A review by amateur_bookworm
Five Broken Blades by Mai Corland

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

My summary:
Five unlikely assassins are summoned together to overthrow the treacherous and evil king. Each of them has their own motivation, as well as deeply hidden secrets. The odds stack up against them as they band together in an increasingly difficult assassination attempt. But, remember, it’s only treason if you fail. 

My thoughts: 
This book turned into such an adventure! Like most fantasy books, I had no idea what was going on in the first hundred or so pages. It initially felt like a lot of characters, but as the story goes on, switching between the different POVs is my favorite part. It leaves you on such a cliffhanger in some parts when it jumps to a different character in the next chapter. Once I sorted out the who’s who of the book, I really fell into the rhythm of the story. And I flew through the last hundred pages. I can’t wait for the next book in the series and I preordered it as soon as I shut this book. 

I really came to love all the characters and the way they band together in parts of the book. Each character’s backstory is unique and complicated, which gives depth to the story. It’s hard to pick a favorite, because they’re all so different. Ok, so, really, my favorites are Sora and Royo. But, I do like all of the main characters. 

I had seen a handful of reviews for this book but the gorgeous special edition is the real reason I bought it. I adore the design on the sprayed edges. It is legit almost too pretty to read. I honestly mostly read this on my Kindle and stared at the book on my shelf as a trophy. 

There’s a pronunciation guide at the beginning (of the Kindle edition)! Ya’ll! At the start! Pronunciation! I don’t have to think “aghjhseh” in my head every time I can’t guess how to say a name or a place! And I don’t have to wait and listen to the audiobook to realize that I’ve mispronounced every single name! Please, every fantasy author, please do this. 
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