Book Review: Mother of Death and Dawn, the Finale in the War of Lost Hearts Trilogy
I’m still reeling with emotions after just finishing the final book in the War of Lost Hearts series, Mother of Death and Dawn, a stunning conclusion to this completed fantasy romance trilogy by Carissa Broadbent. WOW. This book may make you cry—I definitely teared up. The complexity of the characters and their motivations and justifications for their actions are what really sold me on this final installment. I loved it.
Things to Know:
It’s book three in a completed trilogy (hallelujah!)
Multiple POVs
Complex Villains
Extreme violence + war—this is not for the faint of heart
Some spice
I personally loved the pacing in this book. Perhaps because I mostly binged it, but I felt like the POV changes and short chapters kept the pace rolling at a gallop. My heart was absolutely breaking for Maxantarius in the beginning. I was horrified and so worried for him.
This book also picked up the spice level, but it was done so well and didn’t take away from the story. Aefe and Caduan continued to be some of my favorite chapters. Aefe beginning to remember and puzzle out what she believes in and how she feels made her such an incredible character.
“You are not nothing, Aefe. You are a miracle. Now create something.”
This book is dark and violent, there’s no doubt about it. It addresses the ramifications of genocide, the ravages and impact of war on a country, and its individuals. Slavery and rebellion. I’m not squeamish, but even I had trouble reading a couple of the scenes. It’s horrific. But it’s supposed to be, and I believe that was Broadbent’s point.
Yet through it all, you’re honestly not sure who you should be rooting for, because you can understand the twisted reasoning of even the villains. Except Nura. Nura, I just loathe. Yes, there are some sympathetic things that might make you understand her or even feel bad for her, but I just couldn’t.
“I know what it is like,” I said softly, “to become the thing you hate most.”
“I won’t let us become them.”
I mentioned in my review of book two that I believe if the whole situation was different our two main couples would be besties. And this still holds true for me in book three. I wish we had more time with them all! If you’ve already read this series, tell me they wouldn’t have the most epic dinner parties…I also absolutely loved the side characters. The mark of a great author for me is making me feel so invested in the side characters. And that was absolutely the case here: Ishqa, Serel, Meajqa…I was completely invested and devastated by their stories too.
“Is it enough? Never. But maybe it is something, to change a world one life at a time.”
While this book did leave me with heartbreak—not everyone gets a happy ending—I LOVED the epilogue and wish more authors would give us this. This was an excellent conclusion to this series, and I cannot wait to read Carissa’s next series. She’s firmly on my autoread author list for fantasy romance with depth.
“Let us rewrite the world.”
Looking for reviews of books one and two? Find them here:
Review: Children of Fallen Gods
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