As the rarest and most feared of the magical Moria, Renata was once a tool for the crown used to carry out the King’s Wrath, a siege that killed thousands of her fellow Moria. There was so much fear and suffering in her life and to read about her finally feeling grounded and sure of her purpose and what she had to do, despite the bumps along the way, was such great story-telling. But with the King’s forces and Renata’s old friends The Whispers on their tail, and Ren slowly falling into The Grey, the pit of her mind where she has kept all of her stolen memories, danger lurks at every turn. But the greatest danger is within Ren – the Gray, her fortress of stolen memories, has begun to crumble, threatening her grip on reality.

Illusionary" by Zoraida Córdova is the final book in the "Hollow Crown" trilogy (after "Incendiary"), and it's an apt finale for the series, although the book is not as good or as innovative as the first one.To say ILLUSIONARY was one of my most anticipated sequels of 2021 is an understatement, so I’m super happy I was able to get my hands on an e-arc of this wonderful book! In the first book in the Hollow Crown duology we are introduced to our struggling protagonist Renata.

Go back to the Whispers who had already betrayed her once, or put her faith in the Prince who has ruthlessly hunted her people. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. The story is told from Renata’s perspective and during this book we meet brilliant new characters and reunite with favourites from the first book. Their connection grows as the story progresses, with each of turn of events forging a stronger bond between them. Illusionary is the epic conclusion to the fast paced Hollow Crown duology, the story continues to unfold with plenty of surprises and action to keep the reader on the edge of their seat!

We just didn’t get enough time with some of the characters to understand their motivations, as well as Ren’s reactions to them. Ren and Leo’s relationship was one I loved from book one, he is like a big brother too her and spends most of the book either mercilessly teasing her or trying to protect her.

A dark, twisted history lies behind the elusive weapon, and the fate of the kingdom is held in the balance. Release 2022 Read 2022 Review Book Review Death of a Character Death of a Parent Duology Emotional Abuse Goodreads Giveaway Hispanic Heritage Month Hollow Crown Series Illusionary Incendiary Journey Novel Latin American/Spanish Inspired LGBTQ+ Side Characters MacGuffin Novel Murder Y. A compelling world filled with beautiful, brutal magic and characters that feel real enough to touch -weighed down by memory and fueled by love and vengeance. And as much as I loved meeting all these characters again or for the very first time (especially Leo who has a very special place in my heart), the focus is entirely to be put on Ren and Prince Castian.She is the co-editor of Vampires Never Get Old, a YA anthology forthcoming from Imprint/Macmillan in fall 2020. I find it interesting to see which random reels go unexpectedly viral, you can just never guess which ones will get the most views. She’ll have to control her magics-and her mind – to unlock her power and protect the Moria people once and for all. Adventure, romance, and magic entwine in this fierce sequel infused with assured writing, lovable characters, and a taut plot that merges multiple threads about accountability, surviving trauma, and building a new life as well as a new nation. With few options and even fewer allies, they have both united to achieve their lofty goals: find the fabled Knife of Memory, kill they tyrant king, and then bring peace to the nation.

Overall, Illusionary is a fast-paced, thrilling sequel with a punchy finale that cements the brilliance of this duology. Corrupt kings, desperate rebels, lost goddesses, magical weapons and dark injustices fill the pages of this fast-paced conclusion to the duology. He tells her he loves her, she regrets never telling him back how much she loved him, they make love etc. If you were especially attached to any members of the Whispers or some of the other characters in the first book are going to be disappointed because few of them show up and even fewer for more than like ten pages.I was sent a copy of this novel by the publishers to review, however this has no bearing on my rating or review. As a personal request, I now desperately want a prequel novella featuring the King and the three other pertinent people on that ‘voyage’.