The third and final book of M.L. Little’s Seventh Realm trilogy is HERE and goodness gracious me, WHAT a finale. I may never recover.

Some of you may remember my reviews for the first two books, The Book of Secrets and The Warden of the West March. Both of which I LOVED. I’ve been anxiously awaiting this finale and it. did. not. DISAPPOINT. In fact, it quickly swept in and became my top favorite of the three. Though I have utterly fallen in love with all these books about the Draven siblings in their modernized fantasy world of wonder and war and tragedy and beauty. Part Narnia, part Series of Unfortunate Events, with maybe a little Hunger Games and Harry Potter thrown in for good measure, these books take you on an emotional, poignant journey of suffering and truth and finding the beauty in the ugly.

Though this is a review for the third book, I won’t be delving into any big spoilers for any of the books. So you may proceed safely!

SYNOPSIS

The king is dead. Glennerdells has burned. The survivors sail across the sea to Bellica to face the enemy—Rex Bellum, who uses elements as weapons and snaps minds to his will.

Gideon Black, the rightful king of Glennerdells, suffers under the mind control, forced to work as Bellum’s puppet until it drove him mad. But Elowyn believes that the words of a forgotten prophecy refer to him—and can bring him back.

Nations clash and fate rests in the hands of the boy who started it all in the epic conclusion to the Seventh Realm trilogy.

AMAZON | GOODREADS | AUTHOR’S WEBSITE

THE PLOT

In this finale, the characters are navigating the sunless, freezing land of Bellica. So grab a blanket, because this book will make you COLD. (Seriously, the descriptions are so vivid and I was shivering along with the rest of them.) Our little team of rebels are taking the fight straight to Rex Bellum’s doorstep in their effort to stop him from destroying the world. But Rex Bellum and his followers and hideous monsters are not ones to go down easily.

*cue the pain*

This book is about war and the ugliness of it, the desperation, but also the determination. The determination to never, ever stop. To never give up despite the odds. To keep on fighting because there are always people who need you to. Always children who need a bright future. The sheer will of these characters was inspiring. Yes, they wanted to give up so many times, they often questioned if it was worth it, but they always overcame these doubts and just. kept. fighting.

Full warning, M.L. Little does not hold back in this one. There is pain and heartache and death and blood. But there is also a light. The light of hope. You KNOW these characters are fighting to give their people and the next generation a hopeful future, and despite all the loss, you know it’s worth it.

This book had some mindblowing twists along the way. There was one section in particular that was epic beyond words, and downright fascinating. M.L Little knows how to blow your expectations out the water. You just never, ever know what will happen next. It’s fast paced and wild and wondrous. Also the REVELATIONS. I’ve had so many questions since book 1, and this one brought so much to light and just— ACK. So many things.

It was one of those books that had me glued to the pages while I was reading it and thinking about it constantly when I wasn’t. Not a single page dragged. It was the epitome of an explosive finale, and though much of it broke me, in the end it reminded me of the hope we always have in the darkness and that fighting for that light is always worth it, no matter the trials.

THE CHARACTERS

M.L. Little is an immensely talented writer, and that shines exceptionally through with her characters. I’ve read few books that create such realistic people and show the full scope of humanity and that is never afraid to dig into the harshness of a person while also shining light on the goodness. There is nothing fictional feeling about these characters. They feel like real people, with real emotions, reacting in such realistic ways. And oh how I love them.

I was anxiously awaiting returning to these beloved people and, my goodness, was this book a treat. While book #1 mostly focused on Gabriel and book #2 Elowyn, this book has a wonderful balance of exploring all the Draven siblings plus Elowyn, which I was SO happy about. And even more exciting, we get a huge focus on Ren in this one! The Draven sister has been such a mystery in the previous stories, but at last we truly get to dig into Ren’s heart and soul and it was e v e r y t h i n g. If you’ve been waiting for Ren’s story, this is it! (Just, ya know, brace yourself for the PAIN.)

Gabriel, the fourteen-year-old middle Draven sibling who tries so hard but is confused like 87% of the time, is probably still one of my top favorite characters. In this one we see how he’s grown, while still also being that poor young boy who doesn’t deserve all these awful things that have happened to him. Still, he pushes through. He clings to what he knows is right, and though he often falters, he refuses to give up entirely. There was one scene that just— *clutches heart* It was such a turning point for our dear Gabriel and nearly made me cry. It was beautiful and poignant and everything I’ve been waiting for. But I’ll leave it at that. Just…I love Gabriel so much! *sobs*

Hollis and Patch, the two youngest Draven siblings, forever have my heart. I love rough and tumble Hollis and sweet Patch who is wise beyond his years but still so very young. I feel like we really got to delve into Hollis particularly this go round, and it was wonderful seeing what makes this poor child tick. He’s so stubborn, but also so brave. He had some absolutely amazing scenes. This author writes some of the most realistic children I’ve ever come across, and my heart so ached for these boys as they wanted to help with the war but also had such fears because they’re CHILDREN.

Elowyn was the ever optimistic spitfire she always is, and I loved her for it. She’s a voice of reason and light in the midst of the darkness. But, ya know, isn’t afraid to slap sense into people too. Which is good, because pretty much everyone needed to be slapped with some sense at some point or another. I loved how, despite some unthinkable things Elowyn has had to deal with, she still clings to her optimism. It would be so easy for her to wallow in the darkness, but she never does. Her passion and determination was so inspiring.

