The Kingmakers by Clay and Susan Griffith Book 3: Vampire Empire Pyr Publishing 392 pages Genre: Adult Paranormal Romance Source: Personal purchase |
The epic Vampire Empire trilogy rushes to a heart-wrenching conclusion of honor and love, hatred and vengeance, sacrifice and loss. A war to the death. Empress Adele has launched a grand crusade against the vampire clans of the north. Prince Gareth, the vampire lord of Scotland, serves the Equatorian cause, fighting in the bloody trenches of France in his guise as the dashing Greyfriar. But the human armies are pinned down, battered by harsh weather and merciless attacks from vampire packs. To even the odds, Adele unleashes the power of her geomancy, a fearsome weapon capable of slaughtering vampires in vast numbers. However, the power she expends threatens her own life even as she questions the morality of such a weapon. As the war turns ever bloodier and Adele is threatened by betrayal, Gareth faces a terrible choice. Their only hope is a desperate strike against the lord of the vampire clans-Gareth's brother, Cesare. It is a gamble that could win the war or signal the final days of the Greyfriar.My Review:
This final installment of Vampire Empire was all that I’d
hoped for. I fell in love with Adele and Gareth from the very beginning as
individuals, and later as a couple. They both have such strong, amazing
characters, and watching them evolve throughout the story, not only
individually, but as a couple, has been a beautiful thing to behold. This book
brings us to the height of the struggle between the vampires and the humans,
specifically with Cesare, Gareth’s
brother. There are many twists and turns, not only with Cesare and Flay, but
also with some of the people we thought we knew and trusted. There is also a beauty to this
series, examining the battle between vampires and humans, with one
particular vampire walking the thin line between the two, but also finding there are more gray areas than originally understood, and I loved seeing how it all unfolded. But we still get the full-on bloody,
graphic results of what happens when the two meet in battle. There are
casualties and heartache.
But the flip-side of the blood and battle of this series is
the beautiful love story between Adele and Gareth. These star-crossed lovers
have one of the most touching and genuine relationships I’ve seen written.
There is true mutual admiration between them, depths of love that would cross
galaxies if it could, and though the physical attraction between the two is
apparent, it is not the center of who they are together. They are one of my
favorite couples I’ve read about. In the end, I felt like this series gave me a
satisfying conclusion, answering many questions, resolving several issues, but
also leaving things realistically. Not every little thing is resolved and tied
up with a pretty bow. Considering the world-at-large in this series, that would
be impossible or ridiculous. This ending left me in a good place, feeling
hopeful and happy.
Bottomline: I love the Vampire Empire series, and The
Kingmakers is an action-packed, twisty-turny adventure, filled with heartache
and hope, and underlined and highlighted with a beautiful romance. I highly recommend this
series, and this final installment.
5 STARS
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