I did a re-read:

So I had to sit on this book and process all my feelings and emotions before I could make words!

Dam it was good! This last book answers any questions you had going in after the first 2 bks! The author wraps it up leaving you feeling complete. However you are gutted. The emotions I had while reading this book were off the charts! I don’t CRY !! Especially not in books and this got me.

Like I feel the best way to describe this, is your standing at the edge of a cliff admiring the view of ocean below, dreaming, letting go of reality when someone slams you in the back and your now plummeting to your death then bam you wake up! and your embraced by the biggest hug of warmth and love!!!

This book has so many underlying meanings with in it! It was absolutely spectacular! I LOVED it so much! Don’t let it being YA scare you! It has so much depth to it that adult readers will love it! I’m forcing my teen to read it as well as my husband! So much action !

Don’t miss out!!

Read it if you liked:
-Shield and sparrow
-Shadow and bone
-Lord of the rings
-The Cruel Prince

This was possibly the most intense book of the series. So much going on, so many scenes that bring forth the strongest feelings, and such an apt ending. Following these two, as well as all the others in this amazing trilogy, has been a joy. Yes, it's brought many other feelings, heartbreak being one of the strongest, but joy topped them all.

They lived a very harrowing life, Meren and Reven. Their ups and downs kept me on the edge of my seat. That's the sign of a great novel, the involvement that keeps you from being able to put it down. And Abby nailed it. What an absolute treat to be able to follow all the characters and have a real conclusion for them at the end. After all the trauma they went through, coming out the other side whole seemed unlikely. Yet, there was no way I would miss finding out if they did.

I can't decide if my favorite secondary character was Bene or the goddesses. The others, together, were excellently developed, and I did love them all. But Bene was just so cool it was hard not to love him the most. And the goddesses were just so ridiculously petty, just as you'd expect of goddesses, that I found them to be hilarious. So those guys stand out more. But the character development of all the characters was wonderfully complete. Complete enough to give us a real feel for who they were and what to expect of them. Character development is one of the more difficult parts of writing, and Abigail Owen does it so well.

All in all, each book in the trilogy left me wanting more. Even with an excellent ending, I still want more. So, Abby, your first foray into epic fantasy was an unmitigated success. There is nothing this woman can't write!

Intriguing, exciting, heartbreaking, joyous, and full of life, this was so excellently done, Abigail Owen! Has a front and center place on my bookshelf!

When I started this book I actually didn’t realize it was the final book in a trilogy, so I was in for a treat when I went back to read the first two! This was a perfect ending, I didn’t want to leave this world. It north broke and healed my heart, and I’ve since picked up quite a few of Abigail’s other books - she is now an auto read author for me!

I have never been so emotionally broken by a book like this! Every loss, every betrayal, every sliver of hope being crushed; broke my heart over and over again! Even I was losing faith that Eidolon would be defeated, and Reven would find his way back to Meren. I couldn't believe how Meren was able to keep going! I could NOT put this book down! The ending was just so bittersweet, yet fitting for this rollercoaster of a story!

This book wrestles shadows like it’s a cage match in the dark. You’ve got a grizzled war-veteran-turned-mercenary, a mysterious mansion in need of fixing, and EVERY shadow hiding secrets that could slam your skull. It’s brooding, it’s claustrophobic, and every creak makes you check behind the sofa. Power flickers through the gloom, the characters shout less and stew more, and when those shadowy threats step out? You *feel* that chill. It’s like paranormal meets gritty noir—and I spent the whole ride half-reading, half-holding my breath.

But don’t get it twisted—it’s not perfect midnight magic. The pacing sometimes drags, like you’re trudging through a foggy basement for pages without a jump scare. A few plot strands pop up, then vanish without payoff—where did that subplot go? And shadows are spooky, but if you don’t adore moody atmospheres and haunting silences, you might start yawning. Still, when the big shadow-battle hits? It’s visceral, it’s rage-fueled, and it *smacks*.

**Verdict:** A brooding, shadow-drenched paranormal thriller packed with tense dread, eerie vibes, and atmospheric slow-burn. Clunky pacing and stray threads sting, but the moments of full-on darkness make it a solid midnight read.

