Anne Bishop never fails to write a story that grabs me right way and does not let me go until the very last page. The Black Jewels series is definitely my favorite of all her books. All of the books set in this world have intriguing story lines and characters who fascinate me. Even the characters I loathe are still well written. Any book by Anne Bishop is a must read and this series is no exception. ( )

I always enjoy Bishop's Dark Jewels tales, but none of the later books have been as satisfying as the original trilogy. This set of tales provides welcome time with characters who are like old friends, but falls far short of the glittering-dark intensity of the first books. Still, I'm glad I bought it and will probably dip into it again in the future. ( )

90 points/100 (4.75 stars/5)

Another collection of novellas to end the series with. Some endings may not be what you expect, other will be. It is always hard to say goodbye.


Winsol Gifts
88 points/100 (4.5 stars/5).

It is Winsol, a time for family.

This was a cute little novella that showed the meaning of the Holidays and the meaning of family. It was cute, it was funny, and it is everything you would want out of a slice-of-life novella. There isn't much to say about this, really. It is mostly about them getting presents, spending time with family, and trying to mitigate the damage of Daemonar.


Shades of Honor

84 points/100 (4.25/5).

Rainier is still injured from the Spooky House, Surreal has some PTSD mixed with survivor's guilt, and Falonar is stirring up trouble with Lucivar.

The longest of the bunch at about 40% of the book, this novella takes place between the events of The Shadow Queen and Shalador's Lady. If you thought part of the story was missing from Shalador's Lady, you were right, it was all stuffed into this novella.

On the Rainier and Surreal side, there really isn't much there to talk about. They're healing in their own ways. Have to be badgered into doing it, but they end up doing it. I was fooled at the beginning of the novella into believing these two would play a much larger part in it than they actually ended up playing.

The real draw is figuring out what happened to Falonar, because it is implied in Shalador's Lady that he was dead because he got on the wrong side of someone. Once again a story that should have been about side characters ended up being more about the core family than anything. This was mostly a story of why you should not fuck with Lucivar. We see Daemon becoming more of his father's mirror. We see scary Witch Jaenelle some more.

An interesting story dragged down by the fact there isn't really much new in it. It was more of the same, with the main characters overpowering the story.

Family

82 points/100 (4.25 stars/5).

Someone close to them is now demon dead, they have to pick up the pieces and move on.

I enjoyed this novella quite a bit. We get to see the transition between alive to demon dead. Previously everyone had been long dead and had figured out their new life by the time they got to the story. This way we get to see the transition. We've always been told how hard the transition is, now we get to see for ourselves.

Also that bit at the end about Jaenelle is great.

The High Lord's Daughter

96 points/100 (5 stars/5)

It is time to say goodbye, it is time to cry.

I'm just.. I can't stop crying. It hurts so much. Can't think, can't breathe. I just want the pain to stop. I knew it had to happen, but why does it have to hurt so damn much? ( )

Winsol Gifts - Lovely short takes place after Tangled Webs, seeing the family during the holidays. Taking care of each other.
Shades of Honor - Takes place before the Shadow Queen. Lucivar and Falonar finally settle their issues.
Family - Outstanding, I fell back into the lives of the people I had previously come to care so much for, it was poignant, tender, inspiring, sad, life affirming. Amazing, just wow
High Lord's Daughter - Takes place decades later. Daemon knew Janelle would die long before he would and she made him promise to mourn for a year and then return to life. Daemon, Surreal and Lucivar dealing with Janelle's death, leaning on each other and learning to live without her. So emotional, heartbreaking at times, Anne Bishop's ability to make a reader feel so deeply is why I reread so many of her stories. Amazing read!
( )

Bittersweet but beautiful ending

This wasn’t my favorite black jewel story but it did tie-up a lot of loose ends. It was bittersweet but held a lot of promise for the future of Janelle Satien. I won’t write more because I don’t want to give away any spoilers. The door is open for a spin-off if Anne Bishop so desires. I would read it. ( )