Member Reviews

In The Immortal Word, Echion, his queen and his legion of dragons keep searching to destroy Bingmei and Quion. She learnt about the immortal words and the power they have.
Supposedly this is the conclusion to the story, but I’ve found it lacking, there’s no end.

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I loved this series and was so sad for it to end that I actually delayed reading this final book for quite a while. That's rare for me. Yet it took me months to finally finish it. And while I'm happy with the way it concluded, I'm definitely hoping that the story is picked back up again in some form. This just didn't feel like an ending.

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I really went back and forth with whether I'd even read this book but I held out hope that maybe this book would redem this whole series. I was wrong. The series felt very flat with a heroine who I would describe as whiny.

**Spoilers**
The convient healing of everyone in the book by a sigil seems a bit lack luster and left me rolling my eyes. There were some threads I felt were left hanging. The cliffhanger ending on a final book in the series just left me feeling slightly angry.

**Spoilers/Rant over**

I'd rate this a 2/5 because it honestly was just a rather poor ending to an already lacking series. Don't get me wrong I love jeff wheelers books and I read everything he publishes but this series doesn't reflect his amazing skills in world and character building.

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They say good things end soon, and this is how I feel I have read this book: too fast. The Immortal Words is the third and final book in The Grave Kingdom series, as well as a book that is almost impossible to put down.
Bingmei's story ends here (or maybe not), with her agreeing to fulfill the prophecy of the Phoenix and cross the Death Wall. Then, she must return to Fusang, to defeat Equion, the Dragon of the Night.
An excellent and agile writing style, with an extremely attractive and novel storyline, strong characters and beautiful landscapes, so well described that the reader will feel transported into the story flying with phoenix wings to accompany the protagonists on their adventures.
The big questions is: will there be a fourth book in this series? Or a new spinoff series from The Grave Kingdom?

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*received for free from netgalley for honest review* Well, i think i liked this one the most, not my favorite series from this author but pretty good

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I have not read the prior books in this series, which may have contributed to my rating, but I was able to follow the story fine as the author does a good job of filling in the story. He is an excellent world builder and there were many interesting aspects. I just didn't really connect with any of the characters and was kind of annoyed by the "wrap-up" of the story. I don't think I would go back to read the earlier books based on this one.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a review copy.

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This third book in Jeff Wheeler's series "The Grave Kingdom" suffers from slow and repetitive action. The characters are stereotypical and suffer from the stilted dialogue. The plot staggers and sags from the plodding nature of the story interspersed by quick, and for this book, more interesting segments. Leaps and changes in the plot and characters aren't well supported or even anticipated by the story and plot. These changes are not well thought out by the author but simply lept over as if the reader has missed several chapters of development.
Overall I found this story tedious and repetitious in style, plot and character development.

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I"m always down to read something from Mr. Wheeler, and I'm glad I did with this book. It was a great read with interesting characters and a great storyline.

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5 stars! Love everything Jeff Wheeler writes. It was a joy to dive into a new world after Muirwood and Kingfountain. Love this one just as much!

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4 stars

You can read all of my reviews at Nerd Girl Loves Books.

This is a satisfying ending to an exciting fantasy series.

On the other side of the Death Wall with her steadfast friend Quion, Bingmei searches for the fabled Phoenix Shrine to learn the Immortal Words that will help her win the fight against the Dragon Night and his queen. She is prepared to make whatever sacrifice is necessary to save those that she loves.

This was a fitting ending to the series, although the ending seemed a bit sudden. This author tends to end series on a happy note, with most loose ends tied up with a bow. This book is no different, although I did like the tease that leaves the door open to exploring this world further. I would welcome more books set in this world.

Thank you to NetGalley and 47North for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Thank you, Netgalley and 47North Publishing for providing me with an ARC of this book. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The Immortal Words picks up right from where the story left off in The Buried World. Bingmei is set out to accomplish her task of fulfilling the prophecy while having to escape both Echion and Xisi. The challenges that are in front of her keep on getting tougher with each step. She has to deal with her fear of death and also do something that will put an end to the era of cruelty and destruction brought forward by the reign of the dragons.

