Stormbreak (Book Three in the Seafire Trilogy)

Redheads have to stick together, but there’s a lot more that gets me excited about Stormbreak, the final book in the Seafire trilogy, by Natalie C. Parker, a young adult novel about a battalion of ships confronting their past to save their future. (You can find my review of book one, Seafire, here: https://gracenask.wixsite.com/books/post/seafire-book-review and book two, Steel Tide, here: https://gracenask.wixsite.com/books/post/steel-tide-book-two-in-the-seafire-trilogy.)

Parker went all out. Most authors create the illusion that none of their characters are above death; she takes the extra step and kills off important characters. Caledonia, the protagonist, doesn’t know who to trust until the very end.

Large casts can be harder to handle, but the final book has the restraint necessary to wrap things up in a way that makes sense. Characters are for the most part capped to the ones from the previous two novels, and the ongoing plot is given the bulk of the attention, as it should. This makes for a clean ending with a clear resolution and distinct themes, mostly on fighting the demons inside of us.

Speaking of endings, that was one heck of an ending! The ending to the novel broke my heart, so I was irritated when I turned the page and there was an epilogue. If anything, that epilogue enhanced the ending of the trilogy in a realistic and heart-wrenching way.

Just when Donnally was about to become a McGuffin, he gets screen time! His fate shows the reader the true meaning of family and getting back on your feet to begin again.

“‘We fight together!’ she [Caledonia] shouted, and the response was instantaneous and fearlessly loud. // ‘Or not at all!’”

Recommended for anyone who needs a life-or-death showdown. It’s about as high of stakes as a story can get.

--Grace Nask