Tuesday Reviews: Nil On Fire by Lynne Matson

Title: Nil On Fire (NIL #3)

Author: Lynne Matson

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.

Release Date: May 31, 2016

Format Read: Hardback

Rating: 4.5 stars

Description from Goodreads: Despite Rives and Skye's attempt to destroy Nil, the island remains. And back in this world, Nil won't let Skye go. Haunted by a darkness she can't ignore, Skye wrestles with Nil nightmares that worsen by the day and threaten to tear her apart. As Skye fights to keep her mind intact, she realizes that to finally break free of Nil, she must end Nil's vicious cycle once and for all-- and she can't do it alone.

Who will return to Nil, and in the end, who will survive? In this thrilling final installment of the Nil series, the stakes have never been higher: everyone's fate hangs in the balance, including Nil's own-- and Nil will fight to the death. When the full force of the island is unleashed, SKye faces an impossible choice, a cruel one she'd never imagined she'd have to make. Soon one Nil truth becomes painfully clear: only one side can win.

Losing isn't an option, but winning will cost Skye everything.

perfect for fans of LOST and survivalist stories, NIL ON FIRE is a stunning conclusion to the Nil trilogy that will leave readers breathless.

A stunning conclusion is right. This book had me on the edge of my seat from chapter one. One of the only series to ever have so much power over me that I can stress out over the ending, Nil's final book brought everything to the table once more, and left me feeling very hollow, yet very satisfied.

Spectacular characters, of course. Killer plot (get it, get it?) Raw brutality that only Lynne can create and make me love... this book has everything I wanted for in an ending and then some. I loved how everything was finished, leaving no questions, no concerns, no lingering qualms. Each of the problems was solved, each of the loose ends tied, and things ended up happening in such a way that I can't help but adore this last book.

NIL ON FIRE receives a 4.5 star review for me. The only reason it doesn't earn a five star review is because of the POV switching. While I loved getting all of the different (old and new Nil-goers) POVs, I know I would have loved to have gotten into certain characters' (main characters, possibly spoilery characters) heads a bit more.

Each of these characters has taught me so much, and I know that they will always be hiding out in that part of my heart that holds the fictional people that mean the most to me. And I hope that someday, somehow, I'll be able to revisit these characters in a new book and see how the survivors' lives have gone in the time since they've left. I hope for this, and yet I don't because I know a new book means more trouble and more death for the characters who have already been through so much.

I've been following the NIL story since day one. To know that this is the last time I'll get to visit this world, the last time I get to hang out with Charley and Thad, Rives and Skye, and the creatures running around Nil... it's a surreal feeling. When you read, you feel like it takes FOREVER for the next book in the series to come out, but once you hold the ending in your hands, it really hits you how much time you've spent with these characters. How many hours you spent reading about their journeys, how many times you've caught yourself day-dreaming about them while you're awaiting the next book. 

This series has left such a footprint on my life-- the past three years I've spent reading the books, posting and trying to get the word out about the series, being a part of the #NILtribe, swapping tweets and emails back and forth with Lynne-- and I know I'll always be grateful that I had these books to fill my summers. I know that every time I see a bottle of Sprite, I'll think of Charley. When I see dreads, or hear someone say merde, the French word we've all become so familiar with, I'll think of Rives. When I see someone make a sacrifice for the person they love, I'll think of Thad. And when I see someone stand up against all odds, determined to do what people say can't be done, I'll think of Skye. 

Fiercely, proudly, #NILtribe forever.