The story was interesting and had raised the stakes higher with lots of fight sequences and near-death moments. The story and history are slowly unraveled and we get to see how things happened in the past. Although all the details are not given we get a brief idea of how Echion took over the Kingdom through treachery and betrayal.

The themes of sacrificing oneself for the betterment and prosperity of the people was prevalent throughout the book. The greater good takes precedence over one's own needs and this story reflects this philosophy so well. The act of selflessness and having to live with one's actions is also stressed in the book. Greed for power through any means is shown to be dangerous and anything acquired through treachery will come to fail in the end. We see that in the story. The ultimate victory of good over evil is also a good message to send across to readers. It also stresses about the importance of hope, love, compassion, and forgiveness when dealing with challenges.

The book leaves us with quite an interesting ending and it hints at the possibility of a book 4. I just hope we get and explosive and entertaining conclusion to this series in book 4. Overall the book was good. I gave it 4 stars. If you love Asian inspired, YA light-fantasy check this series out. It's unique and the setting is also quite interesting. The world and magic is not something I have seen before. I had a good time reading the series and I gave this book 4 stars. This would be a good start into fantasy as a genre if you are a younger reader.

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We have reached the end of another epic fantasy saga from Jeff Wheeler. His books are consistently entertaining, thrilling and fantastical and The Immortal Words is no different.

We always knew it would come to this. Bingmei spent much of her life running from the fate that she knew she would have to face in order to save her world. She finally has come to grips with her fate and decided to do whatever was needed to ensure the happiness of her friends and countrymen.

How wonderful that in essence what saves this world is self sacrifice, mercy and love. I have to confess I love a book that I can feel proud of. One that espouses emotions and virtues that I can look up to. I read another series recently, that while it is well regarded, and super hyped, didn’t have anything good to say. It didn’t inspire. I don’t mean everything needs a happy ending, and that there is no point to depictions of suffering, but I find it harder to relate to books that don’t aspire to something more. Maybe it’s because of these times we are living in right now. I feel like what we need is more kindness, love and selflessness, not less.

Anyway, back to the book. While I enjoyed it I did get a little confused in the middle. I’m not sure if that is entirely the books fault. I was thrown for a loop with a plot twist that I couldn’t quite wrap my head around. That might totally change on a re-read. Once again, I thoroughly enjoyed it and can’t wait for the continuation of the next Wheeler series.

Song for this book: Princess of China – Coldplay (featuring Rihanna)

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Another great installment to this series and by the author of course! It was action packed but didn't make the pace feel too fast or too slow, which I really enjoyed. Highly recommend this and the entire series!

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I Loved reading “The Grave Kingdom Series” and was thrilled for the chance to pre-read this third book. The whole premise of the series is intriguing- and Wheeler’s creativity paints vividly the people and places therein. Bingmei and Quion are left alone to fight through Echion’s horde of dragons and the magical dangers of the land to reach the Phoenix Shrine. There she must speak the immortal words that will complete the sacrifice of self that will be humanities only hope of deliverance from the evil cycle of ruthless oppression and death that has held sway for thousands of years. I loved the plot- kept me guessing and second guessing where it would take me next. (Too often I can “call” in books what will happen- not even close on this!) The characters were complex and real, with weakness and traits that made me feel I knew them. The deep moral/spiritual undertones woven into the saga give a reader plenty to ponder even after the story is spent. (And the epilogue had me gasp out loud!)

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I recieved this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Every book I read from this author is amazing! Maybe only 1 I didn't like it, but this third part I am in love and I need to know more of this world.

Bingmei is one of my favorite characters and obviously this is not a trilogy! I'll be witing for the next part.

Jeff Wheeler is an author who has powerful femenine characters and I am very gratefull for that.

I don't know how to write a review about this book because all is a spoiler, but I am want to say this is a wonderful world with increible characters, full of magic and people you are going to fall in love.

Please, read this series.

