An End to Sorrow has all of the intrigue, thrill, action, and intricate worldbuilding of the previous two books in these series, all of which have indeed come to be trademarks associated with this stellar rising author.
In this series finale, Khraen grows more into his real self, his turbulent past, and gains even more knowledge than before. As a result, there are some big reveals as we find more about the Demon Emperor's past atrocities and dealings with the present moral dilemma.
And a great dilemma his character proves to be. He's caught up in the whirlwinds of his own fate, and his only redemption seems to lie across the bloody path he trailed once upon a lifetime when he was the Demon Emperor.
His relationships with his loyalists improve, even as his journey of self-discovery gathers pace. He now sees them in a light that better mirrors his rapidly-evolving psyche. I like that he embraces his evilness rather than denies it.
To find redemption in life, the first step is to admit your own errors. In An End to Sorrow, Khraen does not delude himself that he's spilling so much good for the greater good in a blurry future. This time, he latches onto the rungs of salvation in the knowledge of his own doom, looking to salvage as much as possible.
His much-anticipated demise did not come to pass. I'm sorry for dropping this particular spoiler (all of my book reviews so far, famously do not contain any spoilers), but I had to express this disappointment. The finale seemed pretty inevitable from She Dreams In Blood, with the Demon Emperor bowing out in a spectacular show of blood and gore.
However, Mr. Fletcher has shown a sleight of hand that I did not anticipate, much to his credit. True, this book should be scoring five stars rather than four. Nonetheless, I will take the divergent route by expressing displeasure at a somewhat anticlimactic ending.
Still, I will credit the author for not rushing to conclude this thrilling series. Indeed, notable pointers indicate that the story will continue in one form or the other... But that's enough! I don't like giving indirect spoilers either, so I'll rest my case.
The Obsidian Path as a whole is a wonderful series that's highly recommended to fantasy lovers who don't want black and white-themed stories. Personally, I believe I've had enough of High and Coming-of-Age Fantasy. I seek something different in the meantime.
I will end by making a plea to the author:
Dear Mr. Fletcher. I really love the worlds that you create. It would be my dearest wish for you to expand them greatly in the future. The worlds in your head can grow to be comparable to the ones of timeless classics in the genre like WoT, MBoTF, and HP. Give us more!
An excellent series this is, even if the story is far from truly ended! I'm not ashamed to beg the author for subsequent physical (Felix Ortiz is a design god) ARC copies of his work in the future. A fan and ardent critic of his works I am, through and through!
(ARC received from the author in exchange for an honest review).
