The Immortal Circus: Final Act - A.H. Kahler

The final book in the Immortal Circus trilogy sees Vivienne betrayed by those she cares about and cheated by Mab, the faerie queen of the winter court, into becoming the ringmaster of the circus. She is trapped, powerless despite the fact that she can destroy demons and is unable to calm the angry troupe. She still sees horrific visions, and every day gets closer to the future she has seen.

This whole series is one that I have not been able to put down, and the final book is no exception. I was so invested in the entire story and couldn't wait to see how it would all pan out, and this was definitely not a disappointment. There are a fair few unexpected elements, danger lurks around every corner and Mab continues to throw obstacles in Vivienne's way. We even see a glimpse of the Winter court! This ending was great, and it was the build up of tension that I really liked, which ran throughout the books and finally came to fruition here.

Th explanations given to certain plot points (notice I am trying hard not to give anything away), were very nicely reasoned out and everything actually made utter sense. I think my only issue was that at the end we didn't quite get all the 'hows' and 'whys', only what happens a long time later and the in-between is a blank. I would have liked some more explanation as to what happened with the courts and how certain characters lived and died.

There was some slight character development for Vivienne as she realises the truth and learns who she can trust. She also has to cope with a lot of varied emotions as well as the responsibility of looking after others, people she hardly knows. In the end she does exactly what she thinks is right, and it is kind of heart breaking.

Themes of love, betrayal, guilt and remorse run through this story right to the core, with a few disturbing truths and painful choices coming to light. I love the use of the faeries realms and the existence of the circus and really liked how much bigger the story got through every book.

This is a great read and is very satisfying despite lack of detail. It is a well-imagined readable series that I recommend for YA readers and lovers of fairy lore.

The Immortal Circus on Goodreads

Kyra_x