The Light of All That Falls

<i>ARC provided by the publisher—Orbit—in exchange for an honest review.</i><br><br><b><i>The Light of All That Falls</i> is an absolute marvel, a prodigious finishing touch to an ingeniously plotted series. </b><br><br>Here’s a little statistic to give you an idea of how much I loved this book and series. If you look at my Goodreads profile, you can take a look at my list of favorite authors. Inside this list are authors who have written three or more books—that I’ve read, of course—to be included in my “favorites” shelf. Before today—out of approximately four hundred books I’ve read—there were eight authors on this list. With one trilogy, and without a shadow of a doubt, I’m going to include James Islington as the ninth author to join my list of favorite authors. Binge reading this trilogy for the first time blew me away, and I’m already looking forward to rereading it in the future. If you stumbled upon this review without having read the previous books in the trilogy, rest assured that this review will be spoiler-free; no details regarding the plot will be mentioned. There is, however, a better option for you, pick up <i>The Shadow of What Was Lost</i> and begin binge-reading this astounding series. <b>Now.</b><br><br><b> <i> <blockquote>“He stared over the expanse and then closed his eyes, feeling the soft breeze against his face and the gentle silence of the night. These quiet moments were too rare, and went unappreciated too often. How long had it been since he had just stopped and breathed? The past year had been a blur of pressing forward, of learning and planning and obsessing over all the different things he could try, going through every potential strategy and how likely it was to succeed or fail. In all that time, it hadn’t felt like he had once just…paused.” </blockquote> </i> </b><br><br><i>The Light of All That Falls</i> is the third—and final—book in <i>The Licanius Trilogy</i> by James Islington. Unlike <i>An Echo of Things to Come</i> which starts immediately after the end of the first book, the story in <i>The Light of All That Falls</i> begins approximately one year after the end of the previous book. As much as I loved the previous two books, I do personally believe that <i>The Light of All That Falls</i> is, by far, the best book within the series; Islington has truly saved the best for last. I can’t emphasize how impressed I am by Islington’s feat of crafting this immense trilogy as his first series; it’s exceptionally well-plotted and complex. Complexities wise, in a different way and even though the two series are very different from each other, the complexities of <i>The Licanius Trilogy</i> was slightly reminiscent of Steven Erikson’s <i>Malazan Book of the Fallen</i>. There are Gods, thousands of years of histories that affect the present predicament, immortals, powerful magics, and many more I’ll refrain from mentioning to avoid spoilers. The main differences between the two authors? Islington’s series has only three books rather than ten books, his writing is also less dense than Erikson’s and it’s also so much more accessible to read. <br><br>I honestly had my doubts, there was a myriad unresolved storyline for Islington to close in one book, and he nailed it in an extremely satisfying manner; no stones left unturned. All three books in the trilogy are inextricably linked one way or another. Nothing is wasted in this series, simple as that. Every moment of foreshadowing—whether you realized them or not—from the first book are crucial to the all-encompassing story of the series. These are also why it’s quite mandatory to read this trilogy subsequently, or at least not far in between. There are a twenty pages long detailed summaries at the beginning of the books, and a twelve pages long glossary at the end—thank you, Islington and Orbit Books for this—but I’m not sure they would be enough for a series as complex as this if it has been years since you’ve read the previous books. This epic fantasy series with a huge focus on faith, morality, prejudices, fates, friendship, and love as its themes will require your concentration and commitment. And it’s worth your time.<br><br><b> <i> <blockquote> “Faithful people suffer and evil people prosper all the time, Davian—you must know that is true. Besides, if our actions are driven only by reward or punishment—eternal or otherwise—then they are motivated by greed and selfishness, not faith or love. That is where so many people go wrong, even those who say they believe in El. They obey because they think it will make their lives better, rather than themselves. And that is very much the wrong reason.” </blockquote> </i> </b><br><br>It’s astounding how much the main characters have developed throughout the series, and I grew to love all of them as more and more as I progressed through the story. The physical torment they’ve endured was brutal, and the spiritual conflicts they constantly faced were damaging. I wish I can elaborate more on why I’m so emotionally invested in the four main characters, but unfortunately, that would mean going spoiler-fiesta, and I don’t want to do that. Caeden, in particular, has become one of my favorite characters of all time. Caeden made the series shine the most to me. I know some readers will disagree with me on this, but in my opinion, the series—especially in <i>An Echo of Things to Come</i> and this book—has some of the best flashback sections I’ve ever read; they’re on par with <i>The Stormlight Archives</i> by Brandon Sanderson, maybe even better! The juxtapositions of the past and the present have an enormous effect on intensifying the quality of the narrative and the lessons embedded in it. Are we, as a human, guided by destiny? Has everything been pre-destined? Or is it our free will and choices that decide the final result? Islington raised thought-provoking questions and dilemmas regarding the concept of free will, choices, beliefs, redemption, and fates; I found them working incredibly well for the story and the characterizations.