Customer Reviews

The Reckoning (Darkest Powers, Book 3)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Reckoning picks up right where The Awakening left off, with Chloe and her group of genetically modified supernaturals safe from the clutches of the Edison Group at last. Once they get a chance to rest and stop running, the teens finally start learning how to use their powers. But it quickly becomes evident that no one is ready for what the Edison Group's experiments have created. When their safe house suddenly doesn't feel so safe, Chloe and her friends are forced to run again, and this time the stakes are even higher.

The Darkest Powers trilogy does a wonderful job of building on the supernatural world created in Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series without ever leaning on those characters to propel the story. Like the first two books in the series, The Reckoning is an action packed adventure that will keep you guessing as the story unfolds and loyalties are put into question. Never knowing who to trust keeps the reader in the same mindset as the characters, and heightens the suspense as things progress to the high-stakes conclusion. I actually found this series to be scarier than the Women of the Otherworld books, and was often on the edge of my seat as Chloe battled her ghosts and demons.

The character development in The Reckoning is fantastic! As usual, Kelley Armstrong's characters are so layered and authentic that you miss them when they're not around. Chloe, Derek and Tori all really grow and change throughout the course of this novel. Simon's role is reduced quite a bit in The Reckoning, but this makes sense as the other characters powers continue to grow.

Between the action, suspense and great characters, The Reckoning is a gripping adventure set in an amazing supernatural world that meshes seamlessly with our own.

The previous book of the Darkest Powers trilogy had the little gang of supernatural teens finally finding sanctuary.

Well, how boring would it be if that sanctuary were all they thought it would be? So of course, "The Reckoning" throws the teen protagonists into a tangle of ghosts, lycanthropy, deceptions and long-forgotten crimes, as well as a long-awaited clash with the Edison Group. Kelley Armstrong does a solid job wrapping up the main story, though the last quarter of the book feels REALLY rushed.

Chloe and her friends have finally found the house where a bunch of the Edison Group's enemies are living. But it soon becomes obvious that they aren't exactly welcome -- the adults are wary of the various "freak" powers that the teens have, and they's especially dismissive of "the werewolf boy." To make matters worse, Chloe is being stalked by a half-demon ghost, and a snooty necromancer's attempt to tutor her at a local graveyard almost ends in disaster.

It's only a matter of time until the kids are imprisoned again, this time by their new "hosts" -- and when a pair of werewolf thugs show up to kill Derek on the night he Changes, Chloe knows that she's not just being phobic. Now she and her friends must figure out how to escape their new "home" alive, and somehow free the friends'n'relatives still being held captive by the Edison Group.

Compared to the last couple Darkest Powers novels, "The Reckoning" is less thrilleresque and more suspenseful -- Armstrong keeps you guessing about who's an ally and who's an enemy, who's lying and who's not. Things only speed up in the last quarter of the book... and unfortunately Armstrong rushes through the action-packed part of the story. She needed at least another hundred pages to do that ending justice.

And while slower-paced overall, "The Reckoning" still has outstanding writing. It has plenty of balanced dialogue (with much bickering), solid descriptions, a dark sense of humour, and some gloriously eerie scenes that dip into the realm of horror, such as Chloe resurrecting a rotted rabbit and dog to save her. And the plot is a tight-knit tangle of lies, deceptions, and unexpected twists -- particularly when Chloe stumbles across some new problems from her powers.

And Armstrong does a brilliant job sketching out fully-realized teen characters who aren't walking cliches -- they've matured a great deal, and each has a unique problem. Chloe worries about the possibility of becoming a mad necromancer, and keeps working to overcome her passive nature. Derek is having a bad time struggling with his lupine nature, and a somewhat less snarky Tori has to deal with her foul mother (and some unpleasant revelations about her family history).

"The Reckoning" leaves the door open for future stories in this niche of Armstrong's Otherworld, but Armstrong does an excellent job wrapping up the whole storyline about the Edison Group. The only problem: It's kind of rushed at the end.

Did the series really have to end? The series just kept getting more and more exciting as the books went on. I love how the relationships between all the characters take time to develop and they aren't just in love or best friend's right from the beginning! Some how Derek is the un-likeable, but likeable guy and even though Simon is the obvious catch maybe there is more to Derek then just being a bully?. The twists and turns always had me guessing, and just when you thought you had it all put together and know what's going to happen next... you DON'T... but I think that is really nothing new with a Kelley Armstrong novel. She has an amazing ability to keep readers glued to the pages from beginning to end and this book was no exception. If you liked the first two books in the series I'm sure you aren't even on here reading reviews to decide whether you should get this book because you would have already got it by now because the first two were so good. I am so excited to read The Gathering coming out not too far away I hope. It's not going to be the same characters but maybe they will still make an appearence? I can only hope!

