Finished off the third in this novella fantasy series. I have to be honest that I was hoping for deepening world building and character development, but each book has instead focused on a different character and widened the world by adding more elements without explaining previous ones. I didn't end up understanding any more about the book than I did after book 1. The whole series has honestly been a little bit depressing, and I'm not sure I was the right reader for it.

If you are interested in a dragon fantasy series that deals with colonialism, forced migration, and wartime survival, this could be the one for you.

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novella.

A Covenant of Ice is the third and last instalment to the Crowns of Ishia novella trilogy. A hefty story where each story follows a new character but still needs to be read in order. Honestly I would highly recommend to read these close together because they pack the most punch then.

In this book we follow Lilley who we met in book 1 and was heavily referenced in book 2. We now get his point of view on what has happened to him over the years. He hasn't had a happy life. Now he has finally found his love Janan back but he is tied to the dragon Raka who houses the remnant of the soul of Raka the human. Raka sacrificed himself to save this dragon. It ties heavily on Lilley who gets bits and pieces from the dragon to the point where he isn't sure what is his anymore.

As you can imagine from the above book, this isn't a happy book. It is filled with trauma and doubts about oneself. While I don't think it is outright said, you feel that Lilley might not want to continue living if this is what his life will be like. It is powerful though for this portion of mental health.

The backdrop of this whole series are the colonized Basuan who lost their homes to the Kattakans. It is a strong story and I would love to read more books in this setting. The islands, the ice planes. More on the Basuan and the magic that is written about.

I do think this might be my least favorite installment. That mostly has to do with Lilley who isn't my favorite character. I just preferred Janan and Meka. It is a personal preference. The book is still a great read.

Wasn't quite the way I thought things would wrap up, but it feels right though. Although I would have liked to see more of the arctic Suon and learn more about the culture there. I thought Lilley being sort of possessed or haunted by Raka's spirit was interesting. It was well done. I really enjoyed the BaSuon culture and their way of life. I would definitely have read longer books and more books about them.

A fitting end to a great trilogy, A Covenant of Ice wraps up loose ends and still manages to feel fresh and new.

Sometimes it's hard to review the end of a trilogy, especially a novella, but if you’ve read the first two, yes, this book completes the set and while it doesn’t feel as new as the others, because the worldbulding is fully set-up ar this point, it’s just as immersive and interesting.

The entire series has a very interesting balance between violence and compassion. The characters exist in a world that is openly hostile to them on multiple fronts, but they still manage to project a deep kindness for one another and a devotion to their causes and ideals. In the first two, there was more conflict on that aspect, but in this one, there are no more gray lines. The issue is more on a personal level, a sense of grief and letting go.

One thing this book did differently than the other two was an interesting point of view from a chaotic character that was not confusing, but definitely pushed the boundaries of following the trajectory of their thoughts. This added to the experience of a character, so it worked really well.

The tagline refers to the series as one of “gunslinging dragonriders,” but this doesn’t really fit. The book is so much deeper and complex than the comparison it seems to be making to another popular YA series about dragons, as it’s a nuanced deep dive into the impacts of colonialism and expansionism.

Overall, I really enjoyed this series and this book, though I think the first one was my favourite.

A Covenant of Ice is the third book in the Crowns of Ishia trilogy. This time, the POV is mostly from Lilley's point of view, except when it's from Raka's point of view. (The ghost currently possessing Lilley, not Dragon-Raka. Though that would have been interesting--and pretty much like a prose poem if the way they "talk" is any indication.) In this third installment Janan and his family are approached by the Mazemoor government to go to the north, so as to block off the attempts of the Kattakan to explore the region.

Absolutely no one wants to take this mission. They also want nothing to do with the Ba'Suon enastramyth, a boy named Gherijtana ele Railé the agent delivering the request brings with her. Yet somehow, they all end up going north. With the enastramyth in tow. This is in part because Raka (both dragon and ghost) are very insistent about going north, and part because Railé claims that his Greatmother had a vision that going north is necessary for some greater plan or purpose that Railé will not--or cannot--relate.

Things of course, do not go entirely to plan. (Or do go according to plan, considering we don't actually know the Greatmother's vision.) The northern dragons are not like the dragons of the Ba'Suon, or the dragons of the Mazoön. For one, they breathe ice, for another they are actually kind of terrifyingly territorial and have been holding off any and all potential settlers for a very long time. (Raka's family was the only Ba'Suon family they had a contract with.)

There is a lot of backstory into Lilley and to a lesser extent Raka's pasts, and their joint and separate traumas are explored--and has a great deal to do with the endgame of the plot. We also see the beginnings of Lilley and Janan's relationship, and how they met Raka. As a result we end up with a (slightly) more sympathetic view of Raka.

The falling action is something of a gut punch, as nature finally balances itself. (In so far as the situation with the Kattakan people colonizing Ba'Suon lands is concerned. There's still the mythicism towers that are draining the life out of Mazemoor...though I can certainly forsee a "balancing" on that end of the equation.) I enjoyed the book, and appreciated the potential of the open ending.

My over all feelings for the trilogy is that it's a great read with excellent worldbuilding. The characters are very fleshed out and distinct. I enjoyed their interactions and their developing relationships with each other. I liked the "western" feel of the setting, and the general message of "imperialism/colonialism is kind of terrible, actually." A great book with lots of action--in the sense of things actively happening, not so much in the way of fighting, mind--and emotional character arcs.

This review is based on a galley received from NetGalley.

