The Forever Song by Julie Kagawa (a.k.a some thoughts on Trilogies)

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Pages: 393

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Released: 15th of April 2014
Other Books in the Series:

  The Immortal Rules

The Eternity Cure

Vengeance will be hers.

 Allison Sekemoto once struggled with the question: human or monster? With the death of her love, Zeke, she has her answer. 

Monster.

 Allie will embrace her cold vampire side to hunt down and end Sarren, the psychopathic vampire who murdered Zeke. But the trail is bloody and long, and Sarren has left many surprises for Allie and her companions - her creator Kanin, and her blood brother, Jackal. The trail is leading straight to the one place they must protect at any cost - the last vampire-free zone on Earth, Eden. And Sarren has one final, brutal shock in store for Allie.

 In a ruined world where no life is sacred and former allies can turn on you in one heartbeat, Allie will face her darkest days. And if she succeeds, her triumph will be short-lived in the face of surviving forever alone.

THE FINAL HUNT IS ON.

What I Have To Say

I've adored this trilogy since the start, but this book? This book was something even more special. It made the whole trilogy more special. Because it didn't just wrap up the story and tie away the lose ends. It made the trilogy come together as one. 

Trilogies are very popular, especially at the moment. It feels like every book coming out is part of a trilogy. And that is the term for a series of books (or plays, films etc.,) but if you look at the best trilogies, they're more than just three stories told over three books. They are one story. A story which loops around and brings in very significant aspects of the start, into the finish. 

This is exactly what The Forever Song did. It finished off in a place that seemed to fit exactly with what happened in the first book. It felt almost like a circle with so much of the first book coming back to play important parts in the ending. It felt like Frodo going back to the Shire and having to free the hobbits. It felt like Luke seeing the spirits of Yoda and Obi Wan and Anakin. It felt like a trilogy. 

And it makes me wonder, is a trilogy any more than just a series of three connected books? Or should it be redefined to something more like the Blood of Eden? Are we doing it wrong?