Days stretch and pass. It seems pretty insane to perceive that we are almost a whole month into the new year already, that this year’s January will come to its end soon. While I’ve been trying to squeeze in some time practicing Chopin’s Etude on the sly, I’ve been reading quite a lot also which certainly indicates good news. After three books spent with Mare, Cal, and the Scarlet Guard, War Storm by Victoria Aveyard becomes the fourth book I finished this year.
Disclaimer: Please stop reading if you have yet to read Red Queen, Glass Sword, and King’s Cage. My reviews of the prior books can be found here, here, and here.
After Cal’s betrayal, Jon’s prophecy begins to become clear: Mare will rise, and rise alone. Now walking towards different paths, Mare and Cal strive for their own goal, though they still need to uphold their alliance in hope of defeating Maven and the Lakelanders. The big, final war will come soon, and Mare determines to keep Maven at bay and her loved ones safe.
It has been three days since I finished War Storm, and while the book didn't leave me with a major hangover, I must still admit that the finale was everything I ever wanted from this series.
Like most of the reviewers before me have said, it’s hard to talk about this book without putting everything in the open, so to make this post spoiler-free, I suppose some short highlights would do: War Storm was good; the best even out of four.
The political intrigue and with it all the planning, betrayal, and twist, followed by the romance, were all in all quite shocking. I could understand Mare a little better here, and Cal was still the same old fickle Cal, though I could understand his choice and the weight of his burden somehow. Despite the fact that there were some unnecessary fillers here and there, the story still flowed really well. It’s also clear that I was hooked entirely by the several changes of point-of-views.
I love having something to look forward to every night, and this book had unexpectedly been a good addition to my night-time routine. It only took a better part of one week, unfortunately. I found it strange that somehow 600+ pages didn’t feel like enough while at the same time it felt like they were.
Will I pick up Broken Thorne to uncover the unanswered? Not in the near future, I think, but I will never say never to the possibility. For now, I’m satisfied enough with what War Storm has offered. The ending was not quite what I had in mind, but let’s say I managed to believe what I wanted to believe.
Actual rating: 4.3★
