This is the third book in this wonderful post-apocalyptic series, which I’ve thoroughly enjoyed to date – read my reviews of The Book of Koli and The Trials of Koli. Would I enjoy it as much as the other two?
BLURB: Koli has come a long way since being exiled from his small village of Mythen Rood. In his search for the fabled tech of the old times, he knew he’d be battling strange, terrible beasts and trees that move as fast as whips. But he has already encountered so much more than he bargained for.
Now that Koli and his companions have found the source of the signal they’ve been following – the mysterious “Sword of Albion” – there is hope that their perilous journey will finally be worth something. Until they unearth terrifying truths about an ancient war . . . and realise that it may have never ended.
REVIEW: Essentially this is a single story with an overarching narrative that stretches across the three books, so if you’ve picked this one up without reading the first two – then whatever you do go back to The Book of Koli and start there. Even if you manage to figure out what is going on, you will have missed far too much of the backstory to fully appreciate the overall narrative.
It was lovely touching base with Koli again – and in particular his special companion, Monono, who I’ve taken a real shine to. Yes… I know – a metal gismo that lives in Koli’s pocket, but she is one of my favourite characters. As for the other two companions who accompany Koli on his travels, this time around, we get to see very little of Ursula, the healer. I was a bit sorry about that – but I appreciate there was only so much space for the story. On the plus side, I thoroughly enjoyed watching events move on in Mythen Rood, the village where Koli grew up, which is the other narrative timeline featuring young Spinner that progresses alongside Koli’s adventures as he, Cup and Ursula finally encounter the Sword of Albion.
I loved the tension that Carey manages to engender as their initial rescue gradually turns into something else. And I’ve always been a sucker for plotlines where first we think one thing is happening – only to discover further along that it’s something else quite different. Carey sustains the intensity, while delivering several surprises along the way. I very much appreciated a greater insight into the capabilities of the tech that the fallen civilisation had possessed. As well as learning exactly how it toppled and why. Overall, this is extremely well handled. The antagonists were satisfyingly unpleasant and I also enjoyed the tormented, morally ambivalent character who’d been so badly twisted by his treatment – his was a heartbreaking tale, for he never stood a chance.
As for the final climactic denouement, it was so packed full of action and danger, I couldn’t put the book down until I found out what happened. And as for that ending… oh my word. Yes, it works really well with everyone’s plotline satisfactorily wrapped up. I came to the end of this one with a real sense of regret – the Rampart trilogy is now my favourite post-apocalyptic series. It would make a cracking TV series… Highly recommended for fans who enjoy engrossing post-apocalyptic adventures. While I obtained an arc of The Fall of Koli from the publishers via Netgalley, the opinions I have expressed are unbiased and my own.
9/10
Brainfluff 
Lovely review, I absolutely love this series, and yes it is bittersweet to come to that last page😁
It certainly was a bittersweet moment with this series – but it’s my favourite of his so far. And that’s saying something, as I absolutely LOVED The Girl With All the Gifts.
Oh yes, someone should definitely pick up this trilogy and turn it into a TV series: hopefully Netflix or Amazon or someone else is listening…;-)
The surprises in this last installment – even the bad ones – were amazing, and while the conclusion was satisfying, I was sorry to have to say goodbye to this world and its characters.
Lovely review, thanks for sharing! 🙂
Thank you, Maddalena! I’m glad you agree regarding the TV series – they do those mini-series so well these days and I think this one deserves the full treatment:)). Like you, I was very sorry to leave this world.
You’re spot on – and this would definitely make a great adaptation. Something I would definitely watch.
Lynn 😀
Oh, me too:))
I’m sure you wrote an amazing review as always but I am saving it for after I read this series. I do want to read it sooner than later.
I absolutely respect your decision. I tend to avoid reading other people’s reviews of books – especially those whose opinions I respect – if I know the book is near the top of my TBR pile:)).