leahsbooks's review against another edition
5.0
CONTENT WARNING: panic attack
I’ve been a fan of these books since they first quietly appeared on the scene, and now that the third book had released, I realized that I forgot a lot of what had happened in the first two. Thanks to the miracle of audiobooks, I was able to quickly reread the first two and approach this book in a fully informed manner, armed with some fresh new insight that I can only seem to gain by binge-reading.
The found family vibes are especially strong in this series, with Claire, Brevity, Hero, and Ramiel shifting roles throughout the three books. Although the transitions weren’t always easy, the bonds between these four character are incredibly strong, and forged of some very unbreakable materials — a love for books and the Library itself. The characters themselves are also changed throughout the series. Each of them grows into themselves a lot, making new discoveries about themselves, learning more about who they are and who they want to be, working to be the best version of themselves that they can be.
It’s told from the viewpoint of the four main characters, so we get a lot more insight into what each one is going through. And Hackwith gets into the deepest parts of the characters, highlighting the biggest flaws of each one in order to showcase how much they truly grow. Since I’ve come to adore each one of the characters in a different way, it was really amazing to see them change so much in this final volume of the series. But there were definitely two that grew by leaps and bounds, and if you’ve read the series, I’m sure you can guess who they are.
Hero, the snarky and sarcastic villain who escaped his book, definitely showed the most growth out of everyone, in my opinion. After losing his book and experiencing a complete shift in who and what he is, this is the story where he comes to terms with that and where his story is going to go. He struggles a lot with what it means to actually have a soul. We get a front-row view of what all that bluster hides, and surprise! It’s a soft and gooey inside, where he has *gasp* mushy feelings! This made me happier than anything else to see.
“That last part was Hero’s way of trying to soften his words. He did that more often lately. Had more soft bits, as if his time with Rami and Claire were wearing down the more barbed parts of his defenses.”
Claire shows a lot of growth in this book too. While her earlier experiences have primed her to change, the events of the last book have kind of tipped her over the edge and readied her to become a different version of herself. She’s now surrounded by people who understand her and see through her defenses, and it gives her the freedom to become a better person and more selfless, something I wasn’t quite expecting to see, but was thrilled regardless.
“Considering that Hero was the one being redefined, he’d accepted it almost immediately. He’d never understood the fuss, souls and no souls. He’d always felt human enough, and if humans had souls, then why shouldn’t he? But Claire had survived for three decades in Hell by clinging to a very rigid and precise categorization of the world. Every time that categorization defied her (Hero) or betrayed her (Andras), she struggled to change with it.”
Ramiel works to become a bit more accessible in the story, and uses his knowledge to help others understand more about the Library and how the realms work. He aligns his goals with that of the others, and in doing so, he finally find a sense of belonging. This is something that he wasn’t expecting to find anymore.
“Ramiel, their angelic resident soul expert, insisted it all came down to the revelation of the secret the Library had been hiding: books are made from the fragments of souls. Or, at the very least, human souls and stories were made of the same stuff. Souls were one thing in Hell: power.”
Brevity grows into her new position as Librarian, and in doing so, gains a newfound sense of confidence. Their shared goal of saving the Library from the grasp of Hell requires an immense amount of teamwork, not just from these four, but from others as well. And it takes all the resources they can gather to make it work. But just as each of them brings their strengths to the table, they also bring their own unique resources, all of which might just manage to save the Library.
“It was no secret that the others thought of Rami as the anchor of their group, the stabilizing influence of the Library. It was normally a role that Rami enjoyed. But it was an illusion. The Library was populated with runners. There was Hero, who took his running away literally, greasing the way with false bravado. There was Claire, who ran to the safety of books and processes when threatened. And Brevity’s flight was the width of a smile, quick as a shadow behind her eyes.”
In this book, we get to see more of the world and how it works. I was fascinated by all of it, and the way each of the wings manage to interact. All of the different elements of the story came together in an unexpected way, and I truly enjoyed seeing this story unfold. There were enough plot twists to keep me engaged every step of the way, but the ending had a sense of finality that left me completely satisfied and happy at the end of the story. I loved this series, and it’s definitely one that’s going to be on my reread list; a rare honor.
