Darkest Day by Emi Gayle

January 9th, 2014 Kimberly Review 58 Comments

9th Jan
Darkest Day by Emi Gayle
Darkest Day
by Emi Gayle
Series: The 19th Year #3
Genres: Paranormal
Source: Publisher
Purchase*: Amazon *affiliate
Goodreads
Rating: One StarOne StarOne StarOne Star

Mac Thorne’s time as a Changeling is coming to an end. It may have taken eighteen years, but Mac did finally manage to do what the Council wanted: she chose a teacher and renounced the in-between. There’s just one last step. She must say goodbye to her human. Forever. After being challenged in every way possible, Mac leaves what she thought would be the easiest task for the last possible moment. As midnight on July fourth draws near, though, she hasn’t found a way to give up Winn Thomas. Nor does she want to. With time running out, Mac stands at a literal crossroads. Choose Winn, and she’ll be stripped of the only family she’s ever known — vampires, dragons, and her favorite demon. Even her own mother. Accept her position on the Council and rule as an equal to her twelve peers, and she’ll forget Winn ever existed. Independence and freedom have never before been so limiting. In this final chapter of the 19th Year Trilogy, it’s time for Mac to decide. Responsibility? Or Love?

Darkest Day is the last book in the Nineteenth Year Trilogy. Emi Gayle moves us towards the moment when Mac Thorne a changeling must choose her permanent supernatural form and takes her place on the Council. I was worried about how I was going to get my HEA or if there would even be one. Ms. Gayle wrapped this trilogy up and left me with a smile. Mini-review: twists, turns and trials, and a side of romance made this exciting ending.

Mac is quickly approaching her birthday and the time of choosing. Winn a human is her advisor and the boy whom she loves and will lose once she decides her fate. The council deems his memories of her will be taken. If she doesn’t take her place along with the other 12 council members she could change the fate of their world. Decisions. Decisions. Decisions. Could you choose your true form at nineteen? Give up the boy you love? The tale that unfolds is an emotional one that kept me on edge.

From the beginning, I have enjoyed Mac. She is strong, opinionated and doesn’t bow to the will of the council. She questions everything. Heck, in the beginning, she didn’t even like humans. We have seen so much growth in her and in this final book we see her suffer, mature and define herself. Winn despite his love for Mac and his own struggles has tried to be a good advisor. He has always known he must sacrifice his memories for the greater good and it pains him. Suze the demon charged with protecting Mac is a hoot as always. He is one of my favorite characters. The council and Mac’s human friends create obstacles, assist and propel the tale towards its outcome.

Darkest Day offered excellent closure to a fast-paced, well-spun tale that I thoroughly enjoyed. Told in dual perspective, Winn and Mac bring us right into the thick of things and ratchet up the tension. We suffer a loss and enjoy moments of laughter in this final episode. Gayle weaved in drama, deceit, life lessons and growth as we approached Mac’s birthday. Along with the suffering, she wove in a message for teens, and it was powerful and well executed. As we moved towards Mac’s birthday things began to click into place, and I began to hope for Mac to have her cake and eat it too. The ending was cleverly done and felt natural. I closed the book and the trilogy with a satisfied smile and happy heart.

Darkest Days offered an exciting end to the Nineteenth Year trilogy. It is a series I recommend to fans of paranormal romance, suspense, humor and fleshed out characters. I am looking forward to Gayle’s next series.

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About Kimberly
Kimberly is a coffee loving book addict who reads and listens to fictional stories in all genres. Whovian, Ravenclaw, Howler and proud Nonna. She owns and manages Caffeinated PR. The coffee is always on and she is ready to chat. Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

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58 Responses to “Darkest Day by Emi Gayle”

  1. Pamela D

    You have been going crazy with finishing up trilogies lately! I am glad that you are happy with their conclusions. 🙂

    • kimbacaffeinate

      thanks Sharon this was a good series and I hope you enjoy it 🙂

  3. Christy

    Well, it seems to be unanimous … the trilogy ended well. That makes me want to read it more. I’m getting tired of wasting my time on the first book of a series, only to not want to continue it.

    • kimbacaffeinate

      agreed, I still haven’t read Allegiant even though I bought it on release day..LOL I hope Evertrue is good 🙂

  4. Mishel

    I would definitely have a tough time choosing!! I really like the sound of this trilogy and I’m glad the last wrapped up so well. I’ll definitely have to check out the first book =)

  6. Lauren

    I’m glad to hear the finale is well done! I’ve been seeing this series around a lot lately, and I think the concept sounds so cool. I can’t even imagine facing a decision like Mac’s, and I’m sure I’d make the wrong choice. I’ve been curious about this series and am glad to know I can read the whole thing and expect to be satisfied. Lovely review!

