A Necklace of Water by Cate Tiernan

This is the fourth, and final, novel in the Balefire series by Cate Tiernan.

My review of #1: A Chalice of Wind.
My review of #2: A Circle of Ashes.
My review of #3: A Feather of Stone.

After the spell the coven performed in the third novel, everyone is now changed, based on what they were aiming for during the ritual.

The two younger "immortals" Richard and Manon started to age, to look like adults instead of children.

Axelle wanted more power - but she didn't specify how to get those powers...

Thais wanted to know who killed her father, and she got her answer.

And Clio wants to be immortal. She saw a premonition of her dead, drowned, and she has decided that she wants to stay 18 forever, to not die like her vision foresaw.

So now everyone has their hidden agenda. Thais wants to get revenge for her father's death; Clio is learning how to become immortal.

Both are dabbling in things they have no experience in, and could destroy themselves. And they are keeping it hidden from one another, knowing the disapproving looks they will receive.

But than an unexpected member of the original 13 from the coven 250 years ago shows up. And finally reveals the secret to their survival all of these years, and why she is back again after all of these years in hiding.

What will happen to each twin? Will they go over to the dark side? Can they save each other from what lies ahead? Read A Necklace of Water by Cate Tiernan to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
This was an intriguing quartet. I loved the first two novels, wasn't impressed by the third, and the fourth felt lacking to me.

I think I expected a better ending to this story, but it just seemed to barely fit together and I felt like there were unexplained questions that weren't answered by the time I got to the last page.

The couples throughout this story fell through like I thought they would, leaving me happy in that context.

One thing that I really enjoyed through this last novel was the inner struggle each twin went through. There were some tough decisions to make and they were not very open about what they wanted to do - because it involved magick that they thought no one would approve of.

There was great character development throughout this series and I was happy to see a happy-ever-after happen, even if it wasn't how I thought it would end originally.

Even with the disappointing last two novels, I would still recommend this series to anyone who likes stories about witchcraft and magic, along with an unexpected twist to the storyline.