5 Wine Glass #Audio #Review of Inferno by Julie Kagawa

Title: Inferno
Series: The Talon Saga, Book 5
Author: Julie Kagawa
Narrators: Caitlin Davies, Tristan Morris, MacLeod Andrews, Chris Patton
Format: Unabridged Audiobook (11 hours and 25 minutes)
Published: April 24, 2018 (Blackstone Audio, Inc.)
ISBN: ASIN: B078T3BH53
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Audible | http://Audiobooks.com
Reviewer: Linda
Source: AudioBookJukeBox.com
Rating: 5 out of 5 Wine Glasses

TODAY, WE STRIKE BACK.

WE SHOW TALON THAT WE WILL NEVER ACCEPT THEIR NEW WORLD.

Ember Hill has learned a shocking truth about herself: she is the blood of the Elder Wyrm, the ancient dragon who leads Talon and who is on the verge of world domination. With the Order of St. George destroyed, Ember, Riley and Garret journey to the Amazon jungle in search of one who might hold the key to take down the Elder Wyrm and Talon—if they can survive the encounter.

Meanwhile, Ember’s brother, Dante, will travel to China with a message for the last Eastern dragons: join Talon or die. With the stakes rising and the Elder Wyrm declaring war, time is running out for the rogues and any dragon not allied with Talon.

The final battle approaches. And if Talon is victorious, the world will burn.

Linda's Thoughts:
“This was it, the end of an era.”

Inferno is the exciting fifth and concluding installment in Julie Kagawa’s sensational Talon series. The saga revolves around a centuries-old conflict between the power-hungry dragons of Talon who can disguise themselves as humans and are determined to rule the world and the legendary Order of St. George, an organization of dragon slayers dedicated to protecting the human race from the dragons. But, when a young female dragon and a perfect St. George soldier befriend each other; their entanglement holds far-reaching ramifications for both institutions. This story is told from the points-of-view of the main characters (Ember, Garret, Riley and Dante), giving the reader a diverse, eye-opening perspective of the chain of events.

This tale picks up right where the Legion left us. The resistance remains determined, but their numbers have been severely decimated. Ember, the Elder Wrym’s daughter and the de facto leader of the resistance, is facing seemingly insurmountable odds. Can she unite the dragons not affiliated with Talon and the surviving members of the Order to join together to fight Talon, their common foe?

Ember, Garret and Riley have all matured so much since the first book. I’m going to miss them along with Jade, Wesley, Mist, Martin and many of the other characters. Thankfully, the series’ love triangle was resolved a few books ago when Ember chose Garret. I liked Garret a lot, so I was happy with her choice. Even so, I felt for Riley and am glad to relate that his HEA prospects take a positive turn herein. I wish there’d been more time for romance in this segment – but, honestly, all of the characters are just too busy saving the world.

Ember’s brother, Dante, who has aligned himself with the Elder Wyrm and Talon, plays a prominent role in this tale. I have hoped since the beginning that he would see the light before it’s too late – for his sake and for Ember’s. As an aside, I did not catch the significance of his name until the title of this book was released. It seems too much of a coincidence that Inferno was the first part of Dante Alighieri’s famous Divine Comedy documenting his visionary journey through the depths of Hell.

Following please find a few of my favorite lines from Inferno:

“Words couldn’t hurt you; as long as you didn’t believe them, they meant nothing.”
--- 

"All right," he said in an overly grand voice. "There's not much time left, and we have work to do. The dragon apocalypse is coming."
--- 

"I felt her approach before I saw it; a low growl rippled through the air, and the branches rattled as a twenty-foot crimson dragon stalked out of the shadows and came right at me."
--- 

"Oh?" I tightened my arms around her, feeling heat start to flicker through my veins. "And what if I don't? What do I get if I win?"
"The love and reluctant admiration of a dragon."
"I thought I had that already."

I listened to the audio edition of this series. I cannot imagine doing anything other than listening to this series as the audios have been fabulous and have undeniably enhanced my enjoyment of the series bringing Julie’s amazing characters to life. The series started out with three narrators. Tristan joined the original three for the second book and the resulting foursome has been together for the final four books. I really like the multiple narrators for this series. They mesh seamlessly and it is a natural discernment between which character is speaking at any one time. Their characters’ voices have remained consistent throughout the series.

I’ve loved this series from the first and have been holding my breath waiting for this final chapter. I was not disappointed as it was action-packed, triumphant AND bittersweet. All the players are present and the series’ themes of tolerance, acceptance and friendship are reinforced. There were some heartbreaking scenes and we had to say adieu to some characters. It’s always sad when a series comes to an end. I found myself dreading the finish even as I was riveted to every word. The epilogue nicely wrapped the story up with a tidy bow. If you enjoy epic, fast-paced, high-tensioned, vividly-written, paranormal fantasies, and haven’t read the Talon series yet, what are you waiting for? Just know that this series unequivocally needs to be read in order.



Suggested Reading Order: 
Talon (Book #1)
Rogue (Book #2)
Soldier (Book #3)
Legion (Book #4)
Inferno (Book #5)