Hello Fellow Journeyers,
Picking up after the dramatic ending of The Emerald Storm meant that Wintertide had a lot of story to tell. Let's dive in to the beginning of the end of The Riyria Revelations!
What's the story about: Royce and Hadrian are back on track with trying to save Elan from the empire by any means necessary. After Hadrian is taken captive, it's a race against time to see how to free those captured.
Something that I immediately found annoying about the beginning of the book was how two major events took place in exposition that I'd been waiting two books to find more about: Royce and Hadrian discovering Esrahaddon's death meant nearly nothing and the empire taking Ratibor back didn't even phase Arista. Okay, that's not a good way to honor readers' expectations Sullivan. Not at all. While the setup is intended to wrap things up, it just seemed like poor writing to make these events important, then throw them away in order to wrap up threads. This trend continued where Sullivan took events that were seemingly important in previous books, and letting them be told in expositional storytelling that I found to be annoying.
The beginning of Wintertide has an air of urgency and danger than is needed for this conclusion of the series. Things had to start wrapping up and coming to a head, and they do in dramatic and cataclysmic ways. When Hadrian and Royce split, things become complicated, but also intrigue is at an all time high. The first half of the book seems to get going with only minor events actually happening, but it all seems to be worth it in the end. The last 30% of the book is pretty golden storytelling, even if some of the events that take place seem more based on plot need, than in keeping with the story. (Example being that one particular character makes a huge revelation near the 80% mark that changes everything in a sweeping fashion. It was pretty satisfying character-wise, but also it didn't seem in total keeping with the character.) If there is one thing I've learned from Sullivan's writing, it's that he cares about characters only to the point where they need to do something plot-wise, then they become completely capable of unreal actions that shift everything. It's fun, but doesn't feel organic.
That all being said, the ending of Wintertide is truly cataclysmic, and for the most part, it works. I didn't expect any of the events to turn out the way they did and Sullivan does a good job pulling the wool over the reader's eyes by making it seem like there will be a happy ending early. While this should have been obvious that another book has to take place, I was still pleasantly surprised that the secondary plot takes center stage in order to upheave everything that takes places from before.
★★★★ 4 Stars - While the middle of Wintertide gets swept up in boring political maneuvering and a side plot, the beginning and end are mostly top notch storytelling. Hadrian and Royce's stories are well told and precisely executed in a satisfying and concerning way. Modina gets some of the spotlight too in becoming a badass in the end, even while it was a little unbelievable. I was disappointed that Arista was put on the sidelines, but happy that Sullivan decided to stick with what made sense, and simply, she couldn't do more. Ultimately, Sullivan's writing is at an all time high in Wintertide and leaves the characters with utter ruin to pick up the pieces and come back form. A well told story that takes everything before it and upends most of it. Wintertide finishes stunningly, making you want to read the last story to see where it all ends.
Recommended For: all those wanting to finish The Riyria Revelations.
Let me hear from you! If you like what you read, want to hear more thoughts on this book, other reviews, or talk book recommendations and Essential Reading, leave a comment below.
Rating system:
★★★★★ 5 Stars: It was amazing; I loved it. Read this book; it is definitely Essential Reading!
★★★★★* 4.5 Stars: It was nearly perfect. I really loved almost every aspect of it, but a few things kept it from being amazing.
★★★★ 4 Stars: It was very worth reading and satisfying; highly recommend.
★★★★* 3.5 Stars: I thoroughly enjoyed this story, but it was lacking in certain crucial areas.
★★★ 3 Stars: It was good, but could've been better or improved upon significantly.
★★★* 2.5 Stars: I wanted to enjoy it. Certain aspects were good, it was worth finishing, but many issues.
★★ 2 Stars: It was okay, I didn't feel strongly about it.
★ 1 Star: I did not like it. It was not worth finishing or I did not finish it.
*I round up based on the system on Goodreads. Also, there is no 1.5 Stars because it does not seem to have enough differentiation.