Coming to the end of a series is such a mixed bag.  On the one hand I’m pleased with myself for completing the whole series but on the other I’m sad to see it end and with the Spellslinger series I genuinely think I could have read a few more adventures starring Kellen and Reichis.  That being said, I really applaud the author for knowing when to draw a line under things rather than delaying and have readers lose their motivation to continue – which does sometimes happen after all.

This has been such a good series.  At its core I’d say these books are a feel good exploration of good vs bad with some very funny moments usually provided by a crazy critter. More than that they’ve provided intriguing plots and excellent character growth for the main character which in my opinion is the winning element of this series. I’ve really loved watching Kellen grow into this final iteration – his journey isn’t over of course, this is only the start for him (even if it’s the conclusion for us readers), but he’s a lot more self assured and happier with himself.

When we began this journey with Kellen, he was still a young boy, on the brink of being magically tested and worried about the loss of face if he didn’t succeed.  As it happens, failing at magic is probably Kellen’s greatest moment and certainly sets him on a path that will define him and help him to become a much more rounded character than if he’d stayed at home.  Anyway, I’m getting ahead of myself.

Crownbreaker surprised me in more ways than one to be honest.  Kellen has finally found a place and role that suits him and I think I almost went into this read wondering what shenanigans were going to be thrown at him.  I did wonder whether things might be a bit more pedestrian but I needn’t have worried.  It seems Castell had plenty in store and more than that he really did have the long picture in mind with some of the earlier instalments as you’ll find out when you read this.  Little light bulbs were pinging on inside my head as I realised that elements from earlier in the series were all playing into the storyline – in a most satisfactory fashion I might add.

I’m not going to describe the plot at all as I don’t want to spoil this final instalment.  I will only say that war is looming, Kellen will have to make a very difficult choice and characters from the past will be putting in appearances. Okay, one small spoiler – Ferius makes an appearance and it was so good to have her back that it made me realise how very much I’d missed her.

In terms of criticisms.  I have nothing.  Taken as a whole this has been a wonderfully entertaining series.  A strange combination of wild west frontier meets magic, with assassins and all sorts of different cultures thrown into the mix for good measure.  And I may have had the odd book that I didn’t like quite as much as the rest but this was only a very slight dip that in no way affected my enjoyment.

I highly recommend the Spellslinger series.  It’s thoroughly entertaining, superbly written, has so many characters that you can fall in love with, great settings and some cheeky sidekicks – that I hope don’t hear about me calling them sidekicks! *gulps*

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks.  The above is my own opinion.

My rating 4.5 of 5 stars

P.S – word to the wise.  You know that time you went to catch a movie and as the credits were rolling and everyone was leaving, and you thought you’d just chill and wait for the stampede to be over – and then a sneaky bit of something extra appeared on the screen making you feel totally smug.  Well, I’m just saying.  You might think it’s over but is it really over??