And then we have Ren. I don’t want to say much because spoilers, even though I feel like I could write a whole essay on the pure amazingness of Ren’s character in this one. Ren has been a huge favorite of mine since book #1, and I can’t even tell you guys how excited I was that she at last got the spotlight. Quiet and standoffish, Ren often seems unfeeling but ohohoho. There is so much feeling inside her. Her loyalty knows no bounds, and her fierce love for her family is unmatched. Her bravery and strength and determination to do what needs done was astounding. You can’t help but ache for her as she is dealing with immeasurable pain and far too much responsibility, but she won’t stop. Not if her brothers are in danger. There is such a tangled knot of anger and emotions and fears inside her, and watching her grow was painful (oh so painful!) but beautiful. My Ren feels are endless. ENDLESS.

I really liked how in this one Ren and Elowyn form a friendship. Well, Elowyn basically forces her friendship on Ren. XD But, ya know, Ren needed that. She needed the support of another girl close to her age, someone to rally around her and pull her out of her thoughts when she fell in too deep. (Or slap her brothers for her when they were being thoughtless.) They had a great dynamic that I really appreciated.

Though this was the main crew, there was definitely a good hodge-podge of other characters as well that brought so much to the table. Have I mentioned recently how realistic M.L. Little’s characters are??? Because WOW. Sometimes you’re so frustrated with them, but that’s simply because they feel so real. And beyond the frustration, I still loved them so, so much and were rooting for them with all my being.

This ragtag band of Glennerdells utterly stole my heart and will forever hold a special place there. I ached with them, I cheered for them, I felt their pain and longing and hope. And I’m so glad I got the privilege of getting to know them.

OTHER THOUGHTS

I’ve mentioned in my reviews of the other books how COOL this world is. It’s a fantasy world with all sorts of fantastical things and some magic, but at the same time it’s got modern technology. People running around with swords and then hopping in an airplane is a totally normal thing. And I love that! The mix of modern and fantastic is such a fun concept, and I loved exploring this world.

The WRITING is another thing. Little has such a unique voice and pulls you straight into the heart and emotion of the tale like no other. Seriously, the way she brings about the emotions is just…wow. I have no words. There is never any question about what the characters are feeling. You are RIGHT THERE in their head, feeling everything along with them.

There’s such a sharpness in the narration. I don’t know how else to put it. It’s not a quiet, soft book. The word usage is sharp and hot and powerful. It packs a punch, but in the best way. Everything was so immersive. Like I said, grab a blanket because this one is gonna make you feel cold. It’s gonna make you feel a lot of things! Eheheh. The sensory details were absolutely topnotch all the way around.

The action scenes are also so explosive and fast paced and yet utterly immersive as well. There was never anything boring about these fight scenes! You feel like you’re right there fighting for your life along with the rest of the characters and WHEW. It is breathless but fascinating nonetheless.

These are such unique books. I tried to give comparison titles but, truthfully, I’ve not really read anything else like them. And I love that. I love how they’re unapologetically different and fresh. We need more stories to be that way!

It is an experience, these stories. Perhaps not for the faint of heart, but so, so worth it in the end.

CONTENT CAUTIONS

Remember how I said the author pulls nothing back in this one? …Yeah.

Since this is a book about war, and children in war at that, it…it gets painful. There is a LOT of blood and wounds and death and mistreatment of children and hideous monsters. This one definitely takes the violence up a notch. It’s not one I’d recommend for a really young audience, despite the main characters being pretty young, just because things can get prettyyy gruesome. A lot of the more particularly gruesome bits are quick, but they are there nonetheless. So if you’re squeamish, definitely take note.

Other than violence though, these are perfectly clean reads. No language or anything like that. There’s really not even romance. And it has a very Narnia-style allegorical theme running throughout. I feel like the Christian themes really hit home in this one in a breathtaking, thought-provoking way. I appreciated how it was handled.

Overall, due to violence I’d say this is more suitable for mid to upper teens.

CONCLUSION

I can’t believe this is the end. I’ve been following along with these dear Draven siblings since book #1 first came out, and I’m having a hard time accepting that their story is done. But at the same time, this finale was everything I was hoping for and more. No, not everything was “happily ever after” but it was inspiring nonetheless. Because sometimes we have to make sacrifices in order to make a better world for those that come after us.

This is a tale that will break you. But it will also build you up. It’s not afraid to show the worst parts of a fallen world in order to reveal why we must always fight for goodness. To not wallow in our mistakes but rise above them. It’s a story of war and heartache and overcoming. About clinging to the light and never, ever giving up even when it seems like there is no hope. Because there is always hope.

If you like dark but wondrous stories about family and fighting for what’s right, set in an unique world with an utterly immersive and emotional narrative, and characters to completely fall in love with, I cannot recommend The Seventh Realm trilogy enough.

This third and final book officially releases on August 26th! So if you’re anticipating it, it’s almost heeere. Or you can snag the first two books if you’ve yet to give them a try. Because, ya know, you totally should. *wink, wink* *nudge, nudge*

Have you read any of these books? Do they sound up your alley? What are some of your favorite sibling books?

NOTE: Huge thanks to the author and publisher for providing a free ebook copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.