I’ve been a fan of these books since they first quietly appeared on the scene, and now that the third book had released, I realized that I forgot a lot of what had happened in the first two. Thanks to the miracle of audiobooks, I was able to quickly reread the first two and approach this book in a fully informed manner, armed with some fresh new insight that I can only seem to gain by binge-reading.
The found family vibes are especially strong in this series, with Claire, Brevity, Hero, and Ramiel shifting roles throughout the three books. Although the transitions weren’t always easy, the bonds between these four character are incredibly strong, and forged of some very unbreakable materials — a love for books and the Library itself. The characters themselves are also changed throughout the series. Each of them grows into themselves a lot, making new discoveries about themselves, learning more about who they are and who they want to be, working to be the best version of themselves that they can be.
It’s told from the viewpoint of the four main characters, so we get a lot more insight into what each one is going through. And Hackwith gets into the deepest parts of the characters, highlighting the biggest flaws of each one in order to showcase how much they truly grow. Since I’ve come to adore each one of the characters in a different way, it was really amazing to see them change so much in this final volume of the series. But there were definitely two that grew by leaps and bounds, and if you’ve read the series, I’m sure you can guess who they are.
Hero, the snarky and sarcastic villain who escaped his book, definitely showed the most growth out of everyone, in my opinion. After losing his book and experiencing a complete shift in who and what he is, this is the story where he comes to terms with that and where his story is going to go. He struggles a lot with what it means to actually have a soul. We get a front-row view of what all that bluster hides, and surprise! It’s a soft and gooey inside, where he has *gasp* mushy feelings! This made me happier than anything else to see.
“That last part was Hero’s way of trying to soften his words. He did that more often lately. Had more soft bits, as if his time with Rami and Claire were wearing down the more barbed parts of his defenses.”
Claire shows a lot of growth in this book too. While her earlier experiences have primed her to change, the events of the last book have kind of tipped her over the edge and readied her to become a different version of herself. She’s now surrounded by people who understand her and see through her defenses, and it gives her the freedom to become a better person and more selfless, something I wasn’t quite expecting to see, but was thrilled regardless.
“Considering that Hero was the one being redefined, he’d accepted it almost immediately. He’d never understood the fuss, souls and no souls. He’d always felt human enough, and if humans had souls, then why shouldn’t he? But Claire had survived for three decades in Hell by clinging to a very rigid and precise categorization of the world. Every time that categorization defied her (Hero) or betrayed her (Andras), she struggled to change with it.”
Ramiel works to become a bit more accessible in the story, and uses his knowledge to help others understand more about the Library and how the realms work. He aligns his goals with that of the others, and in doing so, he finally find a sense of belonging. This is something that he wasn’t expecting to find anymore.
“Ramiel, their angelic resident soul expert, insisted it all came down to the revelation of the secret the Library had been hiding: books are made from the fragments of souls. Or, at the very least, human souls and stories were made of the same stuff. Souls were one thing in Hell: power.”
Brevity grows into her new position as Librarian, and in doing so, gains a newfound sense of confidence. Their shared goal of saving the Library from the grasp of Hell requires an immense amount of teamwork, not just from these four, but from others as well. And it takes all the resources they can gather to make it work. But just as each of them brings their strengths to the table, they also bring their own unique resources, all of which might just manage to save the Library.
“It was no secret that the others thought of Rami as the anchor of their group, the stabilizing influence of the Library. It was normally a role that Rami enjoyed. But it was an illusion. The Library was populated with runners. There was Hero, who took his running away literally, greasing the way with false bravado. There was Claire, who ran to the safety of books and processes when threatened. And Brevity’s flight was the width of a smile, quick as a shadow behind her eyes.”
