Here is my review of the Ascendance series : I just love Jaron! He is my book crush in the Ascendance series. I also adore Mott, Roden, and Tobias. I liked Mott because of the conversation he had in Book 1, how he could see Sage was acting tough but wasnāt truly tough. Mott was the only one in Book 1 who realized Sage was the prince. His loyalty later on in the books and how, during the war in Book 3, he made Jaron regain his strength (I love his speech to Jaron) was remarkable. He was Jaronās friend but also felt like a guardian figure. I really didnāt want him dead in Book 3 and felt Jaronās pain when he thought Mott might die. Roden and Tobias werenāt my favorites initially, but I ended up liking Tobias by the end of Book 1 and later on. As for Roden, I donāt approve of what he did by trying to kill Jaron or break his leg, but I love what their dynamic became later onāthe development was too good. I like how Jaron said a few philosophical things to Roden in Book 2 during the fight and also in Book 3 to boost his confidence. Rodenās actions were confusing in Book 4, but in reality, he never truly abandoned Jaron even then. I hoped Roden and other characters had gotten more spotlight in Book 5 (I needed to see my favorite trio). Amarinda is the kind of princess I usually likeāroyalty who doesnāt enjoy royal life. She had a sense of duty and turned out to be amazing in Book 3. I liked her story about wanting to make her own choices. Sheās kind of fun, too (I find it funny when she said she hated wearing gowns in Book 2 and when she joked with Fink in Book 3 at the beginning). I donāt mind her and Tobias ending up together, though it was a bit weird since we got no scenes between them in the books. Still, as a side couple, it works. However, I wish Tobias hadnāt told Amarinda in Book 3, when they were playing in the mud, the same thing Sage had told her in Book 1 during their first meeting (about dirt on her cheek). It didnāt give me a distinct feel for their romance since they didnāt have many on-page scenes.Harlowe is great. I always liked how he never got upset with Jaron, especially how he gave Jaron that hug when Jaron shouted at him at the beginning. Jaron really needed such hugs a lot, but I think whenever Jaron shouts in the books out of anger or fear, people just misunderstand him or get angry with him. Kerwyn was so good, but I donāt approve of the author killing him off-page in Book 5. Was losing someone who was like a parent necessary? Jaron already lost his parents; he didnāt need to lose more. (He will remain alive in my headcanons.) Fink turned out to be one of my favorite characters. Heās cute. I love his dynamic with Jaron, and in Book 4, how Fink is the only one who isnāt angry with Jaron no matter what.I think Books 4 and 5 had a different vibe, and many times things seemed repetitive, like Jaron getting imprisoned in every book or being physically tortured. I love the plot twists in the series, especially the Book 1 twist, but I felt some plot twists in the later books were unnecessary. I liked the plot twist of Darius being alive in Book 4, but I didnāt like the twist of him being adopted and also being Connerās son. I still donāt like Conner despite what he did in Book 3. I usually donāt like villains no matter what, and Conner killed Jaronās parentsāhow can I forgive him? Heās not interesting or complex like Soo-won from *Yona of the Dawn*. Conner killed an innocent orphan kid just to prove how high the stakes were in Book 1; I cannot like him. I also didnāt like what the author did with Dariusā character in Book 4 because I thought Darius missed Jaron and didnāt imagine him to be like that. I didnāt think Darius really wanted to be king; I thought he did that because he wanted Jaron to enjoy freedom (something like that was mentioned in Book 1). Wasnāt it a bit stupid of him to believe Jaron could do that to his parents? Anyway, he later turned out to be the way I always thought of him by the end of Book 4 and in Book 5.