<br><br><b> <i> <blockquote> “I don’t doubt His existence, but how could I continue to love, worship, even just accept a god whose plan involved something so precious to me being ripped away?” </blockquote> </i> </b><br><br><i>The Light of All That Falls</i> features the most stunning display of power within the series. I wouldn’t call <i>The Licanius Trilogy</i> a battle-focused series, at least not when compared to other epic fantasy series. However, this one definitely had plenty of thrilling action sequences. From daring escape, violent torture, pulse-pounding stealth, and explosive display of magic, there’s no shortage of breathtaking scenes and cruel destructions being demonstrated. The vortex of chaos rules, but the glimmering light remains, and the light strives for peace. The flow of the climax sequences—specifically the final 100 pages—was a supercharged adrenaline rush reading experience. I mean it, I was so engrossed that I forgot to have my lunch, not even hunger could stop me from reading. Need I say more on how gripping and climatic it was?<br><br><b> <i> <blockquote>“It is not enough to fight for the right side. You have to figure out how to fight the right way, too. If winning is truly all that matters, then we’ve lost sight of what’s actually right and wrong in the first place.” </blockquote> </i> </b><br><br>This is hands down a spectacular conclusion enhanced by one of the most jaw-dropping epilogues I’ve come across, Islington efficaciously delivered an immaculate full-circle tale with expertise that matches the best of the best authors in the genre. I loved this book and series with all my heart. Heart-wrenching, tension-packed, meticulously crafted, riveting, and gloriously epic, <i>The Light of All That Falls</i> is an unforgettable superlative concluding installment; a page-turning classic fantasy with a modern voice that immediately earns Islington his place among the pantheon of greatest epic fantasy authors, and I’m seriously incapable of imagining a better ending for this mind-blowing series than what’s written here. <br><br>To Islington, bravo for such a truly spectacular feat, especially for a debut trilogy. I’ll be waiting patiently for the next book you write, and I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed that the magnificence of this series is an echo of great things to come in your career as an author.<br><br><b> <u>Series Review:</u> </b><br><br><i>The Shadow of What Was Lost</i>: <u> <b> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2529984853?book_show_action=false&amp;from_review_page=1" rel="nofollow noopener">4.5/5 stars</a> </b> </u><br><i>An Echo of Things to Come</i>: <u> <b> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2529985064?book_show_action=false&amp;from_review_page=1" rel="nofollow noopener">5/5 stars</a> </b> </u><br><i>The Light of All That Falls</i>: <b> <u>5/5 stars</u> </b><br><br><i>The Licanius Trilogy</i>: <b> <u>14.5/15 stars</u> </b><br><br><img src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1582281054i/28998711._SX540_.jpg" width="400" class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"><br><br><i>P.S:<br>The cover art of this series is nothing short of outstanding. Well done to the cover artist, Dominick Saponaro, and I hope he’ll be hired to do Islington’s books again in the future.</i><br><br><b>You can order the book from: <u><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Light-All-That-Falls-Licanius/dp/035650784X/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=the+light+of+all+that+falls&amp;qid=1582211473&amp;sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener">Amazon UK</a></u> | <u><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Light-That-Falls-Licanius-Trilogy/dp/0316274186/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;qid=1582211430&amp;sr=8-1" rel="nofollow noopener">Amazon US</a></u> | <u><a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/book/9780356507842/?a_aid=petrikleo" rel="nofollow noopener">Book Depository (Free shipping)</a></u></b><br><br><b>You can find <u><a href="http://novelnotions.net/2020/02/21/book-review-the-light-of-all-that-falls-the-licanius-trilogy-3-by-james-islington/" rel="nofollow noopener">this</a></u> and the rest of my reviews at <u><a href="http://novelnotions.net" rel="nofollow noopener">Novel Notions</a></u></b> | I also have a <u> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/petrikleo" rel="nofollow noopener">Booktube channel</a> </u><br><br><i>Special thanks to my Patrons on <b><u><a href="https://www.patreon.com/petrikleo" rel="nofollow noopener">Patreon</a></u></b> for giving me extra support towards my passion for reading and reviewing!<br><br>My Patrons: Alfred, Devin, Hamad, Mike, Miracle, Nicholas.</i>

Miałam z tym tomem problem przed pierwsze osiemset (!) stron. Uważam, że momentami był naprawdę nieczytelny, niepotrzebnie zagmatwany i po prostu za długi. Nie zmienia to faktu, że ostatnie 50 stron było absolutnie w punkt. Zakończeniem tej trylogii jestem zachwycona. Tylko dlaczego wcześniej było tak przeciętnie?