**SPOILERS ALERT***

OK, I'm torn on this book. I loved The Awakening, the 2nd book in this trilogy, and I kind of feel gypped (sic?) with this book, The Reckoning, the final installment to the Darkest Powers series. Yes, there was action, but not a lot. I didn't expect the kids (Chloe, Tori, Derek, and Simon) to stay at Andrew's house the whole time. I mean, you have a werewolf, a witch, a wizard, and a girl who can raise the dead and they CAN'T escape??

There were a lot of twists and turns, though, which made up for the lack of scenery in the book.

The LOVE TRIANGLE, however, was what I was waiting for. Yes, there could be a book about demons and witches, or death and warlocks, and I still look for the love story. I am a girl. Completely.

I left The Summoning loving Derek. Simon seemed nice and all, but Derek just seemed better. Although, one thing that bugged me was that these kids all seemed so grown up, except when it came to romance. Yes, I know they're young, but if you're on the run from people who want to kill you (i.e. The Edison Group), maybe just go for the love you want, rather than beat around the bush about it.

That being said, the fact that Derek and Chloe hooked up earlier on in the novel was just wonderful.

Moving on.

This was a great final installment to the Darkest Powers series and I kind of wish the gang would have more adventures, though it's nice to have had an ending, finally (even if the characters hinted at the adventures they'll be having in the future). I also enjoyed the growth of Tori's character, but thought she could have been affected a little more by having to kill her own mother. The fact that her and Simon share a father is interesting and it would have been nice to see what she thought of that. Speaking of Simon, he really didn't do anything for me in this book ' I could feel Chloe and Dereck and Tori, but Simon could have not even been there and I don't think I would have noticed a difference.

I have to say that one of the best things about Armstrong's writing is that she doesn't waste a full chapter on catching up the reader on what happened in the previous book. The way I see it, if the reader is already into the series, they don't need the back story. Another great thing is the development of Chloe. Even though I thought she seemed really young in some aspects of the novel, she wasn't the whiny, almost-breakable heroine that we see in other books of the genre (like Bella in Twilight or Zoey in the House of Night books). She was able to stick up for herself and her friends and make herself be heard.

I'm not sure if I feel inclined to read more of Armstrong's work. Based on this trilogy, it's hard to say if I would like anything else or not. I'm not sure if I would feel differently had ALL the books in the trilogy been available when I started to read, but I guess I'll never know. Part of my also thinks that this book didn't HAVE to be a trilogy ' there was a lot of filler stuff that could have been edited out and it could have been just one novel.

I don't think I'll partake in the next series of Armstrong's, The Gathering, but I'm sure I'll check out some reviews to see if these characters make their way into the books.

***possible spoilers***

This was a fantastic conclusion to the series and I wouldn't know how to end it as good as this. I am glad some of the loose ends have been tied up, however there are still some that are left open. I wonder if there's going to be more to this (I hope!)

The pace is slower than usual, but in return you get great character development Each of these characters had their own issues, and although the bickering still continues, each of them have grown up and matured. What I enjoyed reading was more into Chloe's gift as a necromancer. There is a lot more to her 'gift' and that provided some good interesting reading. What was also interesting was Tori. Although still snarky at times, she's kept that in check and even manages to help and defend Chloe when needed. I thought she grew up and matured the most. I started liking her a lot more as the trilogy unfolded, at first I used to hate her a lot, now she ended up being much more agreeable and likable.

I was so happy with Chloe and Derek! I loved them both together. There was a sense of togetherness and they compliment each other so well. I loved how Chloe was so supportive of Derek and his 'condition', and Derek would protect Chloe by any means possible. I think they made a great couple!

The story overall was good despite having some loose ends open and close. The writing was still excellent and there were still moments where you had the heebie jeebies. There were quite a few extreme tense moments (especially when you find out who's on who's side) and this was great to read, but what I enjoyed the most were the moments with Chloe and Derek. I really loved reading about them together. It was nice seeing these characters develop and grow as the story went along. The ending was really good with a few revelations revealed. Some might say it's not really an ending as it leaves things to be settled.

I still say this was a great ending to this trilogy and I want to know if there's going to be more to it. Tori has become such a fascinating character all of a sudden that I wish there's going to be more on these great characters and how they're going to manage living on. It's a great series and not one to be missed! I absolutely recommend this for YA Paranomal readers out there!