In this book, we get to see more of the world and how it works. I was fascinated by all of it, and the way each of the wings manage to interact. All of the different elements of the story came together in an unexpected way, and I truly enjoyed seeing this story unfold. There were enough plot twists to keep me engaged every step of the way, but the ending had a sense of finality that left me completely satisfied and happy at the end of the story. I loved this series, and it’s definitely one that’s going to be on my reread list; a rare honor.
noahd's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A great ending to this trilogy. The dialogue was at times a little awkward but overall I really enjoyed it.
martinjmuhr's review against another edition
5.0
Everything I could ask for. Such a satisfying end and such a lovely book. Thank you!
elat's review against another edition
5.0
I've loved this series more each book, and this final entry uplifted and broke and filled my heart. I didn't want to say goodbye to the characters, not one bit.
caitlinwhetten's review against another edition
4.0
A very satisfying end to a series that I really fell in love with. This plot dealt more with hell, demons and angels, but it also really delved into the theme and idea of words, stories and the relationships between author and reader. The characters are still some of my favorite and really make my enjoyment of this entire series, though I wish we had gotten more Brevity. My only complaint was the addition of a polyamorous relationship. I love that this element was included, I just didn't completely buy into the romance between all three involved. Overall though this is probably one of my favorite adult fantasy series and I highly recommend.
Spoiler
I got the Hero/Claire chemistry as well as Hero/Ramiel, but not Ramiel and Claire together. I don't think that was developed enough to make the whole thing make sense.curly_entropy's review against another edition
5.0
THIS BOOK. This year has been very good for me and my interest in "weird" fantasy, books about stories, about what the world is made of, about the nature of reality but all with a nice magical bow. I gotta re read this trilogy again. The writing is very good, there is good LGBTQA+ rep, poly rep. It has sol many quotes I loved and want to remember. It talked to my soul ( if you know you know :) ) . I probably can write more coherent things later but the first impression was AMAZING.
buecherdiebin's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
creativelifeofliz's review against another edition
5.0
Everything I wanted for the end of the series. I didn't want to put it down. See you all in the Library some day!
themeghanseim's review against another edition
5.0
I already knew going in that I was going to love this book. Even if it left my howling in grief, I was going to tenderly shelve it next to the first two in the trilogy in the library of my heart.
This book soothed my soul in ways I didn't even realize it needed soothing. I absolutely adore all the characters. Once more Claire, Brevity, Hero & Ramiel are the perfect found family. They fit together so well and are able to come together in such a way that their demons(literal and figurative ones) don't stand a chance.
I will say the book went directions I didn't expect, but looking back at the first two, there were signs pointing to it the whole journey. It was beautifully done. The little love notes and nods to pop culture (some of my favorite fandoms are hinted at!!!) made the story. I'm a sucker for meta and stories about stories, afterall.
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spoiler below!
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The ending made me weep. The imagery of meeting Walter at the end of my life, seeing Leto in his shirt sleeves and curls, Ramiel reaching his hand out to me and asking "Would you like to tell me your story?" STILL GIVES ME CHILLS. And Claire's sacrifice? Oh sweet Claire. Though I'm angry and hurting on Rami and Hero's behalf, it was still the perfect ending and nothing else could have tied it up so well. Sign me up for an afterlife in The Library Realm, please!
This book soothed my soul in ways I didn't even realize it needed soothing. I absolutely adore all the characters. Once more Claire, Brevity, Hero & Ramiel are the perfect found family. They fit together so well and are able to come together in such a way that their demons(literal and figurative ones) don't stand a chance.
I will say the book went directions I didn't expect, but looking back at the first two, there were signs pointing to it the whole journey. It was beautifully done. The little love notes and nods to pop culture (some of my favorite fandoms are hinted at!!!) made the story. I'm a sucker for meta and stories about stories, afterall.
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spoiler below!
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*
*
*
*
The ending made me weep. The imagery of meeting Walter at the end of my life, seeing Leto in his shirt sleeves and curls, Ramiel reaching his hand out to me and asking "Would you like to tell me your story?" STILL GIVES ME CHILLS. And Claire's sacrifice? Oh sweet Claire. Though I'm angry and hurting on Rami and Hero's behalf, it was still the perfect ending and nothing else could have tied it up so well. Sign me up for an afterlife in The Library Realm, please!