Court of Death and Dreams

The Forsaken, Book 3

By: Meg Anne

Narrated by: Stella Hunter, Shane East, James Joseph

Court of Death and Dreams is the third book in a brand-new trilogy set in the Chosen Universe. Fans of Sarah J. Maas and Jennifer L. Armentrout will adore this sizzling and addictive high fantasy romance.

©2022 Meg Anne (P)2022 Meg Anne

Enthusiastically LOVE-LOVE-LOVE!

I very enthusiastically and wholeheartedly recommend this thrilling romantic fantasy adventure!! Meg Anne has been on my must-listen list for a while now, but the Forsaken series & Mate Games firmly cemented her at the front of the lineup! Just WOW! So many amazingly brilliant characters with a rich history and new ways to explore magic - but not so much that I ever felt like I needed to take notes or read an appendix to understand. The story flows like water with magical twists and turns I never saw coming! I was hooked from beginning to end, and when I finished I wanted more…so I listened again! It’s not easy to tie up a story like this and weave all of the threads together in a way that satisfies readers. Reyna and Ronan’s story has been thrilling, exciting, mysterious, and just an all-around fantastic adventure with a deeply devoted love story at the heart of it all!

There are so many incredible characters in this world with so many possibilities! We even get to revisit beloved characters from previous books in the overall series arc, The Chosen Series. I absolutely loved Bast and look forward to Prince of Sea & Stars, and hopefully many more adventures. Count me in for all of it, with bells on! I want more of these characters, this world, and pretty much anywhere Meg Anne wants to take me.

Shane East and Stella Hunter with James Joseph is absolute perfection for casting! The performances are beautiful and powerful. So much complexity to the story, the characters, and the world. With incredible accent work and so many characters I never lost track once. Shane, Stella, and James move flawlessly between characters, accents, ages, and varying passionate displays of anger, chaos, absolute despair, elation, snark, romance, defeat, and passionate declarations of love. Just wow! I laughed, I cried, I cheered on the power of love and friendship, and I truly experienced this story in a way that would not be possible without such wonderful writing, performances, casting, and editing. More, please!

One helluva ride ! Hold on tight for this amazing Finale

Meg Anne never fails she picks up right where she left us hanging on by a thread. Book starts with Sebastian “Bast” giving his POV and he kicks things off by keeping his eye on Ronan and Shadow aka Reyna, he’s interrupted by our friends from the Chosen Series, Effie and Lucian. I love the fact Bastia just who he is, and is so free with his wondering eyes over both Effie and Lucian however the Guardian isn’t having that . Their banter gets me every time throughout the book.
We find that Ronan and Reyna are held captive by Erevos who will stop at nothing to have his Shadow the assassin at his side . Bast and the crew making dangerous plans to save them . In this fast paced journey of dark magic, prophesy and death we are in for a ride . I am going to fast forward because this book has left me in pieces ,because I didn’t want it to end. Also i don’t want to give the amazing finale away So many twist, turns and gut punches in this finale . I will say if you want the full back story of charactersI would start with the The Keepers first books 1-3 , Then the Chosen 1-3 so that these characters mentioned you will understand how they all come together .

The narration is top shelf , I cannot express how Stella Hunter , Shane East and James Joseph have so much talent, as they narrate these characters I feel as though I know them all personally . Meg Anne writes these fascinating stories so intriguing you cannot stop as I always say “ Just one more character” . The nods to the “Princess Bride “ are priceless – but hey don’t be the one hearing about it, be the one talking about it . This is my honest review of this amazing book .

Perfect ending to the trilogy, loved every second

Welcome to the third book of the Foresaken Trilogy, and the final book of the Chosen Universe. Buckle up, it’s definitely a bumpy, but thoroughly enjoyable ride! The action, the adventure, the love, the tears, the laughter, the joy, and the Princess Bride inspiration, every last second of it is utter perfection, and an absolutely brilliant stamp on what has been a spectacular ride. And if you aren’t listening to this in audiobook form, you’re missing out on a whole level of mind blowing awesomeness.

