There was a warmth in his chest when he looked at Laurent. He didn’t look often for that reason.

“You can’t trust him.”
“I know that.” He finished the wine. Outside, there were hours of daylight left, and work to be done. “You’ve spent a morning with him and you’re warning me off. Just wait,” said Damen, “until you’ve spent a full day with him.”
“You mean he improves with time?”
“Not exactly,” said Damen.
― C.S. Pacat, Kings Rising

He let his lips form a half-smile. “You aren’t going to offer me one of your gaudy Veretian handkerchiefs?”
“You could use the clothing you’re wearing. It’s about the same size.”
― C.S. Pacat, Kings Rising

This trilogy exceeded my expectations. The first book was good, but not great. The second book gave me the in-depth character and relationship development that I crave in every great love story.

As another cannonballer commented, book two is probably my favorite. By the time we get to book three, there is so much going on, both with the relationships and the political alliances, that it is a lot to tie up. I’m not going to comment about what does and does not get the ending it deserves, but overall I was pretty happy with how the book ended. Although, I would adore an epilogue of some sort, simply because I’m not ready to let these characters go.

The strongest part of this final installment is how the author kept us guessing. By the time the final reveals happened, I probably would have been content with anything because, as a reader, I had been primed for Laurent to be brilliant and completely unpredictable. If I had a nickel for every time Damen had some comment or passing thought about Laurent being brilliant, inscrutable, unpredictable, etc… I would have a nickel bag heavy enough to stun any enemies who dared get in my way on my quest for revenge.

The weakest point relates to my comments above. Because Laurent was so unpredictable, the final chapters of the book felt like they made sense even though they didn’t, not really. I loved the book. But now, looking back, the things that didn’t add up overshadow the points that did. For all of the brilliant turns that kept me engaged throughout the story, parts of the ending seemed incredibly convenient.

Still, I have to give this five stars because there were some truly hilarious and heart-stopping scenes that took this book from very good to excellent.

Update: It turns out that there is a short story called “The Summer Palace,” which is an epilogue to book 3.