The End of Ends have finally come.

To keep things simple, the minor spoilers are under the cut but lets get to characterization and plot first.

Since Tedros was revealed to have the final ring, and the wedding crashing went wrong, King Arthur’s ghost comes in with a deus ex machina to give his son one more chance to regain the Woods’ trust, his throne and expose the Snake for what he truly is.

Three trials, three tests, each one a race against time between the Lion and the Snake and imparting lessons from King Arthur’s past to help Tedros find out what a real leader is while Agatha and Sophie find their happily ever afters.

First, I’ll get to the diva of the hour aka Chainani’s clear favorite, Sophie who undergoes an amazing amount of development to finding true fufillment. Yes, she had started the trilogy thinking she was fulfilled as Dean, and thinking maybe being queen would help but no, it all circles back to love.

Love for Agatha as well as love with the one who’d been under her notice the whole time. I really enjoyed the epiphany Sophie has as she listens and learns from each trial and mishap that the true parts of a happy life are love, food and purpose. She has purpose as a Dean, she learns to enjoy cake and she finds unconditional love does not come from maniacally evil bad boys who want to change her or cannot keep up with her. I can’t believe I’m saying this but Sophie comes out as the most mature of the trio, even setting aside her own jealousy and petty dramatics in pursuit of the greater good. She truly has shades of Good and Evil and she has embrace to love herself and love in return.

Not that she isn’t still sassy and hilarious, Chainani throws in some fanservice treats like the Return of Wooty Woo, the Pirate Queen.

Agatha’s arc feels a bit more muddled as the previous book focused on her moer controlling, feeling the need to save the day, loner as the protagonist of the fairytale. That was good but here it felt more like the narrative was chiding Agatha for not faithfully believing in Tedros no matter what. While she should give Tedros more of a chance to enact his own plans without immediately deriding it as stupid, Tedros concealling it felt out of line. Especially as Tedros’ final plan was truamatizing to watch and so so many things could have gone wrong. Tedros was just lucky it worked, otherwise Agatha would have to save the day again from Tedros’ impulsive actions.

It also worked against Tedros’ own arc about learning to take others input instead of impulsively going with what he wants to do. Even though that didn’t stick, Tedros did eventually learn the bigger picture of being a leader. It is not about hoarding his position to protect his insecurities but serving the people, just as Rhian had said all along. I’ll admit, he did have an amazing final speech. It just felt like his final realization was shoe-horned in.

By that I mean, Chainani had organically left seeds along the whole trilogy but Tedros, the whole time, continued to act as he usually did with glimmers of self reflection. If Chainani had spent this book letting Tedros make mature decisions, showcasing his growth instead of leaving it in the climax, I may believe his arc more.

Other characters get a fair chance to shine here too like the Coven especially as Dot learns more about her family, and Reene turns out to be a surprisingly badass side character in the final inning. Adult characters like Guenivere, Maid Marian, Robin Hood, Queen Jacinda, Princess Uma, Merlin and more serve as refreshingly important contributers to the story even while the teenagers take up most of the spotlight. That said, they’re also a lot of death fodder which Agatha morosely comments that adults don’t fare well in their fairytale. Chainani really raises the stakes and doesn’t shy away from the grimm undertones of fairytales while also expanding more kingdoms with their distinct cultures and geographies.

I’m only disappointed that Nicola seems to fade away after she breaks up with Hort for his Sophie obsession. It felt a bit of a regression for Hort as I liked him realizing that he can move on and find someone who will like him for himself. Besides, Nicole was such a cool character and as a Galvadon Reader, she would have continued to make a nice contrast to Agatha, reminding her of who she had been like. And I enjoyed her burgeoning, bickering friendship with Sophie. Her ability to recognize story patterns and tricks in tales had been useful and I wished Chainani had continued to utilize her.

Now the villains are under spoilers because the book finally reveals Japeth and Rhian’s true parentage. I won’t even go into it because, while it makes sense as you read through, finding out is so so convulated and twisty it is exhausting.

But basically, the twins’ parentage have nothing to do with Morgaine Le Fay as I had been rooting for but two familiar characters-Rafael and Evelyn Sader. Yeah, it felt a bit uninspired to trace all evil back to the School Master. Yes, they had their similarities and the hints were there but I was enjoying this as a new adventure. Going back to the School Master felt lazy.

Speaking of falling on old tropes, Tedros’ jealousy of Agatha and Sophie’s friendship reared up again as he envies how the two unwaveringly trust in each other to save the day, more than anyone trusts him to save the day. And they’re right to do so. But it made Agatha and Tedros’ relationship feel weaker in comparison as Tedros’ jealousy and impulsivity make him seem like a bad match for Agatha compared to Sophie. Also with Sophie and Agatha saving the day, I didn’t really feel invested in Tedros’ moment of triumph as I just kept waiting for Sophie and Agatha to steal it.

For a trilogy that seems like it is supposed to rectify Tedros’ worst traits and build him up as a real leader, it was much more focused on the girls, making it confusing as to which person I’m supposed to root for as king. It seems like it should be Tedros, but Sophie seems like the better character. But Chainani loves Sophie and that favoritism bleeds through.

While this was a thrilling conclusion, some elements felt uninspired and fractured, making it a step back from the previous book. Nonetheless, readers will enjoy the final tale (for now) and seeing where everyone ends up.

3 stars.