I have very much enjoyed this series (as I have enjoyed all of CH’s series’) and I’m sad to see it end. What an ending it was, though!!
We’ve finally reached the Wizard’s Ball and it had all the action I was looking for packed into these pages! While the major plot lines were wrapped up, there seems to have been room left for a spin-off series of the author chooses to go in that direction (and I desperately hope she does!). I’ll certainly miss these characters and will enjoy revisiting them in the future.

Felicia is the belle of the blood-soaked ball, Lizbeth is one frilly dress away from setting the venue on fire, and I am emotionally clinging to the walls because this is how we’re ending the series? THIS?? I need Charlaine Harris to look me in the eye and explain why my chest feels like it got hexed by a betrayal spell, a heartbreak incantation, and a mild panic curse, all in one.

“The Last Wizards’ Ball” takes everything this series has been quietly building toward, like family tension, political chaos, and Lizbeth’s chronic inability to tolerate social bullshit, and slams it into one gloriously deranged week of magic, murder, and matchmaking. Everyone’s dressed like they’re heading to a magical Met Gala, but half of them are actively plotting a murder before dessert. It's like if “The Hunger Games” had a baby with “The Crown”, and that baby was raised by necromancers and war criminals in a ballroom with complimentary champagne.

Let’s start with Lizbeth. Our girl is feral in a corset and I mean that with love and fear. She has absolutely no business being in a ballroom, and she knows it. All she wants is her boots, her gun, and one solid reason not to uppercut a fancy wizard in the jaw. But instead, she’s playing chaperone to her magically gifted, emotionally unpredictable sister, who’s suddenly the hottest commodity in an international wizard marriage market where the line between flirtation and war crimes is paper thin.

Felicia, bless her homicidally ambitious heart, is in her girlboss necromancer era. She’s powerful, gorgeous, and vaguely terrifying. One minute she’s charming the German delegation, the next she’s giving "I could start a revolution if I wanted to" energy while sipping a cordial. She’s the teenage chaos demon we’ve been building toward, and she absolutely delivers. The girl is casually rewriting diplomatic norms with a smile and a death spell.

And then there’s Eli. My emotionally repressed wizard husband. My cardigan-wearing disaster man. I want to love him. I do love him. But he is allergic to open communication and it's killing me one quiet betrayal at a time. Every time he made a secret decision “for Lizbeth’s own good,” I wanted to swan dive into the story and shake him. They’re on opposite sides of the same battlefield, holding hands and pretending they’re not bleeding. It’s brutal. It’s beautiful. It’s giving “I love you but I don’t know how to stay.”

The backdrop? Oh, just the simmering pot of international wizard politics as the world teeters on the edge of magical World War II. No big deal. There are spies in evening wear, bombs under banquet tables, and absolutely no one is just here for the dancing. This ball is less Jane Austen and more “who’s gonna die before the fondue course.” And it slaps.

This is not a tidy finale. There’s no bow. No epilogue on a sun-drenched porch with a baby in one arm and a spellbook in the other. What we get is honest, raw, and sometimes agonizing. People make impossible choices. People break. People walk away. And it hurts like hell.

Four stars. You want heartache in formalwear? You want your favorite disaster couple tearing each other open with the softest touch? You want wizard geopolitics in a haunted dance hall? “The Last Wizards’ Ball” is ready for you.

Huge thanks to Saga Press and NetGalley for the ARC of this final entry in the "Gunnie Rose" series. I was not emotionally prepared, and I still haven’t recovered, but I’m deeply grateful for the trauma.

I have really enjoyed the Gunnie Rose series, as I binged read the entire five books last year. I'm really sad to see this series end as it was one of my faves. I love how Lizbeth is such a firecracker and a really quick with her guns. I lived for the moments that Lizbeth was fighting to protect the wizards she was hired to protect.
Lizbeth finds herself with Felicia and Eli in San Diego attending courting events and the Last Wizards' Ball. Aside from the courting, there are really some intense moments weaved in. There is trouble brewing on the other side of the world and it is slowly crossing borders. The German and Japanese wizards are circling around Felicia, and they don't want to take no for an answer. They want Felicia and the powers that come along with her. Will Lizbeth and Eli be able to protect Felicia at all costs?
I'm still at a loss that this is the last and final installment. While I'm glad we finally got the last book, I wish there were still more to come. I'm hoping that there is a spin-off to come. Easy death.

A very special thanks to S&S/Saga Press + Netgalley for the gifted copy.

