Review: A Power Unbound

 


Y’all I am absolutely obsessed with this series, and this book wraps everything up perfectly (although please?? More in this world?? Because there are hints that there’s more to come???). We get lovely flashes from Robin and Edwin and Violet and Maud, including a really heartwrenching sublot with Robin and Edwin. It also benefits hugely from Jack and Alan having been introduced in the last book and having an established relationship to build on. We get thrown straight into a house full of all these delightful characters (there’s a great line from Jack’s POV describing the dynamic between Edwin and Violet as two cats with terrible personalities who have been adopted by two people determined for them to coexist and like if that doesn’t sum up this whole series I don’t know what does. Just a bunch of golden retrievers adopting grumpy cats. Anyway), and then get to watch them trying to solve a mystery when all they want to do is make out with their respective partners. So yeah, the character dynamics here were absolutely golden in pretty much all regards. 

One thing I would have loved to see more of is Jack and Maud’s relationship. It was one of my favorite elements of A Restless Truth, and it didn’t get as much page time as I would have liked. Another bit that was absolutely brilliantly done is the way Alan describes his hatred of spending time around the group. I won’t spoil it here because it’s such a freaking plot twist, but you spend half the book thinking it’s one thing and then it turns out it’s something entirely different and it makes complete sense in retrospect but you never see it coming. 

And then the ending was perfection – that last scene was so beautiful and emotional and made me cry in the best way. I do feel like we were left with a lot of questions that I desperately want explored further (publishers and Freya Marske if you are reading this GIVE ME MORE PLEASE), but a good story – especially one like this that incorporates both mystery and excellent world-building – isn’t going to answer every single question, because it’s created a world that spools off the page. I will stop ranting now but everyone should go read this incredible series.


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