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The Last Mortal Bond
Written by Brian Staveley
Narrated by Simon Vance
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Start ListeningDescription
The trilogy that began with The Emperor's Blades and continued in The Providence of Fire reaches its epic conclusion, as war engulfs the Annurian Empire in Brian Staveley's The Last Mortal Bond
The ancient csestriim are back to finish their purge of humanity; armies march against the capital; leaches, solitary beings who draw power from the natural world to fuel their extraordinary abilities, maneuver on all sides to affect the outcome of the war; and capricious gods walk the earth in human guise with agendas of their own.
But the three imperial siblings at the heart of it all-Valyn, Adare, and Kaden-come to understand that even if they survive the holocaust unleashed on their world, there may be no reconciling their conflicting visions of the future.
Book Actions
Start ListeningBook Information
The Last Mortal Bond
Written by Brian Staveley
Narrated by Simon Vance
Description
The trilogy that began with The Emperor's Blades and continued in The Providence of Fire reaches its epic conclusion, as war engulfs the Annurian Empire in Brian Staveley's The Last Mortal Bond
The ancient csestriim are back to finish their purge of humanity; armies march against the capital; leaches, solitary beings who draw power from the natural world to fuel their extraordinary abilities, maneuver on all sides to affect the outcome of the war; and capricious gods walk the earth in human guise with agendas of their own.
But the three imperial siblings at the heart of it all-Valyn, Adare, and Kaden-come to understand that even if they survive the holocaust unleashed on their world, there may be no reconciling their conflicting visions of the future.
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Reviews
Taking place months after the end of The Providence of Fire, The Last Mortal Bond still has a few twists awaiting the protagonists. The Urghul still threaten Annur, and Il Tornja continues his war that started centuries ago. All four POV characters (Adare, Kaden, Valyn, and Gwenna) continue to push for the Empire. Adare has tied herself even closer to Il Tornja, by having a child with him. Her belief that he is needed to fight the Urghul has already influenced her actions, but now he has a new vulnerability to exploit. Kaden has only Shin teachings to guide him, but he is beginning to wonder if their way is as fallible as any other. He also becomes aware of the danger of staying in the vaniate for too long. Gwenna has the burden of command now that Valyn has gone missing, and there has been no word from the Eyrie.The dynamic between all the characters, especially Kaden and Adare is well done. It's also frustrating when Kaden and Adare could accomplish more if they would stop withholding information or outright lying. But it can also keep the reader guessing, since it's not always immediately clear whose information is correct. A solid conclusion, though the ending did feel a bit too sudden.
Rating: 4I enjoyed this book at lot. For the ending of a series, it was definitely one of the better offerings out there. The story is fantastic, and there are a lot of interesting characters here with many of them being very memorable. Although there isn't as much world-building in this book like the previous ones, it's still pretty great. There's so much to this world that I want to learn more about, like the Skullsworn, the Csestriim, the Atmani, and much more.
However, there were issues with it that I had. As much as I loved the characters, some of them were severely underutilized. Two of my favorites from previous books make short appearances here and then are never used again. I also don't like the way the villains were handled. Despite absolutely epic battles to meet these "final bosses", the encounters themselves were very short and unsatisfying. I wanted more from the people who have terrorized the protagonists for 3 books.
Despite this, I would still highly recommend this series. It is definitely one of the better ones out there, and I look forward to reading more from Mr. Staveley.
Rating: 4However, there were issues with it that I had. As much as I loved the characters, some of them were severely underutilized. Two of my favorites from previous books make short appearances here and then are never used again. I also don't like the way the villains were handled. Despite absolutely epic battles to meet these "final bosses", the encounters themselves were very short and unsatisfying. I wanted more from the people who have terrorized the protagonists for 3 books.
Despite this, I would still highly recommend this series. It is definitely one of the better ones out there, and I look forward to reading more from Mr. Staveley.
This was a great finish to a very entertaining series .The author kept you guessing what was going to happen and wraps everything up nicely at the end.
5 Stars for a really great book and series. All grimdark fantasy fans should pick this up and read it!!!
Rating: 55 Stars for a really great book and series. All grimdark fantasy fans should pick this up and read it!!!
A fantastic series built in a well-developed world. The story continues following the 3 siblings pretty exclusively, which I feel built a great connection with the characters as they go through their hardships and start to change. I really enjoyed the worldbuilding, with the different civilizations and their gods creating an interesting dynamic and some interesting questions. The writing and storyline are great. The POV is written well that the reader often isn't sure what is correct information, creating plenty of twists and turns within the story. The ending is good, if not a bit sudden, but the build up and intricate storylines are what really make this book shine.
