CBR Bingo: You – As in, “It was always you.” Or, “I love you.” It could work for several of these books, but let’s say Paladin’s Faith.
When I first read the Paladin’s one and two (Grace and Strength) earlier this year, I was pretty underwhelmed. And then I was sad that I was underwhelmed because they really felt like they should be in my wheelhouse. So, I put aside T. Kingfisher for a while. I figured if I came back and liked her books better later, then great. If not, oh well, at least I had tried. I read Nine Goblins over a vacation this summer and was charmed and delighted. I thought I might dip my toes in White Rat stories once more and put Swordheart on my library holds list. I started that two and a half weeks ago and since then have torn through Swordheart, Paladin’s Hope, Paladin’s Faith, Clockwork Boys, Wonder Engine, and I’m about to start Daggerbound. It’s been a whirlwind of brooding, yearning, metaphorical self-flagellation, redemption, romance, and sassy rodent friends. I am now thoroughly convinced that I didn’t love Paladin’s Hope and Paladin’s Grace right away because I didn’t like the audiobook narration. I’m so glad I gave it another try. I am enamored with these characters and this story.
Paladin’s Hope
Galen is one of the Saint of Steel’s paladins. Piper is a lich doctor, which is basically a coroner. Piper has been called out to examine a corpse that has floated into the city from upriver by the city guard. The Captain thinks is just a run of the mill murder, but Earstripe, a small badger-like person called a gnole, a guard (I forget his rank) thinks this is connected to a few other bodies that have floated into the city recently.
When another body floats into the city, Earstripe recruits Galen and Piper to help him look into it. Unfortunately, the Captain doesn’t appreciate Earstripe’s initiative and dismisses the gnole from the guard. Earstripe rallies Piper and Galen again to help him go up river and find whoever is killing and dumping these people. There is adventure and romance and friendship and yearning and a host of lovable characters (and not-so-lovable characters) along the way.
Paladin’s Faith
Marguerite is a spy, and someone wants her dead. Marguerite doesn’t want to die, and hasn’t been able to discourage those who want to kill her from doing so. She has some leads on some information that would help ensure her safety at last, but she’ll need the Temple of the White Rat’s help. She appeals to the Bishop to help her in her endeavor and to provide bodyguards.
The Bishop assigns Shane and Wren, two of the paladin’s of the Saint of Steel to accompany Marguerite to the Court of Smoke, to help her chase down her leads, and to keep her safe. Wren will pretend to be a minor noble to blend in with the Court, and Shane will be their bodyguard and chaperone. They will need to infiltrate the Court, gather intel, and chase down Marguerite’s leads before she gets found out and killed. There is adventure and romance and friendship and yearning and a host of lovable characters (and not-so-lovable characters) along the way.
Clockwork Boys & Wonder Engine
While this is technically a duology, they function as one story. Slate is putting together a team of criminals for a suicide mission on behalf of the Dowager. There are monstrous machine-like creations that Anuket City has been sending against The Dowager’s City, and previous quests to put an end to it have failed. Now, the Dowager has summoned Slate, a criminal herself, to gather some compatriots to figure out what the Clockwork Boys (the machines) are, how to stop them, and to put an end to them. Slate has already put Brenner on the team. Brenner is her former lover, current friend (if you could call him that), and a stone cold assassin. She finds Caliban on a trek into the dungeons to rustle up some muscle for the trip. Caliban is a disgraced Knight-Champion of the Dreaming God who was recently possessed by a demon and forced on a killing rampage where the demon used him to kill several of the nuns and acolytes of his order. Caliban survived the exorcism, but was cast out of the Temple of the Dreaming God and chucked in prison. Slate secures his release so that he can be put on her team.
They are joined by Learned Edmund, a priest of the Many Armed God, and basically a kid. The priests of the Many Armed God are all geniuses, and it will be Learned Edmund’s job to decipher the lost journals of another priest detailing the Clockwork Boys if/when the squad can recover them.
In Clockwork Boys, they must survive riding horses (a near miss for Slate and Brenner), the war zone between The Dowager’s City and Anuket City, and an unintentional detour into the Vagrant Hills. At least the detour into the Vagrant Hill is where they find Grimehug, a gnole from Anuket City. In Wonder Engine, they must survive Slate’s history with Anuket City’s underworld, find the lost priest’s notes to learn how to stop the clocktaurs (Clockwork Boys), and then go actually stop the clocktaurs. There is adventure and romance and friendship and yearning and a host of lovable characters (and not-so-lovable characters) along the way.
