ARC Review: Candle & Crow by Kevin Hearne

Candle & Crow
Author: Kevin Hearne
Series: Ink & Sigil (Book 3)
Publication: Del Rey (October 1, 2024)

Description: From the New York Times bestselling author of The Iron Druid Chronicles comes the final book in the “action-packed, enchantingly fun” (Booklist) Ink & Sigil series, as an ink-slinging wizard pursues the answer to a very personal mystery: Who cast a pair of curses on his head?

Al MacBharrais has a most unusual job: He’s a practitioner of ink-and-sigil magic, tasked with keeping order among the gods and monsters that dwell hidden in the human world. But there’s one supernatural mystery he’s never been able to solve: Years ago, someone cast twin curses on him that killed off his apprentices and drove away loved ones who heard him speak, leaving him bereft and isolated.

But he’s not quite alone: As Al works to solve this mystery, his friends draw him into their own eccentric dramas. Buck Foi the hobgoblin has been pondering his own legacy—and has a plan for a daring shenanigan that will make him the most celebrated hobgoblin of all. Nadia, goth queen and battle seer, is creating her own cult around a god who loves whisky and cheese. 

And the Morrigan, a former Irish death goddess, has decided she wants not only to live as an ordinary woman but also to face the most perilous challenge of the mortal world: online dating.

Meanwhile, Al crosses paths with old friends and new—including some beloved Druids and their very good dogs—in his globe-trotting quest to solve the mystery of his curses. But he’s pulled in so many different directions by his colleagues, a suspicious detective, and the whims of destructive gods that Al begins to wonder: Will he ever find time to write his own happy ending?

My Thoughts: The final book in the Ink & Sigil trilogy wraps things up nicely. Al MacBharrais has been cursed with two different curses. One kills his apprentices and the other makes anyone who hears his voice too often hate him. He is determined to find out who cursed him and to break the curses.

Before Al can deal with his personal problems though, he has to deal with the Blue Men of the Minch who are sinking luxury yachts. According to their contract, they aren't in violation of any of the terms. Al learns that the yachts they sink are being used by traffickers among whom is a man who is a power behind the government and who also happens to be a warlock. 

Al also has to deal with his hobgoblin Buck Foi who wants to start his own family and become the most celebrated hobgoblin of all time. And Al's accountant is starting her own cult around a god who loves whiskey and cheese and who eats violent men. 

I really enjoyed this conclusion to the trilogy. I like the way it mixes all sorts of mythologies into an entertaining adventure. I liked that Al finally gets his happy ending. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.