I honestly did not expect this book to affect me as much as it did. I tore through it in a single afternoon, enjoying the spring air on my front porch, and had to go inside for fresh tissues twice. At about the 90% mark, I texted a friend to rage about what I assumed the ending would involve.
But she reminded me that legends could change.
In the conclusion to her New Camelot trilogy, Simone elevates her version of the Arthurian legend story to a mythical quality of its own. She even introduces a bit of magic to this straight-forward world of drama and politics, and it completely works.
Greer and Embry continue to play their roles in this book, but the overall story belongs to Ash. We finally get his perspective to so many important events in the past. I already felt the character to be humanized, but this book also elevated his status as a hero. However, Simone knows that heroes can be boring, so she exploits Ash’s “flaws” in a way that manipulates the perfect ending to this saga.
Because legends do need to be fulfilled, but they can also change. Sierra changes it so that everyone gets a happy ending, from our three heroes to the country as a whole. And that was important and comforting to read these days.
If you’re a romance reader who has a soft spot for Arthurian legend, this trilogy should be a must-read. I’ll be adding Simone to my list of authors to follow.
Rating: 5 (out of 5) stars. Cross-posted to Amazon and Goodreads.