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Thanks so much to 47North and NetGalley for letting me read and review this wonderful book. Jeff Wheeler has been one of my favorite authors for quite a while now. I love his books so much yet this one still surprised me when I felt like part of the story was speaking to me and he got me right there crying again - I don't cry when I read stories that often, but his books seem to always get me and they're always an emotional rollercoaster ride for me.
This book is the conclusion to the Grave Kingdom trilogy and it wraps most of the story up nicely but leaves some of it open with a hint that he might be going back to this world to write more in the future. I would love it if he returned to this world and wrote more especially after how he ended this story.
In this final installment in this series about Bingmei and her story, she has to fight to fulfill a prophecy to defeat an immortal evil and save the world from the darkness that's coming. If she fails, then Echion, the dragon of night, and his Queen will be in power for the next thousand years. With Echion, comes his army of dragons that they have to watch out for and avoid as she and Quion travel behind the ancient death wall where she has to find the phoenix shrine and learn the words that will allow her to learn how to harness eternal magic. She also has to ultimately join the ranks of the dead as well.
As Bingmei and Quion travel to find the Phoenix shrine, they have challenges and conflicts with figuring out the best way to get there and to do what they can and are meant to do to save the world. There's so much in this book that it's hard to know how to best explain it, there's a lot woven and put into this that all comes together from the previous two books to complete the story. It has some interesting and different parts to the story with life and death and what it means to join the ranks of the dead and go into the Grave Kingdom. It has a lot of symbolism and things that have had me thinking and lost in thought over this for a little while now.
Toward the end of this story is where there are the most emotional and heart-wrenching parts and I can't say much of anything for fear of giving things away. It really needs to be on your list, go pre-order it, get ready and read it for yourself!

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Sadly, I have read too many books before I wrote my review for this one I do not specifically remember how this story ends or how I finished it. Just more a vague sense of emotions towards the book as a whole.

The plot lines got a little weird with the introduction of some time travel and parallel universes, or something like that. Not sure. Still a little confused on what I read.

There were plenty of plot twists to make your head spin (maybe that's my problem), and not all of them are happily ever after moments. This book has some very real, and raw, emotions going on. (Thank goodness we didn't have to smell then in great detail! Bingmei's super smeller is finally treated the way I wish it would have been from the start.)

The fight scenes are taken up even a notch further this time around, making this one very cool action packed novel--Chinese cinema style.

All I can say with absolute certainty from this novel, if I didn't already have an extreme love of phoenixes before, I would now.

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**Warning: spoilers ahead**

I wanted to love how this series ended. I truly truly did. I haven't read any of Jeff Wheeler's other series, so this one felt incredibly ambitious, which I admire. As the trilogy carried on, the stakes were raised and the world was expanded appropriately. As always, the action sequences were spot on and thoroughly engrossing.

My disappointment arose when we got into John Connor territory. You have this strong, complex, willful female character who (let's face it) does all the work and then her savior status gets shifted to her unborn daughter and then even that gets stripped away when she has a son instead. I understand the reasoning behind this change, due to The Iron Rules and all, but it just felt like a disservice to the message of female empowerment that was prevalent throughout the series.

There was also one looming question that I felt was not explicitly answered. Were the gates to the Grave Kingdom opened? Were families reunited? There was a strong indication they were not and it's left me wanting more, but not in a good way. Just like those spirit-souls, I feel like I'm still searching.

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This feedback has been a long time coming. Lets begin by dispensing with the obligatory disclosures.

First, I received this copy of the book as an ARC, as result of winning a contest on Facebook. Otherwise, I would have picked it up release day via my KU subscription, and read it then, as I have with the last half dozen or more of Jeff Wheeler's book releases. I usually rate his works either 4 Star or 5 - this one splits the middle. In many ways, better than the last, a solid 4, but not quite so good as the first, in my opinion.

Second, I know J Wheeler through Facebook, and the eZine he serves on the Board of, Deep Magic, for which I am a First Reader (which is to say, I wade through the Slush Pile with many others of like title.) Rather than bias my reviews, it tends to make me a more discerning and deliberate reader - my honesty is what the eZine likes. though Jeff Wheeler's style and themes are well within my preferenced subset of the genre, thus the usual range of 4-5 star reviews for his works from me on Goodreads, Amazon, etc.

