal status?! She’s been in some kind of magical stasis all this time?! And floating through space?! On a meteor that used to be a piece of Amyrantha pre-boom-oops-poof-gone-for-good?! I’m so blissfully happy right now my exoskeleton might blow up any second (like, you know, Amyrantha and stuff)! Because I love Arkady SO much! She is probably my favourite character in the series! It would have been such a damn shame to see her die! I am positively ecstatic that she, of all people, survived! Because she is NOT a selfish, arrogant, stupid, self-righteous, heartless, capricious, harebrained nitwit with no self-respect whatsoever! Absolutely NOT!
Nothing she does is ever wrong, foolish, degrading, infuriating or just plain wrong! And she is definitely NOT the queen of fucked up decisions, either! And it’s not like she has less sense than Nyah, the teenage princess who DIED when Amyrantha went poof because what’s the point of having the one likable, vaguely rational mortal female character in the whole series survive anyway? WOO BLOODY FISHING HOO! It is time to be glad and rejoice, for Arkady is alive and kicking indeed
Spoiler
doesn’t mean she deserves a Simple Minds soundtrack, though ←if you get this it means you’re probably as ancient as I am. Congratulations and stuffWHAT
THE
BLOODY
STINKING
FISH
WERE
YOU
THINKING,
JENNIFER FALLON???!!!
Thought I’d ask again. You know, just in case and stuff.
➽ And the moral of this Now If You’ll Excuse Me, I’ll Go Dive Head First in a Barrel of Single Malt Whisky Pretty Sure It Will Make Up for the Time my Black Withered Heart Wasted Getting Emotionally Involved in this World Then Again Maybe Not Crappy Non Review (NIYEMIGDHFiaBoSMWPSIWMUftTmBWHWGEIitWTAMNCNR™) is: were you thinking of reading this series, my Little Naïve Arthropods? Do your little selves a favour. Don’t.
• Book 1: The Immortal Prince ★★★★
• Book 2: The Gods of Amyrantha ★★★★
• Book 3: The Palace of Impossible Dreams ★★★★★
[Pre-review nonsense]
What the bloody fishing kind of a stinking ending is THAT?! We went through all this for THIS?! Seriously?!
I'm somewhat slightly angry right now. Not much, mind you. Just a teensy little bit.
➽ Full Jennifer Fallon I Am Not Amused Crappy Non Review (JFIANACNR™) to come.
reader_fictions's review
2.0
Man, I pushed through this whole series, and I was pretty entertained through all of the books up to this one, but The Chaos Crystal dragged. Sure, most of the characters are immortal and so old that I guess they can’t evolve anymore really, but the lack of character development really got to me. Plus, the ending was fucking frustrating. I pushed through the series to the end partially because I was curious where the romance was going. However, I don’t like the addition of Declan as a love interest for Arkady, and I hate the open-ended, unexplained lack of resolution: View Spoiler » I will give the book credit for a cool world building twist, or I would if it weren’t for the spoiler. In the end, I recommend John Telfer as a narrator, but I don’t think I’d encourage you guys to check out this series.