christina_chen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Blood, Death, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Addiction, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Bullying, Gaslighting, Genocide, and Torture
kathrynleereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Across time and space, they both find themselves being manipulated and coerced by Corien, leader of the angels and the Undying Empire.
•
Spoiler
I will say, however, that I found her ending to be quite fitting. It was a perfect balance of demonstrating that she made the right choice, while also acknowledging that she was still too deeply connected to the Empirium to live a normal human life anymore.Spoiler
My favorite hat on Audric was definitely fatherhood at the end of the book. Seeing him moving on from the events of the prior years and really just embracing his role as Eliana’s dad was wonderful to read.Spoiler
The other main inconsistency with Ludivine was the fact that she left.This was so out-of-character for her that I actually went back and reread a bit to make sure I hadn’t missed something.
Evyline - Honestly, Rielle didn’t deserve Evyline. She was loyal to Rielle without a single doubt.
Even when Rielle sided with the angels, Evyline shifted her loyalty to Audric, knowing that he was Rielle’s best chance to come back to herself and the right side.
Spoiler
Her trust in Rielle as they walked to Rielle’s death was so complete and incredible after everything Rielle had put her through.Garver - I love this man. Right in the Furyborn prologue, he had reminded Simon to not judge Rielle too harshly because she had once been just a girl.
He seemed to understand better than most of the characters that what Rielle was going through was not her fault (at least entirely).
Tal - At no point in this series was I a fan of Tal. His whole relationship with Rielle was so weird and bordered on the line of an obsession.
Spoiler
I wasn’t sad when she killed him.Obritsa - For such a young girl, Obritsa really had herself together.
Atheria - I love Atheria with my whole heart. Her presence acted as a sort of moral compass.
I also appreciated that Atheria’s role as a moral compass extended past Rielle to Audric as well. She was by his side the whole time he fought, helping when she could, but being a constant supporting presence.
•
ELIANA'S TIMELINE
Eliana - I’ve been trying for days to put down all my feelings about Eliana and the ending that she got, but I just can’t seem to fin the right words.
Spoiler
And all that growth, all the strength that this beautiful girl held, all the trials and hardships she went through were erased, just like that.I’m so grateful for Zahra and the fact that, through her, a spark of the person that Eliana was still lives on.
I’m happy that she now gets to grow up properly, with Audric and Zahra and Simon there, but the hardships that she went through made her the person she was.
Simon - Simon’s story simultaneously aggrevated me and made me so deeply sad.
The idea that he underwent such incredible torture starting at the age of eight is horrible.
And for that revelation to happen only hours before he is then killed by Corien? Brutal.
He deserved so much more than that ending, and I hope that little Simon eventually gets the ending he deserves with little Eliana.
The Prophet - After a book and a half of guessing who The Prophet was, Lightbringer finally confirmed my hunch.
Spoiler
Ludivine always tried to be so respectful when entering someone’s mind, and I found it difficult to believe that she would ravage Simon’s mind like she did.He followed in his sister's footsteps but stayed true to the person he was, studying and loving stories more than anything else.
Spoiler
I also think it was fitting for him to go with Eliana and be with her on the terrace that night. For Eliana's sake, I think that was the only way for Remy's story to end.Spoiler
She had the opportunity to see the life that Eliana lived in the future before it was erased and therefore was able to see how she had loved and died for Eliana."May I tell you the rest?" she asked. "May I tell you the story of your daughter?"
Tears in his eyes, completely undone, Audric nodded, and then he listened through the night as Zahra spoke of a future that would never be.
Those were the words that broke me and finally drew out all the tears I’d been holding in.
Suffice it to say, Lightbringer broke me.
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Physical abuse, Violence, Death, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, Torture, Toxic relationship, and War
Moderate: Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Confinement, Death of parent, Grief, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Sexual content, and Slavery
Minor: Animal cruelty, Cursing, Pregnancy, and Animal death
eve_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
⁕ Rielle is one of the most complex heroines in the New Adult Fantasy genre and no one can convince me otherwise. Thank you, Claire Legrand, for writing a woman who has depth, makes morally flawed decisions and is not guided solely by her relationships with men. While I absolutely don't agree with or support many of Rielle's decisions, it means so much to see a woman truly put herself first.
⁕ Without giving anything away, this is a series you want to read if you're looking for something to make you FEEL. I'm talking Song of Achilles/Clockwork Princess levels of emotion in the last several chapters.
Spoiler
⁕ SPOILER: A huge plot point of this book is that Eliana will change her present by going back and altering her past (which she does achieve by the end of the novel). We find out what happens to her but none of the other important secondary characters from her future timeline! Characters I became attached to! And there wasn't even a meaningful goodbye! Ugh!To read my full review, visit: https://evereads.online/
For regular book-related content, follow my Instagram account: @eve_reads
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Gore, Death, Child death, Child abuse, War, Torture, Violence, Murder, and Body horror
valpyre's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I mean, this was a fine conclusion. I'm pretty much just glad it's over.
[major spoilers ahead]
As with previous book in the series, for me, the book dragged for the first half, and only really started picking up speed and interest in the second. Honestly, I would attribute most of that interest to Audric's chapters, which I actually found pretty compelling in his struggle with grief, depression, and leadership. Looking back, I can understand that Rielle was grieving too, but I simply didn't understand how she got so taken in by Corien each and every time,
Spoiler
to the point where she killed Tal after seemingly having come to her senses and taking some initiative.Eliana's story was pretty good, what with the time travel and working through Simon's outward betrayal, but again, the first half was just a bunch of her being tortured, till she
Spoiler
started working with the Prophet and the action picked up.Spoiler
Even so, the climactic point and ending fell a little flat for me -- to me, Eliana seemed to convince Rielle to not kill Audric fairly easily. Also I think LeGrand did a disservice by having Ludivine reveal herself as the Prophet in her own POV chapter, versus in Eliana's, as I think that would have been more impactful, even if similarly predictable.Spoiler
I was also a little confused at the end when they started talking about repairing the gate -- both Eliana and Rielle knew the true deceit behind the angels being sent to the Deep, and I was surprised nothing was going to be done about it.Graphic: Violence and Gore
Moderate: Mental illness and Sexual content
haleybsreads's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, and Violence
alizam's review against another edition
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Spoiler
It is, essentially, all setup for a canonical time-travel fix-it fic.Spoiler
The Bad Future of Eliana's story never happened, thanks to a time travel shenanigan handwaved by the narrative, but in handwaving that it makes her whole plot arc feel pointless. Everybody dies except Eliana, Simon, and Audric, three characters I do NOT give a shit about.And I have to bring up the problem with this book that is heavily discoursed by book twitter et large: Yes, there is explicit sex. No, it's not appropriate for the young teens who will read this.
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Infidelity, Vomit, and Violence
kpburk's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Slavery, and Violence