    • kimbacaffeinate

      thanks Lauren, the characters were fun in this series 🙂

  7. Adriana

    I keep on catching trilogy reviews from you. You are really on top of finishing series aren’t you? I wish I could do that so easily. You’d do really great in the yearly series challenge in the blogosphere. I’m liking the summary (Don’t want to run the rest of the story just in case) so I think I’ll ad the first book to my tbr list. Thanks for the review and giveaway (:

    • kimbacaffeinate

      well thank you, but for every trilogy I finish there are ten that I read the first book and by the time the second book published..i didn’t care enough to finish..LOL

  8. Heidi

    I know you and Ali have both loved this series. It sounds like a terrific coming of age story with a paranormal twist. I would definitely like to read it one of these days! Glad you were pleased with the end.

    • kimbacaffeinate

      thanks Heidi, I think you would enjoy this series 🙂

    • kimbacaffeinate

      the ending was clever and believable making the adventure worth every minute 🙂

  10. Melissa (Books and Things)

    I always worry about the last book in a series/trilogy. Now that you said the conclusion is clever and satisfying… it makes me really want to read these. Also have to be curious about NA PNR.

    • kimbacaffeinate

      this one is YA Melissa but it was wonderfully done and such fun to read 🙂

    • kimbacaffeinate

      for the record this is YA paranormal, and no I could not decide at that age 🙂

  14. Candace

    Between you and Ali I’m pretty curious about this series! It definitely sounds intriguing and a bit emotional!

  15. Lindy

    It doesn’t sound like the main character has any choices that will let her end up with her true love 🙁 This story sounds great! I love fast paced stories with lots of twists and turns, and character growth. It’s always nice when we get an ending that we’re happy with after we’ve been reading all of the installments in the series. Wonderful Review Kim!

    • kimbacaffeinate

      This was well executed and the characters were all likable 🙂

    • kimbacaffeinate

      Probs, but for paranormal in the YA genre it was well done with a clever plot 🙂

  18. Toni

    Great review, Kim! This just reminded me that I still need to start the first book. Sigh. I really need a portal that takes me to a room where time stands still so I can read every book on my TBR list.

    • kimbacaffeinate

      *runs and tackles you* Hello my friend we have truly been neglecting each other..LOL. This was a fun series and hey if you find that room I need an access card..STAT!

  19. Jenea

    Yay, I am so glad I’m wasn’t the only one who was all smiles when I finished this. I was so happy the way it ended, Mac was amazing. Wonderful review!

    • kimbacaffeinate

      I agree, I quite liked her and her special brand of snark 🙂

  20. Jenny

    I think this is definitely a series for me Kim! I’ve seen it around a lot lately and I’m so intrigued by the idea that she gets to choose her final shifter form. There’s clearly a lot more to the decision making process than one might think, and I just can’t wait to meet Mac. I love that she’s strong willed and likes to ask questions:) Fantastic review!

    • kimbacaffeinate

      Thanks Jenny. I cannot wait till you meet some of the colorful characters 🙂

  21. Emi Gayle

    Thank you so much for the great review and being a part of the tour and for reading the whole series and just for everything! Happy Thursday!

  23. kindlemom1

    I couldn’t agree with you more on your review, I just loved this fun series and this really was a great well wrapped up conclusion to the trilogy.

  24. Nick

    I’ve always had my eyes on this series. Now that the whole trilogy is out, I think I’m going to get to it some time this year. I’m glad that you got the ending that you wanted, Kim. Mac sounds like a great character for a paranormal story. Great review, Kim!

  25. Mary

    Love when a series you’ve followed ends well. It’s so hard when, after investing so much time and emotional effort in a series, it ends poorly or in a disappointing way. Personally, I don’t think I was emotionally mature enough to make any massive life-altering changes at 19!

    • kimbacaffeinate

      Heck Mary I am forty*cough* and don’t think I could choose one form, but this was clever and well done.

    • kimbacaffeinate

      Thanks Melanie, this was a fun, fast paced series 🙂

    • kimbacaffeinate

      I wouldn’t be able to decide..so many cool supernatural creatures..LOL