Christopher Mitchell (5)

This new addition to the Magelands Eternal Siege saga left my favorite characters from the previous three books behind, making me wonder if there is any way I could love it as much as the previous three. I absolutely did! We follow Corthie, Alia, Naxor, Belinda, and of course our favorite dragon, Blackrose, and her mouthy rider, Maddie, to the world of Khatanax. We finally meet Corthie's sister Karalyn Holdfast, after hearing him wax eloquent about her for the entire time he was in the City, show more and Sable Holdfast, the aunt Corthie had never heard of. They are a new kind of intense, to put it mildly. Quadrants are found and lost and stolen and broken. The gods are on the warpath, desperate to learn the secret of the salve. Arena matches are as common as football with the people cheering for their favorite teams, but there's a lot more death than football, and blood, and dragons, and more of those horrid greenbacks. It's the Holdfasts vs the gods and it could be anyone's win...except it's far more messy than that. I can only mostly guess who the good guys are and can't wait to see where the story takes us next.

I received a free ARC from the author and have reviewed it willingly. show less

Gates of Ruin provided a strong conclusion to the Lostwell story arc. I loved the dragons. There were so many dragons and their connections to humans as well as their resistance to those connections was beautiful to watch. Loved them all.

Belinda was also her amazing self. She had to deal with so much change, but her strength and determination was inspiring. Sure she was a god, but she was also fallible and human and, honestly, good. She chose to be good. And with so many morally gray show more characters in this story - I'm looking specifically at you, Naxor - she is a lovely, refreshing change.

I received this book as an ARC and sadly have gotten very behind on my reviews, but I'm also really excited to return to The City and see what Emily and Daniel have been up to, to see more of what happens with the Holdfasts (which I didn't like very well in the beginning and have grown to love), and more than anything else, where the dragons will end up and what they will do. Everything that Christopher Mitchell writes is incredible and this book was no exception. show less

Just wow! I started this series a bit uncertain about several of the characters, but by the end, I love all of them! The transformations and twists in the story have been fantastic as well! The best part was that you have gods and humans (and possibly a dragon) all fighting together. Princess Yendra is alive - surprise! Although she is one of the god children, she has always been a champion of the people and returns to fight for them despite 300 years of imprisonment and the false show more accusations that followed her "death." She is a remarkable character, and you can't help but cheer for her. After leaving the city without a backward glance, Blackrose and the Jackdaw sisters find the nearest source of the greenhides (think giant armored ants that are green) and decide to do something about it. Corthie becomes the champion of Icehaven and is finally reunited with Aila, who escapes and is recaptured by the God-Queen. Jade finally becomes useful...in exchange for a cat. And Daniel and Emily, a couple that defies caste, are amassing a following that rivals that of the gods. It seems that humans are ready to take back their city. Princess Yendra and Aila are behind them, but most of the gods are sketchy if not downright evil. Will they be able to take down the gods on one side and the greenhides on the other? And can humans and gods coexist or will one group be destroyed in the process?

I loved this series. I know I often say that this isn't what I usually read, but there was so much fighting throughout the series! And I still loved it! The creativity of the story, of the landscape, of the characters left me totally wowed! I can't wait to read whatever Christopher Mitchell writes next!

I received a free ARC from the author and have reviewed it willingly. show less

The Mortal Blade is one of those book that, while well written, didn't impart a strong impression on me. The writing is solid, most of the main characters well constructed, and the pacing is quick but steady. Its setting is a more standard sword and sorcery fantasy, which I was ready for after a selection of rather dark gunpowder fantasy from this year's SFPBO.
The story is primarily character-driven plot, with the overarching plot being only distantly present through the majority of the show more narrative and separate from our main characters until the climax of the book. The character narratives are a mixed bag; some lack concrete objectives while being complex with strong emotional pallets and internal conflicts, while one had a clear objective while being difficult to like or root for that objective. Of the characters, I liked Aila the best as the first part of her narrative effectively combines both objective and emotional investment, but toward the second half of the book she becomes less interesting as the romance and the somewhat generic conflict paired with it takes center stage.
There are several good moments and plot lines throughout the book, from Corthie's sister subplot, to Maddie and Blackrose' relationship, and the chapters themselves rarely dragged or failed to entertain me.
The ending was a strong and a surprise (given the tone of the book up until that point) but didn't really inspire interest in me to continue the series. show less