I loved this book! It was so good! The characters were amazing. The plot was intriguing and I loved the world building! I will read anything by Abigail!

This book was a satisfying conclusion to the first two. I laughed, I cried. I was happy with the ending. I love all books by Abigail Owen.

I love Abigail Owen! She writes really great fmcs. This fmc is strong and determined. This book is past paced and very interesting. I love this world!

It took me so long to pick this book up because I truly didn’t want this story to end. I love Abigail’s writing and this story in general was truly just magical for me. There were so many emotions going on in this book and I’m still just taking it all in.

Abigail, if you’re reading this thank you so much for letting me read your work. This has been an amzingb journey and I just do not have words..
Thank you as well to Entagled Teen for letting me have the honor of being able to ARC read for them.

I just loved this author and this series!! I’ve been lucky to have been give each book from this series and it hasn’t disappointed at all!! I love the characters, their stories, and all the drama in between their HEA!! I’m super sad this is all over now but I can’t wait for what’s next from Abigail! Highly recommend this series!

Omg!!! This book. This epic trilogy.
Abigail does it again and I felt all the things in this book. I cried so many times and that ending was so good! I loved this book. A fantastic YA series that everyone should read.

The Shadows Rule All is a stunning, emotional finale to Abigail Owen’s Dominion series—and trust me, you’ll want tissues. Buckle up.

This series must be read in order to fully appreciate the layers of betrayal, found family, and fate. From The Liar’s Crown, I was hooked—invested in Meren, the secret twin raised in the shadows, trained to protect her sister and sacrifice everything for the crown.

The villain, Eidolon Calix I, is pure darkness—immortal, power-hungry, and terrifying. His escaped shadow, Reven, is the heart of the story. One accidental kidnapping of the wrong princess and boom—chaos, danger, slow-burn romance, and a fight to save the world.

This book had me on edge the entire time. It's raw, heartbreaking, and hopeful all at once. Abigail Owen wrapped this epic journey beautifully.

My only concern with these books from the beginning is they were very similar to the Twin Crowns series by Catherine Doyle and Katherine Webber but this series has its own voice I can appreciate.

This series has it all. Fantasy romance, intrigue, action. Just to name a few. I loved reading these books and immediately went tk the next one.

Questo libro è un completo disastro.

Basta vedere quanto diamine ci è voluto per finirlo di leggere: tre mesi e mezzo!
Questo vi fa capire quanto io abbia odiato questo libro e quanto mi abbia annoiata. Ma sopratutto quanto mi abbia fatta incazzare come una bestia!

Aspettavo con impazienza il finale di questa trilogia, speravo davvero in un bel finale dopo gli alti e bassi del secondo libro, e quello che ho letto è praticamente un'ammasso delirante di subquest, dove una va peggio dell'altra, e dove ormai non c'è più una trama principale da seguire.
No, ormai i protagonisti non sanno più cosa combinare, a parte compiere un'azione dopo l'altra che porta a risultati devastanti. E non una, non due, non tre...ma ogni singola volta che cercano di portare a termine un compito, che sperano porti alla fine di questa dannatissima guerra, qualcosa va in qualche modo male. No che dico male, malissimo!

Per non parlare del trope che odio di più in assoluto: l'amnesia!!!!!!
Sono stata così arrabbiata e nervosa per tutta la durata del libro che se fosse stato fisico l'avrei voluto fare in mille pezzi (si...io! Che guai ad avere un libro a malapena danneggiato!).

Inoltre non abbiamo avuto ulteriori informazioni su Eidolon (a parte un breve flashback sul suo passato), ne sulle Dee, niente di niente. Le interazioni son sempre ridotte al minimo, sono tremendamente fastidiose e si dimostrano una forma tremenda di Powerplay.
Perfino Reven è ridotto a personaggio di fondo. E' talmente invisibile che a malapena ti accorgi che fa parte del libro.

Per non parlare del finale. Preparatevi.

L'unica scena che ho apprezzato è stata la scena notturna nel canyon con Reven. Basta...il resto è stato un fastidio continuo.