Spectacular Ending To An Exceptional Series/ARC

Well, we’ve finally reached the end to a good series, and I’m missing it five minutes after finishing it.

A lot of activity happening surrounding the wizard’s ball that’s been hinted at in previous books. There’s also a lot of people to keep track of, as some from previous books make cameo appearances

For the number of pages to the book, the action is tightly packed in between those pages.

For one, I have so many unanswered questions. Although Harris gives us an out on everything that was part of the plot lines, it seems as if there’s more than a few endings that left you wondering about the future.

Without providing any spoilers, I can’t even bring up where the mysterious endings lead to.

I’m almost wondering if Harris is planning a spinoff from where this one ended. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

I can say I’ll miss Gunnie Rose for a while! I had almost begun to feel as if she was a real live person, brought to life through Harris’s imaginative and creative approach of drawing her out through words and imaginative dialogue. So long Gunnie.
Easy death.

Note: I received early access from NetGalley and the publisher, S&S/Saga Press, of this manuscript, and have at my own discretion and opinion, chosen to post this review.

I am always sad when I come to the end of a Charlaine Harris series! In this last installment of the Gunnie Rose series, Lisbeth is taking her sister, Felicia, to the last Wizard's ball in the hopes of securing her a husband and a good future. When they arrive, attempts start being made on Felicia life, who is a very powerful death grigori. When they learn that Hitler is starting a war with the help of Japan and Italy, they quickly realize Hitler wants Felicia for his side, or her death. Lisbeth's marriage is severely tested in this last book, and while I was sad it ended, I never liked Eli for her. I enjoyed that even though war was breaking out, Lisbeth is at peace at the end, and looking to start a new life.

I felt this was the bittersweet ending I crave from charlaine. Always keeping me wanting more even if I’ve read 7 books already lol. She just has this magic about her that no one else has and I’ve been in love with her writing style since the first sookie stackhouse book. In this story I am partial to Lizbeth because it’s the name of my grandmother which was passed down to me!! I also will always grab a story about sisters leaning on each other and who don’t love an independent bada** fmc.

Incredible! This finale has Lizbeth questioning everything. She is in her husbands world trying to guide her sister through the politics of the Wizards Ball and she is lost and uncomfortable. She is so far out of her wheelhouse. Lizbeth is used to being shown a problem, shooting it and boom it’s gone. Polite society is not so straight forward. Watching the world affecting Lizbeth’s reality was heartbreaking. But our Gunnie is a tough survivor and she will survive this too.
I have really enjoyed this series. Charlaine Harris is sure to give us a unique world and interesting characters.

I'm sad that this is the final book in the series. I found it to be a very satisfying ending though. I was very pleased with where Lisbeth was by the end.

Much of the story takes place in San Diego where Lisbeth and Eli are chaperoning her younger sister Felicia around the week of the festivities surrounding the wizards' ball, basically a marriage mart for wizards. Wizards from all around the world are there to make connections, particularly marriages. Everyone is dressed up beautifully and the young ladies are meant to be demure and ladylike as they are broadcasting their marriageability to other wizard families. Young men are similarly constrained although not as much.

An enjoyable twist on this very common theme is Lisbeth's point of view as a chaperone, who hates all of it and finds it all pointless. She is doing it at the behest of her sister. What occurs is strongly affected by events in Europe where Kristallnacht has recently occurred.

The story builds on what has gone before very well and makes complete sense for the characters. I am sad that this is the final book, but at the same time I'm not sure I want to read about these characters in their version of World War Two.

I'm looking forward to Harris' next book, whatever it may be.

I am a long-time Charlaine Harris fan and have enjoyed this dystopian series from the start. This book wraps up the series, making it bittersweet as I did not want to say goodbye to FMC Lizbeth Rose and her unique world.

This book is an alternate history urban fantasy set in a fractured United States where magic is real, but viewed with distrust. There are wizards, gunslingers, like Lizbeth, and in this installment, the beginning of WWII. Lizbeth accompanies her powerful half-sister Felicia to the Grand Wizards Ball in California, which is now the Holy Russian Empire. There is danger, intrigue, and secrets abound. Lizbeth, uncomfortable in high society, is on high alert to protect her sister while dealing with cracks in her marriage and news of a looming world war.

Like many series ending books, this one ushers in big changes and new beginnings. I had to sit with it for a while to think about how I felt about the ending. I decided it made sense to me in light of the landscape of the series and Lizbeth's hard scrabble life, even if I may have wished for something different.

