Oh gosh, what a great ending to an amazing series ! I'm low-key crying because I'm sad its over and very satisfied with the ending.

So happy with Jude and Anton's ending, specifically, as I have shipped them so much since the first book. I really adore how wonderfully this book focuses on its characters and their development, especially for one that is heavy on the fantasy world building. In addition, there's a lot of POV characters but I found that I understood all of their motivations and character.

I really can't wait to read anything else Katy Rose Pool writes !

Into the Dying Light by Katy Rose Pool was a little bit of a letdown. I adored the first book in this series but wasn't completely in love with this instalment. but I was excited to get to the final book in the series and see where our characters end up.

I keep reading mostly because I did enjoy Jude and Anton's chapters but in the end, I didn't feel there was enough left to grow with the both of them and ended up skimming the other characters chapters.
Overall however 3 stars because it was an okay book and I did enjoy seeing our characters in the final hurdle to save the world, a good conclusion to the trilogy.

4.5 stars

INTO THE DYING LIGHT rounds off the trilogy that feels most like the classic fantasies I grew up reading. There are prophecies, ancient relics, hidden truths, and an evil god to contend with. It's a hopeless final battle that demands a great sacrifice. It's epic and full of twists and disasters - for the world and the characters. Plus they have to deal with the remaining emotional baggage stopping them from working together.

I think the reason it doesn't quite feel like the books I grew up on is because of the focus on relationships. All of the leads have emotional entanglements with someone else. They might go somewhere, or not, or maybe one day, but their parts of the story all involve a lot of emotional angst and relationship will-they/won't-they.

While there are relationships in the older books, they're not such a focus - and I really wish in a book with 5 POVs that at least one could have been an ace- and/or arospec character. Not everyone wants relationships or intimacy, so having a large cast spending probably over a third of the book with relationship moments can be very excluding.

I do really like scenarios where the only way out, supposedly, is a sacrifice by one of them - and all the attempts to find another way. It sets up a personal stake beyond "the world is endanger" to make the ending more fraught. Save the world, or save a character you've had fun spending time with for several books.

That said, with big cast books and end-of-the-world stakes, I always want there to be a real cost - not for everyone to somehow survive. I'm still on the fence about whether I think there was enough of a cost. They don't walk away completely scot-free, but I haven't quite worked out if it feels too unbelievable about the who and how much they're standing at the end.

Overall, it's a very enjoyable ending to this trilogy, and one I'll be recommending for a long time.<

The series ended in a great way! I am a fan of the multiple POVs with these series. These POVs gave a different perspective than sole POVs all throughout a series.

A fast-paced and page-turner series-ender! The whole premise is so captivating from the beginning to the end. Beru, Hector, Ephyra, Jude, Anton, and Hassan's story intertwined in a great plotline.

Looking forward to Pool's new books!

The Age of Darkness trilogy has been such an incredible ride, I'm genuinely sad to see it end. However, this final installment gave a completely fitting end - pulse pounding, jaw dropping adventure fantasy that I just couldn't put down.

Sometimes with such a large cast of characters, I have trouble keeping track of everybody. However, Pool makes each voice so completely distinct that they really are like real people, and I have no trouble following along. The drama in this book is non stop, and at no point can you guess what is coming next!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

What a brilliant end to the trilogy!
The book picks up several months after the end of volume 2 and the awakening of the God. All the main characters are back but separated as each of them considers what to do next.
This final volume has everything we loved from the first 2 installments and adds more twists, moments & adventure. A very satisfying end to the trilogy.

Into the Dying Light is the perfect conclusion to the series, wrapping up the story line while still giving readers the high stakes, action and romance we live for. Please note that this review will contain spoilers for the first two books in the series.