Rating: 5I simply don't want it to be over. I need more of the Unhewn Throne.From start to finish this has been fantasy writing at its best. Staveley has written a masterpiece.The characters are so in depth and fleshed out and unique down to the smallest details. Even beyond Adare, Kaden and Valyn, who are all brilliantly written, it is some of the supporting cast that truly make this novel and series so great. Characters like Kegellen, Nira, Sig, Pyrre, Annick and Gwenna. Oh Gwenna Sharpe; have I ever loved a character from a fantasy series more than I love Gwenna? I don't think so. I don't think I have read any other fantasy series that has so many bad-ass female characters. When it comes to the protagonists however, what I loved about the series is that they are all fallible. They each have their strengths and weaknesses, and they all make mistakes. There is no finding a shining sword and becoming a hero in this series. Adare, Kaden and Valyn all have huge character arch's as well from book one to book 3. There is growth to their characters that feels correct and true to the what they each experience individually.The plot in this third installment does not leave you wanting. There are twists and turns and with every chapter you are racing further and faster to a conclusion that will have you edge of your seat. This third book had a lot of action in it, that rarely lets up. Because of this it had a much faster pace then the previous two, moving the story along a lot quicker. There were fewer mysteries in this installment than in the first two, but even with out the shock value, the novel still worked in a way that made you not want to put it down, and page after page, you needed to continue to know what would happen next.Staveley is a fantastic writer, and I would personally put him right at the top of the list of writer's in this genre.I hope and cannot wait for more tales in this world. I truly hope this is not the last we see of the Malkeenians and their rag tag group of supporting characters.
Rating: 5Great listen! Loved the intrigue, and action throughout. Highly recommended.
Rating: 5The ending was horribly rushed. Very disappointed in this third book, and dissatisfied as a reader.
Rating: 2The best series I've ever read, very engaging and unpredictable.
Rating: 5
I thoroughly enjoyed this series. Spoiler alert: it ends rather abruptly, but that's better than a long drawn out finish that is foreseeable from 10 hours away. Although, this ending was too foreseeable. I'm not much one for happy endings, but whatever...
Rating: 5Taking place months after the end of The Providence of Fire, The Last Mortal Bond still has a few twists awaiting the protagonists. The Urghul still threaten Annur, and Il Tornja continues his war that started centuries ago. All four POV characters (Adare, Kaden, Valyn, and Gwenna) continue to push for the Empire. Adare has tied herself even closer to Il Tornja, by having a child with him. Her belief that he is needed to fight the Urghul has already influenced her actions, but now he has a new vulnerability to exploit. Kaden has only Shin teachings to guide him, but he is beginning to wonder if their way is as fallible as any other. He also becomes aware of the danger of staying in the vaniate for too long. Gwenna has the burden of command now that Valyn has gone missing, and there has been no word from the Eyrie.The dynamic between all the characters, especially Kaden and Adare is well done. It's also frustrating when Kaden and Adare could accomplish more if they would stop withholding information or outright lying. But it can also keep the reader guessing, since it's not always immediately clear whose information is correct. A solid conclusion, though the ending did feel a bit too sudden.
Rating: 4
Part epic poem, part prose song, this tale throbs with deep, determined searching of the heart of the human soul.
Rating: 5Amazing story second time through and just as great as I remembered
Rating: 5Very good. Like most fantasy there are many unlikely conveniences but there is an underpinning of truth so one can forgive the details.
Rating: 5I really wanted to like this book a lot, but the ending of it just ruined it for me. So many things left unanswered, and so many interactions just seemed rushed and overlooked. One of the big final battles happens right “off screen”! We hear about it from the room over and find out the results. We also never find out what happened with the fate of the newly added person’s perspective. Also I found the very last chapter to be extraordinarily confusing and almost made me feel like the entire series didn’t matter?
Rating: 3The one woman that needed to die ended with everything i feel the time i spent reading all 3 books was a waste
Rating: 1
Great characters and plot . Really enjoyed the 3 books. Add them to your reading list!!
Rating: 5
I loved the first book - fresh ideas, worlds and characters. Unfortunatelly "The Last Mortal Bond" is the worst of the three. I was a bit disappointed with the ending, all of the interesting characters died or got scared beyond repair. And in this last book there were too many repetitions of things that happened in previous or even the same book (to make the book longer or to help readers with Alzheimer ?).
Rating: 3Pros: excellent world-building, lots of action, complex characters and plotCons: minor irritantsNote: This is the third book in the series and as such my review contains spoilers for the earlier books. This is an excellent series. You can read my review of book 1 here.It’s been several months since the events in The Providence of Fire. Adare remains with Il Tornja in the North, protecting Annur from the barbarian Urghul. When a messenger from Kaden’s republic arrives, asking for her to return to the capital as a puppet ruler, a series of events unfolds, allowing Il Tornja to pursue his true goal. Meanwhile the remains of Valyn’s wing return to the Eyrie to find out what’s happened there, while Kaden tries to untangle the mystery of gods walking the earth.The first few chapters get you back up to speed with regards to what everyone’s been up to the past few months. It’s a bit disorienting, but things quickly get interesting as the intrigues pile up. There are a number of plots weaving around each other, getting ever more complicated as time goes on.There’s a fair amount of action, with descriptions of war, torture (limited), and a LOT of one on one or small group battles. The action is varied and never dull. In between, there’s a fair bit of politics (mainly Adare) and philosophical questions (mainly Kaden). One scene greatly confused me for a few pages until I finally figured out what was happening. As with the other books the world-building is fantastic. We get to see more of the world, including learning more about the Skullsworn and their religious order. The motivations of the characters are as complex as the plot. People make, question, and regret decisions. They act in own best interests based on their information of what’s going on in the world. They lie to advantage and tell the truth when it suits them. They’re infuriating at times, and completely understandable.It’s a great ending to an excellent series.
Rating: 4
Enjoyable but like a lot of fantasy series it does drag on a bit
Rating: 4I've spent too much of my time with these siblings and their rev'd up associates. And the gods are downright tedious.
Rating: 3