I have been looking forward to reading The Light of All That Falls ever since I finished An Echo of Things To Come and have been counting down the days until I could return to the world of Davian, Caeden, Asha and Wirr. I won’t go into too much detail here regarding the actual story as I don’t wish to spoil anything for people who haven’t started the series yet. <br /><br />“Remember that your past does not define you—no matter the consequences,” he said gently. “Choice is meaningless without consequences, and a privilege we do not deserve if we will not face them. You are facing them, Tal’kamar. You have changed.”<br /><br />I can safely say that the final entry in The Licanius Trilogy is breathtaking and brimming with phenomenal moments throughout. It starts off with a showdown in the prologue and wraps up with one of the finest and perfectly crafted endings that I have read in a long while. One I did not see coming at all but is satisfying and wraps all the loose ends up expertly. There are quieter segments in the beginning-middle stages. All four of the point of view perspectives had a huge number of highlights and they occasionally cross paths. It’s always excellent when the main characters meet up again. Some of these engagements take place unexpectedly and not until much later in this eight-hundred-page door-stopper.<br /><br />As mentioned, it had been some time since I finished the last book and thought it was a nice addition offered by Islington that he presents a summary of past events. This usefully filled in the slight gaps in my knowledge and potential confusion with character names. Caeden and Davian have always been the characters I have enjoyed following the most especially with their destinies been so closely intertwined.<br /><br />I believe only two years have passed since we met the ensemble for the first time in The Shadow of What Was Lost. The characters have changed so much and you wouldn’t really recognise the same three students who met at the school for the Gifted. A few of the players are extremely overpowered now – both main and supporting. In addition the magic-schemes and possibilities get much deeper, complex and enhanced throughout the overall narrative. The magic system is one of my favourites from modern fantasy although it’s sometimes confusing and scientific-like within the rules of the crafted world.<br /><br />Elements included are destiny, knowing your fate, time-travel, a legendary sword, and alternate plains of existence where time doesn’t follow normal rules. It has incredibly well-depicted monstrosities such as the serpent-like Dar’Gaithin and the terrifying Al’Goriat. These often cause havoc and raise a great deal of suspense. It includes a plethora of competing factions, complex and sometimes frosty relationships, and thousands of years of past history. The trilogy also showcases a huge dramatis personae and a unique and detailed glossary of world-specific phrases. This is a useful link regarding the points mentioned above: (here) A version is also included and updated in the novel itself.<br /><br />There isn’t really much left to say regarding my feelings with this trilogy and the final entry in this series that I haven’t mentioned already. It was an epic, stunning and extremely satisfying finale. The series features some of my favourite modern fantasy characters that I truly cared about and ended up loving. It’s one of my favourite trilogies from the last 5 years and the ending was perfect and completely unpredictable. It is the end of an era and I’m not sure if we will return to see these characters again. Islington does hint in his afterwards that we may return to the world and see the stories of more minor but extremely important players. I can’t wait.

