Bumpy Oak Books

4 stars

**I was provided an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for honest review.**

Emily Skrutskie completes the Bloodright Trilogy with Vows of Empire. This book picks up shortly after the cliffhanger ending of book two, and any real discussion of the plot will undoubtedly spoil the first two books. Suffice it to say, the war is still on between Archon and Umber.

I had suspicions of the way that the trilogy would conclude, and Skrutskie addressed one of those suspicions early on in this book. After that, it was clear there was only one way this series could actually end. Despite knowing the destination, that did not make the journey any less entertaining. The nature of the book’s content kept Gal and Ettian apart for the vast majority, unfortunately. The nature of their relationship is such a focal point and strength of the series, but Vows of Empire was decidedly Wen’s book.

It was smart for Skrutskie to shift perspectives the way that she did throughout the book and to highlight the amount of growth all of the characters achieved over the course of this trilogy.

Overall, I felt that this was a satisfactory conclusion to the series despite wanting more information about how things turned out. Certainly, there is room for Skrutskie to write prequels or sequels to the series, but the trilogy holds on its own. I look forward to future works from Skrutskie.