OFFICIAL AUTHOR BIO: After graduating with a degree in film production, J. S. DEWES went on to serve as cinematographer for independent films, write, produce, and shoot a zombie musical, slay internet dragons, and act as lighting designer for presidents and presidential-hopefuls so many times it became mundane. To add to her list of random career paths, she unlocked the Dream Job achievement and now writes for triple-A science fiction video games.

She is the author of the Divide series (The Last Watch, The Exiled Fleet) and Rubicon

Jenny spends her free time drawing, gaming, scrolling ArtStation, cuddling her two sweet dogs and mercurial cat, and occasionally sleeping.

FORMAT/INFO: The Relentless Legion was published on November 12th, 2024, by Tor Books. It is 512 pages long. It is available in paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats.

OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS:  After a harrowing journey to recover the fuel and supplies needed to bring the fleet safely home from the Divide, the Sentinels have at last returned to the center of civilized space. They've spent months in hiding, preparing to go to war with Cavalon's grandfather, Augustus Mercer. Obsessed with eradicating a specific incurable genetic defect from humanity, Augustus has been playing a long game, using legislation to slowly ostracize any affected humans from society. But the long game is coming to an end, as Augustus is preparing to unleash a horrific weapon on the galaxy. It will take every ally that Rake and Cavalon can rally if they're going to have a prayer of stopping the plot in time.

The Relentless Legion is another fantastic adventure in The Divide series that continues to raise the stakes for the fate of the universe. This one is a little slower-paced than the previous novels in the series, preferring to take some time to focus on how the characters are coping with the strain of the last several months (spoiler, some of them are not). I will say that I did find Cavalon a bit exasperating this novel, but the author seems fully aware of it, given that characters called him out for exactly the things that were frustrating me. The characters get a chance to regroup and reflect before everything goes sideways.

And it WILL go sideways. If you've enjoyed the author's action-packed books in the past, there is plenty of conflict to be found here. The midpoint was particularly nail-biting, an absolute gut-punch in more ways than one. You can also expect some surprising developments as Rake and Cavalon continue to deepen their understanding of the Divide and the devices that keep the collapse of the universe at bay.

The one negative I had with this book is it felt like there were too many things going on. The Divide books have always juggled multiple threats, from the collapsing edge of the universe, the reappearance of alien enemies, and the conspiracy led by Augustus Mercer. Past books have managed to keep everything balanced and give every storyline its due. This third book, however, introduced a new problem originating from the alien ruins our group has chosen as their hideout, and that new problem proved to be just one too many things for me.

CONCLUSION: The Relentless Legion is a fitting conclusion to a sci-fi adventure I've really enjoyed. But it isn't a complete conclusion. While one of the major storylines is wrapped up by the end of the book, the door is left wide open on another one, with plenty of runway for more adventures. No fourth book has been announced as of writing this review, but I would not be shocked (and very pleased) to hear of one eventually, especially as official marketing for The Relentless Legion refers to The Divide as a series, not a trilogy. With that in mind, be prepared to have some loose threads dangling when the dust settles. I, for one, will be happy to come back if another book is in our future, but if not, The Relentless Legion is a satisfying send off for a new favorite series.

OFFICIAL AUTHOR BIO: Melissa Caruso writes books of murder, magic, and mayhem. Her published fantasy novels include the Swords & Fire trilogy (THE TETHERED MAGE, THE DEFIANT HEIR, THE UNBOUND EMPIRE) and the Rooks & Ruin trilogy (THE OBSIDIAN TOWER, THE QUICKSILVER COURT, THE IVORY TOMB), all from Orbit Books. Her newest book, THE LAST HOUR BETWEEN WORLDS, arrives in November 2024 and launches a new series. Her debut novel was shortlisted for the Gemmell Morningstar Award in 2017, and her books have received starred reviews and made countless Best Of lists. Melissa is a tea drinker, larper, and mom, and lives in Massachusetts with her video game designer husband, two superlative daughters, and assorted pets. 

FORMAT/INFO: The Last Hour Between Worlds was published by Orbit on November 19th, 2024. It is 384 pages and told in first person from Kembral Thorn's POV. It is available in paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats. 

OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: All Kembral Thorne wants is a night off from responsibility, but she's not going to get it. Usually a member of an investigators guild known as the Hounds, she's been on leave for a few months caring for her newborn child. Tonight, she's attending one of the biggest parties of the year and trying to enjoy an evening of not being a mother. What she gets instead is a party under attack; even worse, the party appears to be caught in a time loop. Somehow unaffected by the memory loss that comes with the time loop, it's up to Kem to unravel the dark ritual that's ensnared the party. And to do that, she'll have to enlist the aid of Rika, her archnemesis from a rival guild of thieves.

The Last Hour Between Worlds is a fun puzzle box of an adventure. I really enjoyed the elements of Kem trying to work out the rules of the time loop. What resets every loop? Who loses their memory? Who's behind the ritual? And how do we break the loop? This is all wrapped up in the additional complication that every loop, the party enters a weirder, more surreal version of their world, adding new dangers to the situation. To top it off, there's only so many loops that will happen until the manor - and everyone in it - is wiped out for good.

(A quick aside, I loved how every chapter heading featured a clock with a moving hour hand so you could keep track of which number loop you were in. It also creates tension as you see the hand getting closer to what will be the final loop where things become Extremely Dire.)

It's not just investigative work moving the story forward, there's some great action sequences. The party keeps coming under attack from different sources, creating some great set pieces as Kem and her allies have to fend off incredibly dangerous foes. These beings are so powerful that it becomes less about outright killing the enemy, and more about how to stall them long enough for time to run out and the loop to reset. I do love clever heroes, so watching the team come up with creative solutions was great.

What didn't quite land for me was the romance subplot between Kem and Rika (and it is a subplot, this is not a romantasy). This story essentially takes place over one night; even with Kem and Rika having a pre-existing history, it's hard to nail that kind of relationship building in that short a window of time. I think my biggest frustration may have come from the fact that there was clearly a misunderstanding in their past that's led to their current animosity, and it takes an incredibly long time before the two finally unpack what really happened. It was one of those times where I was internally shouting "Just tell her already!!" in the hopes that we could unstick whatever was keeping these two apart.

The last little nitpick I have is complicated for me to unpack. On the one hand, I think it is FANTASTIC to have a mother as a female lead. As a new single mom, Kem is wrestling with some big decisions, including whether or not she should keep doing a dangerous job that could get her killed and leave her daughter an orphan. She loves her job, but is it worth the risk to her daughter's future? This is all great content that we don't see a lot of in fantasy, and I loved its inclusion.

But it was also mentioned so often that it began to be a bit much, especially in the first half of the book. Every few pages it felt like there was a new reference to Kem's motherhood, from the changes pregnancy wreaked on her body to the decisions she's grappling with. Maybe this is an accurate reflection of how all-consuming new motherhood is (I'm not a parent myself), but I did feel that the number of references could have been scaled back a bit while still getting the point across.

At the end of the day though, The Last Hour Between Worlds is a great self-contained fantasy adventure. While this is the first of a trilogy, you can read this first book as a standalone and come away completely satisfied with the experience. If you like a blend of action and mystery, strange macabre worlds, and mayhem at a grand party, I definitely recommend checking this one out.