Memoria is the third book in JJ Fischer’s excellent Nightingale trilogy, following Calor and Lumen (click to read my earlier reviews).
This is definitely a series you want to read in order, and you’ll probably enjoy them all the more if you’re able to read them back-to-back, rather than having to wait a year between books (as I did). It’s also a series you might want to read in paperback so you can refer to the map and see where Sephone, Dorian, and their companions are travelling from and to.
The trilogy is a fantasy retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s story of the Nightingale … which I’d never heard of before reading Calor, and which I still haven’t read because I didn’t want spoilers.
It’s also a trilogy with strong Christian allegorical undertones, particularly in the second and third books. Allegory can be difficult. I’ve read stories where the allegory was so strong that it felt like it had pushed the plot aside. The allegory in Memoria and the rest of the Nightingale series is more like the allegory in the Tales of Narnia—it’s there, but you’re not going to enjoy the story any less because you don’t pick up that Aslan is a Jesus figure.
So to the story …
Caldera is a kingdom divided, and one where some people have unusual gifts. Sephone can alter memories–she can give people memories of things they haven’t experienced, or she can remove unwanted memories. But this gift comes at a cost for her and for the people she touches, and using her gift further is going to kill her.
Dorian is a nobleman haunted by memories of his dead wife and daughter.
He wants Sephone to remove the memories but she has refused because of the effect it will have on both of them (not least, because Dorian’s memories have made him the man he is today), and because she is not powerful enough to remove the memories permanently. Dorian sought an artifact called the Reliquary to solve that problem, but now realises the only lasting solution is to use the Reliquary to give his remaining years to Sephone. Sephone, of course, is against that idea.
So begins their final journey with their faithful companions. They learn nothing is as it seems, and sometimes when we get what we think we want, we discover we had wanted the wrong thing.
As the third book in an epic Young Adult fantasy trilogy, Memoria ticks all the boxes.
It has friends and enemies, and characters who could be either. It has twists and turns, battles and betrayals, some of which were expected (well, there always has to be a final battle between good and evil),and some of which were not (which is what makes a fantasy great).
One of the advantages of fantasy as a genre is the fact that most great fantasies include a spiritual thread as part of the fantasy world. Memoria is no exception, as it brings to fulfilment the faith element, which has a definite Christian theme for those with eyes to see. For those who don’t, Memoria is simply a ripping edge-of-the-seat adventure story that does a great job of balancing the plot and the characters, and keeping the focus on the two main characters: Sephone and Dorian.
Young adult (or adult) readers looking or a strong fantasy series which reinforces Christian principles and offers deep insights into the human condition will enjoy Memoria.
But do read the series from the beginning.
Thanks to Enclave Publishing for providing a free ebook for review.
About J J Fischer
About Memoria
Would you save a life if you knew it would destroy another?
In the deeply divided world of Caldera, nothing is as it seems. Taken captive by a faceless enemy, Sephone Winter fights to reclaim her soul as her gift spirals out of control and the deadly poison coursing through her veins begins to exact its terrible vengeance.
Meanwhile, Dorian and Cass are forced into an uneasy alliance in order to find the woman they both love . . . a woman who has all but vanished from the face of the earth, along with the Reliquary. Finding her becomes impossible as the identity of their greatest adversary continues to elude them.
When Caldera’s past catches up with the trio’s future, Sephone, Dorian, and Cass are forced to make decisions that threaten everything and everyone they care about. Each of them is offered a chance to sacrifice their own happiness for the sake of the other—but will they take it? And what will it cost them in the end?
The Nightingale Trilogy is a fantasy transformation of Hans Christian Andersen’s beloved 1843 tale The Nightingale, with echoes of the myths of Hades and Persephone.
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