Their Fractured Light (Starbound, #3)

by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

[ladygrey]

I really, really liked this conclusion to a beautiful series, though it wasn't quite everything I wanted it to be.

Gideon and Sofia were as interesting and compelling as the heroes in the previous books. I enjoyed the observations and deductions they each made, the way they understood each other so well in a sea of lies. I love the way Kaufman and Spooner write that makes it so easy to connect to their characters and to be drawn into their world.

I was only a little bit disappointed. In [b:This Shattered World|13138734|This Shattered World (Starbound, #2)|Amie Kaufman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1399982893l/13138734._SX50_.jpg|18315710] it was exciting and fun to expand the story out into the larger universe. Tarver fit into the story and brought out new aspects of both characters and of the story. And while Their Fractured Light needed all six characters together, wove them into the story elegantly with each chapter opening, it was also a little distracting. There were a few times after everyone was there where I lost track of who the "I" was in the chapter because other characters were talking or doing things for sections and I lost track.

I also wasn't a huge fan of the zombie section. Mindless and unstoppable obstacles aren't particularly interesting to me, like car chases. These were mostly used to drive the characters to one place and I liked that they served a purpose without dominating the story.

When I first read [b:These Broken Stars|13138635|These Broken Stars (Starbound, #1)|Amie Kaufman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1383578978l/13138635._SY75_.jpg|18315607] there was a question I had that kept me from really loving it as much as I wanted to; kept me from being interested in reading further in the series. I had the chance to ask Amie and Meghan at a signing and their answer that it was the question to be asking and to wait for Their Fractured Light reassured me and got me excited about the series again. But I didn't really think Their Fractured Light addressed it. And while that was a bit disappointing, reading the whole series together there were so many other things I loved, I was invested and interested in, that it didn't bother me as much as it once would.

The chapter openings brought the whole series together almost brilliantly. Even in the story itself, so many threads from the other books and even from the novella come into play that makes it sooooo much fun. And I loved how it circumvented expectations. Also, in the end I adored Gideon and Sofia. They were exciting and fun to follow through this journey.