Review: Foresworn

FORESWORN
Sisters of Fate #3
Rinda Elliott
Paranormal Young Adult
HarlequinTEEN
Available December 2nd
Source: eARC from author for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
It is written that three Sisters of Fate have the power to change the world’s destiny.

But only if they survive…

Kat Lockwood grew up listening to her unhinged mother’s stories about the Norse goddess souls she and her triplet sisters carry, about fiery deaths and a prophecy foretelling the world’s end. Now, to save that world, Kat must find a guy who hosts the soul of a Norse god–a warrior with the lightest blond hair and the darkest brown eyes.

But at a truck stop on her road trip, Kat freezes time while she writes out a cryptic message in runes. The only other person able to see this happen? A gorgeous guy with the lightest blond hair and the darkest brown eyes.

Kat’s not convinced peaceful Arun is the future warrior who will turn the tide in the final battle. Yet, Arun turns out to be a lot tougher than he seems. As soul-carrying teens and underworld creatures gather over the world’s deadliest volcano, Kat finds that no one, including her sisters and mother, is exactly who she thought they were….

Sisters of Fate

The prophecy doesn’t lie: one is doomed to die.

MY THOUGHTS
Foresworn is the final installment in the Sisters of Fate trilogy, Kat's story overlapping that of her sisters' for a few chapters before moving everything we've learned over the course of the series forward and closer to the final showdown with Loki. It takes just a touch longer to settle in with Kat than it did either Raven or Coral, her quiet intensity (love interest Arun calls her “prickly”, an apt description) coupled with the introduction of a large number of new characters creating a distance it takes a bit of time to bridge. Once more and more kids bearing the souls of Norse gods and goddesses begin making their way to Kat's location in preparation for whatever Loki has planned though, the action picks up and Kat shows us what she's made of, her mettle weighed, measured and not found the least bit wanting.

Though all three Lockwood girls have grown up with the prophecy of an early death hanging over their heads, Kat is perhaps the one who bears the brunt of its weight, her nights haunted by dreams in which flames take her to her excruciatingly painful end. Knowing she is the one meant to die is a burden she carries alone, keeping her dreams to herself and putting a little extra distance between herself and the rest of the world. As mentioned previously, its this distance that keeps us from warming to her as immediately as we did her sisters, but once she starts to let Arun in and lower her guard just a touch, it's as though some of the weight she's been carrying shifts to us and we can suddenly feel not only her fear, but her strength as well.

Just as Vanir and Taran before him, Arun is perfectly suited to Kat, his sweet and caring nature as well as the openness in the way he communicates–speaking plainly and truthfully without hidden meaning or agenda–slipping through the chinks in her armor and bringing with them a bit of happiness in the middle of the literal end of the world. He's quick with a compliment (sometimes a super cheesy one that Kat simply can't let slide without comment) and a smile, but there's never artifice in his words or gestures, and he easily wins us over as he does Kat.

The final showdown with Loki himself is over surprisingly quickly and with relatively little fanfare given the way he's orchestrated all the events leading up to this last battle, but the battle itself is suitably epic, lives lost and others irreparably changed as valkyries, giants, dark elves, and those carrying the souls of some of the mightiest in Norse mythology go head to head. Overall this series consists of three quick and captivating reads, prophecy, romance and family–both born to and made–combining to delight and entertain on every possible level.

Rating: 4/5
 

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This book was sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review. 

I received no other compensation and the above is my honest opinion.