Allied by Amy Tintera

Ruined trilogy. Allen and Unwin, 2018. ISBN 9781760290665
(Age: Teens - YA) Recommended. Allied concludes Emelina and Olivia Flores's story of love, loss, vengeance and trust. Fighting to become the true queen of Ruina, they might be sisters but they are far from allies. It's queen against queen and the Ruined are split between who to follow. Will they follow Olivia who has become consumed by her quest for vengeance? Or will they follow Emelina, a useless Ruined who fell in love with the new Leran king? All the nations are at stake and in the end, only one queen will survive.
With this being the last instalment in this trilogy, Tintera has done well to provide backstory when needed without it being overwhelming for the reader. Tintera also uses the perspective of all her many characters to give the story a nice flow. Each character is unique in their own way and you can tell from the way Tintera has written them, that they have developed a lot since the first book. Olivia is driven by her need for vengeance, she is strong and persistent and has a very strong temper, while Emelina is thoughtful and wants to avoid conflicts with her sister at all costs. In this story, they both go through so much that shows just how much they have changed since the first book in this series, Ruined. They are relatable and easy to empathize with. And even though it follows the history of more than 5-6 characters, it is still easy to follow and remember their stories.
Overall, I think this is a gripping and engaging story and that will please fans of the trilogy and new readers too. I would recommend this to young adults and teenagers.
Kayla Raphael