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edamamebean's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Very cuteeee. I will definitely be continuing this series. T. Kingfisher excels at writing lovable characters and I especially enjoyed Stephen’s friendships with his fellow paladins and the other members of Temple of the White Rat. The romance was very sweet. It gets docked from four stars because, like all of Kingfisher’s longer books, it dragged heavily in the middle to a frustrating degree. But I will say I thought the slog paid off at the end, even if the main conflict was wrapped up a little too conveniently…
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Violence, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Murder, Gaslighting, War, and Injury/Injury detail
miss_berry315's review against another edition
medium-paced
2.0
I originally dnf'd this book, realized the Saint of Steel series can be read as stand-alone books, read Paladin's Strength and Paladin's Hope, started Paladin's Faith and realized I wanted more context so I went back to this one.
I dnf'd this book originally because of the scene where Stephen and Grace meet. It is fairly early in the book and I really felt like the author could have done literally anything other than have Stephen practically SA Grace.
IDC if this is a spoiler, it's really not done well and adds absolutely nothing to the story overall.
Stephen is walking back home when he hears someone running and he determines that the person sounds like they're in trouble, so he wants to help (paladin things). Grace approaches him near an alleyway and asks Stephen to help her hide. Stephen then grabs her, shoves her against the wall so she's hidden from the people chasing her, and begins dry humping her and acting as if he is having sex. She plays along with it, he's apologizing the whole time (super uncomfortable) and the people chasing her end up leaving them alone. It's important to note that this happens in an alleyway very close to this city's version of a 'Red Light District' aka a place where sex workers are known to be present and offering services. The author does not write about sex workers in a positive way. The language used is outdated, Stephen says he would 'never be involved with a sex worker' and Grace is relieved. Its just really not empowering and starts the relationship between these two off in a very uncomfortable place. Why couldn't Stephen help Grace into a crate or behind some barrels, or in a pile of trash or literally anything in the entire world that could have been realistically in the alleyway? Why did the author see the only option as borderline SA??
Other than that, the book was fairly boring in plot, characters, and romance. Grace is defined by her relationships and career. I felt like the perfume making stuff could have been interesting, but kind of fell flat. I understand it's hard to write about how someone may have a natural ability to create something and how they often will incorporate that into their lives however they can, but the way that Grace can differentiate smells within complex ones just came off like the whole 'chosen one' 'special-special' trope that protagonists often have.
I dnf'd this book originally because of the scene where Stephen and Grace meet. It is fairly early in the book and I really felt like the author could have done literally anything other than have Stephen practically SA Grace.
IDC if this is a spoiler, it's really not done well and adds absolutely nothing to the story overall.
Stephen is walking back home when he hears someone running and he determines that the person sounds like they're in trouble, so he wants to help (paladin things). Grace approaches him near an alleyway and asks Stephen to help her hide. Stephen then grabs her, shoves her against the wall so she's hidden from the people chasing her, and begins dry humping her and acting as if he is having sex. She plays along with it, he's apologizing the whole time (super uncomfortable) and the people chasing her end up leaving them alone. It's important to note that this happens in an alleyway very close to this city's version of a 'Red Light District' aka a place where sex workers are known to be present and offering services. The author does not write about sex workers in a positive way. The language used is outdated, Stephen says he would 'never be involved with a sex worker' and Grace is relieved. Its just really not empowering and starts the relationship between these two off in a very uncomfortable place. Why couldn't Stephen help Grace into a crate or behind some barrels, or in a pile of trash or literally anything in the entire world that could have been realistically in the alleyway? Why did the author see the only option as borderline SA??
Other than that, the book was fairly boring in plot, characters, and romance. Grace is defined by her relationships and career. I felt like the perfume making stuff could have been interesting, but kind of fell flat. I understand it's hard to write about how someone may have a natural ability to create something and how they often will incorporate that into their lives however they can, but the way that Grace can differentiate smells within complex ones just came off like the whole 'chosen one' 'special-special' trope that protagonists often have.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Stalking, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
The book starts off withelly29's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This struck the right balance of intrigue, growth, and romance for me. It starts off well: first few sentences are about a god dying, and then his former paladin being adrift and broken. (I did think the romance was going to be gay paladins, but apparently that’s Book 3 in the series.) It had a lawyer, a perfumer, a spy, a prince, an assassin, a doctor, a weasel… and multiple severed heads (but they weren’t that bad? Don’t let a severed head deter you!)
The plot was fun and entertaining, and I am amazed at T. Kingfisher’s breadth.
There is some blood/gore, sexy times scenes, gaslighting, and emotional abuse. (I found them all to be pretty mild-medium, but am listing them as medium just in case.)
The plot was fun and entertaining, and I am amazed at T. Kingfisher’s breadth.
There is some blood/gore, sexy times scenes, gaslighting, and emotional abuse. (I found them all to be pretty mild-medium, but am listing them as medium just in case.)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Gore, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, and Gaslighting
ldermer's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, and Blood