Will I ever stop crying?
No, probably not.
The Burning God is a masterpiece.
A strategy-war masterpiece and another finale to rip my soul in half.
There's a lot of pain throughout this series. That's one of the first things people reference about TPW. Though this was different on so many levels, especially at the end.
Rin has truly gone through hell and back to achieve her goals and help those she deems worthy across the series, and it's culmination in this finale was INTENSE. It's melancholic and traumatic to watch her win and fail numerous times because she starts to lose bits and pieces from herself.
I'd argue this is a very truthful depiction of the aftermath in a Civil War. It's a good depiction for new rulers. It's certainly a damn honest depiction of colonization.
The whole last hundred pages were some of the most painful sections to read for a lot of reasons, but I cannot list them since they include spoilers. Maybe I'll come back to this review later to scream and cry about my spoilery thoughts, but for now I'm going to be a sob-induced, vague mess.
All I have left to say is again, this is another finale where the ending only has one trajectory, and while I did not forsee exactly what comes to fruition.. It made sense, but it was a knife to the heart. I'm so thankful to Rebecca for writing this incredible trilogy. It may have been a doozy to my heart, but it will always hold a high place in my heart/ head. She deserves SO many rewards!
TW: Extreme famine, animal brutality, torture, racism, paranoia, drowning, suicide, claustrophobia, relationship abuse, starvation, colonialism, and significant war scenes/ themes.