The final book in the trilogy that started with The Girl of Fire and Thorns, followed by The Crown of Embers, wraps up with The Bitter Kingdom.  In the first book, Elisa gains confidence following her arranged political marriage and subsequent capture.  The middle book does not sag as so many middle books do.  There are plenty of plots as Queen Elisa gets a better handle on her power.  The final book picks right up where the second book abruptly ends.  The series has all of the familiar characters and plot lines of epic or political fantasy so there really is nothing new here, yet it held my attention for hours of solid reading.  During the course of her trials, Elisa braves the desert, seas, and a blizzard mountain pass including a detour through the mountains, Lord of the Rings style, with her own band of loyal followers.  What makes this series so good is the readability.  The characters are very well drawn with easy flowing dialogue packed with plenty of knife stabbing, Godstone burning action that combine to produce an excellent young adult trilogy.  And of course the romance – ahh, Hector!  Highly Recommend.

eGalley review   Publication date 8.27.13