Set in the City of the Eternal Siege, The Mortal Blade introduces us to a world filled with gods, humans and the inequalities between them.

The Mortal Blade

Corthie Holdfast is a captured mortal with god-like powers who is brought to the city to fight as its Champion against the Greenhides. Maddie Jackdaw is a Blade, a soldier who’s been thrown out of every unit until she’s given the job of caring for a dragon who refuses to defend the city. Daniel Aurelian, the son of a wealthy family, is a newly commissioned officer who doesn’t want to be a soldier and certainly doesn’t want the political marriage his overbearing mother insists upon. Alia is a demigod and a member of the God class that rules the city—she’s also an assassin.

The four main characters’ stories take place in a city that’s been besieged for millennia by the Greenhides, ogre-like creatures that attack in swarms. Ruled by a God-King and a God-Queen, the city is administered by their demigod offspring who often fight among themselves. There have been civil wars, and inequalities exist among the nine human tribes.

The first half of the book sets up both the characters and the story’s world. It’s from the midpoint that their storylines begin to cross. Corthie meets Alia and they fall in love. Corthie also meets Maddie and her dragon charge, Blackrose. Daniel and Alia’s paths cross, and she is the only person who questions Daniel’s unwanted rise to fame. Be warned, the book ends on a massive cliffhanger. Thankfully, the next two books in the series are already available.

The world building is strong. At the back of the book, you’ll find a description of the city’s Nine Tribes, the world’s calendar (and the reasoning behind why there are two summers and winters) and description of the city’s royal families. My only (minor) gripe is the lack of a map. I found it hard to figure out where some of the action took place beyond the Bulwark.

The plot is fast-moving and mostly character-driven—things happened for a reason. While I’d like to have seen more of Maddie’s story, I get the feeling we’ll see more of her in future books. While the Alia’s and Corthie’s story trajectories are pretty clear, I’m not sure what this novel's cliffhanger will mean for either Daniel or Maddie.

I enjoyed Mortal Blade, and I look forward to reading the second book in the series, The Dragon’s Blade.

Image: Amazon.co.uk, 11-Jan-21 

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