I will miss Lizbeth. A strong, independent FMC, she is a badass in battle, yet kind and loyal to her family and friends. The supporting characters are also compelling. Some new characters are introduced, and I enjoyed the ones who were also at the ball as protectors and became allies with Lizbeth.

The world-building in these books is well done, and the events surrounding the Wizard's Ball were descriptive and fun, dangerous and action-packed. The books do need to be read in order to get the most out of them, as the story builds from one to the next. This wasn't my favorite of the series, but I still enjoyed it and will happily devour whatever Harris writes next!

Thank you to Saga Press Books and Netgalley for the gifted review copy!

I did not like this book at all, and I really hate it the ending. It made the entire series seem pointless. Felicia was a part of the wizards ball where she had the opportunity to marry another wizard through a series of events for young wizards to meet a match. I really like that element because it was super unique, especially with the World War II element and all the wizards from different countries and the political tension that was brewing. I enjoy that element and Charlaine Harris did a great job with this series and creating alternative historical fiction with a fantasy element. But since the last book and Lizbeth losing her baby and Eli going back to the HRE and not communicating with her what he was up to and their marriage being on the rocks, this book really didn’t deliver anything promising for their marriage. Eli continued to withhold information and act without talking to Elizabeth about it when it came to him finding out that World War II was gonna take place and him wanting to be involved in the war is the Tzar decided that they were going to join and fight against Hitler. It pretty much proved that his place in society and being in the Tzar’s good graces was more important than his relationship with Lizbeth. But at the same time, Lizbeth also hated being in the HRE and all that came along with that lifestyle so they really weren’t a good match ultimately, but I wish that their love and passion for one another would have had them come to some compromise that worked for both of them like it seemed, it did earlier on in the series. Because the entire thing was built on her relationship with Eli and it just ended, and she ended up screwing some guy that she met in San Diego at the end of the series as a way of moving on. Like what the hell?! And then I’m really upset with Felicia for the decision she made in killing all the Germans in Japanese and such a careless manner without really caring about the consequences of it or making sure that Eli and Lizbeth were safe. It didn’t really seem like Felicia and Lizbeth are gonna end up on good terms or even that Felicia might live — Eli either or anyone else that she ended up creating bonds with over the past six books. It just felt like there was absolutely no resolution and that Elizabeth went down this journey of building these bonds and having these new experiences all for nothing and it was just really depressing and disappointing. I honestly don’t really know how to feel right now. I know this was just the ARC, but I really hope Charlaine Harris reconsiders the ending to the book before it’s released.

Charlaine Harris delivers what might be my most disorienting reading experience in "The Wizard's Last Ball," as I foolishly jumped into this series at what appears to be its conclusion. Walking into this established world felt like arriving late to a party where inside jokes and shared histories swirl around you—intriguing but occasionally frustrating.

I grabbed this book primarily for the promise of magical action scenes, particularly those featuring Lizbeth as a gunslinger. Her character carries an impressive weight, but I have to admit, I got only one confrontation and that left me disappointed.

What makes this urban fantasy stand out is how Harris reimagines the approach of WWII through an alternative historical lens. The brewing global conflict isn't just backdrop—it's the crucible that forces characters to make defining choices. The historical pressure mounts as secret ruses and questionable alliances add layers of complexity to what might otherwise be a straightforward magical adventure.

The characters evolve against this looming darkness in ways that suggest rich backstories I've missed by starting here. Their relationships carry emotional resonances that clearly echo from earlier books, making me curious about the foundations I haven't witnessed.

The ending struck dual chords—both melancholy and hopeful—that resonated even without the full context of previous books. While I found genuine entertainment in this volume, my recommendation is clear: don't follow my path. Start from the beginning. This book offers substantive standalone adventure, but I suspect the emotional impact and character nuances would be significantly more powerful with the full series as foundation.

Massive thanks to Saga Press at Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for my advance review copies. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Charlaine Harris continues to weave intrigue, romance, danger, and suspense into the sixth and final installment in the Gunnie Rose alternative history series, The Last Wizards’ Ball. Lizbeth Rose and Prince Eli Savarov function as chaperones to Lizbeth’s sister Felicia during the week-long Wizards’ Ball where young magical practitioners from across the globe hope to make a romantic match and strengthen alliances.

