Queen of the Night Guild

The author drops us right where Thief of the Night Guild ended. Horror that Ilanna had lost all of what she had worked so hard to attain. True, she had her freedom, but to lose those whom she loved to share it with is an emotion we all wish never to experience ourselves. <br /><br />The Night Guild is built on the sins of mankind, where the innocent to survive must face the danger or die. The author takes the reader into the anguish of those whose freedom has been ripped from them, then to be part of the Night Guild whether they wish it or not. The life is for those who have the strength to survive, however they can.<br /><br />Ilanna is a young woman who faces much in this three-book series. Her experiences of tragedy, successes and determination had me admire who she becomes. She is intelligent and skilled in her trade and equally determined to find those who have taken her son from her, taking her to the brink of certain death.<br /><br />This gripping and gritty tale will stay long with me, rethinking the scenes where friends are there to help, where Illanna is left alone with impossible odds and comes out the victor, where evil is found in the most benign faces. I highly recommend this read if you love a thriller written with a writing style which keeps you on the edge of your chair.

4.5/5<br /><br />QUEEN OF THE NIGHT GUILD is the third installment of the QUEEN OF THIEVES series by Andy Peloquin. It is the adventures of thief Ilanna, who was sold by her debt-ridden father to the titular Night Guild. The Night Guild is a Thieves Guild straight out of Dungeons and Dragon with trained assassins, soldiers, thieves, and poisoners. They are a powerful organization in her home kingdom but not the most powerful as she finds out throughout this book.<br /><br />Andy Peloquin is one of my favorite authors today. I have only read three of his novels but they have been consistently some of the best, easiest to read, and entertaining fantasy I have read in years. The story flows incredibly well from beginning to end with the main character developing from a scared and traumatized young girl to a hardened bitter cynic who wants nothing more to do with the Night Guild yet knows nothing else.<br /><br />Readers should obviously start with the first book as a summary spoils the twist of the previous novel's conclusion. Needless to say, Illana has lost her entire life in an act of arson and it has driven her half-insane. Consumed with a need for revenge, she attempts to track down the people who did it as the Night Guild falls prey to a conspiracy against it. Illana attempts to turn the tables on her enemies but her anger, bitterness, and arrogance result in some of her solutions making the problem much-much worse.<br /><br />I like the way Andy Peloquin handles the character of Illana as she's an incredibly nuanced character. The Night Guild has done a number on her but she's used to being able to manipulate it and its members pretty well. There's a great moment in the book when she deals with a genuinely honest man (who is not particularly nice) and it completely throws her. The fact she can't bribe, blackmail, intimidate, or entice him leaves her completely cold. The fact she can't appeal to his sense of justice is also great because she's never had to try and wouldn't even know where to begin.<br /><br />The action in the book is extremely well done with Illana being closer to John McClain than more invincible heroes. She takes a rather severe beating with injuries that leave a permanent mark, starting with burns on her hand and face from the fire at the beginning. Illana suffers badly for her actions and yet she trudges on, which is something that makes the book feel stronger. I'm reminded a bit of Katniss Everdeen's literary depiction as what made those books memorable was the fact it authentically depicted the trauma she suffered.<br /><br />The Duke is a fantastic villain of the story as he's wonderfully self-righteous and believable. He genuinely believes he's a good man and is uninterested in what Illana is selling. He also has a great love for his brother, the King, that makes him credible. However, he's also someone who shares his society's disdain for bastards and doesn't consider them a part of the family. His lies directly contribute to the suffering of virtually the entire city. I also enjoyed the Bloody Hands as they prove to be a brutish and detestable group of thugs. I'm not sure I really buy the Night Guild is any better than them but I understand why Illana believes it.<br /><br />In conclusion, I really enjoyed this book. Illana is a fantastically written character and a well-done bi-heroine (though romance is nothing she's terribly interested in). I look forward to picking up the sequel series when it comes out but this trilogy stands on its own. It's a book series that could theoretically be classified as a Young Adult one (albeit a very grimdark one ala Joe Abercrombie's work for teenagers) but adults should enjoy it even more.

This has been an exceptionally thrilling dark fantasy trilogy all along and, the final book did not disappoint. Andy Peloquin gave us a kick-ass heroine who started out with nothing, was beaten, broken and abused in all aspects, betrayed by her very own father when sold off at the tender age of seven to the Night Guild to be turned into the thief which she was forced to become but Ilanna proves the saying that what doesn't kill us makes us stronger because every time she rose from the ashes like the Phoenix. In this 3rd book Ilanna loses more of her loved one that she ever could anticipate as she saw the Bloody Hand from Voramis come to Praamis to take over the night guild and she vowed that she would let no one bring her city as low as they had done to Voramis. She challenges the mighty Duke and the King himself as she barters for their aid to save her city but not all people are as honourable as Ilanna, even though they call her thief. She is audacious, daring and courageous, self-confident and not ready to relent until her fight is won. She never turns her back on her friends not even when her own life is at risk and her eloquence wins the day even when battling with those more scholarly than she ever had the opportunity to be! The ending is amazing but makes the whole read even more worthwhile. Though this is the finale of the trilogy I look forward to reading more about Ilanna and her comrades in the Night Guild or what is left of them as she prepares to make the Night Guild meet her higher level of expectations and turn them all into better humans than they ever dreamt of becoming.

