Everything she loved is gone.
Trapped. Aileana Kameron, the Falconer, disappeared through the fae portal she was trying to close forever. Now she wakes in an alien world of mirrors, magic, and deception—a prisoner of the evil fae Lonnrach, who has a desperate and deadly plan for his new captive.
Tortured. Time after agonizing time Lonnrach steals Aileana’s memories, searching for knowledge to save his world. Just when she’s about to lose all hope, Aileana is rescued by an unexpected ally and returns home, only to confront a terrifying truth. The city of Edinburgh is now an unrecognizable wasteland. And Aileana knows the devastation is all her fault.
Transformed. The few human survivors are living in an underground colony, in an uneasy truce with a remnant of the fae. It is a fragile alliance, but an even greater danger awaits: the human and fae worlds may disappear forever. Only Aileana can save both worlds, but in order to do so she must awaken her latent Falconer powers. And the price of doing so might be her life…
The second book in The Falconer Trilogy doesn't let up for a second!
I loved this book even more than the first novel in this series. This book picks up right where the last one left off and Elizabeth May hits the ground running in this second installment in the trilogy. Much like the first novel, May has created a unique version of nineteenth century Scotland; this one has been laid to waste and it's so refreshing to see how she envisions what Scotland would be like if it was decimated. There are many twists and turns, and yet again our heroes are tested.
What Elizabeth May does so well in The Vanishing Throne is that she builds upon what she laid down in The Falconer. In this second installment she takes the magic and wonder from the first, and twists it, leaving a grim, somber, mystical, and angst-filled (in the true sense of the word) world in the wake of the wonderment and delight of the world that was present in the first novel. There are some moments of discomfort, especially in the scenes where she is held captive, that made me squirm, but there are also moments of hope and wonderment as well.
The characters in this novel continue to grow from their first outing, and not even the new characters introduced in this one are free from being morally grey. The thing I love so much about these characters, Alieana especially, is that they know that they are flawed. They know that they're not perfect. And they want to better themselves, but it's not completely possible in the world that they are living in. I love the continuing connection and growing love between Alieana and Kiaran, completely throwing away any and all notions of a love triangle that were only hinted at in The Falconer. I love how they are on the same page (most of the time) and any of the angst that is between them is not over the top or melodramatic.
We have growth in our lead characters, and additionally, we see more of what is at stake. Where I think Elizabeth May shines brightest is in the quiet character moments that show just how far they've come and how much they have lost and how far they still have to go.
The Vanishing Throne takes what The Falconer did and amplifies it by 10. It builds upon things that were set up in the first novel and ups the ante. We continue to get great character development and great quiet moments between our characters. While the first novel wasn't light and airy by any stretch of the imagination, this one makes everything much more dark and deep, creating a grim atmosphere of eerie foreboding. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am going to give it 5/5.
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