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    Holy Sister
    Holy Sister
    Holy Sister
    Audiobook13 hours

    Holy Sister

    Written by Mark Lawrence

    Narrated by Heather O'Neill

    4.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    The third book in the thrilling and epic Book of the Ancestor trilogy from international bestselling author Mark Lawrence. Powerful novice Nona Grey must fight to survive in "a fantastic world in which religion and politics are dark and sharp as swords, with magic and might held in the hands of wonderful and dangerous women."*
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateApr 9, 2019
    ISBN9781980027539
    Holy Sister
    Author

    Mark Lawrence

    Mark Lawrence is married with four children, one of whom is severely disabled. His day job is as a research scientist focused on various rather intractable problems in the field of artificial intelligence. Between work and caring for his disabled child, Mark spends his time writing, playing computer games, tending an allotment, brewing beer, and avoiding DIY.

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    Reviews for Holy Sister

    4.5/5

    245 ratings11 reviews

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    • 5/5
      This whole series is awesome, I love how it all tied up... everyone should read this!!!

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      This was an awesome series. Totally different from most syfy.
    • 4/5
      I love stories with women playing the dominant role, very well done!
    • 5/5
      A great finish to this story. Love the world Lawrence created, so very creative.
    • 5/5
      4,9 stars

      Well, now. This was definitely an ending to a series.

