I really liked the first and second book. I liked the romance story but felt this drug on bit. And it doesn’t seem like an ending is coming soon.

This book was just what I would have expected from the author of Lightlark and Nightbane. Skyshade was everything I could have hoped for to continue the Lightlark Saga. There was a little bit of spice (but not too much) and the spice that was in there was *chef’s kiss* perfect. There was TENSION, and heartbreak. There was betrayal and mystery. Alex Aster is an author that will be added to my “read everything they write” list.

Really enjoyed this book! Alex did an amazing jobs trying to grasp the complexity of self (internal), and external expectations. I enjoyed reading about Isla's growth, history, and background. I also enjoyed the aspects of getting to know Grimm and Isla's history a bit more. I went into this book assuming that it was the last one, but the ending implies that there may more. Thank you net galley for the ARC copy!

I like this story and think that if you liked the others in the series, you would like this one too. I thought this was going to be a trilogy and there is a cliffhanger at the end so I think we can expect more books in the series.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Alex Aster for the ARC - these thoughts are all of my own"

Skyshade, the third installment of The Lightlark Saga, promises readers an exciting mix of fantasy, adventure, and romance. As the third book in the series, I was extremely excited to see how Isla, Grim, and Oro's stories progresses. However, the pacing of the novel struggles to find a consistent rhythm. Pivotal events are often overshadowed by the shifting of focus.

-------------------------- Spoilers Ahead --------------------------

The descriptions of the settings are immersive, I was quickly swept up in this fantastical landscape. The love triangle is a major piece of the series. Unfortunately, in Skyshade, the love triangle was not as compelling as the previous novels in the series. Isla kept claiming a strong anger towards Grim; however, her emotions towards him were inconsistent at a sped pace. Furthermore, even when she claims to love Grim and want to be with him "forever", she seems to continue her flirtation with Oro. We did not get much development to Oro and Isla's relationship, so their chapters together seemed rush and out of focus.

Ultimately, Skyshade is a book with great potential. The foundation for a sweeping fantasy saga is there, but the uneven execution in the love triangle and pacing detracts from its overall impact. Fans of the series may find enough to enjoy, but others may struggle with the fragmented nature of the narrative.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of Skyshade. I have thoroughly enjoyed this YA series. This book did not disappoint! Hoping for another installment as I am still reeling from the ending!

I absolutely loved Skyshade. With each new installment, the Lightlark series grows even richer and more captivating. This book had everything I look for—love, adventure, mystery, and just the right amount of spice. Every page brims with twists and turns, secrets and lies, creating an atmosphere where anything could happen. The characters are so compelling that, even when Isla is clouded in darkness, you find yourself rooting for them all. The storyline is masterfully crafted; it’s layered, immersive, and impossible to put down. I can only describe Skyshade as pure perfection. If you’re looking for a series that combines intense action with deep emotion, this is it!

SCREAMING OVER THE ENDING!!!🐍 I need book 4 ASAP!

I will try to keep all of this spoiler free. I might even release a more detailed review with quotes after November 12 🩵

First, I want to say thanks to RBMedia, NetGalley, and Alex Aster for the audio arc. It was truly an honor to listen to early!

For those of you that loved books 1 and 2, you’re gonna enjoy book 3. 😏

In Skyshade, Isla really develops more as a character and we even find out more of her backstory. I love that she spends time with both Oro and Grim. It’s really interesting to see her talk with both of them (individually) and struggle through what to do after the insane ending in book 2 🤯 But, in Skyshade, the love triangle isn’t as much the focus as Isla trying to figure out how not to fulfill the prophecy. It felt like there were more adventures and side quests in Skyshade than the others.

There were so many twists, turns, and daggers to the heart in this book. I really enjoyed it! But I will say that some of these came out of nowhere. I would’ve liked to had more of a foundation throughout each book. Also, the ending was a bit rushed and came FAST. I was shocked when it was over.

