They came against her as a child. Now they face the woman.

The ice is advancing, the Corridor narrowing, and the empire is under siege from the Scithrowl in the east and the Durns in the west. Everywhere, the emperor’s armies are in retreat.

Nona faces the final challenges that must be overcome if she is to become a full sister in the order of her choice. But it seems unlikely that Nona and her friends will have time to earn a nun’s habit before war is on their doorstep.

Even a warrior like Nona cannot hope to turn the tide of war.

The shiphearts offer strength that she might use to protect those she loves, but it’s a power that corrupts. A final battle is coming in which she will be torn between friends, unable to save them all. A battle in which her own demons will try to unmake her.

A battle in which hearts will be broken, lovers lost, thrones burned.

It’s hard to overstate the impact that Red Sister had on me when it was released. At that point, I had read 2/3 of Mark Lawrence’s Broken Empire trilogy. So while I was familiar with the overall brilliance of his writing, I felt such an immediate connection with Red Sister…that kind of bone-deep love for a book that doesn’t happen all that often. I’d say I knew by page 100 that Red Sister (and likely the whole Book of the Ancestor trilogy) would wind up being an all-time favorite, and oof…it really was. These books are just incredibly fucking special to me.

And here we are at the end of this gorgeous & brutal & emotional trilogy. Fuck. I’m sad it’s over, but also just utterly satisfied with the trilogy as a whole. It’s also VERY exciting knowing we are getting another trilogy set in this world…I’ve got my own little theory about that, but…I’ll keep it to myself!

This would also be the point where I’d say if you haven’t read Red Sister & Grey Sister, You should get off this ride now!

In many ways, Holy Sister felt like a quiet, contemplative, and personal end to this series. Which is not to say there aren’t incredibly thrilling moments & bone-crunching action scenes…this is a Mark Lawrence fantasy novel, FFS!! It’s the shortest of the trilogy, and for all intents and purposes, Nona is the sole POV character this time. Which is fitting, since it’s Nona’s story, after all. Even if some of the supporting characters are compelling enough to carry their own book/series (looking at you Zole & Glass & Kettle & Ara), it all circles back to Nona Grey. She will forever be one of my favorite protagonists…take away all the stabby parts & the dark fantasy elements, and still, her coming-of-age story is just amazing.

There’s two timelines in Holy Sister: one picks up immediately after the events of Grey Sister, and the other is present day. The present day timeline finds the sisters of Sweet Mercy preparing for the war they always knew was coming. The other storyline finds Nona & Zole fleeing into the ice with the shipheart.

Of the two, I was more captivated by the adventure that Nona & Zole were on, which probably has something to do with my complete fascination with Zole as a character. There’s just something about her I’ll never be able to put my finger on, but goddamn, she is such an interesting character. She’s got this incredibly blunt & plain-spoken way of expressing herself, but with so much heart & honor & humor underneath the stoic facade.

It’s hard to get too far into this without giving up this book’s secrets & surprises, of which there are many! It’s a fucking gorgeous end to a gorgeous series. Mark Lawrence is unparalleled in his prose, and this is a trilogy people will be reading (and reading again) for a very long time. Book of the Ancestor is something like magic…all three books were riveting & full of savage fight scenes, super gut-punchy moments, laughter, heartbreak…this trilogy is a magnificent achievement for Mark Lawrence, and I’m so fucking happy to have read these books.