The ball is being held in San Diego this year, but war and violence are on the rise in Europe. German and Japanese wizards are also courting Felicia, and some don’t want to take no for an answer. As the situation turns deadly, Lizbeth needs to protect her sister while navigating a world that is pulling Eli and Felicia in different directions.

Lizbeth is capable, loyal, brave, generally even-tempered, and a great shot, and has nerves of steel. She’s more relaxed when she’s not in a social situation so the ball week full of festivities is not in her comfort zone. Felicia has a gift for languages, and has and has gained confidence in herself and her abilities. She has the power to kill and to restore life. Eli was born an aristocrat and longs to be back in the good graces of the tsar. He’s not good at sharing his feelings and often fails to communicate. Other characters play secondary roles with varying degrees of depth.

Charlaine Harris is known for excellent characterization and fantastic world-building and she delivers on both of those points in this book. I was easily transported to the depicted events. Family drama, political intrigue, magic, romance, communication issues, war, and many more threads are explored during the novel. It’s also one that causes the reader to think about life, love, duty, community, and family. Exceptional characters, intense fight scenes, and thought-provoking situations made this an entertaining read.

Charlaine Harris is one of my favorite authors and she did not let me down with this conclusion to the series. The characters are compelling, led by strong and capable protagonists. While I hoped for a different ending, the ending was in keeping with the somewhat dark alternative history theme.

Overall, this book was suspenseful and action-packed. It should delight those readers who enjoy alternate history, action adventure, and fantasy novels that have a strong female lead character. However, be aware that it is also unsettling at times. The first novel in the series explains the alternative history aspect that is not fully explained in the succeeding novels. I can’t wait to read my next book by this author.

Saga Press – S&S / Saga Press and Charlaine Harris provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own. The publication date is currently set for July 22, 2025. This review was originally posted at Mystery and Suspense Magazine.

I am wrecked that this is the last in the series and I hope that at some point even if it’s just a short story or novella, we can get a peak into the lives of the characters. I was so wrecked in fact that I only read up to the part about it being the last series and had to put it down for quite some time.

This book was phenomenal however! Secrets, actions, balls oh my! The keeping of secrets and poor communications wreaks havoc on Lizbeth’s life as she is just trying to support and protect her sister Felicia at what may be the last wizard’s ball. Should be easier than working as a gunnie right? Of course not! I enjoy a fish out of water story which is absolutely Lizbeth when she is in the Holy Roman Empire, and even to some extent among her own people as well.

I have read every single book Charlaine Harris has written, and I have not been disappointed, even when the description of the book didn’t seem like it would be to my liking, I will continue to read whatever she puts out even if it seems like something I would not enjoy in the least. Read it but savor it if it’s the last we get of Lizbeth and Felicia!

There are certain things you can generally count on in a Charlaine Harris book. You can count on excellent writing, superb characterization and the absolute best world building in the business. This book had all of that, plus plenty of action and excitement. But, usually, when Harris ends a series - and this book is supposed to be the final book in the Gunnie Rose series - you can expect a feeling of completion, a feeling that the story has ended in a way that makes sense. I ended this book feeling there was a lot I still needed to know. I’m hoping that Harris will return to this world and give us the rest of the story.

Most people probably know Charlaine Harris as the True Blood author. I first read her years ago when I came across the Lily Bard/Shakespeare series, a mystery. Mysteries are my favorite, but I liked Harris's writing so much that I read everything I could find by her. The Gunnie Rose series, a dystopian alternate history of the United States, is a great story about magic, and family, and identity, and survival. What we know as the United States is six different territories, who are very different and who do not necessarily like each other, and who have very different views of those who use magic. Lizbeth is a "Gunnie," an excellent shot who makes her living as a hired gun to protect others.

The Last Wizard's Ball has been announced as the last in the series. While I would definitely read another book if one magically appeared, I have to say I like the way Harris ended things here. I don't want to give away the ending, but it is both surprising and appropriate, both bitter and sweet.

In this final book, Lizbeth Rose has left her home in Texoma (what would be Texas, Oklahoma and surrounding areas) and is in the Holy Russian Empire (the far west--think California and the Pacific Northwest) with her magical husband. The two of them are protecting Lizbeth's sister Felicia, who is making her appearance in the debutante season in which those with magical powers look to pair off in relationships built on love and/or power. Felicia, a powerful death magic practitioner, is being hunted by persons unknown, but who seemed determined to kill her, and don't seem to care how many others die in the process. Lizbeth and her husband Eli must keep Felicia safe and also figure out who is behind this. But the two of them don't always agree on how best to do this.

