Review + Giveaway: War of Mist by Helen Scheuerer

“It’s war. It’s dangerous by nature.”

Title: War of Mist
Series: The Oremere Chronicles, Book 3
Author: Helen Scheuerer
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy
Format: eARC
Publication: Talem Press, 15 July 2019
Read: July 2019
Rating:

the book { goodreads | amazon }
the author { website | goodreads | twitter | instagram | facebook }

---

War is here.

Toxic mist drives all life to the brink of destruction and the conqueror queen, Ines, has her talons in the kings of the realm.

Bleak, having discovered her true heritage, must now scour the lands for the one thing that might save them all.

But the search is a treacherous one, one that will push her to the very limits of endurance.

Amidst secrets, lies and the intricacies of battle, Bleak and her companions learn just how far they’ll go for the ones they love. But will it be enough?

As deadly forces grapple for power across the continents; families, friends and allies unite to take one final stand.

Explosive revelations, heart-wrenching betrayals and breathtaking magic soar in the epic conclusion to Helen Scheuerer’s bestselling trilogy, The Oremere Chronicles.

---

Disclaimer: I received an advanced review copy of War of Mist in exchange for an honest review. Huge thanks to Caffeine Book Tours and Helen Scheuerer for this opportunity! This review may contain spoilers for Heart of Mist and Reign of Mist. Read at your own risk.

I can’t believe it’s almost two years since I first heard of The Oremere Chronicles. I won a copy of Heart of Mist from the first #MistPH blog tour. Although it took me a couple of months to start reading it (a huge mistake on my part, really), I immediately fell in love with the story and its characters. I mean, who can resist the charms of a certain captain from the desert continent?

If you’re curious about the first two books in The Oremere Chronicles, you can read my past reviews of Heart of Mist and Reign of Mist. War of Mist is the third and last book of the Oremere Chronicles series, and I’m both sad and happy at the same time. Sad, because it’s ending and I have no new book to look forward to, but happy because my heroes got the ending that they deserve.

Strong and capable women at the forefront of the battle

One of the things I love about Heart and Reign is that most of the prominent figures are women. And now, in the most crucial of times, these women are steering the direction of the war.

Henri had had her heart broken, Sahara was trying her best to reconnect with her mother and sister, and Allehra was recovering from her fire injuries. The matriarchs, the kindred, and the Valians suffered too much following the destruction of Valia. Nevertheless, they bounced back from the ashes and fought to defend their realm.

While Queen Eydis of Havennesse experienced betrayal from one of the trusted members of her court, she still managed to handle herself and lead Havennesse troops to battle. My Princess Olena proved herself worthy of my worship by letting her voice be heard and refusing to be silenced by the older men around her. Of course, our Bleak has embraced her identity as one of the Oremian heirs, and her role in defeating Ines.

We’ve also seen the terrifying lengths the main antagonist, Ines, and her most trusted general Farlah will go to take control of all the power in the Upper Realm.

I also loved those bits where these women refuse to be defined by the roles set for them by prophecies and royal bloodlines and take the reins of their own lives—their pace, their choice.

Genuine character development

There is no denying that the Bleak has come a very long way since the very first time we saw her trying to puke her stomach out onto the streets on Angove. The odd-eyed alcoholic pickpocket had become better at handling the occasional calling of alcohol during meetings and parties. It’s also apparent how Bleak gained a lot of confidence and control over her magic, mastered it even.

Henri has learned a lot since she left Valia to escort Bleak to the capital, things she may never even have thought of had the war not happened, and she stayed in the comforts of the Valian treehouses. The matriarch has learned the hard way that there’s no shame in being vulnerable and needing help from others sometimes. And as someone who is not a fan of the Valian Way, I am very pleased about Henri’s openness to new ideas and possibilities regarding the Valian culture.

And then there’s our little Dash, who probably went through the most changes of all our main characters. We remember him as the stable boy who eagerly watched the squires train, wanting to be able to join them someday. After almost dying, being separated from his parents, and finding his way back to his father again, our boy survived. Dash had trained with the most skilled warriors in the realm and is a few steps closer to his childhood dream of being a knight.

Swinton’s only motivation from the very start is fear for the one person who meant the world to him, wanting to protect them at all costs, causing him to make one mistake after another. I’m proud that after seeing the consequences of what he did, he realized that doing what is right and protecting the people he loves aren’t necessarily exclusive from each other.

