Crystal Storm (Falling Kingdoms #5)

I have just finished reading this and I have a lot of feelings. Warning, there will be major spoilers for the first four books in this review. Proceed with caution.

The cliffhanger at the end of Frozen Tides was pretty terrible. I mean, I had expected to find Ashur alive. At least I’d hoped it. And when that happened, I was overjoyed. With the way everything had played out during the fourth book, I was pretty much expecting it to happen at some point. And I was completely right about the reason he returned from the grave. There were other things, however, I was not expecting.

Before I’d read the synopsis of Crystal Storm, I’d expected to see Gaius dead. Clearly, that has not happened. And the reason for this is brought to light pretty early on in the book.

So Gaius comes back basically from the dead, and he’s a new man. Transformed into the man he used to be, remorseful, capable to love. How strange, right? This is not the Gaius Damora we all know and hate. And yet, even though he is clearly still an antagonist, I find it hard to hate him as much as I did before. We learn so much more about him and his relationship with Elena (Cleo’s mother), as well as his relationship with his own mother. Yes, he hardened himself and became pretty evil. But I could almost understand why.

And then, of course, there was the sudden appearance of Taran Ranus, also known as Theon’s identical twin brother. Well that complicates things, now doesn’t it? So even though we hardly had Theon in Falling Kingdoms, it was great to learn a little more backstory on him. And I can’t wait to learn even more about the two of them in the next book.

So this book is fairly short. It’s only 379 pages long, which took me merely a day to complete. And unlike the first four books, this one only takes place over a few weeks at most. The first four books take place over a period of just over a year. And as usual, we pick up right as we left off. But there was no idle time or time gaps anywhere.

I’d honestly forgotten about what was going on with Lucia at the end of Frozen Tides. I hadn’t remembered that she’d battled with Kyan and ended up in the Sanctuary. Of course, she sets off immediately to find Timotheus, rightly so. She is driven, now, to protect herself and her child, as well as attempting to make amends for all the evil things she did while in Kyan’s company. And I won’t say much, but she does at least make a small dent in redeeming herself.

Kyan, however, is very much changed from his battle with Lucia. And he has a hidden ability that makes him even more conniving than he was before.

Of course then we have Magnus and Cleo, who I was seriously routing for. Oh, but they cannot show their affection for each other without upsetting their friends. So while they do have some heated moments and arguments, they are much subdued. Still, I love watching them argue. Okay, I really just love Magnus.

By the end of the book, I had really begun to care much more for Lucia again. Let’s face it, she was pretty terrible in the last book. But she has so much stuff going on now. She was my least favorite of the four protagonists, but I’m actually invested in her story again now. And then we have Jonas and just what???

Of course, we don’t get to see much of the world this time. Everyone stays basically in the same place. And it’s a place we’ve been before many times. I had hoped we would explore more of Mytica or even Kraeshia, but, alas, we did not.

So the end? Oh. My. God.

People have not been kidding about the killer. I would not have seen that coming if I hadn’t been slightly spoiled. Between Magnus and the rest of the crew and the kindred, I don’t know how I will survive until the sixth book comes out in December.

Overall
While I whole-heartedly recommend this series, I think perhaps you should wait on reading Frozen Tides and Crystal Storm until closer to the release date of the last book.

Characters: 5 stars
Plot: 5 stars
Writing: 4 stars
World: 4 stars
Feels: 5 stars
Total – 4.5 stars

4 STARS

Okay, so this book was really short in my opinion (379 pages). Then again, each book in the series is around 400 pages so it wasnt that much of a page number difference but still. And having all the multiple POVs just made it seem even shorter than it actually was because there wasnt an immense amount of plot or character progression. Although I did like how fast-paced it was, there were times when it felt like things were being too rushed. Unfortunately, there wasnt a lot that happened until the very end. If there would have been an extra 100 pages or so, then it could have been more fleshed out. But that did not stop me from enjoying the book. I was super excited to pick up this book because of how Frozen Tides ended. I NEEDED to know what was going to happen between Magnus and Cleo like I need oxygen to survive! Oh boyI have digged myself a very deep grave with this one. Too soon?

This book picks up immediately where Frozen Tides ends. The Damoras have basically been ousted. Amara has taken her seat on the throne. Jonas and crew are making their way back to Mytica with an unexpected guest. Lucia is no longer in cahoots with Kyan, thank the gods. Magnus and Cleo have finally confessed their love for each other. And Gaius is deador so you think. At this point I am done with all these ridiculous resurrections. They are driving me absolutely crazy! To be honestly, I wouldnt be surprised if Lysandra and Theon somehow came back from the darklands.

If you have read my review for Frozen Tides, then you know that I am not the biggest fan of this series, but I have to admit that Crystal Storm was fantastic. It has got to be my favorite book in the Falling Kingdoms series so far and it completely redeemed the series in my eyes.

Throughout the book, Magnus and Cleo are trying to figure out their relationship as well as the future of Mytica. It saddens me that there are so many obstacles standing between their happiness. For example, Gaius tells them that Cleo is cursed and that she will die during childbirth just like her mother. This just put a damper on everything and I was not pleased in the least. The only good thing that came out of this was Magnus over-protectiveness. He would get so worried over the smallest of things and it made my heart melt. And that one scene after Cleo hears some bad news from Olivia and Magnus just finds her on the floor and asks her what is wrongugh it broke my heart.

In my opinion, Jonas Agallon had one of the best character developments in this series. I never thought that I would say this about Jonas but he has come to be the reasonable one of the gang. He isnt as impulsive nor is he solely acting on his emotions. He has finally realized that it is better to take a second and think everything through before making a rash decision. I dont know how he has managed to stay alive this longwell, he had help from watchers so I guess thats how.

Then there was Nicolo and his abundantly clear hatred for Magnus. I really liked Nic in the first couple of books but he got on my bad side in Crystal Storm. He keeps going on and on about how much he hates Magnus and wishes him dead, yet does nothing about it. He also keeps encouraging Taran to kill Magnus and Im like boy, stop being a coward and do it yourself if you want him dead so badly. This also puts a strain on Magnus and Cleos relationship because she wont tell Nic the truth about her feelings for Magnus. If I were Cleo I would be screaming it at the top of my lungs but thats just me.

I also really disliked Ashur, a.k.a Mr. Phoenix. He has risen from the ashes and has become this passive-aggressive prince, emperor, I dont even know what he is. He has this crazy idea to go to his sister and to peacefully ask her to stop this madness. I get that he doesnt want to resort to violence or to harm his sister because she is all the family he has left, but is he really that naive? Buddy, she killed you once already dont you think that she would do it again if it meant she could have all the power in the world?!?!

I still did not like Lucia for a majority of this book. Dont get me wrong, I am happy to see that she has FINALLY seen the error of her way and is trying to make amends but that was one hell of a personality change if you ask me. Then towards the end of the book, there is the insinuation that Jonas and Lucia could quite possibly become a thing. Even though they seem good for each other based on what we see at the end, I am just so sick of all these romances popping up.

Before I wrap this baby up, I have to say that even though there was a smidge more bad than good, I still thoroughly enjoyed this book. I cant wait for the next and final book to come out next year!

Wow! What a well written book. Lots of tension and amazing characters: especially Prince Magnus. I’m not sure I can be patient until the next book……

…THAT ENDING! How am I able to cope until February?! What a cliffhanger! Magnus is everything! Goddess give me strength….

Was a present so I cannot tell for myself but my friend loved it!

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