Book: Shadow and Son by Gretchen Powell Fox
Reviewed by IvI
Rating: 3.75/5
Thank you so much, Gretchen, for this advance copy! I can't believe this story is now complete 💐
I loved books 1 and 2, and though this wasn't the ending I was hoping for, I can honestly tell why we got it. Everyone deserved their HEA. Though not everyone survived, I got the feeling that they got away too easily in the end, and maybe there should have been more casualties? I mean, when fighting difficult battles with pessimistic odds, I always find it hard to believe when almost every character survives 👀
The battles were amazing, the fight scenes were really well written, full of action, powers, creatures, and gore. I enjoyed reading them all and, with the expanded world-building and the map, they were one of my favourite things! 🗺️
On the other hand, I felt like I read a few chapters where nothing was going on. They didn't add anything important to the story, only to have a different POV and more word count for the book. I love reading different POVs, especially when the characters are far away from each other... but in this case, for me, some of those chapters weren't useful at all. I did adore Nox. Such a mystery! But that "almost love triangle" felt forced. Sorry, I'm not a fan of it 🫤
I loved seeing Ellie so vulnerable and conflicted, especially after everything she had to endure. But I didn't like reading the "assault scene". Not sure if it was because of how it was written, or because the act itself was so out of the blue for me. I'm not sure. It didn't fit with the story 💔
That being said, this trilogy is an incredible fantasy, with a lovable found family, a fierce FMC, a cute puppy-like MMC, and an amazing magical world threatened by a dark prophecy. I truly recommend this story! ❤️🔥