Customer Reviews

Total Eclipse (Weather Warden, Book 9)

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WARNING: This is the last Weather Warden novel. It's not the last one in this fictional universe, but it's the last of the books about Joanne Baldwin.

And while it's sad to see a solid urban fantasy series end, it's nice that Rachel Caine decided to end her story about elemental magic, djinns and Weather Wardens before it lost its zing. "Total Eclipse" is a satisfying ending to the series, with a higher-stakes problem and potentially fatal handicaps -- it's a bit shaky at first, but still an enjoyable, well-written ending.

The Djinn and Wardens have lost their magic. So the Wardens are helpless, and the Djinn are slowly dying; when they leave the black corner, all the Djinn except David just vanish. David believes that the Earth is wounded, waking up, and trying to heal itself -- every continent is being hit by wildlife attacks, vast wildfires and storms.

So not only are the Djinn and Oracles in danger of being drawn back into the Earth's power, but the entire human race is in danger. Fun, huh?

And as the little group zooms toward Whitney, things get worse -- people Joanne cares for are hurt and even killed, Oracles are acting out, and possessed Djinn are stalking them with intent to kill. And Joanne isn't sure that she can keep herself and her friends alive, let alone stop an all-out armageddon...

I honestly hate it when fantasy books depict Mother Nature as some kind of benevolent personification of fuzzy-bunny-love. Let's face it: nature is cruel, brutal, beautiful, and human beings really don't figure into its balance. "Total Eclipse" takes that into account -- and honestly, Nature running amuck makes a pretty awesome finale for the series.

It isn't a PERFECT finale -- the first half is too patchy and episodic, and it takes them eons just to DRIVE to Whitney. But as the story smooths out into a wild, terrifying expanse of terrestrial destruction, Caine's story expands into a truly brilliant, explosive finale where the stakes could literally not be any higher unless the sun exploded.

And despite all the mayhem, Caine keeps in the human (and Djinn) element -- there's some heated romance, moments of comedy (Joanne's almost sexual ecstacy when driving her car), a bit of horror (an invasion of chimera!), and a truly exquisite grand finale that wraps everything up beautifully.

And Joanne is shown off at her best here: desperate, good at heart, and being torn to shreds as she sees the world literally fall apart around her. She's literally doing her best all the time, while knowing that it won't be enough -- and yet she still stops to help save a little baby from being in the line of fire.

The Weather Wardens series goes out not with a whimper, but with a clap of thunder. The first half of "Total Eclipse" is a bit patchy, but the second half is a slam-bang finale worthy of Caine's skills.

After nine books Rachel Caine finally brings her Weather Wardens series to a climatic finish and Caine uses almost all the mythos she's built in her weather mage and djinn world to make the series finale in Total Eclipse a satisfying one.

The initial part of the story, which picks up at the end of the last book is a little slow as the cruise ship which carried the Weather Wardens and Djinn to battle now travels through a kind of magical Doldrums leaving both species powerless. But once they make it through the edge, all heck breaks loose - Mother Nature's awake and she's taken control of the Djinn. She's beyond angry and is pulling no punches and she's on a campaign to wipe the plague of humanity from the face of the Earth.

The only ones standing in the way of the annihilation are weather mage Joanne and her djinn husband David - both sans their powers - and a rapidly dwindling number of Weather Wardens trying desperately - but with little success - to use their magical control over earth, air, fire and water to mitigate a plethora of natural disasters. Fires rage, along with floods, hurricanes and earthquakes, cities fall and their besieged inhabitants become vicious mobs who are unknowingly hastening their own extinction. It's a bit more apocalyptic than the end of the world scenarios Joanne has triumphed over before but this time a nearly human Joanne just isn't going to be able to save the world all by herself.

Once Total Eclipse gets rolling the action is pretty much non-stop and this final Weather Wardens book is pretty much what you'd expect from the series with the requisite cross country trek in a hot classic car for Joanne and crew, multiple brushes with death for almost all of our favorite characters, some sad goodbyes, some sacrifices, and a bit of trickery by David to get Joanne out of some tight spots.

I really enjoyed this final road trip with Joann and if you enjoyed the earlier books - even if you've given up on the series somewhere along the way - you will want to pick up Total Eclipse and even if it's only to say goodbye to old friends - Joanne, David, Cherise, Imarra and Lewis.

As I huge fan of the Weather Warden series, I am so sorry to see it end. As it has been mentioned, I would rather it go out on top than drag on and drag on like Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series. Rachel Caine doesn't dissapoint with Total Eclipse, book #9 and final book in her Weather Warden series.

