Going into last year, this was one of my most anticipated books. So why did it take me so long to finally read it, you might be wondering.  It was the reviews that I saw early on from two specific YouTubers who’s reviews I had trusted in the past.  So, at the beginning of the year, they posted whole videos about how disappointing the book was.  So, I put off reading it because I didn’t want to be disappointed.  Then came their end-of-the-year favorite videos, and guess what book was in their top favorites.  Yep, this one.  Long story short, I don't rely on either of those YouTubers anymore.  I get it, talking negatively about something can get you more views; however, I found it dishonest and was bothered by it.

At the beginning of this year, I went out and picked up a copy of this book, and I am so glad that I did.  This was an amazing conclusion to the trilogy.  I never thought in a million years that I would enjoy fantasy horror, but now it's something that I will give a chance.  To be honest, I didn’t even know that was a thing until I saw it done in this series. 

I loved how the mentor/mentee was handled all the way though this series.

The author gave us an ending that was satisfying for the characters. I am rarely this satisfied by the ending of a series; usually, there are characters that I am left wondering what happened to them. However, that wasn't the case here., I feel like I have closure, and I don't need more books to answer questions. Don't get me wrong, the author has left some doors open and can easily come back to some of these characters if he chooses too.

I still cannot believe this is the first series that Swan has published. I really cannot wait to see what he puts out in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for providing this ARC.
This is a solid end to a solid trilogy. I would say that this will keep me on the lookout for any other books that this author may write in the future. If you have already reach to the third book, then there a good chance you already like the first two and I see no reason why you wouldn’t like the third. Like I said before I’m interested into what else this author has planned.

I truly love this trilogy. Richard Swan is incredibly talented and I hope there is much more to come from Sova. The world is great, the characters are well written and interesting, and the plot has been awesome all the way through the series. I highly recommend.

I love whole trilogy!! So atmospheric!! The magic system was so cool and unique!! Book 3 delivers excellent conclusion!! LOVED this series!!

4.75/5 stars! This is the third and final installation in Richard Swan's "Empire of the Wolf," series. I loved the first two books in this series, so I was excited to read its conclusion. Overall, there was so much depth and emotion behind Vonvolt's motivations and Helena's decisions. I just think this could have been served becoming a four-book series to give more time to wrap things up. But still a stunning conclusion to a great series.

We’ve been on a journey.
We’ve lost people along the way that scraped us to the bone, but we’ve kept on going. It was necessary.
The final battle is before us and the monsters are all around us, both real and imagined.

Trials of Empire was probably my favorite in the series. Mostly, honestly, because this one leans more toward horror than fantasy.
But I admit to finding myself skimming some of the last 75 or so pages. There was a lot of description that I felt could have been shortened.
The war aspect of this volume was intense and captivating. I came away a couple of times feeling like I needed to wash off the gore.

A solid conclusion to this series, and I’m looking forward to diving into Grave Empire.

I know this review is almost year late, but what can I say? Richard Swan is an auto-buy author for me and I had already pre-ordered the book long before being approved for the arc. I wasn't ready to say goodbye to this world then and it's hard to say goodbye now.

Konrad Vonvalt is one of those characters that I adore. Through our narrator, Helena's eyes, and the eyes of others, we see how he shapes the lives of those who surround him and the events that he's caught up in are the very definitions of good and evil. Swan keeps the plot moving while having Vonvalt and Helena grapple with the questions of good and evil, morality, immorality, and all the shades of grey inbetween. It's obvious that Swan used the fall of the Roman Empire as his canvas to create the world of the Empire of the Wolf and drew on his own experiences of law and justice to create such a compelling narrative. The last few chapters were so effective and the end just perfect.

This is a trilogy that I know I'll reread often. These characters are some of my favorites and the story is one that really just stuck with me.

Thank you to Orbit and Netgalley for the arc for review purposes. Even if it is a year late.

Fantastic book by Richard Swan..

This book was so good. I loved this one. And I have recommended it to a few friends already .

Fantastic

I felt like this book missed its mark.
I loved the first one, liked the second one, and this one was a meh. I felt like characters reacted in ways they wouldn’t to some things, and I wasn’t a fan of the way the story went. Still, written very well. Just disappointed with the outcome.

Thank you Publisher and Netgalley for this advanced copy

Statisfying ending. I love how the story ends. Can't wait to read more book from him.

Thank you net galley and Orbit books for the e-arc.

This was an amazing conclusion to the trilogy! The growth of the main character and the slight decline of Vonvalt was so well written. Helena growing and realizing her perception of the world and Vonvalt has been idealistic and naive was a great way to go with their relationship! I want to read more about this world!

This continued to meander among an indistinct and generic political/military conflict rather than lean into what it did so uniquely in bk 1 with the fantasy Judge Dredd. Huge disappointment.

Thanks so very much to Netgalley and the publisher for kindly providing me this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. I do reviews on my main social media platforms and will be providing my full review there as I get through my TBR blacklist. Thanks again!

I really enjoyed this series as a whole. I love the framed narrative and the ideas and themes of justice and I will enjoy a courtroom scene in any book ever. The trial at the end of this book may be the best thing Swan has written so far. I also think that Swan excels at the horror genre, and this book is packed full of cosmic horror juxtaposed with the mundane.

That being said, I appreciate the scope of this book, but I think I prefer the smaller scope of book 1. I've talked about 'power creep' on my channel before and it's just harder to connect when the world is at stake. Not to say it can't be done, but for some reason, the two elements of an empire in danger of lawlessness and the fate of the very world at stake on a cosmic level just didn't quite get there for me. I almost wish it had been one or the other. Also, though I will defend it to the teeth, the fact that Helena is the only POV necessarily removes us from some big events in this book because she's just not there. I love Helena and I love Vonvalt, and not nearly enough Radomir in this one!