      I can't write any kind of coherent review about this, at least not right away, so let's just say I loved everything about this finale and leave it at that.
    • 5/5
      I wish I could give this series more stars. I've said it before but as I make my way through Mr. Lawrence's books, they just keep getting better and better. The book alternates between the present time for Nona and what happened to her three years before as she wanders with Zole on the ice. It's a superb technique for keeping (and increasing) the pacing of events that weaves together in the end for a brilliant resolution. And we also get the ending for the various chapters through the series that foreshadow Nona's final battle with the Tacsis family.I've mentioned in each book how the author turns the Chosen One trope on its head. Nona is the peasant girl who achieves great things but is she the Chosen One of prophecy? Or is it Zole? Or Ara? The great thing about this series is that it could be any of them or many others who are the heroines of the story. Sure, the books are told from Nona's POV but I think the theme is that friendship and trust make heroes of all because Nona couldn't have done it without Abbess Glass, Clera, Apple, Kettle, and so many other friends and sisters.I do love Mr. Lawrence's writing style and I can already tell this isn't going to be just one read of his books, but I'll reread them over and over. But first it's onto the Impossible Times series.
    • 5/5
      Fantastic read! Could not put this or any of the others down.
    • 5/5
      Every time Mark Lawrence writes a new series I think he can't top his last one and every time he proves me wrong. The same is true with Holy Sister, the concluding volume in the Book of the Ancestor series. Holy Sister picks up the events at the conclusion of the previous book, Grey Sister. It also has a parallel narrative set three years after those events. Dual narratives are always tricky because often one is less interesting than the other, only making you anxious to get back to the narrative you left. Lawrence’s work doesn’t suffer that problem because both narratives are equally compelling. At the end of Grey Sister, Nona and her friends had just escaped the palace of the emperor's sister, Sherzal, carrying one of the Arcs. Now, Nona and Zole have set off across the ice to lead Sherzal’s soldiers away from the rest of the nuns. As they set out across the ice, Nona learns more about the tribe that Zole came from and confronts dangers and uncovers secrets that had only been hinted at previously.In the present, set three years after the escape, Nona finds herself back at Sweet Mercy Convent trying to complete her classes. She is again at odds with a class rival, there's still a price on her head and she still has to uncover the secrets that can save their doomed world with ice encroaching from both sides and opposing armies moving in on both ends of the empire.The stakes have never been higher than they are in Grey Sister. The artificial moon which melts the ice and keeps open a narrow corridor that is the only habitable portion of the planet is no longer able to keep pace with the encroaching ice. The secrets of the ancestors are largely lost to the planets modern-day inhabitants. If some of these ancient secrets are not uncovered and put into action the world may literally end.Not only is Nona Grey one of the most compelling characters that Mark Lawrence has ever created, but the supporting cast is equally compelling. Abbess Glass manages to dominate the story even when she is not present on the page. The plots that she has set in motion and the way she manipulates events truly set her above all the other characters. Nona is fiercely loyal to her friends and fiercely loyal to the Abbess who literally rescued her from death. Though still young, Nona recognizes the decisions she has to make will influence the course of world events and perhaps even the fate of her world. The action is outstanding with events that present true danger to the characters and real moral choices. The politics of this world are intriguing and realistic.This is a fantastic conclusion to an outstanding series and Mark Lawrence has topped himself once again. I cannot recommend this series highly enough. Mark Lawrence's ability to make you feel all the emotions that these characters are experiencing elevates these books above ordinary fantasy novels.Heather O’Neill, who narrated this book and this series, does an amazing job, worthy of award consideration. The passion and emotional arc of the characters come through with every word. Each character is distinct and her tone perfectly matches the pace and mood of the story. Her wonderful job is the main reason that audio is my preferred way and my recommendation for how to encounter this book. This is certain to be at or near the top of my best books of the year. Highly recommended.I was provided a copy of this audiobook by the publisher.
    • 5/5
      Would have been superb apart from the very strange chronology jumping back and forth between the ending of the previous book and the current timeline '3 years later'. It's not consistent, sometimes having a few chapters in succession and then alternating for a bit. Eventually by about mid book we're all up to speed, and everything else resolves reasonably.Fun intense and well finished resolving all the questions raised in the previous two books - quite a feat that I wasn't sure was going to be possible. I wasn't totally convinced by some of the explanations and motivations which seemed a bit duex et machina and imposed rather than natural progression, but they were at least plausible.
    • 4/5
      Here ends Nona's story. Holy Sister is the third and final installment of The Book of the Ancestor by Mark Lawrence. Yet again a big "Thank You" to the author for including a summary at the beginning of the book! More authors need to do this. The story is told in two separate timelines. The main story happens three years after events in book two, with Nona in holy class and war on the horizon. We are also treated to flashback scenes to help fill in events that happened immediately after book two as our characters were left in a tricky situation. This type of storytelling is either hit or miss for me. This time it was a partial miss. While I genuinely found myself interested in both story lines, the way they were broken up kept ruining the tension of each story and threw off the pacing for me. This continues for about half the book. The second half of the story is all in the present day and at that point I could not put the book down. Literally. I read the second half in one sitting!"It is important, when killing a nun, to ensure that you bring an army of sufficient size."All those future glimpses we were given in books one and two play out in a spectacular fashion. If you do not like fast paced action then skip this series. Lawrence writes fantastic action scenes that left me breathless. There are so many great scenes that the action lover in me was in heaven. The body count starts to add up and among all the action there were some truly touching moments.Fair warning, there is an odd romance plot. You will need to have read the novella Bound prior to this book for it to make sense. I wish it was left out as it wasn't very satisfying.This was a nice ending to the series. I'm sad that Nona's story is done as I've enjoyed my time with the sisters and novices at Sweet Mercy Convent. I am looking forward to to visiting Abbeth again next year in the upcoming series The Book of the Ice.
    • 5/5
      Warrior sisters: Explosive violence and bonds of love!The Ancestor trilogy's final novel "Holy Sister" is just as intricate and pressing as its predecessors. Lawrence's "Story So Far" chapter succinctly locates us once more in time and place for the continuing saga."Abeth is a planet orbiting a dying red sun. It is sheathed in ice and the vast majority of its people live in a fifty-mile-wide ice-walled corridor around the equator" which is shrinking as the ice advances."The empire is under siege from the Scithrowl in the east and the Durns in the west. Everywhere, the emperor’s armies are in retreat."Nona Grey and her band of sister novices, Ara (Arabella), Zole, Ruli, and Jula, who started together at the Convent of Sweet Mercy are being called upon (little do they know it) to put in place Abbess Glass's long term planning. (Despite not being present she has a long reach!) At the center lies the shiphearts, the prophecy around the Ark and the coming of a Chosen One. Of course all long term plans rest on the situations and decisions the players will make. And those aren't necessarily what is wished for, possibly only hoped for. Combined with the over arcing mega story, are those of the individual's, such as the virulent, hatred driven pursuit of Nona by Lano Tacsis after her vengeance upon his family.As it unfolds, the storyline switched seamlessly between past and present, bringing us around to the final chapters.The battle scenes against the Scithrowl hordes led by their battle-queen Adoma were brutal, reminding me a bit of those in Feist's Demon Queen.Underlying the actions, Lawrence's viewpoints rise to the surface around evil vs good, friendship, redemption and hope.A satisfying finish to a compelling series!A Berkley Group ARC via NetGalley