We left Joanne Baldwin and her husband/Djinn, David, having fought and lost both their powers. They are trying to navigate the soon to be apocalyptic world blind and powerless. Old friends join them on their journey like Cherise (human friend), Kevin (adolescent fire warden), and Lewis (the head of the wardens) to just name a few. The world is a strange one for all humanity and Djinn. Mother nature is awake and really pissed off at humanity and the Djinn are no longer controlled by humans but mother nature herself. The world is falling apart around them (fires, earthquakes, animal attacking humans, Djinn attacking humans, etc) and humanity is all going to die if mother nature has her way. Djinn that Jo has once called her friends can no longer be trusted and the one Djinn who could do something (David) has lost his powers. The journey takes them to all the Oracles who have a direct line to mother nature which are the Air Oracle, Fire Oracle, and the Earth Oracle (which is David and Jo's daughter Imara).

The journey is two fold in that Jo and David need to get their powers back and find a way to stop the end of the world. No small feat but this is Joanne Baldwin. She has seen worse and will not give up until this battle is over. David and Jo learn that their powers were transferred to the two people that were closest in proximity to them and the same people who are with them on this journey. This offers some funny moments as Jo has to teach her friend on how to use Jo's old Warden powers. I also like the scene where Jo rents a 1970 mustang boss and she just drools over it and will not let anyone else drive it (reminds me of the old Jo from earlier in the series with her love of fast cars).

Jo and David both get their powers back eventually and now they have to save humanity from certain doom. David cannot directly help Jo in the battle after getting his powers back because as a Djinn he would be under the control of mother nature, so he has to hind out in a protective bubble and indirectly help. The journey is fast paced and exciting with obstacles and crazy animal attacks (ants, chimeras, hawks, eagles, snakes, etc). The conclusion is bittersweet in that not everyone survives, but the ending brings hope to the future of humanity. I don't want to spoil it for you.

I am sad to say goodbye to Jo and David and all their friends and enemies. Rachel Caine gave an exciting conclusion to her Weather Warden series that didn't disappoint long time fans like myself.

Another fast paced novel, which was quicker than most, due to rushing through to find out what ultimately happens to Jo & her cohorts. As always great writing & editing by Caine. I was a bit disappointed that not everything was resolved by the end. I hate to write spoilers in a review, so please check-out the discussion page to find out what those were. In any case, a satisfying conclusion of such a great action packed & sometimes emotional series. Yes I whimpered a few times, before the end. I'm not ashamed to say.

A hard book to find, since it wasn't available on Kindle & out at my local Bookstore, but it was well worth getting a copy if you are vested with this series.

This is the last book in the series, and I wish I had known that going in, though I began to have sneaking suspicions that it was while reading it. It was entertaining as always and a good book, but there were a few things that bothered me. Spoiler Alert!!! Don't read past here if you haven't read it yet. The ending bothered me because it never addressed what was going to happen with her and David. It was eight years later, so she had to be almost forty. Is he just going to stick by her until she dies of old age, or is she somehow going to find a way to be a Djinn? Imara said something about how she could save her at one point. Did that mean making her immortal? Also, I always hate the endings where they end up with kids. Oh, look, I had an exciting life until I got knocked up. Now all I do is change diapers and wash sippy cups. It's just sad that her life became so... mundane. And I didn't understand why this pregnancy was so different from when she was expecting Imara. Also, I don't think there is any way that Lewis really loved her. He was constantly trying to sacrifice her. This didn't bother me, though. Just an observation. Anyway, it was a really good series, despite the few things at the end that bothered me, and I will definitely miss it.

Excellent book but somewhat confusing if you are new to the series. If I have a choice - I would like to see a something longer in the next iteration of this series. These are over way to quickly........

Sit down, buckle up, and hold on as Rachel Caine takes you on more wild adventures of Joanne Baldwin. She's kept her as sassy as ever, and raises the already hair-raising level of action even higher!

I want to say more but I don't want to spoil it for anyone. So if you liked the earlier books, you'll like this one too.

Weather warden Joanne Baldwin and her husband Djinn David defeated their enemy former weather warden Bad Bob (see Cape Storm), but at a price that she knows was too high. Besides her friends like Lewis becoming ill, she and David are stripped of their power, Djinn are dead in mass numbers, and the Black Corner of the planet no longer contains earth's natural pulse. Their victory at all costs has come with an even greater price as Mother Nature is waking up from a long nap; outraged by the pollution that has destroyed much of the planet's magic.