Regardless, I enjoyed this book and I'm so looking forward to the flintlock sequel series coming out. The series is definitely worth a read and Swan gets major points for ambition.

Received an eARC but ended up listening to the story. This remains one of my favorite series of all time, but the addition of some horror themes brings this book down to a 4 from a 5 for me. Still recommend!

The Trials of Empire was a thrilling conclusion to a really fantastic series. I really enjoyed the way the story played out for the most part, and the stakes becoming an existential threat became really exciting and kept me glued to the page all day long to the point where I finished the book in a single sitting. The plot of this book was really great and I loved getting to interact with more of the cultures from around this world. One thing I will say, that shook me to my core, was learning that there are non human people in this world...??? I thought the previous mentions of the Country of the Wolf/Wolfmen in past books were always metaphorical, not literal canine people. So that was interesting. But I liked learning about them and the heretical druids, and northlanders.
All in all, this book is a great continuation of the series and is everything you expect it to be after reading the previous entries. It really does maintain that high quality and doesn't fumble the ending.
My only personal gripes with the conclusion, is I expected a corruption arc that didn't end how I anticipated, which I personally think would have made for a stronger ending and theme, especially since the way things ended with that character basically amount to the same narrative outcome as what I wanted to happen.
I really adored this book and it's an easy five star.

**Thank you for the ARC!! All opinions are completely my own.**

4.5-4.75 stars. Incredible conclusion to a fantastic series! I can't believe it's been a few years since I read Justice of Kings. I have followed this series alongside the masterful Richard Swan, enigmatic Vonvalt, and upstanding Helena, and I simply cannot believe our journey with these incredible characters has come to an end.

I will eagerly look forward to what comes next - spoiler alert, it's the Grave Empire (and Great Silence trilogy). Thank you for everything, Mr. Swan!

Wow, what a conclusion. This book packed a LOT. As with the previous books, there were politics, questions of morality, religion, justice, etc. But this book definitely took a bigger turn into horror. Which I enjoyed, but definitely different than the first two books. At times it almost felt like too many moving parts but I found that it ended in a satisfying manner. Some of the questioning and arguing between Konrad and Helena felt repetitive at times, but I also understood where it was headed. I found the action sequence as we follow Helena in some harrowing moments to be thrilling. Overall, the writing was great, but my brain was definitely tired from the politics and religion, mixed with action and horror. I’ll need to read something simpler after this!

This book will be reviewed and featured on my instagram account : @emily_reads_everything. In addition, my goodreads account will have a starred rating, as well as one here. My GR account is linked in the profile of my instagram.

Author Richard Swan concludes his fantastic Empire of the Wolf trilogy in this novel, and he both breaks your heart at all the loss and violence, but also gives you fantastic character interactions and growth.

The novel opens with the Sovan Empire in crisis, and the trio of Helena, Sir Konrad Vonvalt and Sir Radomir on the run. They're on the hunt for allies, for what Vonvalt hopes will be an army with which he can return to save Sova. Bartholomew Claver's power and influence grows by leaps and bounds, and everywhere they turn are enemies.

The trio find no love for the Wolf Empire in the north amongst the pagans, and head south. There they find a Doctor Moreau-inspired race of wolfmen, who, while also having no love for the Empire, are at least willing to listen to what Konrad proposes. It helps they have a powerful hatred of Templars.

At the same time, Helena's terrifying visions are growing worse. And much as she can see the rightness in opposing Claver, Helena is growing increasingly worried at the lengths to which Vonvalt is willing to go, seeming comfortable with the terrible choices they must make and the resulting violence. It’s ironic that the harder Vonvalt works to save the dying Wolf Empire, the faster he loses himself. Helena despairs watching his growing fallibility, defensiveness, and seeming callousness towards those harmed along the way.

She, on the other hand, continues to act as our moral centre to this incredibly dark last book in the trilogy. Though she understands the need to stop Claver, Helena keeps challenging Vonvalt for his decisions. Her growth over the three books has been phenomenal, and such a pleasure. She begins, in book one, as a naïve young clerk to the famed Justice Sir Konrad Vonvalt, and idolizes him. In book two, while still respectful, she's beginning to see the man, instead of the icon of rectitude, and asks him not to do certain, awful things in the service of the Emperor. By book three, Helena is confronting her mentor repeatedly, telling him that he is obsessed, that his choices are suspect, if not outright bad, and will take him down a terrible, black road.

It's an astonishing progression and creates much tension and sometimes acrimony in their relationship. All this plays out against numerous battles, where one can feel the bodies smashing into one another, the metal ringing, the black powder explosions, and the blood and other bodily fluid covering everyone, including a terrified and sickened Helena.

The final conflict plays out both in the streets of Sova, but also in the frightening afterlife that Helena has been able to go to repeatedly since book two. While there are victories along the way, we knew from the beginning of book one that the Wolf Empire was doomed, and we were going to see it come apart, which Swan does get us to by this book's end. But for all gruelling, hard efforts we see Helena and company make, we also get a quiet ending for this fantastic story. Story threads are wrapped up in a way that left me sad and satisfied, with Helena literally riding out to her future, tougher and wiser than when she first appeared. This trilogy was often brutal, often shocking, but its ending is the essence of hope.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Orbit Books for this ARC in exchange for my review.