Review: A Broken Blade by Melissa Blair

Synopsis

My body is made of scars,
some were done to me,
but most I did to myself.

Keera is a killer. As the King’s Blade, she is the most talented spy in the kingdom. And the king’s favored assassin. When a mysterious figure moves against the Crown, Keera is called upon to hunt down the so-called Shadow.

She tracks her target into the magical lands of the Fae, but Faeland is not what it seems. . . and neither is the Shadow. Keera is shocked by what she learns, and can’t help but wonder who her enemy truly is: the King that destroyed her people or the Shadow that threatens the peace?

As she searches for answers, Keera is haunted by a promise she made long ago, one that will test her in every way. To keep her word, Keera must not only save herself, but an entire kingdom.

What I thought

Thank you Union Square & Co and Melissa Blair for giving me an ARC of this book for an honest review. All thoughts and feelings expressed are my own.

This is the first book in The Halfling Saga. When I accepted this book, I knew I would like it, however, I did not expect it to be so unputdownable. It is unbelievable that this book is a debut. I am going to do my best to not spoil anything, even though I just want to gush. Oh, this story has a few tropes in it and one of them is enemies to lovers and if you have read any of my reviews before you know how much I love that one!

In this kingdom, if you are a halfling, meaning you have any elf blood in you, you become property of the King. These people are used essentially as slaves in one way or another. Yes, this king is trash. There is a group of these halflings that are all female that are trained to be the king’s Shades. The Shades are essentially used as a specialized force, mostly as killers. They are given no choice in this, they are taken as small children just so they can be brainwashed to this way of life.

Keera was appointed to the position of King’s Blade, which makes her his personal assassin. She does not relish her role. Keera has a big heart and is racked with guilt over the lives she has been forced to take. Due to her guilt, her vice is drinking, she states she has pretty much lived in a drunken haze for decades. She finally realizes how bad it has gotten when she should have died in a fight. Realizing that she should have died and knowing that so many people count on her to survive (you will have to read to understand that) she decides to not have another drink until her “mission” is done. Decades of living in a drunken stupor, you would expect someone to go through withdrawal, and that is exactly what the author made her do. I really appreciate that the author didn’t make her magically better just to move the story along faster. The more the story went on, the more invested I became in Keera’s story. Shades are encouraged to not have any connections with people because it is a weakness that can be exploited, and Keera learns that the hard way. You get to see pieces of this thought the story. So, when she finally finds her “tribe” with Riven, Nikolai, and Syrra you can’t help but to be happy for her. Keera learns that sometimes sharing your burdens makes them easier to carry.

Riven, I still can not decide how I feel about him. Maybe its just me, but something just felt off about him. I mean now I know some of it, but I still can’t decide if I like him or not.

Nikolai and Syrra were amazing, I can not wait to get more of them in the future books.

Which leaves Killian, the bastard prince. I knew he was up to something. To be honest, I thought he was a different player in the beginning. I was so sure I was shocked when a reveal happened, and it wasn’t him.

The ending, OMG I saw it coming! Well, I saw part of it coming and the other part I am not sure how I feel about it. I am also not usually a fan of cliffhangers, but I enjoyed this book so much that it didn’t bother me this time. I just need the next book.

My Rating: /5

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think? Tell me in the comments below.