Finally getting to the last books in this series! Spoilers ahead.
Hylas and Pirra arrive in Egypt where they hope to find Userref and the dagger. But soon they come across trouble: Userref is dead and the dagger is hidden in his tomb, and his family is not exactly willing to just let the duo waltz in there, desecrate his tomb, and give up the weapon. Telamon and the Crows are also still looking for the weapon, and are getting awfully close at finding it.
An interesting fourth installment! I can't wait to see how things conclude in the final book. I greatly enjoyed Pirra's and Hylas' journey to this new environment. Ancient Egypt was an interesting setting (probably my favorite in the series to this day) and it really comes across that Paver did her research into it in order to properly portray the ancient land and their customs.
The character writing was also still very good. Hylas and Pirra's relationship is especially growing and I can easily see them becoming a romantic couple by the end of the series. Telamon, while an outright villain now, still remains interesting because his arc was so well-written in the prior books. We are also introduced to some new faces whom I liked, especially Kem. Havoc and Echo are also still great. I was a bit sad to see that Akastos didn't return this time around, as he was in the prior books and is one of the series most well-written characters. Ah well, here's to hoping he returns in the last book.
If I do have to bring up one criticism it's that by now I can't help but make comparisons between this series and Michelle Paver's other series, Wolf Brother/Chronicles of Ancient Darkness. There are just some similarities I can't deny any longer. So, we have this historical fiction series. The main character is a heroic boy who is marked as an outcast by his own kind and is a loner (Torak/Hylas), until he meets up with a strong-willed girl character (Renn/Pirra). He also meets one or more animal companions along the way, whom he raises (Wolf/Havoc/Echo, to a lesser extent Spirit the dolphin). The main character has to go on heroic journeys in order to save the world from a group of evildoers (the Soul-Eaters in Chronicles, the Crows in Gods and Warriors) and slowly falls in love with the female lead.
The series are still different enough, don't get me wrong, but they are also becoming a bit too similar in some respects. Especially the characters of Hylas and Pirra are starting to be mirrors to Torak and Renn by now. They're still their own characters, but their interactions and personalities are just very similar. So this was a bit distracting once I picked up on it. Doesn't ruin the series for me in any way, but I wish Paver could've found more unique personalities and dynamics for her main characters in this series.
So yeah, overall a good book. Bit distracting that Hylas and Pirra are rather similar to Torak and Renn, but this was still a book that kept me thoroughly engaged with its interesting portrayal of Egypt, neat characters and conflict that keeps the reader engaged.
Rating: 4/5
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