As Ronan and Reyna finally fight their way, quite literally, back to each other, and with Erebos countering their every strike, we get to experience an all hands on deck rescue mission for the ages. All our favorite characters from the previous trilogies are here to help their dear friends, in a true show of power and force that not even a god can overcome in the end. And even better, when some of our stalwart favorites meet our new favorites, their personalities and interactions come together for some of the absolute best banter you will ever encounter in a book. I truly can’t get enough of these characters, and it’s a bittersweet thought knowing that we’re moving on from this universe. But I do know that we haven’t seen the last of some of these characters, so I am going to be ecstatic when I see future books that let us spend more time with them down the road (especially looking forward to Bast’s story).

I want to make a point to talk about the Princess Bride inspiration that I swear just got stronger and stronger with each book in this trilogy. I was literally giddy at one particular turn of events that played out a very familiar revenge plot, easily one of my absolutely favorite parts of the book, and it wasn’t even Ronan and Reyna’s arc (and I love them beyond words). But the combination of a fantasy universe that I’ve loved in these books, mashed up with what is arguably one of the best romantic fantasy movies ever made, well it just made my heart soar with complete joy.

The audiobook is a thing of utter beauty. Multi-cast duet narration, with a small but powerful cast of narrators that simply nail every word, every emotion, every heartbeat that this story has to give. These audiobooks will spoil you for every other audiobook, and you are truly missing out on a singularly phenomenal experience if you don’t give them a listen.

Welcome to the Top 5 Fantasy Ranks

Meg Anne artfully balances this specific books story line while closing any lingering subplots that carried over from the other books to a full close. Her high energy writing doesn’t falter and maintains it’s pace through out, even to the ending. Personally, I found that the romance and comedic elements to the story line helped keep a high tempo pace, slowing down the action just enough so that we as an audience, were not overwhelmed all at once. It allowed us to process the information enough that we wouldn’t feel those mic drop moments, because like with any Meg Anne book, mics. were. dropped. That made those moments all the more potent, since we were lulled into a sense of safety before having that pretty glittery rug pulled. I was also satisfied with the endings that each character got. In some cases, I felt that a certain character’s endings couldn’t end any other way, especially since the book itself took care of telling us as readers why it needed to end that way. I also really liked how certain characters had to earn the ending that they got. For me that was key. When I finished, I felt quite emotional, but very much at peace and fulfilled.

Favorites from the book:

Would it be too cheesy to say the whole book itself is a favorite? Yeah well sucks, because I loved the entire thing but if I must give some highlights:

- Characters: One of my favorite things about Meg Anne’s books are the complex characters that she writes, even for characters that aren’t playing a major role. As readers we never know whether or not they will end up becoming stars in their own books or maybe even spin offs. Speaking of characters:

Sebastian Villehardouin of Colvers: This character became an ABSOLUTE favorite of mine. He inserted himself in my heart and has refused to let go of the perch he now holds. I loved that this book really shed light on the character depth I knew he had and was present in the other books, only now we could see the hints for what they were. His story line was heartbreaking and boy did I freaking cry like a baby when he had his ‘prepare to die” moment.

Reyna : This character will forever stick with me. I have felt a strong connection with other female protagonist before but there was something about Reyna that just spoke to my soul in a different way. I loved seeing the “Reyna” side to her in this book. She had some moments that made me go weak in the knees, like swooning in Spanish telenovela style. She kicked ass this book

Ronan: He really did break me this book. Seeing his character go through what he did, broke my heart because I was not used to seeing a character like his go through that brokenness and then come out swinging. Ronan is the type of man who would quite literally walk through death to get to you. That dedication, hell, if it ain’t like that I DONT WANT IT

The Dreamer: If you know you know but like I said they earned what they got in the end and I loved it for them.

Caly: I freaking love Caly and have one of the biggest girl crushes on this pirate. I mean clearly I am not the only one. Several of the other characters have a hard on for her and I dont blame them. She is intelligent, sassy, and oozes this bad girl persona. I mean if we can have a thing for bad boys, we can certainly have it for bad girls.

- Bromance/ Girlmance: The bromance in this book was STRONG and I loved every single second of it. Im not just talking about Ronan and Bast btw. Those moments where Bast and another character bickered were giving me life. Not to mention that girlmance between Caly, Reyna and the two other female characters… ugh… my girl crush was real!

