Kadomi reviewed Cold Steel by Kate Elliott
Review of 'Cold Steel' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
3.5 stars to 4. The final book in the trilogy is a touch too long to make it a solid 4. Especially the first half just drags on and on. It didn't really get exciting until Lutetia. Character traits that I thought were charming in the first 2 books started to turn annoying. Yeah, I get it, Andevai is REALLY handsome and vain and dashing, and what have you. Stop rubbing our faces in it. Also, while Camjiata was very interesting and would have made a fantastic final villain, James Drake was a caricature of a villain with no real depth. He went from 'charming' fire mage with a taste for date-rape to very 2-dimensional über-villain made from cardboard. Ultimately, I think Rory continued to redeem the weaker characters for me, because he was such a downright charming kitty.
I am not sure who I would recommend this series to. …
3.5 stars to 4. The final book in the trilogy is a touch too long to make it a solid 4. Especially the first half just drags on and on. It didn't really get exciting until Lutetia. Character traits that I thought were charming in the first 2 books started to turn annoying. Yeah, I get it, Andevai is REALLY handsome and vain and dashing, and what have you. Stop rubbing our faces in it. Also, while Camjiata was very interesting and would have made a fantastic final villain, James Drake was a caricature of a villain with no real depth. He went from 'charming' fire mage with a taste for date-rape to very 2-dimensional über-villain made from cardboard. Ultimately, I think Rory continued to redeem the weaker characters for me, because he was such a downright charming kitty.
I am not sure who I would recommend this series to. Probably people who enjoy stories about fae with a dashing of steampunk and communism plus Napoleon. Plus some very good and strong female characters, though Cat doesn't count for long stretches because Andevai is hot and all that jazz. I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy the series, but I am kind of glad it's over.