You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.08 AVERAGE
4.08 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
Moira & Cian. The queen and the vampire.
3.5 stars. A satisfying ending, but I was spoiled by her later work.
This final book in the Circle Trilogy focuses on the preparations and final battle between the humans and the vampire army, and Moira's adjustments to being queen of Geall. The players in the focal romance are probably the most unlikely pairing of the three books, but it works. Hard to say much without spoiling the prior two books, but it's a satisfying conclusion to the series.
This was my favorite story of the three, but it was ruined by the sex between Lilith and her six year old vampire child. I get it, Lilith is evil, but you don’t need to add child sexual abuse to get that point across. Gross.
The Circle Trilogy #3
Cain & Moira
Vamp & soft spoken moral
My fave and the culmination of the trilogy
Cain & Moira
Vamp & soft spoken moral
My fave and the culmination of the trilogy
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Eh, I didn’t like it as much. The whole time thing is weird and I never really felt like the characters ever really connected together on every level. I hate demon children. And just eh.
After reading this, and the two books preceding it in this trilogy, I think I understand why Nora Roberts is such a popular author; if these three books are indicative of her other work. Her writing lacks some sophistication, her plots are somewhat predictable, and her characters are just shy of possessing true depth. But those characters share an honesty between each other that seems as much a fantasy as her story lines and backdrops. Not a fantasy in that it doesn't, and cannot, exist, like faeries, magic, dragons, and vampires; but a fantasy in that we find it so hard to actualize in our day to day lives. It's an honesty that we all wish to express to each other freely in reality, but are held back from accomplishing by our own emotional hang-ups and complexes. In that sense, her work is refreshing, as she's able to develop other sources of conflict while keeping the endearing quality of her characters' shared candor. Her characters trust each other with their private emotions in ways that most of us desire to share with each other. In this, she's found something that few other authors discover. So, no wonder she's popular. But, though these books were entertaining enough on a superficial level; they also left me wishing she took more time and put more effort into crafting the other aspects that make up a great novel.
When my mother passed me Nora Roberts' Circle Trilogy, I was a bit wary. Morrigan's Cross was the first Nora Roberts book my mother had ever not finished, and she passed all three books to me without even cracking the cover on the last two books. While I had a hard time getting into the series at first, by the time I got to Valley of Silence, I was hooked.
::: The Circle's Last Stand :::
Valley of Silence is the third book in Roberts' Circle Trilogy, which focuses on six people chose by the goddess Morrigan to take a stand against the vampire Queen Lilith and her army: Glenna, a witch from the present; Hoyt, a 12th century sorcerer; Larkin, a shape shifter from the mythical land of Geall; Moira, Larkin's cousin, a scholar and Queen of Geall; Blair, a vampire hunter from the present and descendant of Hoyt's youngest sister Nola; and Cian, Hoyt's brother turned vampire by Lilith back in the 12th century.
By the time Valley of Silence begins, the circle has formed and moved to Geall, where the final battle with Lilith and her army will be fought. The circle has trained to fight, and is now training the people of Geall to join them. Glenna and Hoyt have been handfasted (a pagan sort of wedding ceremony) and Larkin and Blair are engaged.
The circle trains the men and women of Geall even as they face their own fears about the coming battle. Moira must face her own demons as she comes to terms with the murder of her mother by two of Lilith's vampire forces, as well as her love for Cian.
::: Why This Sound Hokey But Isn't :::
While the remaining romance between Cian the vampire and Moira the Geallian Queen may seem expected and a bit trite, Roberts outdoes herself at telling the story you knew was coming from the beginning of book two.
I was a huge fan of Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles, and really expected to meet this trilogy with a shake of my head and a huge groan, but Roberts pleasantly surprised me. Not only has she included her trademark research that keeps the reader engaged and not pulled out of the story by glaring anachronisms or inconsistencies, she has also made the love story between a mythical queen and a vampire compelling with its realism. From the beginning of their relationship, both Moira and Cian realize that they cannot have a future, and both deal with that issue in a way that is true to the characters you have been with for three books at this point.
While the book can certainly stand alone, it is best read after the first two in the trilogy. Trust me, it's worth the wait to get through the first two.
This review previously published at Epinions: http://www.epinions.com/review/Book_Valley_of_Silence_Nora_Roberts/content_294770609796
::: The Circle's Last Stand :::
Valley of Silence is the third book in Roberts' Circle Trilogy, which focuses on six people chose by the goddess Morrigan to take a stand against the vampire Queen Lilith and her army: Glenna, a witch from the present; Hoyt, a 12th century sorcerer; Larkin, a shape shifter from the mythical land of Geall; Moira, Larkin's cousin, a scholar and Queen of Geall; Blair, a vampire hunter from the present and descendant of Hoyt's youngest sister Nola; and Cian, Hoyt's brother turned vampire by Lilith back in the 12th century.
By the time Valley of Silence begins, the circle has formed and moved to Geall, where the final battle with Lilith and her army will be fought. The circle has trained to fight, and is now training the people of Geall to join them. Glenna and Hoyt have been handfasted (a pagan sort of wedding ceremony) and Larkin and Blair are engaged.
The circle trains the men and women of Geall even as they face their own fears about the coming battle. Moira must face her own demons as she comes to terms with the murder of her mother by two of Lilith's vampire forces, as well as her love for Cian.
::: Why This Sound Hokey But Isn't :::
While the remaining romance between Cian the vampire and Moira the Geallian Queen may seem expected and a bit trite, Roberts outdoes herself at telling the story you knew was coming from the beginning of book two.
I was a huge fan of Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles, and really expected to meet this trilogy with a shake of my head and a huge groan, but Roberts pleasantly surprised me. Not only has she included her trademark research that keeps the reader engaged and not pulled out of the story by glaring anachronisms or inconsistencies, she has also made the love story between a mythical queen and a vampire compelling with its realism. From the beginning of their relationship, both Moira and Cian realize that they cannot have a future, and both deal with that issue in a way that is true to the characters you have been with for three books at this point.
While the book can certainly stand alone, it is best read after the first two in the trilogy. Trust me, it's worth the wait to get through the first two.
This review previously published at Epinions: http://www.epinions.com/review/Book_Valley_of_Silence_Nora_Roberts/content_294770609796
Final in the series. Formulaic and predictable. Average romance novel.