- Vows: Prepare thy tissues… that is all

- Battle of the Lorelei : Don’t have anything near you when you get to this, and just remember to breathe through it.

- Captains Quarters: Prepare thy fan… that is all

- The comedy, romance and action: each one of these elements were top notch. I cackled and snorted at various points with different characters, I swooned, I cried and I felt like my heart was suspended and on baited breath as action unfolded.

Narration Review

I was lucky enough to get the printed copy before listening to the audio and when I say that my inner Stella, James and Shane voices did not do these narrators justice as I read through the book would be a complete understatement. Their performances in this book are a master class on what it means to bring writing to life. They made me feel like I was reading the book for the first time all over again, and hell it was a beautiful thing. Now onto a few highlights of their performances

Stella Hunter:
- That voice that she gave Caly, gave me the biggest girl girl crush. I mean damn, it was soft, lyrical, entrancing but most of all BRITISH! No wonder Bronn and Drake were enthralled with Caly if she sounded like that. My god.
- The Vows: Oh I was ugly crying as soon as those vows began. The raw emotion that was behind the performance really brought the words to life, some points had such a vehemence that I swear I felt them in my soul. Anyone who hears them, RIP your heart.
- One thing I loved about this book is that we are able to see Reyna as herself, the Forsaken Queen, and you can feel that power and regal quality in the narrative voice that Stella gives Reyna. She infuses it in her voice, without pushing it too hard, and it makes you feel those goosebumps when she delivers those lines. It a beautiful balance and it can be down right freaking scary.
- Some of the lines that had me cackling on the floor were delivered by Stella as various characters. They always felt on time with her scene partner and the voices she gave the characters for certain performances just added to the hilarity.
- Stellas vocal range in this book was epic. There were so many different female characters within the same scene, and she kept each distinctive and we as readers immediately knew who was talking. Not once did I have to wonder who was saying what and the accent work .. Chefs freaking kiss

James Joseph:

- I place 50% of the reason I’ve had a hard time FULLY hating the baddie in this series on Meg Anne and the other 50% on James Joseph. It is down right criminal how he can make a sadistic evil GOD sound so freaking sexy. James gave Erebos a hypnotic quality that you really couldnt help but just melting into. It was honestly an experience where I truly would forget what the hell he had done until post his lines and other characters would react. Bravo.
- I was so amazed at his performance as Bast in this book. He carried that humorous/ caricature quality to him when it was needed, but being in his POV we saw a different depth to the character, that I felt James wove into his performance through out the series but was fully able to play and explore in this book. I love those tender moments, the moments of focus and they made all the more impact because of how well he built up his Bast character. Also props to James for keeping that accent and then switching into the different characters with such ease, or at least it felt like ease. It never faltered.
- There is another character who I briefly mentioned but wont go more into depth for but you could completely tell the difference between who we originally saw when this character was introduced and the influence a certain someone had over him and when it snapped vs who he really was, and it was beautiful to see that distinction.

Shane East:

- Shane East broke me a little as Ronan this book. Spherically during one of the Erebos and Ronan scenes. I had never really heard such brokenness from this character and the way that delivered it just had me weeping in a little ball. It wasn’t overly performed, it was subtle, soft and just raw. It was a stark contrast to the normal Ronan, and even the vulnerable Ronan we had seen thus far.
- There is only so much swooning that a person can do and boy, Shane just makes your naturally swoon, especially when he is playing Ronan. That moment between him and Reyna in the captains quarters, or even when they were alone. Seriously heart failure, but we knew that. He played up that flirty quality to his voice, but he also infused with a deep sense of caring.
- The moments of Bromance between Ronan and Bast and even the moments of two other characters with Bast were epic. I was dying half the time because you could hear the exasperation in the vocal performance and yet you could slightly also tell that they found joy in poking each other.

Loved it.

The Forsaken series is completely and it was a bittersweet ending for everyone. Ronan and Reyna had to fight for each other and the ending. *sigh*
I absolutely loved the cameo appearances from other characters in previous books.
The narrators, Stella Hunter, Shane East, and James Joseph are fantastic narrators. They elevated the story and breathed life j to the characters. The variety of tones and inflections used are great. The emotions come across very clearly.
I absolutely recommend this series but make sure to read it in order.

