KINGSHACKLE

In the conclusion to Kaptanoglu’s YA fantasy trilogy, conjurer Tessa Skye must defeat a diabolical, seemingly immortal ruler.

Tessa is searching for the boy she loves, Ash Kemp, who has inexplicably vanished. Some of the enemies the two have faced are dead, but others, like Tessa’s evil half sister, Ratcher, continue to be a threat. The greatest menace to Wilderyn, however, is King Slayert, a powerful conjurer leading a cursed army. Apparently, Slayert possesses the Kingshackle, a gold band that renders him invincible. But anyone who completes “the King’s Challenge” can take the Kingshackle from him. Tessa gets news that Ash, who’d fought during Slayert’s assault against the city of Blackgrove, is now the wicked king’s captive. She hopes to save Ash by traveling to Slayert’s fortress, which is also where one can undertake the King’s Challenge. Tessa fortunately has her windrider, an amulet that turns her into a sparrow. But she strives to find her “bloodbeast” (an animal she can change into at will) to battle Slayert’s—reputedly a dragon. Kaptanoglu’s masterful pacing makes her novel a quick read. The story takes readers through a bevy of betrayals, startling deaths, and exhilarating action, with striking villains, like boarmen and Snakeskins. While the young heroine is the series’ highlight, there are myriad characters who make an impression. Blackgrove’s Queen Sage, for example, is strong but perpetually drunk, and her brother, Lord Queshire, who sometimes refers to himself in the third person, wants to surrender immediately to Slayert’s army. Though the ending provides the trilogy with a resolution, a few characters’ fates remain in question. As such, Kaptanoglu could easily return to her sublime world—and hopefully will.

An exciting, inventive finale.