WHAT IT’S ABOUT:

I promised to avenge my parents.

But their killer is still on the loose, and he’s stolen more than my parents’ lives. Now, as he draws closer to his mysterious goals, he’s poised to destroy what little I have left.

I promised to translate an ancient grimoire.

But it holds the secrets of my family—and the secret history of demon summoning. I fear its answers as much as I need them. Who was the foremother of Demonica…and who am I?

I promised to send my demon home.

But the way he watches me, the way he protects me, the way he touches me⁠—how can I cast him away forever? I swore I would do this for him, but can I? Should I?

But I promised—and I will keep my promises even if they cost me my heart, my soul, and my life.

—
More series in the Guild Codex world:
The Guild Codex: Spellbound
The Guild Codex: Warped
The Guild Codex: Unveiled

MY THOUGHTS (spoiler-free):

Note: I received an Advanced Reading Copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

“Do you remember the words, amavrah?”
[…] I could never forget those alien words. They had saved my life. Changed my life. Once I’d spoken those words, I’d never been the same. At my nod, his fingers tightened—then we spoke together, the phrase whispering across our lips in perfect unison, words last shared on that terrible, transformative day when we had bound our souls and our fates to each other. “Enpedēra vīsh nā.”

Did you know it’s only been a little over a year since I was first introduced to Robin and Zylas in the first book in this series? Only a year, and yet it feels like these characters and their journey have been with me for so much longer than that. Because how else could me finishing a series leave me with such a full heart? How else could I have grown to love and care for these characters so much, if not because they have been with me for ages already?

That, in a nutshell, is the power of an Annette Marie story. They sneak into your heart and claim their own space in record time.

I remember first coming into this story. I was already in love with Tori and her three best friends, when the news of a second series in the Guild Codex world was released. And I admit, I was hesitant. Even though I had loved every Annette Marie book before that, and I adored the world of the Guild Codex already, I was still hesitant. Because I’m not a fan of spin-offs. I usually tune out when authors write more books in the same world. But am I glad I didn’t tune out this time! I LOVE the Demonized series. More than love, I ADORE IT. As much as I fell in love with the Spellbound series, the Demonized series always had that little something extra for me. Maybe it’s the bookish heroine, the grumpy demon, the cookies or the cat (it’s probably the cat #teamsocks). Whatever it is, I can’t imagine not having started and subsequently falling for this series.

If you haven’t started this series yet, I highly recommend you to do so. I know all these books and intertwining series can seem a bit intimidating, but it’s really not. All series can be read separately. Or together. However you prefer. Though I do recommend reading them all, because then you’ll really get to appreciate the sheer genius that went into merging these series together in a way that is both so interwoven and yet still so individually perfect.

This finale was amazing. Just, absolutely amazing. Though I have to admit it started of a little slowly to me. We already saw a few of the scenes in the Spellbound finale from another POV, and though they were incredibly interesting to see from another perspective, they didn’t get my adrenaline pumping like they did the first time, because I already read them. That said, I think my heart stood still for the entire second half of the book. This was again another action-packed, edge-of-your seat read, and yet it felt more personal this time. While Tori’s finale was epic and grand, Robin and Zylas’ finale was epic on a different, more emotional scale.

“Words on a page or photos in a book—before Zylas, that was all I’d known. And, naïve as I was, I’d thought that was enough.”

From the first book, I loved the connection between Robin and Zylas. From the start, they saved each other and protected each other and I shipped them even before there was any romantic tension and despite the fact that one was a demon from another dimension. I have watched their journey throughout the series, watched them grow as people and grow as a duo, watched them learn, make mistakes, grow apart and make up. I have become so incredibly invested in their story and all I wanted to know in this finale was “Will these two loveable misfits be able to stay together despite the odds, or are they doomed to lose each other again?” This simple question is what caused my heart to stop for most of the book. And yet, without spoiling it, I think the resolution to their story was the best example of their incredible character growth throughout the series and the most fitting closure I could have asked for. (Also, can I just say how much I loved that Zylas had a new nickname for Robin in every book? Be still my beating heart.)

But while these two and their connection was (for me at least) the heart of the story, there was also so much more going on. This finale was super fast-paced and action-packed and in between all the fighting, running, scheming and plotting, the fate of a world was actually at stake. Not to mention, finding out what Xever’s endgame is and stopping him from unleashing untold horrors on earth. So trust me when I say there will not be a boring chapter in this entire finale. Better to take your time to read it, because you will not want to stop. (I was so hooked that I sneaked in little reads at work because I could not wait until I was home to continue reading, so be warned)

“But I ask you this, daughter of my daughter, honorable scribe, survivor, sorceress: When will it end?
Three millennia after Melitta had asked, I had the answer. It would end with me.”

Also, one thing I always liked about the Demonized series is the fact that it was like a deep dive into the world of Demonica. Thanks to it, we got to know more about the mythic class that is all about the demons, either summoning them or contracting them, and their history. And we got to know more about the demons themselves, their world, their culture and their language. And I loved how the finale brought all of this together.

To sum it all up, I can only say THANK YOU to Annette Marie for bringing these characters and their world to life and for telling their stories in both Demonized and Spellbound. This has been my most loved series for the past two years (again, wow, it’s only been two years?) and I now have a giant hole in my life. Luckily, there is more coming from this world soon (both the Warped series and the newly announced Unveiled series, which I am ECSTATIC about). And of course, I’m already itching for a re-read!

And if you are still reading my review, please, give this series a try. From the magical worldbuilding to the masterfully developed characters and from the heartwrenching romance to the nail-biting action scenes, this is one series you just can’t miss!

Author bio:

Annette Marie is the author of Amazon best-selling YA urban fantasy series Steel & Stone, its prequel trilogy Spell Weaver, and romantic fantasy trilogy Red Winter. Her first love is fantasy, but fast-paced adventures and tantalizing forbidden romances are her guilty pleasures. She lives in the frozen winter wasteland of Alberta, Canada (okay, it’s not quite that bad) with her husband and their furry minion of darkness—sorry, cat—Caesar. When not writing, she can be found elbow-deep in one art project or another while blissfully ignoring all adult responsibilities.
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