I got more and more bored with this series with each book. The covers are gorgeous, and Stewart is a talented writer. But the plot was too winding and convoluted for me. I understand why Ranami's, Phalue's, and Nisong's storylines were important to understanding what was happening in the world, but it was so hard to keep track of who was currently on which island, who was on the same island as someone else, etc. I also felt that the magic system, while incredibly unique and interesting, could've been explained a bit better, and Stewart could've drawn on the sheer horror of a lot of aspects of the plot. Like Jovis realizing that Lin had Emahla's actual eyeballs. That wasn't really addressed past Jovis acknowledging that and accepting that Emahla was dead.
There is something to say about how I was never able to guess a plot twist. In the first book, I was absolutely convinced that Sand was Emahla, and I thought for sure that Lin was a recreation of the original Lin Sukai. Anyway, this series dragged, a lot, and I was confused and bored more often than I wasn't.
However, Mephi was the one redeeming quality. I can honestly say I have never in my life been as attached to a fictional character in any media as I am to Mephi. I love him so much and he's entirely the reason I didn't stop reading partway through the second book. I just want to give him a hug, and I loved his character development throughout the books as he became wiser and got a better grasp on language. He's precious. I think in the future I would be likely to give Stewart a second chance just because she created such a lovable character.

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

This was an amazing and epic conclusion to a series. I was in awe and am speechless.

This was a whirlwind of a book and overall a good conclusion to the trilogy. Although it hasn't been a long time since I read the first two books, I did find myself a bit lost at the beginning of this book as I couldn't remember some of the things that happened previously, so you might want to read a summary or flip through the second half of the second book to refresh your memory as it took a while for me to get back into this world.

There are a lot of moving pieces and POVs in the story and they are interwoven nicely overall. (There was one point where it seemed like one character POV was forgotten about for a while but really I think it was a timeline issue and the other characters needed to catch up to the same timeline.) The war of the title is not just one war and not just two sides; multiple sides come together and sometimes create a tentative alliance and sometimes are at complete odds. Seeing the shifts in power and in those viewpoints makes the story really complex, which I appreciated.

My favorite characters are Jovis and Mephi and (slight spoiler warning), their story broke my heart and I ended up crying at one point, so I was definitely emotionally invested in those characters.

A wonderful finale to a trilogy following Lin, now that she’s become the Emperor, and what she must do, learn, and sacrifice to unify and save her island kingdom. Different characters alternate telling their stories in different chapters, Jovis’s story is heartbreaking, and the chapters of Ranami, Phalue and Ayesh had me holding my breath as each of their worlds opened and changed. Nisong surprised me, as did Lin. Sacrifice, love, forgiveness , and redemption are themes that echo through all three books, and come together to form a satisfying end.
Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for the opportunity to read an advance copy, and to Andrea Stewart and her imagination for bringing these characters to life. Finally, I loved her quote in the acknowledgements, “may you always have someone in your life who loves you as much as Mephi does Jovis”. That’s my favorite relationship!

Another masterful story in the riveting epic fantasy saga continues this epic story where the previous book left off and takes readers on a high-stakes ride with tightly-plotted twists and horrors that are downright eldritch.

4.5/5 stars! Ahh! I have been waiting for the conclusion of this series and was so excited to get this book. There's something so raw and genuine about Lin having conquered her enemies but at the cost of her friends in the previous entry. This book was written with a unique perspective of showing what has occurred at different times and I really enjoyed this. Without failures, we could never have successes so I think including that angle was relevant and made it feel more authentic. I love the series as a whole but could see where some would be disappointed with the conclusion of solely this book.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

This perfect conclusion to one of my favorite fantasy series. I went into this series without knowing much and I’m so glad I did. This series has never let me down. From the first chapter of every book I’m pulled in immediately and can never put it down. Jovis, Lin, Mephi… they have become some of my favorite character I’ve come across. I know this will be a series I will read again

The Bone Shard War was a satisfying end to the trilogy. The ending had plenty of twists and turns from what I expected would occur. Writing was excellent and I grew closer to the characters through this final book. I honestly wish there were more. My only two complaint are that this book is set 2 years later from the last book, but almost nothing seems to have happened in that duration and that this was somewhat slow paced. Overall a great book and author.

I love the first 2 books in the trilogy. They were exciting, new and I love the magic systerm. This continues in the third book- the finale!

Lin is still wonderful... brave, strong and trying to do the right thing. There are difficult choices and unforeseen consequences. There are more myths here about mythic swords... Lin must do her best to save the kingdom.

Thanks to the publisher for the arc

I audibly screamed when I received this ARC. I am a HUGE fan and LOVED the first two books. This is an absolutely stunning conclusion to the series and Andrea Stewart is an auto-buy author forevermore. There are not a lot of books that give me the same feels as SJM books do, but this is one of them. HIGHLY reccomend! TYSM for the opportunity to devour this ARC before it is published.

I really, really enjoyed how this trilogy played out. It reminds me a lot of how Green Bone saga or Poppy War saga takes fold but does something a bit different.