Seal of the Worm by Adrian Tchaikovsky

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The new world had undone the follies of the old... 

The world is coming to an end… In the aftermath of the Wasp Empire’s final victory and the fall of Collegium, all seems lost. In Capitas, Empress Seda stands victorious, her archnemesis cast down into a dark underworld from which there is no escape. But her victory has come at a price – in her pride, the Empress has shattered the Seal and unleashed the Worm on the world once again. As it stirs, entire villages and city districts vanish. As Seda attempts to find a way to undo her mistake – willing to go to inhuman lengths to achieve her goal – Che and her companions struggle to survive in the Worm’s lair. While their fight for their lives turns into a war for the very world itself, unexpected allies and old friends gather in the shadow of shattered Collegium, prepared for one last roll of the dice to end the Empire’s threat once and for all…

Ten books later and we come to the end of the Shadows of the Apt series. One of the most inventive, mind-bending, action-packed epic fantasy series of recent years, Adrian Tchaikovsky’s story of human nations who share abilities with the insectine kinden they have adopted has been a rollercoaster of a ride. Constantly surprising, the Shadows of the Apt has seen the rise and fall of empires, while each and every one of the characters has been dragged through the wringer to become someone completely different. Seal of the Worm is a fantastic ending to this series, tying together all of the disparate story threads and themes that have been present from the beginning, providing closure to the characters, the all amidst an action-packed, thrilling story that shatters everything. The best word to sum up Seal of the Worm is post-apocalyptic and that feeling emanates from every part of the novel. Tchaikovsky does a great job inventing an entirely new world beneath the surface, the lair of the Worm, full of dark, nightmarish, horrific imagery that will stick with me for a long time! He never loses sight of the heart of his series, though, a fact made more than clear in the quote you can find above. A wonderful ending to one of my favourite modern fantasy series, one that definitely establishes Tchaikovsky as a leading star in the epic fantasy firmament. I for one cannot wait to see what he does next!

I gave Seal of the Worm 5 stars.