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️<br />Destroyed emotionally by the death of her friends ,and mentors, Ilanna Knows only devastation, she’s struggling to keep heart and soul together , without the people who structure her life she doesn’t feel she can go on . <br /><br />But now another enemy is lingering , set to rip apart the last part of her life . <br />She will only have one chance to save at least some of the Guild , but will she choose the path , and it she does will the Guild ever forgive her . Can she forgive herself . <br /><br />With some excellent and exciting battle scenes that will make your gut churn and your blood race , this is a perfect 3rd book in this series. <br /><br />Absolutely brilliant , hooked from the moment I opened the book , it’s a fantastic read . <br />I wish I could give it more than 5 stars . <br />Very highly recommend! <br /><br />I received a copy of this book and chose to submit a review

Wow. In all my years of reading fantasy, it's been rare that I've seen a heroine as tough and as capable as Ilanna. And make no mistake, Andy Peloquin has put her through the WRINGER. In the first two books of the series, she's been beaten (repeatedly), raped, betrayed, broken, and seen ally after ally, friend after friend taken away from her. At the end of Book Two, the cutthroat organization known as the Bloody Hand invaded her beloved Praamis, setting fire to her house and killing her son.<br /><br />Does it get better before it gets worse? Nope.<br /><br />Ilanna is forced to seek out an old adversary to rid Praamis of the Bloody Hand, a man who wants nothing more than to end the Night Guild permanently. Will there be anything left by the time the dust settles? (no spoilers here)<br /><br />Peloquin has written a masterpiece of a series. I can easily see this as a Netflix series, and would recommend it to anyone who loves strong heroines, fierce action, and memorable characters. Though he does have a tendency to repeat himself on occasion, that's a minor niggle, and did not take away from my enjoyment in the slightest.<br /><br />I am moving on to Traitor's Fate to dive back into this amazing world!<br />

I just finished the preview copy of the book. It continues the story and is well written, I found no grammatical errors nor spelling issues , nothing to take you out of the story. There was a little bit of the redundancy on LLanna's thoughts on what she had lost, which I then found myself skipping over. Fans of the Night guild books will enjoy the story. I read it in two sittings (only because I fell asleep).

Wow. I couldn't wait to start this final book in this series and I was definitely not dissapointed. The characters were you all put through their paces quite thoroughly, at times brutally. The intrigue keeps you on your toes with not knowing who to trust, but the frailty of the human condition pushes through and we see each other in a newer fuzzier light. Can't wait to read more of Andy's works as I'm sure they too will run the gambit of human emotions and thrills to boot.

<strong>A SAD TIME</strong><br /><br />Excellent story!!!! A lot of things have happened in the Night Guild. Ilanna is a member of the House of Hawk. She is coming from a job when she noticed the fire and realized that her house was on fire. She lost two people that were important to her. <br />So many things start happening that nothing was the same!<br />Great surprise at the end!!!!

<strong>Another </strong><br /><br />Well what can I say absolutely loved these books. Well written well characterized enough suspense infuriating storylines of a character you can't help but love. Many lives lived and lost deep betrayal and quick intellect makes this book a fantastic read. You would be strong fool to pass on this series.

There were several logical inconsistencies in this book:<br /><br />First, the Bloody Hand burned down the marketplace to "send a message to the Night Guild," but then they covered it up because "it would only turn us against them." How can an extortionist be effective at all if they cover up their involvement? What message are they sending if it wasn't the lengths they were willing to go? <br /><br />Second, as Illanna is escaping from the Duke's gardens, she figures she'll be safe as long as they don't have "dogs." But then after she hears the dogs, she remembers the stories of the Duke's dogs bringing down mountain lions. The dogs shouldn't have come as a surprise to her if she had heard stories of them. She should have realized to begin with she had to move quickly before they came. <br /><br />Third, Illanna says the Duke would have killed her if he wasn't afraid of her spilling his secrets. How was keeping her imprisoned for a long period of time going to stop the release of any material she had? If she went missing, wouldn't that have been the same as if she'd been killed?<br /><br />Finally, Illanna's nanny and kid supposedly burned up in a fire. Wouldn't she have made darn certain of that before she jumped to that conclusion? I know if my kid died in a first, I'd want to get his remains. In fact, she goes back for her chest of gold but the not remains of the boy she loved so much. Also, she was there as the fire was going on. In fact, the staircase collapsed as she tried to go up to rescue him. How then did Ria get so burned getting out without Illanna seeing them? And where did they go? Illanna spent all night there, they ran away and didn't bother to come back? <br /><br />Still, it was a well told story with good pacing and it really made you feel for the characters. Well worth reading. These inconsistencies are tragic as they could have been easily handled.