Before I begin my review, I'd first like to mention how absolutely thrilled I was to finally have this book in my hands. The Licanius Trilogy is one of my top 10 all-time fantasy series and in my opinion is a masterwork that stands out among the majority of its peers. I eagerly awaited the release of this book for over two years and when I finally finished reading it, I sat and stared into space to process the amazingness of what I just absorbed. But enough about that, let's get to my review shall we?<br /><br />THE LIGHT OF ALL THAT FALLS concludes the story that was begun in the previous two installments beautifully in my opinion and just solidifies it as one of the great fantasy series in recent memory. Andarra is threatened on its northern border by evil forces that are determined to conquer and overthrow it. The only way these horrific beasts can be held back is through Asha's special magic as she attempts to strengthen the boundary. But is her magic enough to keep the invading hordes at bay? <br /><br />Meanwhile Davian finds himself still a prisoner of his own doing. Held captive in an unfamiliar land, his ability to time travel proves to be both a boon and a curse as he struggles to find an escape so that he may be able to help his friends. And help his friends he must as they find themselves trapped in a vice between fanatical religious zealots on one side and frighteningly heinous monsters born of nightmares on the other. If he doesn't find an answer soon, all could be lost to devastating effect.<br /><br />Will the boundary break and unleash hell on an already weakened land, or can the four friends Davian, Wirr, Asha, and Caeden muster the courage and will that it will take to win the ultimate battle of good versus evil? Will the only thing that may be able to save them all be a forbidden magic that was once all but snuffed out of Andarran society? All will be answered in this exciting and riveting final book in The Licanius Trilogy.<br /><br />Well that was totally worth the wait! Simply put I was enthralled by THE LIGHT OF ALL THAT FALLS to the point that I got really emotional as the events leading up to the finale began to take shape. I was left feeling like I had just read a really important work of fantasy that more people need to discover. This series is truly masterful and is a great substitute for those waiting on the new Stormlight book by Brandon Sanderson. It contains a lot of the same magic and world-building that makes Sanderson such a success and I believe fans of his work would adore this series if they gave it a chance.<br /><br />It also has the complexity of Steven Erikson's Malazan but is a bit more accessible and easy to follow than Erikson's lengthy opus. I compare it to those authors only to give a feel for the style but make no mistake, this series is completely original and stands proudly on its own merits. The characters withstand challenge after challenge and are tested to the brink of their limits. The world-building is some of the best you will encounter in the genre. <br /><br />But what sets this series apart for me is the different types of magic found throughout. This series has everything from time travelling to shape-shifting to sorcery and evil dark magic. The way that this magic is so vividly described and manifested through the characters is something that reminded me again of the reasons why I got into reading fantasy to begin with. Islington has a skill that not many authors can match in that regard.<br /><br />If you have never read these books, you should really pick up the first book The Shadow of What was Lost immediately. By the time you get to this third book you will see why this should be regarded as one of the very best fantasy series out there. It most-certainly is for me. In closing I would just like to recommend THE LIGHT OF ALL THAT FALLS whole-heartedly to anyone who feels like there hasn't been anything new or challenging written in the fantasy genre lately. This series will happily prove you wrong. The book is due to be released on December 10, 2019, which is less than a week from now.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2329835715?book_show_action=false&amp;from_review_page=1" rel="nofollow noopener">The Shadow Of What Was Lost</a>: ★★★★★<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3604946983?book_show_action=false&amp;from_review_page=1" rel="nofollow noopener">An Echo of Things to Comee</a>: ★★★★1/2<br /><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3938511298?book_show_action=false&amp;from_review_page=1" rel="nofollow noopener">The Light of All That Falls</a>: ★★★★★<br /><br /><b>A suitable and brilliant final to now one of my all-time favorite high fantasy series.</b><br /><br />I certainly did not expect that when I picked up <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/32498052.An_Echo_of_Things_to_Come__The_Licanius_Trilogy___2_" title="An Echo of Things to Come (The Licanius Trilogy, #2) by James Islington" rel="noopener">An Echo of Things to Come</a> last year. This book closed the circle that the first book started and in a very satisfying -and smart- way. The epilogue is definitely one of the best epilogues I’ve ever read, it showed what a master storyteller Islington is. The Licanius Trilogy started traditionally and simple enough and it became more complex and the details more important and intricate and delivered a solid tale in the fantasy genre. <p><br />I was very worried when I started this installment because I’ve heard a lot about how confusing it can get. I did my best in book 2 to keep track of everything going on and it was good. I did the same thing here. I read Islington’s summary thoroughly. I checked every word/name I don’t know in the glossary, I tried to keep track of everything… and while I do not claim to have understood everything, I don’t think I’ve missed out on anything. <br /><br /><i>The Light of All That Falls</i> picks up a year after Echo during which not much has happened. We have the same points of view and style. There’s no need for a plot summary because well... it’s the third and last book. What do you think it’s going to be about? So I’ll move on directly to my thoughts about it.