The Demon's Surrender by Sarah Rees Brennan

Title: The Demon's Surrender

Author: Sarah Rees Brennan
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 978-1-84738-291-7
Pages: 383
Series: The Demon's Lexicon #3
Type: Young Adult Urban Fantasy
Source: Purchased
Goodreads


The Goblin Market has always been Sin's home and she always expected to spend her nights dancing for the demons and her days learning to take over as the Market's next leader. But now Sin's home is in danger. The Market is at war with the magicians, a demon has been made flesh and Sin finds herself competing against her friend Mae for the leadership role. Most disturbing of all is Sin's attraction to Alan Ryves. She has always feared and disliked the Ryves brothers but soon comes to realise they may be the only people she can trust.

This is the third and final book in the Demon's Lexicon trilogy (after The Demon's Lexicon and The Demon's Covenant). This time the story is told from the perspective of Sin, the lead dancer at the Goblin Market, and again the change in narrator allows the reader to explore new aspects of the world of the book. This time the focus is securely on the Goblin Market and the world building is incredibly deep, really capturing the uniqueness of the event and its workers. It also allows a focus on the intoxicating demon dances and what it really means to be a dancer.

The story is fast paced, whisking the reader through a quick flashback to Sin's past to terrifying tests to determine the Market's future leader to an action-packed finale. There is no holding back in this book and all aspects of the world are changed, all motivations are questions and all characters are shown in new lights. Along with the increased scale of the battles, there is also more romance in this installment as Sin and Alan begin to develop a relationship and Mae and Nick continue with theirs.

Sin's voice is different to the previous narrators of Nick and Mae. Not only does she have a unique perspective as a dancer, but Sin is incredibly mature for her age. Since her mother's possession and death, Sin has been raising her younger siblings almost single handedly so when the security of her world is disrupted it is not only herself she fears for. Allowing a more mature narrator to end the trilogy was a brilliant choice as it really helps to highlight how much all the characters have grown.

While Sin's story is the main focus of the book, the other characters continue in their own development. I love how the author has a clearly defined narrator but manages to tell the other character's stories in a separate yet intertwined way. The book steps back from Sin's viewpoint at times so the reader can experience and understand Nick's progress as a demon, or what is going on with Jamie and Seb. This book completes the total reshape of the character's worlds in a grippingly realistic manner.

All in all this was a great read and I thoroughly recommend the entire trilogy to any young adult or urban fantasy fans.

Plot: 10/10
Characters: 9/10
Ending: 10/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Cover: 9/10

Overall: 48/50