I have been reading these severely out of order, but they’re so readable that I’ve been able to follow what’s happening and I enjoy every one of them. I hadn’t realized that Swordheart and Daggerbound were in the same world as the Paladin novels, which was a really welcome surprise when I started Swordheart and realized, huh, paladins! These are all set in a fantasy world that fascinates my brain for some reason, where there’s a certain level of mechanical technology but also gods and everyone is running around in chainmail with swords and crossbows. There are also other non-human sentient species, mainly gnoles, which are like badgers with their own really interesting caste-based society and pronouns based on their castes. I think these books hit so well for me because they mix together romance, mystery, and fantasy worldbuilding really seamlessly, so even when the romances get a bit repetitive or the mysteries stretch on, the worldbuilding will keep me entertained, or the romance will kick back in, or the mystery, so one of the three aspects will keep me engaged.
Swordheart focuses on Sarkis, who is bound to an enchanted sword and must do anything to protect its wielder, and Halla, who has just inherited the estate of the uncle she’s been caring for but whose evil relations are trying to take it from her. Halla has to learn how to better value herself and Sarkis has to work through his own self-loathing, and they also have to get her estate issues worked out, and also solve a mystery, because of course. Daggerbound focuses on another man trapped in a sword, the Dervish, and the scholar, Learned Edmund, who draws his sword. Edmund and the Dervish have to work through their own self-loathing issues and the Dervish’s extensive trauma (if you’re an immortal sword who can’t die, an evil wielder can do awful things to you!), and also solve a mystery, and also some legal issues ensue. Paladin’s Faith features a similar mix of self-loathing, I’ll never be good enough for them, oh no they hate me, and court politics, as Marguerite (whom we met in an earlier book) goes with two of the Saint of Steel beserker Paladins, Wren and Shane, to do some political spying and maneuvering at a massive court get-together.
I liked Daggerbound the best of the three, because I’m gay so it tracks that I would like the gay novel, and also because I thought it had the most interesting plot, personally. The Dervish and Edmund also work through their issues a bit more rapidly than the other pairs, which since I am not a fan of miscommunication and slow burn romances, was a relief. These books are all about slow burn romance and people doubting the other person will ever love them because they’re too messed up, lots of pining and oh, they’ll only want to hook up, but then in the end they do always get there. I respect that T. Kingfisher has her story arcs that she likes and the books overall are so readable to me that I can handle the prolonged pining and angsting, even if I do wish they would speed through it and spend more time on the enjoying each other’s company part. I think Paladin’s Faith spent a bit too much time with the political maneuvering for me, but I’m also not that much a political wrangling in fantasy person (thus my shame at never finishing The Goblin Emperor). It is also funny how every woman main character is small and curvy and busty, usually with a lot of energy, but I know with my writing I tend to write the same dynamic over and over, so I’m not dinging it. It just struck me especially in Paladin’s Faith, where both Marguerite and Wren are small and curvy, so it’s as if all women in this world went through being malnourished at some point and all men tend to be large and burly and strong (they are paladins, so again, I get it, and I like the fantasy).
But overall, these go down very smoothly and I read three of them in about four to five days, so they clearly work for me! I’m currently re-reading my two favorite Paladin novels and then I’ll visit the prequel books, Clockwork Boys and The Wonder Engine, because I’m interested to get more backstory about the events prior to the main series. Apparently there are going to be three more in the Paladin series and one more in the Swordheart series, so that’s good news for me. Definitely recommended for those who like a fun mish-mash of romance, fantasy, and mystery, with interesting worldbuilding, as long as you can handle a lot of pining.