</p><p><br />I’ve been having a problem lately. I can no longer feel this connection to the characters. Sure, they can be well-written and interesting but I’m always like a stranger to them instead of sharing their story. Thus, I started thinking, what’s wrong with me? Do I no longer enjoy reading? (not the case because I still do and there’s nothing else I’d rather be doing in my free time and no I’m not in a slump.) anyways, then comes books like the Licanius trilogy and I simply fall in love with their characters and live their story as if I’m there, sharing their sorrows, hope, and joy. So yes, the multilayered characters for me in this trilogy are certainly one of the highlights and if someone was having difficulty liking them, then they definitely won’t enjoy these books. </p><p><br />My favorites remain Caeden and Devian (since book 1) and yes, I slightly look to their chapters more than the rest, although the latter was very necessary to the story. But well, Caeden is a very well-written character -one of the best in my opinion in this genre- and his inner conflict and development were masterfully executed. My appreciation for Caeden characterization continued to the end of this book. Devian is.. well, people go crazy about morally gray characters and while I do appreciate these characters, I’m all for the good-hearted and kind main characters in this genre. Wirr’s character is interesting but he’s not memorable for me like the first two. The same thing goes for Asha. </p><p><br />The books read more like one story rather than three separate books because everything is so interconnected and related to the rest especially with the time jumps. They’re not short yet I couldn’t stop reading throughout this trilogy, something very rare for such big books in general and definitely for this genre. Usually, I don’t feel compelled to read all the time, at least not in the first part. Yet, I couldn’t put those books down. </p><p><br />The world-building is nothing short of amazing and yes sure “bad guys behind the wall” isn’t the most imaginative plotline. But the different races, the rich history, and the religion made this book unique among its peers in high fantasy. I liked the themes and the discussions of religion for example, especially where Raeleth was involved and his talk about faith.</p><p><br />For example, something I loved about this trilogy is the Venerate. They are good people. They’re not “evil”. But it’s not so simple, they believe their side is the “good” side. Their beliefs became so twisted that they are sure that the bad actions they are doing are for the greater good. Some even became zealots. What good god asks you to kill millions? Well, of course, it’s for saving humanity. Yet we still had this “evil” that most of us like in this genre. They are empathetic, even kind, and very convincing. </p><p><br />I’m sad to let these characters go because it was certainly a memorable trilogy for me. I’m going to keep an eye out in the future for Islington’s books because I’m unquestionably going to read them. This trilogy is a perfect example of why I love the genre, the epicness, the great characters, and the amazing plotline.</p><p><br />Before ending this review, I have to mention that these books aren’t without faults:<br />- I wish the characters were older, Wirr being such a “wise” leader for example at a young age didn’t make much sense to me. It would’ve benefited the story a lot, in my opinion, if Wirr, Devian, and Asha weren’t so young. For example, if the original test was at 18 or if more years passed throughout the books (only 2-3 years did).<br />- Asha’s skills for example were kind of too much but at least she did nothing but train in a year. Nonetheless, I would’ve preferred if she worked on it for a longer time.<br />- The romance between Asha and Devian. While they were cute in book 1, I don’t exactly ship them. I don’t see the chemistry. They’re good for each other but I suppose I’ve read too many romance novels.<br />- A death of a certain character happened off-screen and I wasn’t a fan of that, a main character could’ve easily witnessed it.<br />- I really like Erran, was sad he didn’t have more role/arc in this book.<br />- The word “adrenaline” was mentioned.. twice. I doubt they have discovered it yet in their world..<br />- Something about the last part bothered me <input type="checkbox" class="spoiler__control" aria-label="The following text has been marked spoiler. Toggle checkbox to reveal or hide." onchange="this.labels[0].setAttribute('aria-hidden', !this.checked);" id="24b4bdd1-5162-40ae-9c22-9b809cc284bf" /><label aria-hidden="true" class="spoiler" for="24b4bdd1-5162-40ae-9c22-9b809cc284bf">someone always appeared to save the day at the last moment, I never liked this in books and it happened here a few times.</label></p><p><br />Overall, I loved this trilogy and I’m absolutely going to recommend it in the future. It will stay with me. While I understand why it’s not for everyone, the story worked wonderfully for me. I no longer ask for perfect books, and this one isn’t. As you can see, I listed several shortcomings and everyone might care about them differently. I personally enjoyed the book regardless but since I always try to be objective in my reviews, I had to mention them. Nowadays, I only ask for stories that will truly take me to another world and another time and make me live their events and connect to their characters.</p>

