*Review posted on Page Turners Blog on 4/3/2012*

Am I the only one who gets a little anxious at the thought of a series ending? And this series in particular had me at the very edge of my seat pretty much from the end of book one. This was book three, how was I going to survive this rollercoaster of a plot?

I shouldn't have worried because there are only a handful of authors who can hit that end note and hit it well. Holly Black is definitely one of those authors. Boy, do I love her world. Think about it, a world where certain people can put curses on others? The noir feel of the first two stories made me remember my love of a well told darker tale and the third one, let me just go on record as saying that it was pitch perfectly told.

But let's face it, I read stories because I adore characters. And Holly's cast of characters is hands down one of my very favorites. Cassel's family -- his mother, grandfather and brother and the lovely and consistent Lila are such perfectly constructed characters. I just have to stop for a moment because my fangirl side is showing. The mark of a great author is how they bring these characters to life. Holly's such a master at this because I loved every single one of them and if not loved, well, at least understood perfectly (yes, even the antagonist). In Black Heart, I adored the back story of Cassel's mother and father. Holly does this so well. She gives us these believable little glimpses into their past decisions and then we fully understand their current situation.

I can't let this go without mentioning my real life panic towards the end of the story. No spoilers I promise, but as a mom, I was hoping that Cassel would make a certain decision. However as a reader swept away by this subplot, I may have whispered a very relieved "yes!". And then I may have tweeted the hash tag #ohmyheart. That sums up my feelings reading this book -- oh . my . heart. It's just so good.