Despite all of it, he still doesn't question his loyalty to Light. He finds it harder and harder to feel empathy for them and sometimes to find reason for protecting their lives.
“That’s the hardest thing of all – never to become cynical, never to lose faith, never to become indifferent.” The biggest struggle Anton has in this book is fighting the indifference towards humans. Sometimes forgiving was the hardest thing in the whole world.” More than anything, Anton tries to do justice. His emotions don't control him like they used to, there are more rational decisions involved. Now, he's wiser, more vicious and perceptive.
“After all, inside every woman, no matter how grown up she is, there is still a frightened little girl.” This would've been touching if the whole book wasn't full of misogyny.Anton is still an idealist, but in time he gained enough common sense to balance his responsibility both to his duty and his morals. Finally, in the end it's clear that everyone tries to find the right solution to the everlasting dilemmas. In the middle, it became question of priorities - one side thought society was more important than the individual, and the other that the individual should be more important than society.
In the beginning of the series it was clear one side was good and the other was evil. One character in particular is an interesting study in the fine line between the Light and the Dark. The ambiguity of good and evil has higher stakes than ever. Each book has it’s own purpose and it seems as the author has plenty of stories to tell. Every book in the series can be read as a stand-alone. This is a well-built magical system and society so it's not at all difficult to fall in love with the story. They are doing what they believe is right and even Anton is able to understand their motives at one point. It is in the third act where all plot lines finally come together.It's so hard to judge Last Watch's intentions. Unlike the other books in the series, the three acts of this book focus very clearly around one story. The plot is fast paced, the characters are well developed, overall the story is more fun and exciting than ever. The strength of The Watch has always been in its ambiguity and the protagonist who is as far from Gary-Stu as possible. Lukyanenko maintains his tension and philosophical exploration while reminding us that good and evil are rarely the simple constructs we assume them to be. It's not even gray.The stakes are higher than ever, especially with alliances formed from the most unlikely combinations. It's easy to judge the Day Watch, but when the Night Watch is put in difficult position, judgement becomes clouded and not everything is as black and white as it looks. But they are precisely the things that produce genuine Dark Ones.“ In the third story, better than ever is showed the thin line between Light Ones and Dark Ones. „Loneliness, dejection, the contempt or pity of people around you – these are unpleasant feelings. Anton's inner thoughts are compelling as ever. By now, there has been several plot twists and another one I particularly like is Anton's point of view towards the mentioned murderers. In the third story, murderers from Edinburgh make their way to Crown of All Things and Anton is dragged along for the ride. After all the manipulating and power struggles we’ve seen in Moscow, it was fun to actually see a place where the Night Watch and the Day Watch share a building because it's cheaper. It was so amusing seeing Anton being confused and a bit irritated all the time. I also enjoyed seeing the cultural differences within the Watches. In the meantime, Anton discovers clues to the identities of those behind the murder in Edinburgh. Almost a legend among Others, Rustam is probably the only one who can come even close to figuring out what Merlin hid, and why. He is sent out to find one of the greatest Others who had ever lived. That means Gessar and Zabulon are once again using Anton as a pawn, but at least he knows it and accepts it as a part of the job.Act Two has Anton trying to determine the actual effects of the Crown of All things with a visit to Uzbekistan. He and Svetlana have been married and have a powerful Other for a daughter, who is destined to be a 0 Level, the most powerful Other since Merlin's era. What he finds is evidence that the mythical Merlin had left something in Edinburgh for safekeeping. Anton once again investigates the crime scene. The novel opens with a murder in Edinburgh where the victim’s blood was drained. The saga is still one big festival of misogyny, but at least it's extraordinary written. It may not be better than Night Watch, but it's definitely my favorite in the series. „There are far more reasons for death than there are for life.” After a bit bleak third book from the series, Watch is back on top.