A word of caution…This book has more sexually explicit content than the others. I probably wouldn’t consider this YA anymore. So just be aware if you want to skip those pages.

With all that said, do yourself a favor and pick up Skyshade on November 12!! 🩵 I especially recommend it on audio! Suzy Jackson did incredible.

Absolutely Loved Skyshade !! I cannot believe the journey we went through in this book ! Highly recommend this series ! I am obsessed with Grim.

This series hasn’t been my favorite but I have felt interested enough to continue to the third installment, which I thought was the last. Sadly, it is not the end. There has been so much back and forth between Isla and her suitors, I actually gave up trying to keep them straight because I am convinced this is going to end in some sort of why choose scenario.

The plot is pretty exhausting, every one hates her and doesn’t trust her except the two men who love her… the only defining characteristics about Oro and Grim is that they love her unconditionally and they aren’t their fathers.

While I thought 80% of this book was just pulling shit from thin air (a prophet, an ogre, a storm detecting bird…. What…) there was some helpful backstory about Isla’s parents that brought some clarity.

Overall, I don’t think I will continue this series because it is just very underwhelming.

Thanks to NetGalley and RBMedia for an advanced audio copy provided in exchange for my honest review.

I loved every minute of this book!

The good: The suspense, the plot twists, the romantic tension… This FMC has come a long way in her character development. The author does a great job showing her growth and the mental and emotional angst she has in dealing with the questions of her destiny. I particularly loved the emotional tug of war between her two loves and the way she is painted as truly tortured by her division of emotions. And the SPICE WAS SPICING! 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ For some reason, I thought this was a trilogy and so I was GUTTED by the cliffhanger at the end. I NEED the next book!!!

The not as good: I mean, it was so good I don’t have any major criticisms. The only reason it wasn’t five stars from me was that I found the plot to be a little confusing at times. A twisty plot is great, but sometimes it can lead to more questions than answers or be somewhat confusing. I had to go back a couple of times and re-listen to intricate details that I missed the first time that ended up being important clues. But they were almost so subtle that it was easy to glaze over them and then I ended up confused. But such is the case with audiobooks sometimes.

Overall, I absolutely loved and devoured this book! Thank you for the opportunity to review this arc.

I have heard so much about this series and I am so glad I read it! I am sucked into the world of Alex Aster, and I am completely okay with it. This is book 3 in the series, and i really hope there will be a book 4! We get to dive deeper into Isla’s story and see what happens in Grim’s castle! It does end on a cliffhanger in my opinion, so hopefully we get to continue this amazing series!

I LOVED EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS BOOK, it's easily my favorite read of the year, The plot was great but I loved that reading the book immediately made me want to go back and read it all over again because I wasn't ready for it to end yet.

I thought this was a trilogy, but after that ending, IT BETTER NOT BE.😳

Alex Aster has delivered another romantasy with huge stakes and plot twists I did not see coming. I did read Lightlark and Nightbane back to back a few months ago, and as I started this book, I had a hard time remembering all the complex details of the world and the story so far. Even by the end, I’m not sure I remembered and understood everything, but I was so invested that I didn’t care that much. The love triangle is still alive and well in this book, and I truly feel so torn about who should be chosen. I’ve felt like Grim is endgame from the beginning (and especially after learning that *SPOILER IF YOU HAVENT FINISHED NIGHTBANE YET* Grim and Isla are married). But I also really love Oro and I hope he gets a happy ending if he doesn’t end up with Isla. Skyshade is a very wild ride that kept me on the edge of my seat, and Alex Aster - you better have another Lightlark book coming!

This book is definitely steamier than I think a YA book should be. I believe there were 3 chapters with open door content, as well as a couple other fade to black/cracked door scenes. But I really don’t remember there being much of any profanity throughout the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and RBmedia for sending me an advanced audio copy of this book! All thoughts and opinions above are my own.

This series or trilogy, not sure which one it is to be honest, it ended, but it didn't end. 

