3.5 stars.

This had a pretty slow start, and in fact it wasn't until maybe 2/3 through that it won me over like the previous two books did. But I'm glad I stuck with it until that point, because at its peak this is incredible — good people who have to do not-so-good things, genuinely difficult moral dilemmas, sociopolitical tensions and their effect on individuals and communities.

There are a few moments that were a little much for me in their Pollyanna-ness:

Spoiler

some of the letters, moments with Peder, Dogface's abrupt reformation

. But overall, it was a nice third installment with characters I grew to love.