With the Djinn gone, no one can intercede to persuade Mother Nature to give mankind one more chance; her inclination is extinction of humanity and all other living essences. Leaving "Gilligan's Island" (as she has no gowns anyway) to save the world, Joanne accompanied by her man David, her BFF Cherise and Cherise's soul mate Kevin set out on a quest to prevent the end of times though they have no power beyond that of humans.

The ninth tale in the Weather Warden urban fantasy saga is a great finish that showcases why Rachel Caine is a master wizard. The story line is simple: save the world from a rightfully righteous fuming Mother Nature without any otherworldly powers. Fans of the long running series will relish the climax as Joanne and company find themselves in dire straits with no hope of success; however as she understands to hit a home run one must swing the bat and risk striking out; as not trying means out anyway.

Harriet Klausner

I am a huge fan of Rachel Caine's books and I have to say,this is the best Weather Warden. It is everything you want in a last of a series. After I read the final pages, I had to sit quietly for a few minutes with the closed book just savoring the finale. Absolutely perfect!

Summary
Weather Warden Joanne Baldwin, her husband, the djinn David, and the Earth herself have been poisoned by a substance that destroys the magic that keeps the world alive. The poison is destabilizing the entire balance of power, bestowing magic upon those who have never had it, and removing it from those who need it. It's just a matter of time before the delicate balance of nature explodes into chaos-and doom.

The Good
Total Eclipse, the last installment of the Weather Warden series, starts off where Cape Storm left off. Mother Earth is pissed and is waking up. With her power over the djinn race, there is nothing to stop her destruction of humanity. Except, maybe, Joanne Baldwin. But first Joanne and her djinn husband David have to get their powers back after the last atrocity that took them away. And once Joanne and David are back at full strength, even their worst nightmares can't stop them from saving the world...again.

The book starts out a little slow but after page 100 or so we get back into the same action packed book we expect from Caine. And boy do we get action. Not only will you fear the awesome power of the Earth possessed djinn but new creatures you can't and won't want to imagine make an appearance. Every time I think there is no way Joanne is going to get out of another impossible situation, Caine finds a believable and interesting way for Jo to once again persevere.

Joanne is the same smart-ass, extremely powerful heroine we all have come to love. She's compassionate in a world where compassion will get you killed. She's loyal to her friends, the few she has, but is also willing to make the hard decisions that a weather warden must make while the world is crumbling around itself. And she still has that same hilarious orgasmic reaction when driving her brand of classic car. David is almost always by her side. His unwavering faith and passion for Jo is simply heart warming. They're one of my favorite couples in the urban fantasy genre.

The secondary characters are one of the best parts of Weather Warden books. We have Cherise, Jo's best friend, the human who is almost always upbeat. Kevin, the kid who has had a horrible life but is trying to better himself. Rahel, the funniest djinn ever, even when she doesn't mean to be. Venna, our little Alice in Wonderland djinn. Someone who will kill you with a snap of her fingers as you pinch her cheeks because she's just too damn adorable. And Lewis. The strongest weather warden. The second love of Joanne's life. The man who might just be the key to the whole series.

I was quite blown away with the ups and downs in this book. Let's put it this way, not everyone makes it out alive. I wanted to cry half the time because this book has numerous sad scenes. Which is understandable since the the world was ending and not everyone can make it out alive and kicking. I think the drama added to the whole story, made it more realistic, as much as fantasy can be realistic.

Caine had me cringing in fear, gasping in surprise, and cheering for the good guys. It's hard to say goodbye to these cast of characters, but Caine wrapped everything up in a satisfying way. I have read some pretty annoying finales to series that leave me wanting and asking more questions than answering them. Caine actually gives us something that makes us smile and sigh in contentment. I'm happy she didn't drag out this series. She ended it when it was well, and truly done. I am thrilled I found the Weather Warden series and have enjoyed the journey it took me on.

The Bad
To be a hundred percent honest, I put his book down after seventy pages and didn't pick it back up for months. I don't know why. Yeah, I was a little bored. But to shelve the book for months seems excessive. I guess Total Eclipse just didn't hit me right from the beginning. But once I did start reading it again, I couldn't put it down.

The Snuggly
No sex. Just passionate kisses and such.

Overall
I'm sad it's the end but happy with how Caine decided to end it. The series was leading up to this point and I wasn't disappointed with the fun and frightening adventures Joanne faced during another one of her road trips. I thought the ending was going to be predictable, but I was genuinely surprised by most of the book. I would definitely suggest reading Total Eclipse and the whole series. This is a great series for those who love urban fantasy but want to read about something other than vampires and werewolves.