Wow.<br /><br />I'm speechless.<br /><br />Okay, maybe not that speechless, but that doesn't mean I wasn't blown away by this final book in the Licanius Trilogy.<br /><br />I think I've said this before, but it bears repeating: This is one of THE best Epic Fantasies ever written. I compare it to Brandon Sanderson and Brent Weeks in my head and in some ways it succeeds better where those do not. It's tighter, for one. These are three thick books that cram a hell of a lot of emotional and action-filled impact inside its pages. <br /><br />Each book seems to end on a reveal that changes everything we ever thought we knew, but this one wraps back around and ties up every loose end in a way that is more than satisfying. It's more than amazing. It leaves me gutted.<br /><br />Let's say something about the most interesting parts of the trilogy: It's Fantasy Time-Travel, time-manipulation battles, pocket universes, energy beings, and one of the hairiest paradox tales I've ever read. Take all the best aspects of the best time-travel SF, give it a full Fantasy treatment with full rules and the ways to bend or even break the rules, and then give us an epic battle that lasts a very long time for reasons that are shockingly brilliant and tragic and horrific.<br /><br />But do you know where it really shines? The characters. So many character arcs and looming tragedies we try and try to avoid, but since we're dealing with time paradoxes and deep friendships and truly gut-wrenching events.<br /><br />It pulls no punches. I was super invested and I freaked out.<br /><br /><br />I recommend this to any fantasy lover. I RECOMMEND IT. Without hesitation. With a feverish glee, even.

<i>“Nothing is truly beautiful, until it can be lost.”</i><br /><br /><b> You know the story: the boy gets the sword, the boy loses the sword, the boy wins the sword back. This book is about the third part of the business. I liked nearly everything except for the time travel. It would not be a problem if not for the fact that everything in the series rides on this precise concept. This, and the fact that travelling through time cannot alter the events—which basically renders the whole time-travelling a little bit meaningless. And reading about it—insufferable.</b><br /><br />If only <i>The Light of All That Falls</i> was more like book 1 and less like book 2, we would have been great friends. It was not a <i>bad</i> bad book (hence two gracious stars instead of one), but it has been definitely one that nearly put me into a giant reading slump in the time of the year when I am at liberty to read as much as I please. I kept thinking that <b>I did not really care how things end. Especially that we have known how they end since the last instalment so the imagination does not have a huge playground to run amok</b>. <br /><br />It is as if you participated in a play where the director is on the annual leave, yet the ending is known because the players have every tenth page of the script so they desperately try to fill in the blanks in a manner that fits the overall logic of what they can deduce. <br /><br />I can tell you that if I were in this play, I’d rebel. <br /><br />Since I was merely an audience, I am only relieved that the applause at the end is not as predetermined as the outcome was. I have some rotten eggs though. <br /><br />A series that <b>started as a great read with relentless pacing and a straightforward story, by the middle book evolved into something dull and needlessly complex</b>. Here, in the final instalment, the events just meandered and mostly in a way that did not contribute to the overall plot. A <b>significant portion of this book could have been cut without any detriment to the story</b>. This means that the novel is <b>disproportionately convoluted (without being interesting)</b> and about twice as long as it needed to be.<br /><br />Part of the problem is the fact that sometimes <b>you cannot see the forest for the trees</b>. There are the Himalayas of info-dumps. Frequently, a bunch of rules or laws are introduced just to make things more complicated. Normally it proceeds as follows: the author needs something to happen, so he invents a rule that makes it possible. And then, because our protagonists are <i>so speeeecial</i>, many of the rules are either bent or broken and many things happen “somehow,” for some reason that no one can ever explain.<br /><br />It is simply unbelievable how <b>this book is cluttered with exposition, buzzwords, and characters</b> (many with multiple names, other with copy-paste like features and attributes). The main protagonists stopped developing at the end of book one. In the subsequent parts, they just keep collecting special abilities in record time (Asha is a particularly sad example of that affliction, but Davian turns into Inspector Gadget!). If you take away these special features, none of them has anything to keep your interest going. To add insult to injury, characters that are thousands of years old act like teenagers. Foes came and go, and are dispatched almost as an afterthought. It is frankly exhausting to watch underdeveloped characters die one after another as soon as they can no longer contribute to the plot.