Age of Deception ended on such an exciting cliffhanger that I immediately hit the buy button on the next book and started reading. And Threshold of Annihilation, the third instalment in The Firebird Chronicles, didn’t disappoint.
In this third stage of Kira’s adventure, we see our favourite alien action heroine separating from the Tuann unexpectedly as she is forced off planet by the antics of her young niece, Elena, who we find out is the secret daughter of two very important characters, and whose existence may be the key to the Tsavatee’s evil schemes.
But when Kira attempts to quietly return her niece to her caregiver, she finds that the planet she’s been hiding Elena on is currently closed to non-citizens unless they are participating in the Quorum, Olympic-style galactic games being hosted on the world. In order to get her ticket onto the planet, Kira enrols as a waveboard racer in the games.
But things get complicated when Kira finds out that the Tuann have also sent a delegation to the games, including Kira’s handsome and determined suitor, Graydon, who is intent on getting Kira back into the protective custody of her people. To complicate the situation further, Kira finds out that the woman she’s been searching for since she woke from her coma may finally be in her grasp, and a key player in a plot by the Tsavatee to sabotage the games.
Threshold of Annihilation contains more of everything we love, from banter to feats of athleticism, and takes the romance between Kira and Graydon to a whole new level. But what I enjoyed most about this read was the new sense of depth T. A. White brings to Kira’s universe by sending Kira beyond the borders of human and Tuann territory and introducing a whole new race of aliens. The world building didn’t get in the way of the action, but was blended nicely with the plot and pacing while adding cultural and linguistic nuances that made the new alien race feel real and gave an expanded sense of reality to Kira’s world.
This third book also brings a new sense of urgency to the overarching series plot of impending war with the Tsavatee, and ends on a sad and unexpected character death that comes with a world-altering revelation. I have a feeling things are going to get serious in the next instalment, so I can’t wait to read The Firebird Chronicles Book Four, Facets of Revolution to find out whether Kira and Graydon can stop the war with the Tsavatee, or whether their universe is about to explode into all-out destruction before it can be saved!
