bookwormali's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
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? It's complicated
4.5
rynaissanceenby's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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? Yes
4.25
A great conclusion to this trilogy. I also felt like the writing improved over the course of the trilogy, which was fun. Furthermore, I feel like each of the books had a different focus that really showed different facets of Hail in really enjoyable ways. I loved the character development and the way various interpersonal relationships developed. I thought the main antagonists motivation was somewhat weak, but overall, enjoyable book with satisfying conclusion.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Fire/Fire injury, and War
bundtcake's review
2.0
I LOVED the first two books, reread them happily, and went into this book hoping to love it too. But the more progress I made, the more I thought, "This is sloppy."
Yeah, this is going to be a rant.
- Wilson's identity has been the biggest mystery in the series, and the reveal... did not work for me. I mean, great, at least it wasn't her dad, but when the Big Reveal happened I wasn't shocked or even derisive. It was very "Who? Oh, Johar was right after all. That's dumb." There wasn't any emotional impact. I realize motives can be just that mundane as being denied something, but considering all the death and destruction, Wilson's near-godlike ability to reach out and touch people and ruin their lives, one guy who was snubbed didn't work for me. Honestly, a Saxon coup would've worked better because then it could've been a collection of people all acting as Wilson. One glorified neckbeard gets shut down and he spends four decades plotting? Okay werq.
- And then there's Leena. Leena? Seriously? Harsh. Leena's motive for betrayal? THAT I laughed at. Straight-up laughed at. It was so ridiculous, and it felt completely tacked-on like "ohhhh, women can be traitors too!" Don't worry, no one's forgotten Ganda. But the retconning of Leena being in on the plan early on and actually being the one to suggest to Wilson her hubby get involved? lololol
- Speaking of people being forgotten, it was a big deal when Hail spared General Prajapati in book 2, how she'd have an ITS agent following her around ready to blow her head off if she didn't help but it was ~worth it~ for Prajapati's genius, and... what? And what? Nothing. Lot of space battles, no mention of the general whose tactical genius saved her from the rope. I almost wish Hassan had died so they would've had to turn to Prajapati because that could've actually been interesting.
- Fasé was so obviously a plot device that nothing she did mattered to me. If someone needs to be alive for the plot, she brings them back (this worked with Emmory because it was made out to be a rare one-time thing that was effectively a miracle, but you can't repeat miracles because that makes them routine). If someone needs to be dead, she tells them they're going to die so they can be okay with it (CASPIAN YURI KRESKIN YOU WERE WASTED ON THIS BOOK). When Hao accused her of using humans as chess pieces... I lol'd bitterly. Because it was true. Very Hand Of The Author.
- Speaking of boring, one of the things I really liked about the first book was that Emmory and Zin were well-rounded as a couple. They joked around, they respected each other, they fought, they made-up, there was a sense that they had lives beyond their jobs. I liked it, and it was particularly nice to see a same-sex couple in sci-fi and have it not be a Thing. But three books in and it started to grate how thoroughly platonic and sexless they came off. Same with every other couple in the series: Alice and Taz (contriiiiived), Jia and Nakula, Fasé and Stasia, Johar and... Bial? Was that really happening? Okay, ngl Johar and Bial intrigued me because I couldn't figure out if they were on or not because they had just as many cues as other couples.
To be fair, there is an argument to be made that since the entire thing is framed through Hail's POV it would naturally follow you wouldn't see a lot of physical affection between couples, her being the empress and them being on the clock and all. And you could also argue that Hail, still mourning Portis, wouldn't be inclined to notice even if it did happen. But the problem with that is that she had real sparks with Taz and Toropov in book 1. Hell, there were times I seriously wondered if something would happen with Emmory! Chemistry was clearly possible. Yet Wagers preferred to hook everyone up in the background, chalk it up to comrades-in-arms half the time, and then just present the pairing ready-made. And no one ever kissed except on the cheek, except Alice and Taz at the end in the world's least interesting wedding. It almost felt tokenist to have one couple of every popular orientation. Like yay, diversity! Don't worry, none of them ever kiss so no one can be offended! And there's barely any hand-holding!
- Hail has doubted herself almost non-stop for three books, and I kept hoping that finally, finally she would realize that she's really rather capable as an empress after all. But the more she kept banging that drum through BTE, the more people reassured her "no, we're loyal to you because you're ~you~," the more I despaired. How many of those scenes were there? And in the end it didn't feel like there was any significant change. I can understand being galled by the responsibility, but by the end of BTE she'd been center-stage in a successful war to reclaim her throne. Impostor Syndrome is bad enough in real life, but in fiction after two books... sigh. WE GET IT. YOU'RE A GUNRUNNER, NOT AN EMPRESS. FINE. Trace is hooked on space crack, did that stop him from being king????? NO.
- When I saw there was another series planned, the lacklustre resolution finally made sense. After everything that happened, there was no real sense of finally taking a deep breath and relaxing, but maybe it's because I stopped holding my breath after Trace was dealt with. Wilson was dead? Alright. Leena's... to be honest I don't remember what happened to Leena, and I finished the book this morning. I suppose the wedding was meant to be an opportunity for Hail to look on her works and smile, but it was so externalized, the emotions so muted, that I didn't feel it. Things were just over. ~For now~. It was disappointing.