After the events of the previous book, our characters are spread around the six prophetic cities: Beru, still with the God trapped inside her is being used by Pallas to take control. Ephyra is trapped alongside Beru, used to ensure her obedience. Hector, Jude and Hassan are across the sea, wondering how they can rescue their friends, if indeed they are still alive, and Anton is training to harness his full powers. When Anton learns of a way to defeat the God for good he brings the gang back together for one last job, only their is a price to be paid, and Anton is not sure he can pay it. Friendships are formed, and romances blossom, but the only way to defeat both Pallas and the God is rife with sacrifice, and they will have to decide whether they are willing to pay the price for freedom.

One of the things I love about this series is the characters, the interactions between them all, the intricacies of their relationships. They aren't friends to start off with, they are a bunch of people who were forced together because of a prophecy. They each have their own goals, their own wants and needs, but in this book we really see them start to come together, to forgive each other for past grievances, to learn to trust each other as if they were family. This is something the series has been building towards, and we have had glimpses of it in the previous book, but I just loved reading the interactions between them all, and seeing them grow as characters.

Beru is now not just fighting against herself, against the fact that she shouldn't be alive, but now it also fighting against the God who is trying his best to wrestle control. It is only her love for Ephyra, Hector and her friends, her fear of being the one doing the killing that gives her the strength to hold out. Her character has always been a favourite of mine, but her growth in this book is truly off the charts.

Ephyra is slowly realising that what she did for all those years, the people she killed to keep her sister alive, might not have been the right thing. She is slowly learning to use her power for healing, rather than death. Unlike, Beru she doesn't easily trust people, and she took considerably longer to warm up to her travelling companions, but she soon realises that friends aren't a weakness, that she doesn't always have to do things alone, and I honestly loved seeing her grow as a character in this book.

Jude, my sweet summer child. He has always seemed the most brittle, the most likely to break out of the lot. But he carries a strength inside him, something he will need in the journey to come. After being reunited with Anton, he feels like things are finally looking up, that together they can do anything, but Anton seems to be keeping him at arms length, and Jude is determined to find out why.

Anton has finally gained his powers as the last Prophet. He knows what needs to be done to defeat both Pallas and the God, he's just not sure he is willing to pay the price. Though travelling with a group of people, he feels more alone than ever, the weight of the world is quite literally on his shoulders. I definitely felt for Anton throughout this story, and hoped he would get the happy ending her deserved.

Hassan is a Prince without a Kingdom, he regrets leaving Nazirah but knows that if he truly wants to save his people, he must complete this mission. He does seem like the weak link in a sense, I did enjoy his perspective, but felt it very rarely added anything to the overall story.

Hector, Hector may seem like the odd one out, but his story is linked to so many of the other characters and he plays a huge role in the furthering of their stories and character growth. I especially enjoyed his scenes with Ephrya and his almost bromance with Hassan, he scenes added a much needed levity to the story, and he was certainly a favourite character of mine.

Ilya, may not have a POV, but I loved him all the same. He is probably the most complicated of all the characters. Like them I wasn't sure whether he was trust worthy, he had certainly done nothing to prove it, but seeing him slowly insert himself into the group, coming out with invaluable information ensured he never got left behind. I also adored the romance arc between him and Ephyra, it was so subtle, but their scenes together were some of my favourites.

In a series filled with Religion, Pool certainly shows how it can be bother controlling and freeing with equal measure. She shows hos easy it is for history to be re-written, to show what powerful people want it to show. Some of my favourite parts of this book were the flashbacks to the original prophets, not only did they give us clues as to how the current story was going, but also showed us the truth of Pallas and the God he so desperately wanted to control.

Fast paced and filled with plot twists, this was one series finale I really struggled to put down. I do think that the ending was a little too easy, and could have been made a little more realists, but another part of me was also happy that most of our characters got the happy ending they deserved. With this series Pool has created a masterpiece of epic fantasy and I will be eagerly picking up anything else she writes.

I loved this trilogy. There were lots of twists and turns throughout to keep me guessing and wanting to learn more. The characters are rounded, flawed, and lifelike. Having protagonists in a same sex relationship is a great way for LGBT young people to feel more visible in society. A heroic tale.