I'm a little confused. A love triangle will they, won't they? Was this enemies to lovers, lovers to enemies, or both? I have so many questions. 

However, the plot and concept are beautiful and unique, and we get to learn and understand more of the lore, and the FMC has made such a jump in the self-acceptance and self-discovery. If this is the end, I'm confused if there's more to come, hoping my questions get answered. 

This series/trilogy has been fun and consistently 4/5 stars for me. If you liked LightLark & NighBane, I think you'll like this. It does pick up and continue where NightBane left off.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“Please,” he said, his eyes wide. Desperate. “Please don’t go.
I’m sorry. Hate me,” he pleaded. “Hate me all you want. Hate me forever just— just don’t leave.”

✨I finished this audio in a day. One day. If you’re looking for a book to escape into, this one will suck you in. It has been a minute since a book has made me feel so anxious from beginning to end and this one did. This is the third book in the series. I obviously can’t say much without spoiling it, so my review will be short and sweet.

✨ Skyshade follows Isla in the aftermath of book two. She has to make a choice. Oro or Grim? In most of the book I couldn’t tell if I wanted to scream at her or run with her. There are high stakes, lies, secrets, and betrayal that had me spiraling and second guessing my own predictions. The romance? Oh, I ate it up. Between whom? 🤐. There is tension and lots of pining. I know I would’ve given in wayyy before Isla did.

“If loving you this much is my downfall, then consider me already on my knees.”

Skyshade has:
🖤 Morally grey characters
✨ Betrayal
🖤 Yearning
✨ Battles & magic
🖤 Lies & Secrets
✨ Romance and spice
🖤 Animal companions

✨ I had the audiobook, and the narrator did a fantastic job! When I say I listened to it in a day, it is truly because the narrator. She was able to show the emotion the characters felt and even created the high anticipation atmosphere.

Ps, it releases Nov 12th!

Does she pick Grim or Oro? I guess you’ll have to read it to find out.

Thank you to @alexaster and RBmedia for this ALC! 🫶🏼

3.25⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️- not a lot but very descriptive for YA

Well the writing has gotten slightly better. Still not great but at least there is progress. I was surprised with the spice scenes and literally doable checked that this was supposed to be YA as it’s a bit much for that.

Moar of the book was fairly boring. It took me several days to listen to the ALC because there was nothing to propel you to keep listening. It didn’t get truly engaging until about 85%.

Or still has that “throw everything at the wall and see what sticks” type of feel rather than an organic storyline unfolding. It does end on a cliff hanger to may way for a fourth book which was really disappointing.

The narrator did a fine job. I did have to listen at 1.75X speed though to make it palatable. The one thing that really irks me though is the pronunciation of Isla as it bastardizes the actually pronunciation of the word. I wish Aster spelled
The word she actually wanted correctly. But then as an inconsistency there are several times the narrator pronounces the word “Isla” in its proper pronunciation .

Anyway, still not a series I would recommend but to each their own!

I am thankful to have gotten an Audio ALC for free from Netgalley and recorded books to enjoy, which gave me the opportunity to voluntarily leave a review.

My rating system since GoodReads doesn’t have partial stars and I rarely round up.

⭐️ Hated it
⭐️⭐️ Had a lot of trouble, prose issues, really not my cup of tea (potentially DNF’d or thought about it)
⭐️⭐️⭐️ Meh, it was an ok read but nothing special
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Really enjoyed it! Would recommend to others
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Outstanding! Will circle back and read again

I was so happy to listen to the ARC of this book

It was a rollercoaster.
This was just perfect! A 5 star read.
Can’t wait to own all the books in collectors editions.

My brain hurts...and I'm so frustrated... like did I imagine her saying this was a trilogy?!!! I hate how useless this whole book seemed where as the first two felt like they were building up to something at least...

I absolutely loved this audio book! The creativity of the author to continously pull readers into this book was so well done! The ending has me dying for more!