Isla does not end up in a settled, happy relationship with anyone by the end of Crowntide ; her romantic arc with Grim is shattered when Cronan erases Grim’s memories of her, and she returns to Lightlark separated from him and only tenuously reconnected with Oro in the middle of an oncoming war.

Quick Scoop: Isla’s Endgame Romance

  • Isla makes an emotionally final choice for Grim at the crucial portal moment, picking him to come through and help her, which confirms that he is the one she chooses romantically in that instant.
  • Cronan immediately wipes Grim’s memories of Isla, turning him into her enemy and destroying any chance of them truly “ending up together” in a traditional, HEA sense.
  • Isla then returns to Lightlark and reunites with Oro , but it is a tense, grief-heavy reunion in the middle of Cronan’s invasion, not a clear romantic resolution or epilogue where she definitively chooses him instead.

So, “Who Does Isla End Up With” In Crowntide?

If the question is about emotional choice in the moment:

  • Isla chooses Grim at the portal, showing that her heart still leans toward him when she must pick one person.

If the question is about actual relationship status at the end of the book:

  • She ends the book effectively with no one in a secure romantic partnership:
    • Grim is alive but memory-wiped, aligned with Cronan, and standing against her.
* Oro is back on Lightlark with her, but their connection is overshadowed by guilt, heartbreak, and an impending multi-world war, not labeled as a definitive romantic “endgame.”

Why the Ending Feels So Unresolved

  • The finale leans into tragedy and ongoing conflict rather than a neat romantic bow, emphasizing Isla’s role as Worldkey, her immortality after killing Lark, and the looming threat of Cronan’s invasion.
  • The story closes on Isla preparing for a larger battle and seeking a way to defeat Cronan, not on a scene that clearly establishes her ending up with either Grim or Oro as a long-term partner.

So in fandom terms: Isla chooses Grim , but the plot immediately rips that away, and the book ends with her romantically unresolved and heading into war rather than riding off into a confirmed HEA with anyone.