Grave witch Alex Craft has forged an uneasy truce with the world of Faerie, but she's still been trying to maintain at least some semblance of a normal life in the human world. So it's safe to say that stepping up as the lead investigator for the Fae Investigation Bureau was not a career path she ever anticipated taking.

When an explosion at the Eternal Bloom threatens to upend the fae who make their home in our world, Alex finds herself in charge of the most far-reaching investigation she's ever tackled. And it's only her first week on the job. With the threats mounting and cut off from half her allies, Alex can't wait on the sidelines and hope the fae's conflicts stay contained within their borders.

Whether you've read every book or not, this finale to Alex Craft's story is exhilarating and a fast-paced ride. Once past the introduction of the conflict, the story moves fast and while not every last detail is tied up in a bow, author Kalayna Price does an excellent job of tying up most of the details from previous stories and resolving not only the main conflict in this story but the major conflicts from previous novels. And for me, a newer reader in the series, I was able to follow all the various conflicts and intrigues from those previous novels with no issues which takes skill on the author's part. She easily details the information without dragging the action down into a ton of monologue or wrap up. The story's action does a lot of the work as Alex deals with each situation.

One of the elements I loved the most is that there is a twist with several characters in the novel and at least one of them completely took me by surprise. It was one I should likely have expected but didn't until the twist happened. I love a good surprise in a novel.

The biggest part of why the novel is so good is the characterization. You immediately feel like you know the character. She isn't perfect, she has issues, but she struggles no matter what because she cares about those around her. She is a very sympathetic heroine and I simply love that about the writer, that she has created this engaging and lovable character. But it's not just the main character. As you meet others in the world, they are equally interesting. Kalayna Price avoids having two dimensional characters and that is why they are so much fun to read. If you don't fall in love with the characters, I would be surprised.

As I mentioned, this is the finale of the series so I do recommend reading the others in the series. While you can jump in and won't be lost, there will be nuances that will be missed due to lack of knowledge but as a final book in a character's journey this is a beautiful ending. It resolves all major conflicts but doesn't make you feel like it is the end of the character or her continuing stories. And it resolves the major arch of the character's growth as a character. If you like stories with passion, action, and intrigue in urban fantasy, check out Grave War.

Rating: 5 out of 5 crowns. ~~ Andrea Rittschof

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