Blood and Steel by Helen Scheuerer

4/5 stars

SPOILERS AHEAD

Was this the exact same as every single other romantasy book I've ever read? Yes, basically trope for trope. Did I eat it up with a ferocity I have not experienced in far too long? Also yes. Is it a perfect, literary masterpiece? No, but I think any romantasy lover or vibes reader would eat this up just as much as I did. 

It definitely follows the "orphaned girl wants to be a warrior but has to train extra hard and go on a journey with a sexy broody warrior only to find out she has magic and is a long lost heir to some long forgotten kingdom" thing, but there's a reason that it's such a successful plot. It's fun and engaging, and this one specifically brought me out of the slight romantasy slump I've been in. 

I like Thea. I find that with a lot of these kinds of books that the female main character ends up being pretty insufferable and I'm ready to shake some sense into her by the end of the book (cough cough, Diem, cough cough). I did feel that way a little bit with Thea, because like girl you obviously have magic stop being stupid, but overall I thought she was a really powerful character. She knew what she wanted and even racing against a clock, she never wavered in her goals. She wasn't wishy washy with how she felt about Wilder and it was never her pulling back from something happening between them. She was always taking initiative and I thought she was pretty badass. Even in her moments where she started to doubt herself, she mentally slapped some sense into herself and powered on. She was steady and confident. And I LOVE that she's 24 and not 18. 

The whole concept of the fate stone is really interesting to me. I have a feeling that the 27 on Thea's doesn't actually mean she's going to die at 27, but I like that it could mean literally anything. The idea of racing against your own death to make something of yourself adds so much more to Thea's character. It's more than wanting power as a woman in a world that tries to keep you down or wanting a better life for yourself than being stuck doing what every other woman is forced to do. It's doing something that will be remembered before your fate catches up with you. It makes Thea a much more robust character in my opinion, and validates a lot of her decisions. 

"A true man won't cut you down as you fight your battles, nor will he fight them for you. A true man will help sharpen your sword, guard your back and fight at your side, in the face of whatever darkness comes." 

Hawthorne is hot, obviously. I love a broody, grumpy man. I loved that he never tried to stop Thea from doing what she wanted out of fear for her safety, but lifted her up and fought by her side. He definitely sharpened her sword. I feel like a lot of male main characters get a little whiny and wimpy once they realize they're in love, but that hasn't happened with Wilder yet and god I hope it doesn't. I do think his personality fell a little bit flat maybe, but I'm hoping we get more of his story in the next book.

I think one of the things that makes a book successful is the side characters. If the side characters suck or are unlikeable or unmemorable, the book is probably going to be unmemorable too. I loved the side characters in this book. Cal, Kipp, Malik, Wren - I loved them all. Even Lachin, rest in peace. I could have cried every time Dax showed up to protect Thea or curled up at her feet to watch over her while she slept. Even in Thezmarr dogs are too good. Malik knowing the whole time who Thea was and giving Hawthorne the book of lineage to try and get him to learn too? Loved it. I like Wren a lot, but I need to know more about why she hid their magic from Thea… I have to think she had a better reason than trying to protect her, because she could have protected herself a hell of a lot better if she had known she had magic. 

I was absolutely losing my mind every time Thea let Seb get away with his life. Obviously that's going to come back to bite them all in the ass in the next books. Also, his last name being Barlowe and the similarities between him and Jack Barlowe in Fourth Wing had my eye twitching the whole time. Those bastards just won't die. I have a feeling that Vernich has been working with the things across the veil somehow and he's the reason the veil is cracking, and Seb being his apprentice is going to lead to more and more reapers suspiciously getting through. 

The writing definitely has some inconsistency and it feels a little confused at times, but overall I really enjoyed it. I have a lot of questions but I have a feeling that they'll be answered in the next books. 550 pages felt like 250, and I'm excited to read the next one.