Flame of Sevenwaters was such a disappointment. I thought the ending was a little too tidy. Most everyone came out relatively unscathed, while Mac Dara's downfall was rushed and anticlimactic.

Maeve, as Marillier's new heroine, however, was not unlikeable. I admired her strength, and that she always stood firm in face of a challenge, despite her limitations. She reminded me a bit of Liadan (though maybe not quite as gutsy), which makes sense considering Maeve spent ten years at Harrowfield. Unfortunately, one of the biggest drawbacks to Flame of Sevenwaters was Maeve's "realtionship"-–if you can call it that-–with Artagan. It felt forced and was utterly ridiculous.

He was a dog (literally) for most of the novel.

Cathal was also strangely absent for most of the novel. Seer of Sevenwaters devoted many pages to his internal struggles (i.e. his duty to keep Clodagh and their children safe versus confronting his father), yet his role in Flame of Sevenwaters was reduced to a scant few pages.

And I couldn't help but feel annoyed with Ciaran towards the end. Yes, Luachan should be held accountable for his deception, but Ciaran's whole "To preserve your family's safety by serving the interests of evil is the choice of a weak man" spiel was condescending and hypocritical. Uh, Ciaran? Fainne went to considerable lengths in Child of the Prophecy to keep you safe from the Lady Oonagh. Fainne, for a time, most definitely “turned to wrong paths.”

It's too bad. The first four novels in the series were wonderful. As much as I enjoyed Heir to Sevenwaters, I wish that Marillier hadn't expanded the series after Child of the Prophecy.