Soooooo romantic!

My fav story is the princess bride and it just made me smile to the nods to the story weaved thruout this one. The narration in this story is EPIC! Great story amazing narration. An easy 5 star for me!

The forsaken series by Meg Anne

This series is wonderful!! I wish it had been longer Niger but I throughly enjoyed reading about Ronan and Raina and would love to read more!!!’ Meg Anne has a very loyal follower in me !!

5 Star Listen!!

This is yet another series written by Meg Anne that I did NOT want to end. Of course I know it had to, but, yeah. I honestly couldn't have asked for a better ending for Reyna and Ronan than this. I am honestly shocked I didn't cry more. The part that got me in the feels wasn't until Ronan & Bast say goodbye. "Not friends, brothers." Cue the waterworks. 
So much scorching heat between Ronan and Reyna. My goodness! I needed to fan myself quite a bit. The other thing that I loved through this book was not only the emotion, but the humor. I caught myself giggling along with every silly thing Bast said.
And though I didn't think it would be possible, Kieran's story arc surpised me in a good way. The epilogue with him was perfect!
Two other characters that I'd love to see more of were Calypso and Drake. Like, what happened with the bet? Why wasn't he talking? I need to know!
And last but not least, Stella Hunter, Shane East and James Joseph took Meg's characters and gave them a life of their own. Absolutely amazing quartet of talent..I'm including Meg in that because she wrote every word those narrators said.

show down

after saving Ronin one more show down Ronan and Reyna face to get the happy ending. A must read and/or listen.

Masterful storytelling and an epic conclusion!

There’s so much I want to say about this book and I wish that I was half as eloquent as Meg Anne so that I could do it justice. It’s a testament to her talent at writing unique, colorful and interesting characters that it seems so fitting for this final book in The Forsaken series to begin with the character who is the epitome of that description – Bast, the charming, lovable rogue who stole our hearts in the previous two books and would like to steal Ronan from Von as his BFF. (I laughed out loud each time they tried to outdo each other and make the “best friend” claim on Ronan.) The story begins when Bast realizes that Ronan and Reyna have disappeared from the beach and it proceeds at a breakneck pace the rest of the way. After Erebos captures them, they are separated once again and we are taken on a thrilling, action-packed journey of suspense and a constant state of wonder as to how they’ll find their way back to each other - again. Meg may take us through the most momentous cliffhangers and keep us permanently perched on the edge of our seats, but she always brings us to a wonderful conclusion that makes it all so very worth it.

I must say that as often as I held my breath waiting to see what was going to happen next, I absolutely loved the times when everything slowed briefly for a stolen moment of searing hot passion or a tender, deeply felt declaration of love. Those latter moments stirred my heart so completely and made my eyes misty, just like Effie. Speaking of Effie, I was so happy so see her return along with Lucian, Helena and Von. They’re a mighty force to be reckoned with and just what Ronan and Reyna needed. But seeing his dear, old friends fight alongside his new friends was more fun than I could have imagined. One thing that makes for masterful storytelling is when the main characters have such interesting sidekicks. Each one of them either stars in their own stories from The Chosen series or is deserving of their very own story in the future. This story and these characters completely captivated me and had me cheering them on for their strength, bravery, heroism, devotion and redemption. To quote Lucian, they are an unlikely group of heroes. A Kiri and her Circle, the Vessel and the Voice, Guardians, even pirates . . . and whatever Bast is. Effie calls him the light and I’ll call him the lover. And let’s not forget the Dreamer. They’re all incredible, I love them dearly and can’t wait to see what adventures are next for them (especially for some of our newer friends).

Stella Hunter, Shane East and James Joseph are simply wonderful in their narration. They are perfect in each of their many roles with just the right nuances, voices and accents. They convey strength, fear, determination, pain, passion, anger, love, frustration, pride, wonder, humor and devotion all throughout and without missing a beat. To transition from one character and emotion to the next so flawlessly is both fantastic and impressive. Their performances bring this already incredible story to life in the most perfect way! There were so many times that I replayed a part of the story because the words were so beautifully written and so incredibly spoken that I wanted to relive them again. This is storytelling at its best!