As for the writing...
- It often felt like reading a script. Endless reams of dialogue with very little scene-setting -- most of the book may as well have been set in the same featureless white room. Where was the slick scene-setting from the first two books? The showdown in the Bristols' old house could've happened anywhere for all the character it was given and emotional impact it had. It was a very bland, lifeless novel full of speechifying.
- The number of times some character dramatically delivered a line just for me to think, "Wait, X is in this scene? When did they show up? How long have they been here?" and then flip back to see when they first appeared... a number greater than 10, I'll say that much.
- The golden rule of fiction writing is "show, don't tell." I've already gone into excruciating detail about the ready-made couples, but what really got me was how often they were used to TELL us things about characters' personalities. Like after Bial died, Hao saying "oh Johar said he was hiding behind formality." The bizarre insistence that Fasé ~needs~ Stasia... until she doesn't. Zin telling Hail how torn up Emmory felt over her spaceTV death. I want to SEE these things, not have someone tell me after.
- This is sort of nit-picky but how many times did Hail have to lean against something and cross her ankles? HOW MANY TIMES? Drink every time Hail touches foreheads with someone, congrats you now have liver poisoning.
There were things I liked, but they were largely continuations of things from previous books. I think the one character who truly grew and experienced a complete arc was Hao, who got to reconcile the Cressen he knew with the Empress Hailimi he's stuck with. The other supporting characters like Caspel (CASPELLLLLLLL), Johar and Bakara Rai, and poor underdeveloped Dailun (did anyone else get the sense he was going to amount to more?) were fun as well. Despite my complaining about platonic couples, it was infinitely refreshing to read a genre book with a female MC and NO LOVE TRIANGLE and NO prioritizing romance over survival! THANK YOU GOD AND ALSO JESUS. Also great: the book was as quick a read as the other two. But I found myself thoroughly disappointed otherwise, and I'm not interested in the sequel series.
Yeah, this is going to be a rant.
Spoiler
Storytelling:- Wilson's identity has been the biggest mystery in the series, and the reveal... did not work for me. I mean, great, at least it wasn't her dad, but when the Big Reveal happened I wasn't shocked or even derisive. It was very "Who? Oh, Johar was right after all. That's dumb." There wasn't any emotional impact. I realize motives can be just that mundane as being denied something, but considering all the death and destruction, Wilson's near-godlike ability to reach out and touch people and ruin their lives, one guy who was snubbed didn't work for me. Honestly, a Saxon coup would've worked better because then it could've been a collection of people all acting as Wilson. One glorified neckbeard gets shut down and he spends four decades plotting? Okay werq.
- And then there's Leena. Leena? Seriously? Harsh. Leena's motive for betrayal? THAT I laughed at. Straight-up laughed at. It was so ridiculous, and it felt completely tacked-on like "ohhhh, women can be traitors too!" Don't worry, no one's forgotten Ganda. But the retconning of Leena being in on the plan early on and actually being the one to suggest to Wilson her hubby get involved? lololol
- Speaking of people being forgotten, it was a big deal when Hail spared General Prajapati in book 2, how she'd have an ITS agent following her around ready to blow her head off if she didn't help but it was ~worth it~ for Prajapati's genius, and... what? And what? Nothing. Lot of space battles, no mention of the general whose tactical genius saved her from the rope. I almost wish Hassan had died so they would've had to turn to Prajapati because that could've actually been interesting.
- Fasé was so obviously a plot device that nothing she did mattered to me. If someone needs to be alive for the plot, she brings them back (this worked with Emmory because it was made out to be a rare one-time thing that was effectively a miracle, but you can't repeat miracles because that makes them routine). If someone needs to be dead, she tells them they're going to die so they can be okay with it (CASPIAN YURI KRESKIN YOU WERE WASTED ON THIS BOOK). When Hao accused her of using humans as chess pieces... I lol'd bitterly. Because it was true. Very Hand Of The Author.
- Speaking of boring, one of the things I really liked about the first book was that Emmory and Zin were well-rounded as a couple. They joked around, they respected each other, they fought, they made-up, there was a sense that they had lives beyond their jobs. I liked it, and it was particularly nice to see a same-sex couple in sci-fi and have it not be a Thing. But three books in and it started to grate how thoroughly platonic and sexless they came off. Same with every other couple in the series: Alice and Taz (contriiiiived), Jia and Nakula, Fasé and Stasia, Johar and... Bial? Was that really happening? Okay, ngl Johar and Bial intrigued me because I couldn't figure out if they were on or not because they had just as many cues as other couples.