Now, those out of the way, a bit **spoiler free** about what I did and didn't like within the book.

First, Jeff frequently weaves a surprise, a fresh take on an old theme, within his works, and this was no different. There must be thousands of YA Fantasy stories, and other genre besides, where a prophesied hero(ine) must first journey into death as part of their spiritual journey before the final show down with the "big bad". The Sacrifice of their current life is part of that arc, according to Monomyth. While Jeff plays with those themes here, the Sacrifice is not so straight forward as those other examples. I think you will enjoy it,

Second, there was an unfolding of scenes which felt, to me, to be homage to another story - two friends, one carrying a heavy burden, journeying into a darkness from which one expects not to return. Some might find it derivative, I found it respectful, and with greater emotional resonance here. The character was not so damaged, so corrupted by their burden, as in that other well known tale. I can't imagine it wasn't deliberately and carefully crafted with awareness of the other.

Third, the sub plot of Quion's tale seemed to wrap up in a rather pat fashion - after all his journeys, the conclusion of his path seemed rushed, and therefore unsatisfying to me. Given space constraints, that's probably to be expected, but I'd almost rather his tale be left unfinished than the ending he was given. Rowan, too, turned out to be something less than what I had imagined in the first two books. Those are the primary reasons I could not offer this book a five star rating overall. There was also a single sentence - perfectly fine grammar, just an odd choice of phrasing, which stuck out to me - i had to go back and re-read it a few times to puzzle out the intent. The fault there was mine, I expected to read one thing, and was offered another. Coke/Pepsi. Won't ruin it by flagging it, just know if you stumble across it, you aren't alone.

Finally, with Book Three, the tale is complete - but the world has stories left within it - and an obvious path into the next Trilogy. Though Jeff says he has no immediate plans to return to this world, I would in no way be disappointed if he picks it back up at some future date, perhaps from the PoV of the next generation...


Cross Posted to Amazon and Goodreads

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The Immortal Words is the conclusion to The Grave Kingdom trilogy. Or is it? Wheeler left an opening at the end to revisit this world, and I, for one, would be incredibly happy if he did decide to do just that.

What I Loved

I loved that I got to know Bingmei on a much deeper level in this part of the story. The whole first half of the novel focuses on her and the ever-loyal Quion, as they battle their way to the Phoenix temple on the Graveyard side of the wall. I learned more about her hopes and fears, determination, and thoughts on what the future holds. She is a fantastic character with such layers of complexity; you can't help but admire for the hero she truly is. She is a character that makes mistakes, but you never doubt her even for even a second. She has a compassionate heart that is loyal to a fault, and that quickly learns from mistakes that she makes. She will go out fighting even if she believes that fate has decreed she will not win. This is just who she is, and I love that she does not give in to self-pity, even when she would like to do nothing more than just that.

I loved that the story plucked at all the right heartstrings in this conclusion. There are unexpected losses, and there are incredible victories, and your heart rises and breaks as the story plays out. The sacrifices that had to be made as the story wound its way to the conclusion touched me profoundly, and I ended the book with an overall satisfying feeling -though, in some cases, in a bittersweet way. I love it when a story is not afraid to make the hard choices, and this one delivers.

I loved that even though the first half was a journey story focused on two characters and outside the primary battle, the action still never once let up. I experienced new creatures and landscapes and learned new historical facts about how Echion and Xisi became immortal. I was happy to get all of this back story, and in a way, that felt like the plot was still moving forward. I love the whole Phoenix and dragon battle symbolism and the beauty of the reality. Because, though they are fierce beasts, they both are quite beautiful, very deadly, and have incredible strength.

What I Wish

One of my pet peeves is when a book ends on a cliff hanger, and though the trilogy tale has concluded this novel did end with a cliffhanger, which leaves me asking, as Jeff Wheeler's wife did, is there another book? I would love more books with the surviving characters, but I'm not sure how I felt about the book being left with a cliffhanger.

To Read or Not to Read
DEFINITELY read this trilogy! I can't say it any stronger or plainer than that.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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