I’ve taken a while to start reading the third book of Fate’s forsaken series – but devoured it all the faster. So, let’s get right into what I can say about it.

The first book was, due to the fact many of the main characters shared the plotline, quite lively even with all the dangers looming around.

The second book was darker in nature as the main two characters – Kael and Kyleigh – went their separate ways to tackle a different part of the problem.

Now that they’re back together, the story flows as well as the first book but keeps the good part of the second – delving deeper into the backstory and revealing more about the conflict – and Kael’s background.

Before I touch the plot… the first two books were named after weapons – the first after Kyleigh’s sword, the second after the daggers of Countess D’mere’s assassin. The third book breaks this somewhat, naming it after an alloy used to make weapons with a purpose the name gives away, I guess.

With the way the second book ended and the balance of power shifting, the story sees Kael take a pro-active role as he sets out for the mountains. Before he reaches them, he encounters a blind man bound for the mountains, who has a lot to say about the past, and a group of shamans aiming to get their justice on the traitor who led to the creation of the shifters now under the king’s (or his lackey’s) rule.

Yet, the main conflict comes as he returns to his former home – only to see that a group of wildmen had taken residence there, chased from the mountains’ upper reaches by Titus – the very man who had sent Kael on the run at the beginning. And these broken wildmen – less so Gwen, their stubborn and annoying leader – won’t just let Kael go, less so Kyleigh with who Gwen has a few grudges.

In the meantime, there are some hints for the story that’ll be developed in the fourth, final book, from the King’s PoV – but the most stays on the current main task – to rid the mountains of Titus.

And even though Kael left for this task (almost) alone, the giants and the pirates won’t be left out of the fight – and several of the other characters will get a chance to shine.

The last thing I can say about the story without spoilers is that Kael’s development reaches its peak as he finally gets to fight his doubts and gain some confidence while still being what he is.

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Read date: 22.-26.11.2019
Published: 29.7.2014
Goodreads/Amazon rating: 4,23/4,6
My rating: 90%
Length: 606 pages (Kindle edition)
My highlights

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As I said, the book had better flow and was livelier (this time mostly because of the wildmen and Baird the blind bard) than the second, feeling much more like the first while going deeper into the backstory, especially the whisperers and the conflict that almost ended their kind.