Let the Wind Rise (Sky Fall, #3)

by Shannon Messenger

[ladygrey]

This is a tricky book. In some ways it’s well done. At page 160 I was convinced I knew how it would end, because it was the perfect, obvious happy ending. Didn’t quite turn out that way which sucked. But it did play out rather cleverly and neatly which I have to give Messenger credit for.

And yet, emotionally even with a ‘happy ending’ I didn’t feel happy at the end. There was a lingering heaviness, maybe because it all ended a bit too close to the battle. Maybe because the author’s and character’s idea of a great resolution want emotionally satisfying to me. Whatever it was it left me feeling unsatisfied no matter how well all the plot threads were tied up (and again they were tied up very nicely - but somehow that wasn’t enough for me).

Aston, in this book, is a pretty fabulous character—probably because he so willfully speaks his mind without apology and a bit of snark. It’s fun and it pushes the characters in ways that keep the story interesting. Gus remains one of the more enjoyable characters in the story. Solana is much better utilized as both an ally and a source of conflict. And Vane and Audra get to spend most of the story together making them more interesting, especially for a chunk annoy three-quarters of the way through.

But even with the things it did well, walking away at the end workout some sense of jubilation feels unsatisfying...