Four books, countless betrayals, and a whole lot of low magic later, Five Dark Fates brings the Three Dark Crowns series to a surprisingly satisfying close. There’s blood, power, sacrifice, and just enough character growth to redeem some of the people who have made us scream into the void (looking at you, Katharine). If you’ve made it this far, you’ll be glad you did.

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The Cover

Another dark, beautiful, intricate illustration by John Dismukes graces the cover of Five Dark Fates. There is a lot of texture and symbolism here that, I’m sure, ties into the reading as the rest have. I’m guessing that there is unity between the gifts – skull and serpents for the poisoners, lightning bolt for the elementals, lion for the naturalists, sword and shield for war gifted, and the all-seeing eye for the oracles, all combined on the shield, topped with a crown. Snakes, fire, and flowers adorn the metallic crest representing the queens of the story. The only faction I don’t see represented is the priestesses. I wonder where they will fall?

Honestly, the illustration completely overtakes the text, and I’m not even mad about it. The thin text has been problematic and at odds with the illustrations since the second volume, One Dark Throne. They’ve done the best they can to make it readable, but the small, thin font just gets lost. Not that I would have changed it, because inconsistency in design across a series drives me bonkers.

This volume has a printed-on “sticker” that says it includes a bonus epilogue. I wonder if all versions contain the bonus?

The text on the cover, the spine, and the back are all consistent with previous books in the series, except the imprint associated with this book. Rather than HarperTeen, this has been published under QuillTree. I wonder why that happened at this stage, but at least the placement and alignment of the publisher’s logo is aligned with the rest of the books. It does upset the perfect flow from one to the next, but not so badly.

Interior:

The interior features are also consistent with the other books. That may not seem like much to say, but it says something about the designer’s attention to detail, especially as the series is published over several years.

Did the design affect whether I bought the book?

I was gifted the series, so it did not affect my decision to buy the book.

There is a lot of emphasis throughout the books on birth order and how they feel about their station as the oldest, middle, youngest of the triplets, most notably from Mirabella, the oldest. I wonder how realistic this is, as they are all born within minutes of each other. There is no real age difference to account for this. However, using this as a character-building device, Blake allows Mirabella to morph into someone more than a bratty, entitled teen, and to play a pivotal role in the plot.

Arsinoe has been the most endearing queen throughout the series, this book is no exception. She has low expectations of herself but always comes through for those whom she cares about. She believes wholeheartedly in people she trusts.

Katharine is plotting, after the damage to Pietyr she realized that the dead queens are not there to help her and would abandon her if a better prospect comes along. She is planning to outsmart them. She vacillates between a scared little girl and a conniving snake that has only her own interests at heart. She is very hard to like, but vignettes of sweetness tease that she is something more.

In this book, many side characters develop too, and it is fun to see how they all rise above the place where they began to be an improved version of themselves.

The pace was brisk and steady. The plot advances rapidly enough to keep you on your toes. Despite being more fantasy-oriented, this book and indeed this series reads a little bit like a thriller because there is constantly something happening and a sense of urgency. The story is told in third person, so the reader stays at arm’s length from all of the characters.

Addiction to power via the undead queens (Katharine) and to low magic (Arsinoe and Madrigal). Blake emphasizes the “price” of low magic and how it might hurt the user or their loved ones. Little is known about spiritual possession, but Katharine experiences the consequences as she loses the people close to her. In addition, there is a lot of cutting and blood-letting in the name of low-magic, but this may be triggering for some readers.

Different kinds of love – friendship, family, romantic, and unique manifestations. I am generally hesitant about the validity of true love in stories of teenagers, simply due to a lack of life experience. However, perhaps being raised to kill or die and knowing that your life expectancy is very short regardless of the outcome would change the bonds that a person forms. And in this kind of state, wouldn’t those who befriend you have that same knowledge and altered perspective, and their love more likely to be true? Who gets attached to someone they think will be gone from their life very soon? Those who mean it.

Sisterhood. Over the series, this is explored through the queens, the foster families, the real families, sisters in arms, and even across adversaries of the same ilk like Luca and Natalia.

Coming to terms with who you are. Your gifts might not look like what you expected, but they are yours, and you can choose to develop them or let them slip away.

This book has a lot of action, but at the same time makes sure that the characters are developing and the plot makes sense. This book ties a nice bow around the whole series, and while the story has ended, I feel like the characters will live on, which is always such a nice feeling to have at the end of a hard-driving, dark, twisty tale.

My favorite quotes in from this book are spoken by Emilia to Arsinoe. I like their anti-relationship because while there is always this general friction between them I feel like they both understand where the other is coming from and respect them in their own right, even when they don’t agree.

By the end of this book I was actually moved by the characters. It took the whole series to feel something, but in the end I did. I was actually pretty satisfied by the way that things were wrapped up.

This book is clearly not a stand alone read, but as the 4th book in a series it truly feels like true peak and denuement of the overarching story.

Probably the best book of the whole series. If you commit to getting here, it is worth the trip.

Closed door romantic elements.

Five Dark Fates

Whose fate is the fifth? 

Tell me in the comments.

May your life be as full as your bookshelf and as long as your TBR list.

Happy Reading!