<br /><br />It is not even that I did not like the individual tests and turns each of the characters went through (though I did not like them all), it is more about <b>the general design that tired me: the world of possibilities versus the universe of the inevitability of which both were perfectly alike and equally unappetising</b>. Many events that happened during time travel were tautological (like the destroyed city that prompted the boy to look for vengeance and in the end made him destroy it inadvertently; what a perfect illogical loop! and yet, no-one bats an eye!) The only thing I really cared about were the Lyth (and the forge!), but that thread was abandoned the moment they lost their instrumental appeal for the Author without ANY explanations, might I add. Similarly, the long-winded theological ruminations we were forced to endure throughout the series were for naught because, in the end, the mythical El does not make an appearance even once, so all the agonising about the nature of him and the antagonist was just a waste of pages. Neither Shamaeloth nor El have no function other than to serve as a plot convenience. Even the sword we endured so much to retrieve, was itself abandoned by the author. <br /><br />By the way: Kudos to the person <b>who can tell me what happened to this ever-so-important artefact</b>. Not that I care. But it just shows you how much of the creative energy in the book went wasted into absolutely redundant details, while those pillars of the story just stand neglected!<br /><br />There was <b>no emotional payoff</b> at the end, and what was there was so mind-numbingly predictable (because of pre-determination) and based on artificial conflicts not integral to the story. <b>I expect the epilogue was supposed to make me cry. Well, it didn’t. It made me jump in delight that I am finally done and free.</b> I need to conclude that <b>any comparison with Wheel of Time is unjust</b> as this series just slams some juicy bits together in a way that does not allow the reader to follow along. I guess I ought to be grateful that Mr Islington dod not make me endure 14 books of this. <br /><br />Also in the series:<br /><br />1. <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3285481388" rel="nofollow noopener">The Shadow of What Was Lost</a> ★★★★☆<br />2. <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3340976422" rel="nofollow noopener">An Echo of Things to Come</a> ★★☆☆☆

<a href="https://thebookprescription.wordpress.com/2021/02/16/the-light-of-all-that-falls-review/" rel="nofollow noopener">This Review</a> ✍️ <a href="https://thebookprescription.wordpress.com/" rel="nofollow noopener">Blog</a> ? <a href="https://twitter.com/Hamad9626" rel="nofollow noopener">Twitter</a> ? <a href="https://www.instagram.com/thebookprescription/" rel="nofollow noopener">Instagram</a> ? <a href="https://ko-fi.com/hamad9626" rel="nofollow noopener">Support me</a> ☕<br /><br /><blockquote> <i> <b>“It’s not enough to fight for the right side. You have to figure out how to fight the right way, too. If winning is truly all that matters, then we’ve lost sight of what’s actually right and wrong in the first place.”</b> </i> </blockquote><br /><br />The Light of all that Falls is probably the most complex book I have read up to date! As I said in my review of the last book, this is a series that is best binged or read as close to each other as possible. I actually read book 3 less than a month after book 2 but I think I still missed a lot of details!<br /><br />My biggest criticism for these books is the naming, I think the author chose many similarly sounding words (Aelric, Aelrith, Alaris, Alcesh, Alita, Ana, Andrael, Andras. Aniria for example of words that start with A) which was not really necessary. The plot is complex and it involves time traveling and shape shifters and characters with multiple names so keeping up with all of this was very hard and all those similarly sounding things made it even harder for me -A guy who depends on visual memory- a torture to keep who was who in mind.<br /><br />The writing was good and I just appreciate Islington’s writing the more I read of it. I specially like the descriptions and the dialogues which are realistic! The book is a huge one, almost 900 Pages but I think all of those were needed. We kind of got the ending in the last book so this was more of an explanation of what happens and how it happens. The Epilogue is probably the best epilogue I have ever read and that alone puts the story on a whole different level!<br /><br /><b>Summary:</b> I think this is the kind of series and finale that needs patience and commitment. The more you give it, the more you will receive from it! Everything was as good as in the last two books so if you enjoyed those, you will like this one. For me, it was more complex and kind of hard to follow. I think I would like to reread the whole series one day and focus more while doing that and I am sure then it would end up being a 5 stars and I will catch many things I missed in my first read through!

9.57 on CAWPILE.<br /><br />I have so many feelings.

Mel ????