Other mysteries and secrets abound in the story. Are all of those here for magical pairings who they seem to be? Why does Felicia act strangely when certain people are nearby? Why is Eli attending secret meetings? Why are Felicia and Eli both keeping Lizbeth in the dark--what are they hiding?
And in the background of this intrigue and danger lies the growing menace in Europe as a man named Hitler is looking to recruit those with magic to help with his plans to murder all of the Jews and take over Europe. Will Felicia and Eli be recruited to fight? Do the German and Japanese contingents at the endless parties have ulterior motives for being there? What is Lizbeth's role in all of this?

Harris does an excellent job of pulling all of these different strands together as the book and the series draw to a close. This isn't really the type of series where you expect everyone to live happily ever after--there's too much death, too much killing, too much pain. But each character gets an ending that makes sense for them, and we are left with the possibility of happiness.

While there is death and killing and hard choices in this dystopian world, Harris writes with a light touch, showing us the humor and beauty and love that exists even in a world as hard as this alternate America. That's a ray of hope we can all use.

The final book in the Gunnie Rose series has Lizbeth in San Diego with her husband and sister so that her sister Felicia can attend the Wizard's Ball. Held every three years, the ball gives magic users a change to get to know one another and make marriage alliances.

Lizbeth is not enjoying herself. She doesn't like San Diego or dressing up or attending social events. She is there out of a sense of duty to her sister and to keep her sister alive. As one of the most desired attendees, Felicia is a lovely death wizard with a great amount of power. She's also carrying a reputation since it is well known that she murdered her family. Nonetheless, Felicia is being courted by wizards from all over the world.

Tensions are high at the gathering since Hitler is making plans for Germany which include killing all the Jews and invading everywhere. The German wizards and the Japanese who are allied with Germany are there in force trying to recruit Felecia to their cause. And if she can't be recruited, her death would work as well.

The story is filled with attempted murders from arrows shot at a tea garden, to a bomb under a table at a tearoom, to an assassin trying to get to Felecia during a welcoming party. Besides the stress of keeping Felecia alive, Lizbeth and her husband Eli are facing stresses in their marriage. He's keeping secrets that could impact their future.

With everyone choosing sides in the upcoming war, Lizbeth and Eli find themselves at odds with each other. Despite their love for each other, their futures look to be taking different paths. And Felecia has chosen her own difficult path for her future.

Although I'm told that this is the final book in the series, there are definitely a number of loose hanging threads in the story. I enjoyed it for its worldbuilding and its characters.

I wanted to love the final book in the Gunnie Rose series. I really did… I just don’t. While the series centered around Lizbeth, she felt like a side character this book. The matchmaking for her half-sister Felicia took up the majority of the storyline which set up lots of tie ins with the World War/historical aspects. The closure for Lizbeth at the end of the book felt rushed and anti-climactic.

I am still glad I read the series and will just have to imagine an alternate ending for Lizbeth.

Thank you Charlaine Harris and Saga Press for providing this ARC via NetGalley. Comments and opinions above are my own.

#lastwizardsball #NetGalley

~3.5 stars~

Thank you to Saga Press and NetGalley for the free review copy of this book! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

The Last Wizards’ Ball is the 6th (and I believe final) book in the Gunnie Rose series, so you’ll want to be sure to read the previous books before this one. I’ve generally loved this series, though the last two books seem to be my least favorite.

This book kept my interest well enough. Like the other books in the series, there’s plenty of drama and mystery, though it felt less adventurous than some of the other books. Since the story centers around the Wizards’ Ball, a lot of new characters from around the world are introduced, and sometimes I had a little trouble keeping track of who was who. We get to see many returning characters as well, though I felt much less of a connection to Felicia than I had before. A major plot-point of this story was the lead-up to World War II. In some ways it was interesting to see how those events might play out in this alternate history, but sometimes it also felt a bit forced. Honestly I wasn’t thrilled with how things ended after the long journey with these characters, but I also wasn’t completely surprised. All in all I’m glad to have followed this series all the way through.

This is the 6th and final book in the Gunnie Rose series. I am so sad there will not be a 7. Eli and Lizbeth are going with Felicia to San Francisco and the Wizard's Ball. Wizards from around the world attend to look for spouses . Some are there to kill their rivals. Felicia is a major target because of her power. I was a little disappointed in the ending, especially since there is not another book.

I loved some parts of this book and hated other parts. It wasn't what I was expecting, and not in a good way. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book