"Maybe at this darkest point in my life, that was enough. All I could do was try." (Vega Jane)
I miss the dystopian-fantasy feel of The Finisher and The Keeper. The Stars Below is straight-up fantasy. There are spells, wands and magical objects and everything is formulaic.
The Stars Below takes place two years after the events that occurred in The Width of the World. Vega is now a battle-hardened leader and I miss the curious, naive, spunky and defiant Vega from The Finisher. Vega's character development is quite realistic but she went from being a unique character to a character type that is so common in YA. I also wasn't invested in Vega's journey in The Stars Below because I had a feeling that she would always succeed.
The secondary characters who had extremely large roles in previous books in The Finisher/The Vega Jane series become unimportant characters in The Stars Below. The plot could have continued and would have remained intact even if Delph, Petra and Harry-Two weren't in The Stars Below. There are too many characters, too much going on and not enough page time for character development.
The plot in The Stars Below is extremely predictable and I was not affected by any of the reveals or plot twists. The only part that I found interesting was the Uma and Jason side plot. While the ending is epic, I found it extremely difficult to visualise. I also couldn't believe that Necro could be so gullible about the 'torture stone'.
There was such a disconnect between the characters, the plot and my emotions and feelings of attachment while I was reading The Stars Below. The Finisher/The Vega Jane series has lost the magic that made me fall in love with it.
"In small victories lie the deeds of lasting good." (Vega Jane)