War indeed changes everyone. Aside from the four main characters, everyone faced their battles from which they emerged a new and better person.

Heartwarming reunions and equally heartbreaking goodbyes

If Helen intended to give me an emotional roller coaster ride, she undeniably succeeded. With every series’ finale comes spilled secrets, expected and unexpected reunions and inevitable goodbyes.

Things that have been hinted and built up since the first book have been finally given clarity, and families who found themselves separated by continents reunite as they march together for the final battle with Ines.

With the title bearing the word War, and the cover being bloody red, I readied myself for one major character death or two. As much as I wanted to whine about how unfair the world is for taking the life of my beloved characters, each character’s story was wrapped up neatly, making their deaths a little bit bearable and sensible. Still, I wept.

War of Mist offers the same fast-paced action from the first two books of the series. Seeing my beloved characters face their final battle against the bitch false queen, I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. I was broken and stitched back together more times than I could count. But after all that happened, I could not see any better way for the Oremere Chronicles to end.

Honestly, The Oremere Chronicles is one of the series that I enjoyed from the beginning until the very end so If you haven’t picked it up yet, what are you waiting for?

Quotes

And my favorite…

About the author

{ website | goodreads | twitter | instagram | facebook }

After writing literary fiction for a number of years, Helen Scheuerer was inspired to return to her childhood love of fantasy thanks to novels like Throne of Glass, The Queen’s Poisoner, and The Queen of the Tearling.

Helen is also the Founding Editor of Writer’s Edit, an online learning platform for emerging writers. In its first year, Writer’s Edit reached thousands of new authors, and soon became its own small press, with Helen overseeing the production and publication of three creative writing anthologies. It’s now one of the largest writing websites in the world.

Helen now lives by the mountains of New Zealand and writes full time. She has many more books planned for the future.

Blog tour schedule

July 15 (Monday)

• Blog tour launch (from Shut up, Shealea)
• Review and own quote graphics from Belle’s Archive
• Author interview from The Inked In Book Blog
• Review from Mashleas Reads
• Review and excerpt from Shomeret: Masked Reviewer
• Review and favorite quotes from Zany Bibliophile

July 16 (Tuesday)

• Review, excerpt and own quote graphics from The Baroness of Books
• Review and own playlist from The Bookworm Daydreamer
• Review, creative feature post, creative photos, excerpt, favorite quotes, and own art from Pretty Little Bibliophile
• Review, excerpt and own quote graphics from Tale Out Loud
• Review and favorite quotes from Throneofshatteredbooks

July 17 (Wednesday)

• Author interview from Shut up, Shealea
• Review from Bemused Bibliophile
• Review from The Clever Reader
• Review and aesthetics/moodboard from Holed Up In A Book
• Review from Naija Book Bae
• Review and own quote graphics from Utopia State of Mind

July 18 (Thursday)

• Review from Accio! Blog
• Review from Book Hooked Nook
• Review and excerpt from Bookish Wisps
• Review, creative feature post, creative photos, and excerpt from The Caffeinated Reader
• Review, aesthetics/moodboard, excerpt and favorite quotes from A Logophile’s Love
• Review from The Youngvamp’s Haven

July 19 (Friday)

• Creative feature from Shut up, Shealea
• Review and own quote graphics from The Little Miss Bookworm
• Review and creative feature post from Lori’s Bookshelf Reads
• Review and own quote graphics from Open Pages
• Review from Oro Plata Myta
• Review and excerpt from The Postscriptress
• Review, aesthetics/moodboard, excerpt and own quote graphics from Reading in the Clouds

July 20 (Saturday)

• Review from Camillea Reads
• Review, excerpt, own art and own quote graphics from The Night Faerie
• Review from Rambles of a Reader
• Review from Uwadis
• Review, aesthetics/moodboard, creative feature post and creative photos from Your Tita Kate

August 3 (Saturday)

• #CBTTC Twitter chat hosted by @CaffeineTours
  • 9:00 AM Eastern Standard Time (EST)
  • 9:00 PM Philippine Time

Giveaway

Join the giveaway for a chance to win audiobook copies of Heart of Mist and Reign of Mist. One winner will be picked August 2. This giveaway is open internationally. Goodluck!

Click here to join the Rafflecopter giveaway!

Twitter chat

{ GOODREADS | TWITTER | TUMBLR }

Advertisement