The darkest power trilogy finally comes to a close. It seems like a lot of great series out there are finishing off. What I loved the most about this book is that the heroine doesn't end up with this beautiful mysterious boy. That the person she likes is an ordinary guy who is not so attractive. I loved how ordinary all the characters were, we don't see much of that lately in books. It makes relating to them so much easier. I would probably give high points for the characters.

What I didn't like was the pacing, it was really slow to begin with and than it seemed really rushed in the last couple of chapters. It didn't really end well either, it felt as if the ending was very rushed.

I enjoyed reading Chloe's story in the first two books and thought that the plot kept getting more and more interesting but I was a bit disappointed with this one. The characters, the general plot and even the supernatural elements of the series were well done but what really threw me off was the pacing and the ending, I felt like nothing really happened in this book besides character development.

I enjoyed reading about the characters in this trilogy and I'm a little sad to see them go but perhaps The Gathering (which I think is a spin-off) could put some sort of closure for Chloe and the rest of the characters.

Two weeks... Through reading these novels, sometimes it's amazing to think that the whole series really does take place over only a few weeks, the kind of timeframe that can, for some people, pass without a thought. But when you're running for yourself and you're not sure who you can trust and you're trying to control frighteningly strong paranormal abilities, two weeks can seem like a lifetime.

Kelley Armstrong brought this trilogy to a wonderful conclusion. While not all the loose ends were tied up, things were set up so as to make it impossible for a small band of people to do so, and it's obvious that while the battle was won, so to speak, the war goes on. The Edison Group has been stopped for now, but the Cabal is still around, and the group still have to learn to deal with their powers, plus the consequences of all their actions in taking down the Edison Group. It's a good place to end the books, but the story still continues.

I never fail to be impressed with the realism that Armstrong conveys in her characters. The adults in this series act like adults. Not adult as is dark and gritty and full of sex and blood and all that, but more in the way that they don't act like teenagers in older bodies, the way some YA novels portray them. I like it. Armstrong has a knack for writing teenagers and adults in a realistic fashion, which meant that at no point was I pulled out of the story by a jarring personality trait or line or action that didn't seem to fit right with a character.

I swear, for that reason alone I could be persuaded to read more of what the author's written!

Ultimately, between excellent characterization, pacing that is spot-on, and a plot that is a happy mix between the familiar and the unexpected, I'd have to say that this is an excellent trilogy, and one that comes highly recommended to fans of YA urban fantasy. Or heck, even fans of plain old generic urban fantasy. YA doesn't have to be specifically to your taste to enjoy this series!

What a great conclusion to Chloe's story (for now). I read the first two books last year so its been a while but it was so easy to get back into the series, the world and the characters.

I really saw the character growth in this book. There's really no one that Chloe and her friends can trust as it seems like every adult they meet is plotting against them or conspiring with the Edison Group so they have to rely on each other all the more. Chloe is still conflicted over her feelings towards Simon and Derek but she finally sorts out her feelings and her decision was one that had me jumping up and down because I was rooting for this pairing all along. And Tori who at the beginning of the series treated Chloe so badly is now friends with her. The group doesn't trust her at first but she proves herself to be resourceful and on their side.

This was another exciting and thrilling book that kept me on the edge of my seat. It didn't have the wrapped up ending I was hoping for but I know Chloe and the gang will make an appearance in future books so I'm happy with it.

Wow!!!! That's what I said when I read the final words of the book. Wow is not even a word but the story left me literally speechless. That good it was.

It's the last book in the Darkest Powers series and it's the best of all three. You really get to know the characters better and let me tell you that Tori really surprised me. She's not bad after all. Tori becomes more reliable and finds herself liking their company, now that her family doesn't care for her. Chloe seems to understand and makes sure nothing gets between her and the boys that still don't believe that Tori has changed.

Derek finally finishes his transformation with Chloe's help and they find out that there is no one they can trust. They are not even sure about their dad at this point. Chloe realizes her range of power and use it finally for her defence.

The book was fast passed as the previous with more Derek and Chloe moments giving me the opportunity to see their relationship grow between them.
The author really knows who to tell a story and make it believable. Kelly Armstrong is really talented and she made Chloe sound like a real teenager without littering the language.

But what made me love this book most was the ending. I've read other reviews and the ending is either love it or hate it feeling. For me it was perfect. Sure there are things that are not explained but that's why she's having another trilogy based on the same word. I can't say much about the ending because I'll spoil it but the words just left me breathless.

I loved this last book in the series because Derek and Chloe finally realize their feelings for each other! The whole series is page turning and well written and thought out. I am so glad the author writes so that all can understand...I have some across other YA series that left me frustrated and short the money I spent on the book! I highly recommend this book and the other 2. I am a mother of 3 and it was so good I am going to read it again!