Format: Hardcover, 592 pages
Release Date: October 13, 2020
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult / Dark Fantasy
Lightbringer is the third and final installment in author Claire Legrand's Empirium trilogy. The story once again alternatives between Rielle, and Eliana, but the author also adds Simon, Corien, Navi, Jessamyn, and Tal. If you haven't read this series yet, I'll briefly summarize. This series take place in two separate timelines 1,000 years apart. Rielle’s is the past, Eliana’s is the future. After Kingsbane, Eliana has been captured, and is being taken to the Emperor, while Rielle has joined with Corien in an effort to find all the necessary casings to open the gates and allow Corien’s Angels to come through.
Eliana arrives in the Empire's capital as a broken shell of herself. Betrayed by those she trusted, she fights to keep her power at bay—and away from Corien, who will stop at nothing to travel back in time to Rielle, even if that means destroying her daughter. Meanwhile, whispers from the Empirium is slowly drive Rielle mad, urging her to open the Gate. Separated from Audric and Ludivine, she embraces the role of Blood Queen and her place by Corien's side, determined to become the monster the world believes her to be.
Rielle is a character who has done some unforgivable
things in this series let alone this story. Rielle is drowning in her anger, in
her guilt, grief, and resentment and so her only hope may be the unborn child
growing in her womb. Audric’s anger drove Rielle to Corien, but he’s never once
stopped loving her. So, he wallows in his self-pity for awhile before finally
trying to put together an alliance with all nations of Avitas to fight against
Rielle and Corien and stop them from bringing Eliana’s future to bear. Eliana
who is his daughter. Since the title of this book is Lightbringer, I was hoping
for more of Audric than what we get.
But there is also another character who has been whispering in both Rielle and Eliana’s ear. The Prophet has finally shown up with plans for both women. If the Prophet successful, that means that Eliana will travel back in the past and try to stop her own mother, who she has already met once, and try to stop her from destroying the world. But if Eliana is successful in rewriting history, what does that mean for her friends like Navi or her brother or other characters she’s brought together to fight against the Emperor? I won’t spoil who the Prophet is, but you have met this character if you’ve read this series.
I am not a huge fan of the ending, especially
Eliana’s who fought so bravely and was tortured non-stop by Corien who I have
compared to Lucifer. He’s also a fantastically twisted and delicious villain
who really brings things to a better understanding at how powerful he really
is. Rielle’s ending was particularly fitting after everything she’s done. There’s
an old saying about not being able to go home again. Well, after everything she
did and all the pain and suffering she caused, I don’t think it would have made
much sense to give her a happy ending with Audric and her child. I am not much
of a fan of multiple narrators. Rielle and Eliana are the main characters. It
is their prophecy that drives this series. Lastly, I would have been happy had
the book been 50-100 pages shorter. So many things the author could have edited
out.
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