Book review of Emily B. Martin's Creatures of Light Trilogy

I just finished reading the last book in Emily B. Martin's Creatures of Light Trilogy and I loved it.  The third book came out about a month ago but instead of jumping right in, I re-read the first two books again to make sure that I remembered everything. It had been awhile since I'd finished them and the plots were pretty complicated, so I was glad that I took the time to do it. With those details fresh in my mind, I was all set.

The trilogy tells the stories of three women and the loyalty they have to their countries, and, ultimately, to each other: Mae in Woodwalker to Silverwood, Mona in Ashes to Fire of Lumen Lake, and Gemma in Creatures of Light of Alcoro.  The three countries have been enemies for hundreds of years.  Silverwood and Lumen Lake were hostile to each other before Lumen Lake was taken over by Alcoro, while Alcoro plans to take over all countries (others in addition to Lumen Lake) in pursuit of a prophecy that they believe gives them ultimate right to rule the world, basically.

Martin does a fantastic job of worldbuilding the characters and the different countries' societies and spiritualism. (She is also the illustrator of the covers, so you know that the vision is true.) She does a masterful job of surprising the reader many times throughout the books, too. You definitely have to read them in order to appreciate the complexity of her story and enjoy the payoffs. "Now I get it, it all makes sense," I told myself, at the end of Woodwalker and especially when Creatures of Light resolves major questions I had in Ashes to Fire. The revelations made me look at certain sections again, extending my admiration of what Martin didn't reveal throughout.

You'll find romance and humor in abundance, too. I highly recommend these for a satisfying read.

Leslie

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