Sono così dannatamente triste e insoddisfatta. Mi è sembrato di leggere una bozza del romanzo a cui mancano tutte le parti di evoluzione dei personaggi, delle interazioni tra di loro, dei sentimenti, dell'intreccio interessante della storia che avevo visto nel primo libro...

Mi sembra di aver sprecato un sacco di tempo.
Spero i suoi prossimi libri saranno più curati.


Grazie Netgalley per avermi permesso di leggerlo.

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This book is a complete disaster.

Just look at how long it took me to finish reading it: three and a half months!
This makes you understand how much I hated this book and how bored I was. But above all how much it pissed me off!

I was eagerly awaiting the end of this trilogy, I was really hoping for a good ending after the ups and downs of the second book, and what I read is basically a delirious mass of subquests, where one goes worse than the other, and where there is no longer a main plot to follow.
No, now the protagonists don't know what to do anymore, apart from carrying out one action after another that leads to devastating results. And not once, not twice, not three... but every single time they try to complete a task, which they hope will lead to the end of this damned war, something goes wrong in some way. I mean, badly, terribly!

Not to mention the trope I hate the most: amnesia!!!!!!
I was so angry and nervous the entire time I read the book that if it was physical I would have teared it to pieces (yes... me! That i would never have a damaged book!).

We also got no further information on Eidolon (aside from a brief flashback to his past), nor on the Goddesses, nothing at all. The interactions are always kept to a minimum, are terribly annoying and prove to be a terrible form of Powerplay.

Even Reven is reduced to a background character. He is so invisible that you barely notice he is part of the book.

Not to mention the ending. Prepare yourselves.

The only scene I appreciated was the night scene in the canyon with Reven. That's it... the rest was a constant annoyance.

I'm so damn sad and dissatisfied. It felt like I was reading a draft of the novel that lacks all the parts of character development, interactions between them, feelings, the interesting plot of the story that I saw in the first book...

I feel like I wasted a lot of time.
I hope the next books of this author will be more polished.

Thank you Netgalley for letting me read it.

Very good ending for the trilogy. Very fast paced from the beginning with epic action scenes throughout. It is an emotional roller coaster ride, and I found myself needing to take breaks. Overall, very good book!

The Shadows Rule All was an okay final book of the Dominions trilogy. It was action packed with good banter.

As the epic conclusion to the Dominions trilogy, The Shadows Rule All delivers a thrilling, fast-paced story packed with high stakes and emotional twists. From the very first page, the tension is palpable, pushing the protagonist to their limits in a relentless series of challenges. Abigail Owen masterfully weaves action, romance, and heartache into a finale that feels both satisfying and bittersweet. The character development shines, particularly in how the relationships evolve under pressure, making every victory feel earned and every loss deeply felt.

That being said, some moments felt like they existed purely for shock value, with certain plot twists seeming more about surprising the reader than serving the story. A few character deaths hit hard, and while they added to the emotional weight, they sometimes felt unnecessary. Despite this, the book delivers a powerful ending that ties up loose ends while leaving just enough room for the world to linger in the reader’s mind. Fans of the series will find this a gripping, emotional ride—one that cements The Shadows Rule All as a worthy, if sometimes heartbreaking, conclusion.

Oh my gosh! I just finished, and again, I'm struggling with the rating. I think I'm decided upon a three since the first book was the same rating. Book two improved, vastly. We saw the building up of relationships and were left with hope. But this conclusion didn't deliver. Too many characters took a backseat, or were just killed off. And the wow factor just wasn't there. I'm honestly not sure what to think, my heart is in ruins, and I'm sad that I invested so much time into this series. I absolutely loved the world building and magical system. The love aspect, not at all. Unhappy reader sighs...

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest and fair review.

THIS BOOK. I loved it, it was such a rollercoaster of emotions, yet somehow i expected more and more.
I only wish I could reread these books for the very first time.

Nevertheless, I absolutely recommend this saga!! It's so worth it!!

My rating: 4!

I was expecting more out of this final book. It was an emotional rollercoaster but it didnt exceed the hype for me.