Fantastic conclusion to a great trilogy. Dark fantasy – check. Engaging characters completing their arcs in a satisfying way – double check. Exploration of how religion can be used as a tool of oppression and control – check. This was everything I wanted in a finale and more.

Into the Dying Light is the final book in the The Age of Darkness trilogy and is a great conclusion that manages to wrap up the story in a really satisfying way whilst providing very high emotional stakes and angst for the characters and expanding the lore and mystery of the world. Our cast of characters must work together to stop both Pallas with his religious cult and the evil god lurking inside Bero.

I have really enjoyed this series and while the second book probably holds the top spot as my favourite, I thought this installment really held up and was such an enjoyable ride. I liked seeing all the characters working together and thought the author managed to balance a big group dynamic really well. Each character goes through their own individual journey and I'm going to talk about each of the major characters below:

Jude - Jude in this book is trying to fight to protect his prophet and must reckon with his destiny. I've always liked Jude, he is a great grouchy but sweet protagonist that is really easy to like and root for. I liked his drive and passion to suceed in this book, and also how he reckons with the trauma of his upbringing and how he has been brought up for a specific purpose that he must try and escape from. I really liked how his story concluded and also his relationship with Anton - while I wanted to slap them both over the head at times due to the miscommunication - I loved how sweet and caring they are towards each other.

Anton - Anton is on a mission in this book to fufil his destiny as the last prophet while protecting his loved ones. I really enjoyed his arc in this book, while it did feel like the classic prophesied hero trope it was still really enjoyable and there was a lot of emotional angst along for the ride (see above lol). Anton also learns the important lesson that keeping secrets to protect those you love in what you think is their best interests is not always the best decision.

Ephyra - I've always liked how one of the central relationships in the book is between two sisters and I feel like in this one we really get to explore the dynamic between Ephyra and Bero and deal with the fallout from events in both books 1 and 2. Ephyra is very much a protector for Bero and is trying to do everything she can to help her - althought she must learn that sometimes the best thing she can do is let go and allow Bero to make her own way and I really enjoyed this journey.

Bero - Bero was one of my favourites in this installment, I loved her inner conflict and turmoil she had with the god inside her as well as her bravery and willingness to sacrifice for others. I also really love her inherent kindness and sweetness. I thought the way her character and story wrapped up was really well done and a very poetic ending that fit perfectly.

Hector - I feel like Hector doesn't have his own story but he plays an important part in the others stories, I love the relationship between him and Bero and seeing how that was affected by eventsin the book. Surprisingly I especially liked the dynamic between Hector and Ephyra in this book, they have a lot of resentment towards each other but I liked seeing them slowly start to mend their relationship. I also liked seeing Hector and Judes friendship again after a rocky journey through the series.

Hassan - In book 2 I felt like Hassan was a less relevant character and I thought it was a little bit the same in this one, however I still really enjoy his character and liked getting another perspective on the group dynamic. I do really like his character and I feel lke sometimes he acts as a voice of reason.

Illya - Ever since book two Illya has been one of my favourites, I love his scheming little evil heart. I really enjoyed his story in this one, his path to seeking redemption and forgiveness from his brother. I also LOVE the dynamic between Illya and Ephyra - if you are after actually good enemies to lovers (who both happen to be super morally grey) with excellent angst then look no further!

I loved the exploration of how religion can be used as a tool by the powerful and greedy to manipulate the people, and how history can be twisted to fit a narrative. I always think this is such an interetsing thing to explore and thought it was very well executed. The series has always had religious undertones given the prophets and gods - this installment expanded on those themes very well and I thought had a lot of parallels with our history and even current times.

In conclusion a fantastic ending to a great trilogy which I think is perfect for fans of both adult and YA fantasy alike - full of familiar tropes while still feeling fresh, super loveable characters and relationships to get invested in, interesting magic and prophecy and a look at the intersection between religion, politics and power.