Title : Last Rite
Series : Personal Demons #3
Author : Lisa Desrochers
Pages : 368
Release Date : May 8 2012
Publisher : Tor Teen / Raincoast Books
Format : ARC
Source :
*Thanks to Raincoast Books for providing this copy in exchange of an honest review*




My Opinion :


In Personal Demons, we met the wonderful trio; Gabe, an angel, Luc, a demon, and Frannie, a really special human. She's special enough for Lucifer (you know, that bad guy that lives in Hell) to actually send demons after her.

In Original Sin, we still see the trio, but Gabe is less present, which didn't really make me unhappy, because I'm Team Luc.

And now, in the final book of this amazing trilogy, called Last Rite, many secrets are finally unraveled, and Frannie finally discovers what she really is. And everything inally becomes better - or worse, depending if you are for the bad guy.

I can't really do a full review on my deep love for this book without revealing any spoily spoilers for people who haven't read any of the trilogy (about that.... why haven't they? I have to admit, PD was slow, but the other two books are AMAZING! Go get them. Now (well, after my review))

As I said, Last Rite was great. I loved it so much, guys. I loved Original Sin, but Last Rite was even BETTER than that!

Frannie is finally NOT annoying! (*happy sigh*) I think that's one of the things that didn't make me enjoy the previous books as much as I loved Last Rite.

In Last Rite, there is so much action; you don't see the time flying and you can't keep yourself from turning another page, then another, then by the time you know it, you have finished the book. Which sucks, because it was too awesome.

READ THIS SERIES.

PLEASE.

RATING

4.5 roses! ( )

This was a tough one for me. I greatly enjoyed the first two books in the series, but had some trouble getting through this one.

First, the things I liked: This one is again told from the alternating first-person perspectives of the 3 main characters, Frannie, Luc, and Gabe. While I like this aspect for story telling purposes because it allows you to know what's going on in the personal thought processes of each character, and it allows you to get the story in a sort of "real-time" kind of way, even when all the characters are separated, I didn't find much of a difference in the voice of each character. So, you do have to pay attention to the page breaks where it specifies which character is talking, and the pronouns used about which characters, to follow who it is that is supposed to be narrating at that particular time.

I enjoyed that we get to know a little bit more about Frannie's family members, and find it intriguing that there are still so many stories that could be explored there. I think this could very eaily be made into a large extended series, between what happens to Frannie's sisters as a result of these events, and the potential for prequels featuring Frannie's parents and grandparents. Although, whether or not that is something that is actually planned, I have no idea.I just think the opportunity is there, should the author choose to walk through that door, and I would certainly be willing to read more about this interesting family, and explore their dynamics a bit further.

What I didn't like: We didn't get as much of the emotional connection between Frannie and Luc in this one. There is still some romance there, but it is not as prominent, nor is it as scorching in its chemistry as it was in the previous two books. I understand that they've just been through some major stuff and are very awkward and hesitant around each other, but to me, it wound up detracting from some of the emotional connection they should have had in the climax of the story to make it that much more satisfying. I also felt like Frannie was incredibly selfish in this book, particularly in context of the love-triangle between her, Gabe, and Luc, and MOST especially in context of what it was doing to Gabe. Related to that issue, I felt the miscommunications, as in, "I'm just not going to tell so-and-so about this major thing that is happenening for their own good, when in reality it is going to cause things to all go horribly wrong" were a bit overused, to the point it got irritating. "Oh, this character is not going to say anything about this issue to the other characters who might help them figure things out? What a surprise." (Hint: note the sarcasm)

The other thing that got to me as I was reading this book is that, especially about half way through, pretty much ALL of the characters we have met in previous books started showing up, and SO MUCH started happening, that it was hard to keep track of everything. It got downright confusing, to the point where I had to go back and re-read portions to figure out what was going on, or just plow through and hope it got cleared up as I read. I suppose having a plethora of action and conflicts is better than not having enough and being bored, but it did have an effect on my ability to just get lost in the story a bit.

So, overall, I would say if you have read the first two in the series, definitely go ahead and read this one. It's certainly not horrible, or a let down that ruins the rest of the series in any way. It just wasn't quite as much as I had hoped for based on the previous books. And, should the author decide to continue writing any related stories, I will still plan on reading them. ( )

Why read: Received for review

What impressed me: Last Rite finally answered all my burning questions, and managed to do so in a surprising manner. Most importantly, what is Frannie's purpose in the grand scheme of things. It was wonderful to finally see exactly what her power could do and what that meant for both good and evil.

What disappointed me: I actually had to check to make sure this was the final book in the series. You'd expect that the end of a series would have more finality that Last Rite did. It ended well, but left the future wide open which always annoys me. And of course, the romance has always kind of irked me throughout the series and continued the trend right to the very end.

Recommended: Yes. If you've read this far, you'll want to know what happens with Frannie, Luc and Gabe. ( )

This is the last book in the personal demons series. I have to admit right off the bat that I did not enjoy this book as much as I thought. I had some serious problems with Frannie for one and the plot for me, I just didn't connect.


Frannie has grown much. She has some big descions to make. As a reader of this series, I am not happy with some of descions that Frannie made. I did however, enjoy Frannie learning so much. Many secrets are exposed and it's nince to see Frannie handle everything with such grace.


The love interest. Not going to spoil it, but I did like it. I am happy with what Frannie chose.

I'll leave it at that.


The plot of this book did not enjoy so much. There are some parts of the book that rubbed me the wrong way. But again, that just me.


Last Rite is a great book. Filled with much action, love and sarcrafice, Last Rite takes the reader for one heck of a ride. Explosive from start to finish, Last Rite is great! ( )

GoodReads Synopsis: In this final installment of the thrilling, edgy Personal Demons series, the battle between Heaven and Hell has become critical, and Frannie Cavanaugh is right at the center of it.

With the help of the powerful angel Gabe and demon-turned-mortal Luc, Frannie has been able to stay one step ahead of the forces of Hell. But when the demons killed Frannie's best friend and destroyed her brother, they raised the stakes. If Frannie wants to keep her family and friends safe, she knows she has no choice but to go on the run.

Their best defense is the power Frannie has been struggling to master, but her attempts to hone her skill go horribly awry. If Frannie doesn't learn fast, the consequences could be devastating--even apocalyptic.

What happens when you can't outrun Hell...or trust the ones you love?

My Thoughts: Just when you think you know where a story is going, BAM, Lisa DesRochers throws ya a curve ball.

We always knew it was going to come down to a battle with King Lucifer…all the revelations leading up to that battle and then what goes down during that “battle” were surprising and “edge of your seat”. There is still so much we don’t know about Frannie…a lot Frannie doesn’t know about herself as we start “Last Rite”.
I thought we would see more of Matt and Gabe’s transformation made for some compelling reading. A couple of new characters are introduced to add tension and will become pivotal. And all the talk of King Lucifer and his motivations was really interesting and thought provoking. Ultimately Frannie has to follow her heart and figure out what and who to believe. Which isn’t as easy for her to do as you might think.

From beginning to end, this was a very compelling and enjoyable series. I loved all the characters, especially Luc, Gabe, and Grampa Ed. I’m a sucker for stories of redemption. And while I’m sorry to see it end, just like all really good series, I’m emotionally invested in the characters and look forward to revisiting the books in the future. ( )