The Culling Trials 3 is the third, and possibly the last, book in the Shadowspell Academy series by K.F. Breene and Shannon Mayer. First published 2019 by Hijinks Ink Publishing. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Khristine Hvam. The book is a YA with paranormal and fantasy elements and follows the previous two books like they all were one. I would review this book, and the entire series.
The two last trials of the five trials that will determine which house Wild will enter, but her enemy in the dark become more and more dangerous as death keep hunting her around every corner and the missing people keep haunting her. That along with death of a close friend, and missing friends, Wild need to find her courage to face both the past and the future.
The mystery is solved, mostly, and don’t blame yourself for not being able to figure it out. The authors did not give enough clues to solve it properly. This is about to pretend it all makes sense so you can get into the action which is plenty, and well written. There are emotions and humor, Wild is still overpowered but she does meet a few people who can, with problem, take her down. Though it makes little sense a farm girl can take on trained assassins.
The romance, if it can be called so, is all over the place. First it is Rory, then it is Colt, then Ethan comes in, only to lean back to Colt and Rory. That said, this one is not a romance so those who where looking for that will be disappointed. This is more about family, both born to you and created through bonds. I liked that since I more used to paranormal stories with a female main character will always revolve around a romance, or several. This one doesn’t, it has some hints of romance but it isn’t the main focus of the story.
I must also mention that though this series are technically finished, not all of the story is settled. There are still unsolved mysteries, such as who is the shadow killer who Wild is related to, and some new hints for future books so I expect that there will be a continuation though it most likely will come with a new series since the books namesakes, the culling trials, are over.
All in all, I thought this one was the best of the three. It had fast-paced action, friendship, lore and I finally find out about all the houses. The story was a bit more unfocused but that had to do with it branching out. Trying to tie all the plot together, and succeeded enough for me to be satisfied. I will give this one a 8 out of 10. It was a decent book, and a good conclusion to the story.
The entire series was interesting. Starting a bit slow, becoming faster and more focused with the second book. The last one was grander concluding the story with a bit of hints of the future of the series, but it had enough conclusion for the reader to be satisfied.
The writing was decent, the only thing that bothered me was the authors constant use of things like “she was happier than a kitten in a room full of yarns.” Okay, maybe not that one, but there was a lot of “like” following whatever sounded southern enough and it got quite annoying after a while. Especially since it continued throughout the story.
I did notice some inequality between the genders in the first book, the girls being far stronger and more capable than the males, but that vanishes in the second and third book. Making them more equal, one is strong in magic, another is strong in a physical fight. Wally, the other girl is the group show herself to be unconfident and freezes up when the group need her the most. My favorite through the series was probably the who we all was suppose to hate, Ethan.
I loved that he had a strong personality, a background and grows with the story. The main character might have a personality and background but she stays the same throughout the story, which I often have a hard time with. This one was okay, but only because I liked Wild. Her personality is tough, protective and sassy. Many girls can most likely see a role model in her. Though she cannot keep her gender a secret even when her life depended on it.
All in all, the series was good. Great even, getting better for each book and feels mor organic after the first book who was dominated by fast-paced action, illogical writing decisions, and Wild babysitting throughout the story. In the second and third book, the story is expanded along with the characters and the story feel less cliché and more alive. Because of all this I would rate the entire series an 8 out of 10. Only removing two points because of the flaws and the slow start that most likely can deter some of the readers. I didn’t and was glad about it, and would recommend you read all three books before you make a judgement. Neither book is that long, so it won’t take up too much time and the audiobook were good for those interested.
With Kind Regards
Senefer.
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