I entirely fell in love with book 1 in this series and feel so lucky to have been able to read this advanced copy. Lowachee’s storytelling is a soul working experience wherein it seems the reader must move through the soul of the story to come out the other side with a new understanding of life. Dare I say this series has been a religious experience? I’m not sure I have a better term for it. Book 3 has the four heroes united after years of world and life changing events. While overjoyed, there is still anger and a brokenness lingering. They are all called upon to make another perilous journey to reestablish balance to themselves and the world.

Short concluding novella to the series. A great series. Thank you to the author. Thank you to # NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.

I enjoyed this trilogy very much, but this felt like an anticlimactic conclusion for what was building. The first half of the novella moved rather slowly, and the last third moved incredibly quickly. I'm happy that Lilley, Janan, and Meka got their good ending, but it felt rushed and unsatisfying. This installment, especially, had much less about the dragons, the suon, despite introducing a new type, which was a smidge disappointing. I still think this trilogy is worth reading, I'm just a little underwhelmed by the way it ended.

WIth this novella, Karin Lowachee cements her reputation as a master of painting a difficult, imperfect world and giving narrators from different, often polarized, sides of it a compelling voice to fill the world with. I keep mentally comparing this series to Warchild, and it's not the same - of course it is not - but something I have learnt to love and appreciate from it being masterfully pulled off again is just a pure pleasure to watch. It's bittersweet, it doesn't answer every question it raises, but boy does it leave an impression.

I love the writing in this series, each book is a little different in ways that reflect the POV character. I was, however, left wanting by the conclusion of this novella. There are still some unanswered questions, some loose threads. Maybe that's how this story needed to end, because there was never going to be a tidy ending to this story. All and all, it's well worth reading.

Hard to talk about this without spoiling, but this was a wonderful conclusion to the trilogy. I thought it wrapped everything up nicely - its a brutal and bloody world that these characters live in, so the bittersweet ending was fitting I think.
I'd love to read more from this universe, but I'm very satisfied with what we got!

Enjoyed the book courtesy of NetGalley and the Publisher, my opinion is my own.

I think the middle volume was my favourite, but the way the third novella concludes the story, bringing consequences and emotional weight, is certainly very satisfying. I found the purposefully disorienting effect of POV shifts between the two consciousnesses vying for control to be very effective. The world is so dark and so violent, and yet the characters hold care and gentleness for each other.

I kind of wish we could have more hope, less violence, but it's not that kind of story. It is about family and love among ruins.

At the end of "The Dester Talon," Lilley and his lover Janan were finally reunited after years of separation. But they get no chance to rest, as the connection with the soul of a king dragon and Raka consumes him, transforming his thoughts and feelings into something other than his own. Added to this is the ongoing conflict with the Kattakans, and so Lilley and his companions Janan and Meka must travel north to appease Raka and put a stop to the Kattakans' claim of possession.

I really enjoyed reading the final part of this story, and it's a good conclusion to the trilogy, but for me it doesn't compare to the brilliant second part. Lilley struggles with his connection to Raka and the guilt he feels over his sacrifice. He's in danger of losing himself in Raka's memories and feels his connection to Janan and the world in general growing weaker and weaker. I found the portrayal very impressive, but at times it was a bit confusing. It wasn't always immediately clear to me who was speaking, or whether they were just memories or whether what was being told was actually happening. Nevertheless, I liked the way the themes of nature, origins, and family were once again presented, with the latter being given a whole new perspective through Raka's past.

Overall, the series has a well-deserved place on my shelf and in my heart, but in some places I would have liked there to have been more space to discover the world and the characters.

I'm really sad to hear that this is the end of the Crowns of Ishia series, because it's grown to become one of my favourites. But this was a bittersweet and fitting ending to the trilogy.
I think this series might have suffered a little from mis-marketing. It's presented as 'gunslinging dragonriders', perhaps to try to exploit the current dragon rider craze. But that doesn't really do the story justice. It's a quietly profound meditation on humanity and our relationship with nature and each other and it's really beautiful, but perhaps not what those looking for a fun western adventure would vibe with.
There was everything great here that was great in the first two books: beautiful immersive prose, a genuine and human cast of characters, a short but impactful story and dragons! The relationship between Lilley and Janan was really the heart of this book, it felt real and raw and I just wanted the best for them.
As the point of view was from Lilley, we didn't hear the dragons' thoughts so much in this one, which I missed a bit. However, I still really loved how they were presented in this book: as forces of nature, ferocious and unyielding. I love sassy, friendly dragons as much as the next person but I need more of this too! Dragons should be terrifying and awe-inspiring and they were certainly that here.
I'm not sure what else to say about this one other than it was the perfect conclusion to a perfect series. It may be bittersweet, but it's so genuine and heartfelt and I honestly can't reccommend it enough. Go read it!

Oh this book! I had the time of my life reading it. A Covenant of Ice by Karin Lowachee is a masterpiece! I rated it 5 stars because I couldn't put it down for a second.

The final book in the novella trilogy The Crowns of Ishia is a fitting ending to this interesting series. Like the previous two books, this is a short but poignant read. We are reunited with Janaan and Lilley in the North. The conclusion ties up themes of loss, healing, trust, and reclaiming heritage that ran through the series. Readers who enjoyed the first two books will surely see this as an apt way to resolve the story and say goodbye to the characters.
I received access to this eARC thru NetGalley (for which I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher, Rebellion - Solaris) for an honest review. The opinion expressed here is my own.