Tag Archives: T. Kingfisher

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Book Review: Nettle & Bone, by T. Kingfisher

I received a copy of T. Kingfisher‘s Nettle & Bone through Netgalley.

nettle and bone cover

This isn’t the kind of fairytale where the princess marries a prince.
It’s the one where she kills him.

Marra never wanted to be a hero.

As the shy, convent-raised, third-born daughter, she escaped the traditional fate of princesses, to be married away for the sake of an uncaring throne. But her sister wasn’t so fortunate—and after years of silence, Marra is done watching her suffer at the hands of a powerful and abusive prince.

Seeking help for her rescue mission, Marra is offered the tools she needs, but only if she can complete three seemingly impossible tasks:
—build a dog of bones
—sew a cloak of nettles
—capture moonlight in a jar

But, as is the way in tales of princes and witches, doing the impossible is only the beginning.

Hero or not—now joined by a disgraced ex-knight, a reluctant fairy godmother, an enigmatic gravewitch and her fowl familiar—Marra might finally have the courage to save her sister, and topple a throne.

my review

I am just going to have to accept that I am a standing T. Kingfisher fan. I have enjoyed everything I’ve read by them. I’ll admit that this isn’t my favorite of their books that I’ve read—I thought it a little slow at times, and sometimes I wanted a deeper conversation about things than we were given—but I sure did enjoy the heck out of it.

So much about Marra—who I am convinced is neuron-divergent—is relatable. She’s practical as all get-out and is getting the job done, but she’s an angsty, insecure mess the whole time she’s doing it. Yeah, I felt that in my very bones.

The romance is super subtle, and I adored it. All of the side characters are marvelous, and there is just enough absurdity that happens. (I laughed often.) I am sad to be finished and look forward to my next T. Kingfisher book.

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Review: Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher + Giveaway

NETTLE & BONE – T. KINGFISHER

 

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Book Review: Paladin’s Strength, by T. Kingfisher

I borrowed and audio copy of T. Kingfisher‘s Paladin’s Strength through Hoopla (narrated by Joel Richards). It is book two in The Saint of Steel series. I reviewed book one, Paladin’s Grace, a month or so ago.
audio paladin's strength

He’s a paladin of a dead god, tracking a supernatural killer across a continent. She’s a nun from a secretive order, on the trail of the raiders who burned her convent and kidnapped her sisters.

When their paths cross at the point of a sword, Istvhan and Clara will be pitched headlong into each other’s quests, facing off against enemies both living and dead. But Clara has a secret that could jeopardize the growing trust between them, a secret that will lead them to the gladiatorial pits of a corrupt city, and beyond…

my review

Well, this was officially another winner for me. I’m becoming a huge T. Kingfisher fan. I did think Istvhan sounded an awful lot like Stephen from Paladin’s Grace (book one of the series), as in most of the Paladin’s seem to sound interchangeable. Granted, they were all paladin’s of the same god, would have spent a lot of time together and have similar background. So, maybe that’s to be expected. But it does show a bit of an author’s (maybe) limitation when too many characters sound too much alike. To be fair, I happen to love the character type—their mien, stoicism, deprecating humor, honor, etc. So, I’m not so much complaining as simply observing. I also thought the book was a little longer than need be. But my goodness, how I loved Clara and her by-play with Istvhan, how Kingfisher lets them be older and beautiful in non-standard ways, and the basic moral palette of the books. I will 100% be back for more!

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Other Reviews:

A Balm for Troubled and Troubling Times – A Review of Paladin’s Strength by T. Kingfisher

Review: Paladin’s Grace

 

clocktaur war series

Book Review: Clocktaur War Series, by T. Kingfisher

I borrowed Clockwork Boys and The Wonder Engine through Hoopla.
clocktaur war covers (clockwork boys & the wonder engine)

A paladin, an assassin, a forger, and a scholar ride out of town. It’s not the start of a joke, but rather an espionage mission with deadly serious stakes. T. Kingfisher’s new novel begins the tale of a murderous band of criminals (and a scholar), thrown together in an attempt to unravel the secret of the Clockwork Boys, mechanical soldiers from a neighboring kingdom that promise ruin to the Dowager’s city.

If they succeed, rewards and pardons await, but that requires a long journey through enemy territory, directly into the capital. It also requires them to refrain from killing each other along the way! At turns darkly comic and touching, Clockwork Boys puts together a broken group of people trying to make the most of the rest of their lives as they drive forward on their suicide mission. my review

Clockwork Boys and The Wonder Engine are really two halves of a single whole, neither stands alone. So, I’m going to review them as one.

I was supposed to read something else this week, but I have fallen into a T. Kingfisher hole and I can’t seem to get out. I’ve read four of their books in as many days. I am almost literally inhaling them because I’m having so much fun her Kingfisher’s writing style. I admit that I didn’t love this duology quite as much as Paladin’s Grace or Swordheart, but not quite as much is still quite a lot.

There is just a underlying kindness to Kingfisher’s characters, even the ostensibly criminally heartless ones like we have here. I laugh a lot and appreciate that the characters are diverse and allowed to be any number of unexpected things—older, unattractive, have allergies, non dominant demographics in a variety of ways, etc.

I did think the Clocktaur War series was a little slow at times, it takes quite a long time to get going in the beginning, for example. And I thought they defeated their un-defeatable foe a little too easily and then just breezed on to other problems. But all in all, I want more and more and more.

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