Bloodline: Cradle, Book 9

Bloodlines sits in a bit of a weird place to me. It’s great, let’s not get it twisted, but it’s sandwiched between two of my favourite books of the series. Wintersteel is the dramatic culmination of the three book Uncrowned Tournament Arc and has so many great moments in it that it’s hard to list them all. And Reaper rivals it.Then between them both is Bloodlines, which in some ways is a more reflective book. It’s technically the culmination of what set Lindon on this path all those books ago but in another way it’s about coming home and seeing that, while it might not have changed, you certainly have. It’s about being a new person and how you don’t quite fit into the ways that things used to be. It’s about learning that who you are now isn’t who you used to be and isn’t who you will become.It’s definitely not the end. It makes it very clear that it’s building up to something big and the last three sentences are great. There’s everything you know and love about the previous books from snappy conversations, Eithan, and solid world building. I really enjoyed reading it but when looking back it’s hard to see it between the twin stars that come before and after.It’s a good book. Read it.Then go onto Reaper.

Let's be honest, Uncrowned and then Wintersteel were masterpieces. So many threads. So many pivotal scenes. The action. The resolution. Any book following those two is automatically at a disadvantage.Bloodline isn't Wintersteel. Bloodline is a completely different kind of book. A transition book. The kind of book that is laying the groundwork for the next major arc in the series.After I read Bloodline, I had to stop my brain from thinking. I gave it a couple days and then read it again. Then I gave it another couple days and reread the whole series before reading it again.Takeaways:1. There were so many things that I didn't expect that ended up happening. Many of those things were awesome (no spoilers).2. I find myself more excited about the coming books than I do Bloodline. The next book pretty much writes itself and I want to read it. Lindon now has himself the perfect opponent, the same opponent that I thought would be a cool contrast during Wintersteel.More importantly Cradle will now be forever impacted (because of Spoilers). There are so many ways the story could twist and turn (because of spoilers).3. I LOVED the return of Suriel. She became the champion of the Abidan portion of the story and it was the better for it. Plus, the scenes with Lindon... they were so cozy and heartwarming. Especially when she said sorry (spoilers). Her inclusion in the story added so much heart back to this series.4. Dross... Dross, Dross, Dross... He was so human in this. The decisions he made. The paths he helped the group tread. I look forward to seeing how he evolves.5. While it made the story slowdown... the return to home for Lindon was very real. You can never really go home because it's never the same. And Lindon got to experience that repeatedly, like a hammer to the brain. I'm the kind of reader who appreciates verisimilitude in what I read. So I happily embraced the slowing down of the story. It was harsh and uncomfortable and overall real.That said, I have real hope for the little kingdom the group seems to be carving out for themselves. It looks like it will be epic.6. I loved the return of Elder Whisper. I'd been waiting for it and it didn't disappoint. That final sentence... It epitomizes what the next major arc of the story is going to be. And that arc excites me.7. The Sect of the Twin Stars...! That's all I'm saying.Now, not everything was perfect. I think everyone else' story took a back seat to Lindon's. The story suffered slightly for it. I also found the story a little shorter than I would have liked. Another 50 pages would have really fleshed out the story and made it come to life. But that's all I've really got against this book.It's a great book trying to tell a difficult story after two phenomenal books. You want more of the same but it's trying to convince you that the plot twists that are coming are even better. It managed to convince me, so I'm on board.

With every end comes a new beginning. This book is about Lindon's attempt to save the place he grew up in from The Wandering Titan, a dreadgod. His friends, Eithan, Mercy and Yerin go with him., as does Ziel (damaged Archlord from the Uncrowned Tournament). He reconnects with his family, his blackflame turtle, Orthos, and eventually, Elder Whisper. We meet up with Jai Chen and her complex brother, who cut off Lindon's arm originally. The Wei family and the Heaven's Glory school haven't changed.... This book covers the whole reason Lindon got strong in the first place - to save The Sacred Valley from the destruction he saw in Suriel's future vision originally. He was supposed to have 30 years but it's only been 3. But what does saving it look like? He's not strong enough to stop the dreadgod so what can he do?Suriel and the judges are struggling to maintain the worlds (iterations) and Cradle, a world (iteration) in sector 11 is becoming vulnerable to the Mad King (Daruman) and the Vroshirs, especially as it is Ozriel's home world. No doubt the link between Cradle and Suriel's world will become more deeply linked in the next book.

There were some great moments in this book and I really enjoyed a lot of ir however I felt that the author got bogged down in the second half of the book and honestly the topic just did not interest me at all and rather than progress the story it felt that we get caught up in a Lindon's hero complex filler episode. I can understand the reactions a little of the people he is trying to save but it gets really old really quickly and their way of thinking becomes incredibly one dimensional and not rational in the slightest. Overall it is worth a read but prepare for a slog through the second half where a lot of cool moments get glossed over and a lot of boring moments get too much attention. I'm not sure I personally like the space warrior premise that gets hinted at throughout the books and Suriels chapters which are about trillions of people dying all the time and worlds and galaxies being destroyed. In my opinion it completely trivialised the entire story when the big bad dreadgods and less than fleas to the space people. Could have used a bit more mystery really rather than, and then the space scythe cuts in half a planet with a single attack...