Thursday 16 June 2016

Dynasty - Everealm #5

Trouble has been brewing in Everealm ever since Queen Breestlin was named the new ruler of Junacave. Meddling kings, queens, wizards, and imps, have wreaked havoc on the land and its inhabitants. After the assassinations of kings in two separate kingdoms, followed by a stern warning to ward off retaliation, the balance of peace has come to a head. Our rulers must decide how to deal with the tyrant King Silas, once and for all.

Magic has shifted ever since the breaking of the Blood Moon Crystal and return of female magics to the realm. The Elder Mage must set forth new boundaries for all wizards and sorceresses, in hopes to earn their trust and prevent another war between the divine creatures. But secrets hiding in the shadows could unravel Sidonie’s plans before they can even begin.

Join us for the exciting conclusion to the Everealm Series!

First up, I was given a free copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review, and also a word of warning; minor spoilers are included in this review for those who haven't read Dynasty, or any other books in the Everealm series. If you don't want to be spoiled, be like Ross.


So, it's finally here, the end of Everealm! This was one of the first books I reviewed for my blog almost a year ago, and book two was the first blog tour I got involved with, so this series has a special place in my heart.

Is it a technical five star read? No. Did I enjoy it enough to give it five stars? ...Almost!

There are a couple of reasons that, in all honestly, if this was any other series I'd have given it a lower rating for. First off, there are a fair few grammar and punctuation problems with this book, and although I don't usually count this against indie authors because copy editors are bloody expensive and complaining makes me feel like a bitch, but there were a fair few in the opening chapters alone that did start to impact my enjoyment of reading a little. Similarly, the pov switches happen much more abruptly in this book, sometimes from one sentence to the next and back again, particularly between Daliah and Xavier, which made it tricky to follow who was speaking/acting/thinking. I've always loved the unconventional structure of Everealm, it's one of the things that helps give it its boundless depth and imagination without the author behind tied to certain characters and povs for pages at a time, but it got a little too much even for me.

But quibbles aside, the finale of this series is a wonderful read. It ties up all the dangling plot threads and follows its rich cast of characters through family dramas. After following the characters through so much in the last four books, it's just really nice to see where they end up by the end. Yes it would have been nice if Silas had got the send off he deserved rather than bumped off in a chapter. And yes it would have been nice if not every character had ended up paired off and on the road to marriage and babies (there are other happily ever afters!), but despite its faults, I couldn't stop reading this book, even though I didn't want to get to the end of it. I've absolutely adored this whole series, it's just a really lovely, enchanting read. It's a breath of fresh air after I've found myself getting a little jaded with some of my more recent YA fantasy reads - usually my go-to genre. Not every character has to have a tragic backstory, not every female has to be a unique and special snowflake and not everything has to revolve around a single character, so it's been great to find a fantasy series that hasn't felt bound by these convention, while still managing to retain the best bits of them.

Of course, no Everealm book would be complete without my New Favourite Character, and this time it's the young princess Sarita. Her competitive, bickering relationship with the newly crown king Cassidy is a joy to read, and her fierce independance at something like aged 10, is awesome. Definitely a character I'll be happy to follow in future books!

Speaking of which, J.D.Wright's new/companion series; Songs of Everealm, is starting soon, and the groundwork has been laid with the next generation of characters in Sarita, Cassidy and Gabby. It also means I don't have to go cold turkey now that this series is over. It's one I'm going to miss, but all good things must come to an end!




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