Everafter Song

After Everly Donovan's adventure in the Land Under the Wave and her almost execution at the hands of Queen Aislinn for false accusations of witchcraft and murder, her quest for vengeance against Killian Markham is almost over. However, before she can get her revenge for his murdering her family, she must first stop him from destroying all of Evermore, the timeline that holds her world and the six Otherworlds together.

One night when Markham visits Everly at her husband Jamison's manor where she is hiding, he tells her of his plan to find the Bard, the man who crafted the Creator's violin that she used to put the giants to sleep after the war between them and the humans. The original violin was destroyed by the Creator, but Markham plans to get another from the Bard and raise the giants to help him enslave the humans as servants for the elves. To stop him from waking the bloodthirsty giants that sleep in the Black Forest in her world, Everly must follow Markham to the Silver Clouded Plain, the Otherworld, the place to which the giants were banished after the war. On her way, Everly is separated from Jamison and her two giant companions from the Land Under the Wave and is left alone to find her way to the Bard and stop Markham in a foreign world. She is also hunted by the elves who seek to take Markham back to their land and put him on trial for his crimes as their prince. Everly is able to find the Bard, the new violin, and stop Markham, but she is also found by the elves. Queen Imelda, Markham's sister, takes Everly to the Land of Promise where Markham will be tried for his crimes.

In the home of the elves, Everly is reunited with her friends, Laverick, Claret and Osric, as well as her husband, Jamison. She and her friends are convinced to testify against Markham, but he is still as tricky and scheming as ever, and he manages to gather a following of elves that still support him. With his smooth tongue, he makes Everly and her friends seem as though they are complicit in his crimes, and he soon escapes using his connections, managing to steal the violin. Markham sets off to wake the giants and take over the seven worlds.

Everly and her friends must gather support from all the Otherworlds, including her own, not only to stop Markham but also to reset the Evermore timeline and heal the damage he has done. However, Everly learns from Father Time that to do this would mean resetting her entire life, giving up her friends and her love for Jamison. Everly's decision between her life and happiness as it is and saving the seven worlds becomes the only thing that could possibly save Evermore; but it is not an easy decision for Everly, who only wants to end her quest and live her life with her new family.

Everafter Song, the final instalment of “The Evermore Chronicles”, delivers on promises of adventure and resolving the loose threads that were left in books one and two, Before the Broken Star ( www.cmreviews.ca/node/1180 ) and Into the Hourglass. ( www.cmreviews.ca/node/1375 ) Everly, Jamison and their friends are reunited with each other at Jamison's manor, and their quest to stop Killian Markham continues. However, the action-packed novel may be packed a little too full. Readers are introduced to multiple new Otherworlds and lots of new characters, all of which, in their own rights, hold up to the previous standards of charming and interesting, but with all the new lore, new worlds, and new characters, Everafter Song lacked a certain quality that the others had. There was little to no character development, which was one of the main endearing features of Before the Broken Star and Into the Hourglass. Everly's development and growth are almost nonexistent in this novel. While the things Everly worked on in the previous books (opening up and accepting help and love from her new family) are skills she shows in this novel, they aren't given much time to shine since Everly seems to spend a fair amount of time separated from Jamison and the others. One saving grace in this respect is that Everly doesn't slip back into her old habits, showcasing her growth from the past books in some places. She still accepts help when it is offered, even seeking it out in the giant's world when she is on her own, and she is able to control her anger and not let it get the best of her like it did in the earlier books.

Along with Everly's lack of development, the other characters suffer from the same thing. Readers see so little of Jamison, Laverick, and Claret that there is no opportunity for them to be developed. Jamison gets a small expanded role in this book with the development of his ability to hear the Everafter Song, something none of the other characters can do. This stems from his spending so much time with Everly but also seems underutilized in the novel. It is mentioned a few times and then no more, seeming to be of little consequence in the grand scheme of things. Laverick and Claret are shown to be deeply affected by their experiences in the Land Under the Wave, but since they don't have a very big role, their development is minimal.

However, even with the previously mentioned faults, Everafter Song proves to be an enjoyable read. The conclusion that readers have been waiting for may not be all that readers hoped it would be, but there are still some highlights that make the last novel worth the read. The representation and diverse cast, for one, is outstanding. Laverick and Claret are still together in this novel, and both seem to have some post-traumatic stress from their time in the Land Under the Wave. However they are there for each other, and they are shown to talk to their friends about what problems they are facing, and their relationship is shown to be strong enough to withstand their personal struggles. There is also Osric, whose past is revealed a little more in this instalment when he divulges to Everly that he was in love with Killian when they first met. Additionally, there is Commander Asmer, a new elven character who uses a glamour to appear as a woman though she was born a male. The LGBTQ representation is a refreshing and thoughtful addition to the fantasy atmosphere of the novel.

Furthermore, the Silver Clouded Plain is a very creative and inspired world. The giants, who were abandoned and imprisoned in their world by the Creator after the war, have turned to technology in the absence of magic. Their world is filled with trains, factories, and revolvers, all brand new things to Everly whose world is focused on their navy. Another feature of the giants’ world is the Bard whose solitude and selfishness is deeply unsettling. His marionette, fashioned from elderwood and given life through the Bard's magic, is truly eerie, and the Bard matches up to this when he attacks Everly to take her clock heart.

Overall, the final novel in “The Evermore Chronicles” is well worth the read. The new Otherworlds hold up to the standard of the previous books, and the new characters add to the LGBTQ representation in the novel. While Everafter Song may be more plot focused than its predecessors, it manages to tie up all the loose ends and end the series on a good note.