3.5 stars ⭐️

i love this series & this book was great for the most part. i loved seeing travis and emma navigate their relationship. but there were definitely some things i was disappointed with.

emma sort of took a backseat in this book which was a bummer. i liked travis’ pov but i don’t think it was really necessary — they were pretty much always together so the book would’ve been fine only in emma’s pov (and better, in my opinion). there were so many moments where i wished we were in emma’s pov instead.

also, the most interesting aspect of these books to me has always been simon and emma’s dynamic, but it felt way understated in this one. the opera was peak for their dynamic but then that was it until the final scene. also, when simon takes her hostage in the car, he says, “now i’m not even sure if you’re worth it” which felt so out of character because he’s lowkey obsessed with her.

finally: the last 10-20% of the first two books were so intense and had me racing through the pages, but this one lacked that urgency for me. i think the loss of kristin should’ve made simon go absolutely bat-shit crazy and terrifying. i should’ve been shaking in my boots. but i was not.

4.25*

I wish the final showdown wouldn’t have been so rushed and “easy”, it kinda took away from a lot of the established atmosphere and vibes from the other books. That said, I loved this a lot, I am not ready to leave these characters behind… but alas.

The only reason this didn't get 5 stars from me was the hint that Simon could be alive at the end. Travis had such a revelation about how he's just a boy and boys can be defeated, so I didn't love the potential at the end when I know there won't be more books in the series.

THAT SAID, if I just pretend that one little part didn't happen, this was a 5 star read. I've been waiting YEARS for this and to finally have gotten the closure and end game of Emma and Travis has made my heart so full!

respectfully what the hell was that final epilogue