The Light of All That Falls

This trilogy has firmly secured its place among my favorite fantasy series. It's a true tour de force, with a plot that seamlessly carries the reader from one book to the next. The integration of every plot point into the overarching story is impressive, with seemingly minor events paying off across the entire arc. The pacing of the reveals is particularly well-executed, with details and explanations woven throughout all three books, rather than relying on the typical climactic reveal at the end.

If there's any critique to be made, it would be the extensive cast of characters, which can occasionally make it challenging to keep track of everyone (though it does contribute to the richly detailed world). Additionally, as the characters' fortunes ebb and flow across different times and places, it can sometimes be difficult to remember who possesses which powers at any given moment.

Nevertheless, a testament to the story's strength is the author's confident decision to drop an entire plotline, as explained in an end-note, without leaving the reader feeling that something was missing. The intersection of the omitted plotline could have felt like a deus ex machina, but its absence only highlights the robustness of the remaining narrative.

I'm eagerly looking forward to exploring more of this author's works.

A Breathtaking Conclusion to the Licanius Trilogy

Wow! “The Light of All That Falls” by James Islington delivers a truly phenomenal ending to the Licanius Trilogy. It's a heart-wrenching, tension-filled masterpiece that solidifies Islington's place among the greats of epic fantasy.

This final installment masterfully ties together all the threads of the previous books, offering a satisfying resolution that feels both natural and surprising. The exploration of fate and destiny throughout the series culminates in an ending that left you gasping and almost in tears.

Islington's meticulous worldbuilding and complex magic system shine through once again, leaving you constantly engaged and eager to unravel the mysteries. The characters' journeys are deeply emotional, and the epilogue stands out as one of the most powerful you've ever read.

If you're looking for a classic fantasy with a modern twist, “The Light of All That Falls” is an absolute must-read. It's a testament to Islington's talent and a truly unforgettable conclusion to a remarkable series.

Did not finish. I almost gave up the 2nd book, but decided to keep giving it a shot, due to the hype. 3rd book is more of the same. Too convoluted, characters I found boring, a “plot” that ran around all over the place, continual instances of hidden motives switching around the whole story, etc. And Caden – everything about him was just a series of short stories thrown together in a mish-mash. I just have to put it in the Did Not Finish pile.

Dude. I have never in my life read such a satisfying reveal. Everything came together and you get to see all of the characters reach their full potential and watch them struggle to make their decisions. Top tier. Soooo good.

Age range: 16+
Too violent for younger readers.

9/10
The cover of my edition of the book states: “Fans of Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson will find much to admire”. I can now confirm this statement.

The middle part of the book was way too slow in my opinion. The politics just aren't interesting enough to spend that .uvh time with them. However, the epilogue was absolutely perfect and wraps up the story in an amazing way. I can never get enough of this kind of time-fuckery.

I'm giving this book 4 stars because it was good but so dang difficult to for me to understand. I've never read a trilogy that was so complex but I bet on a second read it will be really great

WHAT A SATISFYING ENDING.

The Light of All that Falls was an amazing ending to a phenomenal trilogy. There were a few things I was a little disappointed on, but honestly? I can look past those. They really don't ruin my enjoyment of the series as a whole. (If you're really interested what I was disappointed on click the following, but it IS a spoiler I thought there would be more to the Shammaeloth reveal -- maybe that he and El were the same being, or that somehow Caeden was Shammaeloth the whole time. I wanted there to be something twisty there, but there wasn't. He was just evil, like Tal knew he was. Also a tiny little bit disappointed that Aelric just SHOWS UP randomly to save the day. I know the author is going to explain that in it's own story, but it felt a little cheap here.) Each of the main characters gets an complete wrap up of their arc without feeling like anyone got left out or short-changed. But Caeden's story...Caeden's story was the best out of all of them.

Throughout the whole series, Caeden has this upward journey of figuring himself out, of trying to be a better man than he actually is. His past is full of awful, cruel decisions, and it seems that in this book of the series, he actually examines his past, and comes to the conclusion that no one is to blame but himself. He could have just blamed Shammaeloth, could have just stepped over it all but he didn't. Choice is very important. He chose to do all those cruel things, and Caeden actually owns everything he did. Caeden then takes the knowledge he gains and grows from it. CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT that actually works! Yay!

TLATF does have some nice surprise twists and reveals along the way, just what I was hoping for when I started the series. Niha being Davian's mom was SO GOOD. Time travel is used to the fullest – forcing characters to admit that nothing can change the past. It doesn't matter what you do, it's going to happen. BUT – that doesn't mean it has to happen the way you think it will. Time travel is one of my favorite...tropes? Devices? I'm not sure what the right word is there, but whatever. I love time travel when its done right and it is DONE RIGHT in this trilogy.

The story comes to a close with a complete circle. Almost everything is wrapped up in a nice, neat little bow. I'd rate this at a 4.5 stars if I could, docking half a star for the items under the first spoiler tag above.

Wow! Wow! Wow! James Islington take a bow. A series closure for the ages. Could not have hoped for better. We come a full circle and as is to be expected with time travel plots, this gets pretty complicated. But James comes out of it with great finesse and Zvealar is a fantastic introduction in solving some of the confusion. But the last 20 pages are just mind blowing and cap off what has been a superbly paced tale. Its probably too late but be warned that you should have revised book 2 before you read this one! What a way to end the year