I was first drawn to Five Broken Blades by Mai Corland (the name Meredith Ireland writes under for high fantasy) because it has an adopted main character, and I was adopted too. I’d also read Ireland’s contemporary YA novels before which also had adopted main characters, so I knew I wanted to read her next book. FBB was the exact fantasy book I was looking for: it’s captivating, includes a good balance of world-building with action without being overwhelming, and includes distinct characters. Also, the first edition with the stained edges, the character art, and the gold foil on the hardback is gorgeous. There is also a map.
Five Broken Blades is Corland’s first epic fantasy novel. It includes mystery and political intrigue. I enjoy when authors write in different genres. Five Broken Blades follows five people who are assigned to kill King Joon. One is Mikail, who is an spymaster, Sora, who is a poison killer, Aeri, who hires Royo, and Euyan, who is a disgraced prince. The sixth point of view is Tiyung, the son of the nobleman who orders Sora. At first, I was unsure of who each character was because it wasn’t specified in the description, but then I easily figured it out. My favorite perspective at first was Sora – the one who protects her sister.
Royo became my favorite characters by the end. I really dislike sexist, serious male characters who suppress their emotions. Royo is not like that at all – he is very respectful of Aeri. I felt like this book was perfectly paced because I never felt bored in any character’s perspective. I also thought each character had a distinct voice although it was from a first person perspective for each of the six characters. Each character’s perspective was interesting in each chapter.
I also liked that this was a fantasy book with romance. You can really see how much care Corland put into making the world and the relationships. My favorite relationship (no spoilers) was the slow burn one between two characters who have never met. The balance between the worldbuilding and the romance were great. I want to learn more about the magic system in the book. I hope that is something that will be followed up with in the sequel. I think it was pretty well explained in this one, but I hope to see more.
I did not expect the ending, but now I am excited to re-read to see what clues I missed. Overall, Five Broken Blades is a strong start to a new fantasy series. I highly recommend this book. I cannot wait for the sequel! I think the world is going to expand a lot. Corland is definitely one of my favorite authors.
Solace in Reading 