The Undercutting of Rosie and Adam is a fitting end to the Hart and Mercy series, taking a rough and tumble immortal and pairing her with a mysterious technician she’s pined after for years. The world is as alive as ever, this time filled with mystery around a dangerous growth overtaking Tanria, the world on the other side of the mist. We get a lot of time spent in the now dragon-heavy alternate world alongside the return of a relationship I was very upset had ended. The story takes surprising turns and by the end, you get an even deeper picture of the mysteries of the world – the gods, the afterlife, and the many pieces of history that are more than just a story.

Anything beyond here is a spoiler, so avoid if you don’t want to know anything ahead of time.

Before this book, I can’t say that I really remembered Rosie Fox from the other two entries in the series. She was lurking on the outskirts, but I didn’t remember anything about her. It was always interesting to follow Hart as he tried to discover whether or not he was immortal in the first book, but Rosie’s story provides an entirely different perspective. She’s been alive for multiple lifetimes, has seen generations of friends come and go, and she’s sick of it. Her story always has that fact front and center, promising tragedy if she does fall in love. Seeing her actually get to experience mortal life by the end is an interesting twist, making her love story all the more impactful.

The best part of the book was the final quarter as they travel through the various parts of the gods realm trying to solve the issue with Adam’s vine. We get to meet the remaining gods who didn’t show in the past two books along with a couple we’ve already met. I’ve been consistently impressed with Bannen’s world building, especially around the world’s religion, and this third entry keeps it up well. The gods are both human in their interactions while remaining otherworldly in their appearances. The whole thing gets pretty trippy near the end, leaving a few strange yet exciting visuals behind. 

Finally, I could not have been happier that Duckers and Zeddy got back together and had their happily ever after. My only gripe with the series overall is that we don’t get a book with the two of them at the center. Duckers has consistently been the best part of every book, and I’m hoping one day we’ll get an extension of their story.