I have to admit I was extremely disappointed with this book, the final in the Spirit Walker trilogy. The trilogy had started off well with a gripping first book (Cold Magic) and a second book (Cold Fire) that came very near to reaching this standard too. Then there's this final book. And to be honest, it annoyed the hell out of me. Sadly Kate Elliott decided that the strong, independent main character (Cat) had to become a loved up, boy and sex obsessed girl. I realise that she's a character who...

This is the final book in a trilogy, and on the balance, I'd say it was a good investment of my time--but I probably won't invest money in this author again. In hindsight, I'd classify the series as get-it-at-the-library-good, rather than get-it-at-the-bookstore-good.This third novel has the same strengths and weaknesses as the first two books in the series, although I think the first book was best.The characters have a bit of a twee, chattering way of speaking that occasionally borders on annoy...

"Either find a way, or make one."I just.. loved it. So much.

I have enjoyed this trilogy a lot, and the last installment wraps everything up in a really nice way. This is an alt-steampunk-Victorian-type world with magic and faeries and it's a really lovely meld of all of those things, without being too cheesy. It's very female-centric, the two young women lead characters are sisters and they're really portrayed as well-rounded and believable, which I appreciated. The theme of the book follows their liberation and freedom, among other things, and even thou...

Honestly, I can’t remember the last time I was so satisfied with a series. Most of them always leave something unsaid or ambiguous and these things niggle at me because imagination only takes me so far. You know? So settle in. I have a lot to say about the last installment in the Spiritwalker trilogy.I recently reread the first one just to see if the magic of the book still affected me in the same way and I am happy to report that yes, it did. I appreciated the novel more on the second read beca...

This is going to be a rare giant rambling essay of a book review, but I just finished the conclusion to the Spiritwalker Trilogy and I'm feeling kind of lost and bittersweet and book hangover-y. And I have things to say. Man to Cat Barahal: "You're a fiery beast, lass. It will take a strong man to harness you."Cat: "It would take a strong man not to speak of harnesses!"We start off in the Antilles, dealing with the aftermath of Cat's choice (sort of--she didn't really have much of one) to have t...

This is the final book in Kate Elliott’s Spiritwalker trilogy. It was more entertaining than the middle book, which I thought had a lot more boring and tedious parts. There was one aspect of the story that I feared would be stretched out for the entire book, but it was wrapped up earlier than I expected so I was happy about that. The story held my interest better than the second book and equally as well as the first book. There was a minor thread or two that never really got tied up, but the end...

Don't be put off by the length of this volume. The complexity of the series -- its characters and underlying ideas, not merely its plot -- demand the length, and it's well worth it! Elliott manages to tie off a great many strands of interesting material without ever succumbing to the rushed ending or the easy way out. Cat's relationship to her "sire" is particularly well done.And the very last couple of lines of the book made me laugh out loud. If you wonder why Elliott told this story in first

The real review is here! Some of you who liked my pre-release comments might want to retract: no offense taken, I promise.This is a 3.5-star book, rounded up because Goodreads still doesn't have half-stars. Cold Magic is still my favorite of the trilogy, but I do think this one works better than Cold Fire.Like the first two books in this trilogy, Cold Steel gets off to a rocky start: it begins with a dream sequence (!) and the first 100 pages feel a bit frantic and disjointed, as the protagonist...

A satisfying if not perfect ending to the series.This one has a bit of a rough start. Rough as in draft, as it feels like the first 20% or so could have done with another run of editing, or a rework or something. I think the basic problem is that at the end of the second book the main character and her friends are stuck in the Caribbean and for this book they needed to be in Europa and the transition stuff just had to get done.Once the action moves to Europa the storyline stabilizes a bit until

This series is just wonderful. A fitting end to the series, which sees Cat navigating her way to happiness in a remarkably realistic way, considering the presence of talking dinosaurs, magic, a man who turns into a sabre tooth cat, and the Spirit World. A definite favourite.

Rating: 4.5 StarsI can't remember ever being so distraught about the ending of a trilogy. I rarely read a series all in one go, but when I do, I enjoy flying through the books instead of drawing out the plot over years and forgetting key elements. With this series, however, I wish I had started it back when Cold Magic had released, if only so that I could hold onto these characters a little longer. I'll definitely need to be making time in the future to re-read this delightful trilogy because it...

A long but ultimately satisfying conclusion to this trilogy. Elliott manages to bring many disparate aspects together to create a fun and complex story. And we got to meet the fabled dragons at long last!

3.5 starsMy feelings for Kate Elliott's Spiritwalker trilogy have been all over the map, from boredom to fangirling to intense admiration to irritation. Most emotions it's capable for me to feel about a book, I've felt somewhere along the way through this series. Though I'm not entirely satisfied with the way that Cold Steel concluded everything, the Spiritwalker Trilogy stands out in my mind as one of my recent favorites, and will remain a much loved part of my collection. Though I do not usual...

This is the first Kate Elliot I have read and I sincerely wish that it wasn’t.For you see, I really love it, the writing and the world building. It’s that way with reviewing sometimes, you’ll get book two of a series or book three without having had a chance to read the preceding books. I often joke that my super power is reading the last book of a series(without having read the others), most reviewers I don’t think would bother – the dilemma of wanting to give an author a fair go but not having...

At one point while reading this, I got to a major plot development and thought, “Oh, good! I must be nearly at the end!” Then I glanced at the progress indicator and discovered I was at 35%. That is ... not a great sign, honestly. This book was just — it needed to be edited so very badly. The pacing was so off that the plot limped slowly along, occasionally tripping and falling into bed with Catherine and Vai for an interminable few pages. (By the way, you absolutely have to be 100% into the Cat...

Viel tegen na deel 2 gelezen te hebben. Zo jammer. Een beetje een spijt momentje dat ik ze gekocht heb

As with any magnificent series, I’m bereft that this is the last book in the Spiritwalker’s Trilogy.Kate Elliot once again is a master of vividly creating this fabulous world of mages, magic, dragons and the spirit realm. It is a highly complex world that Elliot brings to life and even though the book is quite lengthy the story is enhanced by Elliot’s descriptive writing.Cat Barahal is as enchanting as ever, funny and overcoming insurmountable odds. Cat, Bee and Rory are all outstanding characte...

A fitting and sweeping end to this saga which kept me engrossed to the last page. Kate has also addressed some important, and rarely used, topics such as female friendship, universal civil rights including those of women, the effect of power and hierarchy, and the nature of personal relationship choices, wrapped up in a rollicking fantasy trilogy. I also love the echoes of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic wars twisted into a world where Britannia never ruled the waves, instead massive mi...