Once a Villain by Vanessa Len

The quick cut: The final book in a trilogy, a group tries to fix the timeline before it's too late.

A real review: 

 If you could change the past, would you be willing to sacrifice something to make it happen? What if the cost was too much for you to bear alone? These are all consequences that Joan has to bear after her sister Eleanor has changed the timeline too much. 

 Eleanor had accomplished what she wanted: London was now controlled by monsters, with humans being used as labor and entertainment. The way the world used to be has been so distorted that it is almost unrecognizable. The consequences of such a drastic change is that there are rips in the sky. Can Joan, Aaron, and Nick fix the timeline before it's too late? 

 I really enjoyed the first book in this series, but it took so long for the final book to be released that I barely remember it. There were multiple points in the story where it felt like it got dragged out for more length. Which is odd considering that the ending felt so rushed that it practically gave me whiplash. Talk about inconsistent pacing. 

 Joan accepts that she's not a hero and she never will be - but she plays one in this trilogy. It's a great example about how no one is truly evil or truly good. We all live somewhere in the grey with a blend of each. She struggles with the part of herself that she sees as wrong, but it's what she needs to save the timeline. 

 The romantic element of this story really does take a practically tertiary role in the plot. It feels like a distraction more than anything else. 

 A satisfying but inconsistently paced ending to a fantasy trilogy. 

My rating: 3.75 out of 5