To be fair, there is an argument to be made that since the entire thing is framed through Hail's POV it would naturally follow you wouldn't see a lot of physical affection between couples, her being the empress and them being on the clock and all. And you could also argue that Hail, still mourning Portis, wouldn't be inclined to notice even if it did happen. But the problem with that is that she had real sparks with Taz and Toropov in book 1. Hell, there were times I seriously wondered if something would happen with Emmory! Chemistry was clearly possible. Yet Wagers preferred to hook everyone up in the background, chalk it up to comrades-in-arms half the time, and then just present the pairing ready-made. And no one ever kissed except on the cheek, except Alice and Taz at the end in the world's least interesting wedding. It almost felt tokenist to have one couple of every popular orientation. Like yay, diversity! Don't worry, none of them ever kiss so no one can be offended! And there's barely any hand-holding!
- Hail has doubted herself almost non-stop for three books, and I kept hoping that finally, finally she would realize that she's really rather capable as an empress after all. But the more she kept banging that drum through BTE, the more people reassured her "no, we're loyal to you because you're ~you~," the more I despaired. How many of those scenes were there? And in the end it didn't feel like there was any significant change. I can understand being galled by the responsibility, but by the end of BTE she'd been center-stage in a successful war to reclaim her throne. Impostor Syndrome is bad enough in real life, but in fiction after two books... sigh. WE GET IT. YOU'RE A GUNRUNNER, NOT AN EMPRESS. FINE. Trace is hooked on space crack, did that stop him from being king????? NO.
- When I saw there was another series planned, the lacklustre resolution finally made sense. After everything that happened, there was no real sense of finally taking a deep breath and relaxing, but maybe it's because I stopped holding my breath after Trace was dealt with. Wilson was dead? Alright. Leena's... to be honest I don't remember what happened to Leena, and I finished the book this morning. I suppose the wedding was meant to be an opportunity for Hail to look on her works and smile, but it was so externalized, the emotions so muted, that I didn't feel it. Things were just over. ~For now~. It was disappointing.
As for the writing...
- It often felt like reading a script. Endless reams of dialogue with very little scene-setting -- most of the book may as well have been set in the same featureless white room. Where was the slick scene-setting from the first two books? The showdown in the Bristols' old house could've happened anywhere for all the character it was given and emotional impact it had. It was a very bland, lifeless novel full of speechifying.
- The number of times some character dramatically delivered a line just for me to think, "Wait, X is in this scene? When did they show up? How long have they been here?" and then flip back to see when they first appeared... a number greater than 10, I'll say that much.
- The golden rule of fiction writing is "show, don't tell." I've already gone into excruciating detail about the ready-made couples, but what really got me was how often they were used to TELL us things about characters' personalities. Like after Bial died, Hao saying "oh Johar said he was hiding behind formality." The bizarre insistence that Fasé ~needs~ Stasia... until she doesn't. Zin telling Hail how torn up Emmory felt over her spaceTV death. I want to SEE these things, not have someone tell me after.
- This is sort of nit-picky but how many times did Hail have to lean against something and cross her ankles? HOW MANY TIMES? Drink every time Hail touches foreheads with someone, congrats you now have liver poisoning.
There were things I liked, but they were largely continuations of things from previous books. I think the one character who truly grew and experienced a complete arc was Hao, who got to reconcile the Cressen he knew with the Empress Hailimi he's stuck with. The other supporting characters like Caspel (CASPELLLLLLLL), Johar and Bakara Rai, and poor underdeveloped Dailun (did anyone else get the sense he was going to amount to more?) were fun as well. Despite my complaining about platonic couples, it was infinitely refreshing to read a genre book with a female MC and NO LOVE TRIANGLE and NO prioritizing romance over survival! THANK YOU GOD AND ALSO JESUS. Also great: the book was as quick a read as the other two. But I found myself thoroughly disappointed otherwise, and I'm not interested in the sequel series.
isadorawonder's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
emmory, fase, hail, and hao are the baddest bitches of the galaxy
kimu's review
5.0
I started this right after finishing book 2 of this series, and then I needed a break. Excellent conclusion to the series, definitely enjoyed it.
jennms_qkw's review
5.0
What a wrap! Empress Indeed with Heir and Prince consort! <3 I love this world. I accidentally read the book too fast the first time because I thought it was a re-read, so I did it over right away and wow.
jenibus's review
5.0
The final chapter in the Indranian War trilogy, K.B. Wagers sticks the landing. The book itself probably is a 4, with some slight pacing issues as we approach Hail's plan for retaking her planet and finally confronting Wilson after all that he's done, but the ending of the series was so strong that I'm bumping the score up to 5 for that. Wagers made me care so much about these fictional characters that a certain death scene (obviously not saying who. There are many characters in this book and I cared about all of them so have fun guessing) made me tear up at my desk while I was listening to it.
The series ends in a very satisfying way, and I am intrigued about what is going to happen during her next series, about the Farian race.
The series ends in a very satisfying way, and I am intrigued about what is going to happen during her next series, about the Farian race.
maeve_spry's review
5.0
Excellent
Great read. Gulped it down in one fast read, and enjoyed every second of that. Brilliant end to an excellent space opera.
Great read. Gulped it down in one fast read, and enjoyed every second of that. Brilliant end to an excellent space opera.