3.5
A Woman of the Sword
ByPublisher Description
A Woman of the Sword is an epic fantasy seen through the eyes of an ordinary woman. Lidae is a daughter, a wife, a mother - and a great warrior born to fight. Her sword is hungry for killing, her right hand is red with blood.
War is very much a woman's business. But war is not kind to women. And war is not kind to mothers and their sons.
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Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communitiesA Woman of the Sword Reviews
3.5
“This is unlike any other fantasy I’ve read, and falls into my favorite genre of novels with unlikable protagonists/morally grey and emotionally nuanced women. The writing style is not exactly linear and can take some getting used to. I enjoyed it because it felt at times like reading poetry. I couldn’t give it the full five stars because I hit a slump about halfway through because I didn’t know where the plot was going. The motion of the story felt rudderless at times but the whole of the arc was worthwhile.”
“First off, I enjoy this author's unique voice. The way she does description in short bursts of broken sentence fragments is something I enjoy as it's different than other mainstream books. Here though, I feel kind of slapped in the face with it. There is description, then there is boat tons of description, and when it's unique and jarring, it forced me to skip along until I saw words that meant the story was moving.
Second, I read the author's first series. I struggled with it at first, but then finished it. I enjoyed her writing enough to give this one a chance. I actually did not know it was set in the same world until part way into it as it is not labeled as being in the same world, just many years later. If I were to guess this is a publishing decision. Problem is, very similar, but even more strong handed this time, this book is "grim dark". I love this sub genre, but with her writing it misses the subtlety that those who have risen to the top of this genre have. A book and its characters can be dark and morally grey, the world is tough and dangerous, but this is the part that is missing. Something, something has to break up the constant downward spiral of the story and characters. Humor is a good tool. Even if it's a single side character if you are not going have the main character use it. Just something to bring the mood up before it plunges again.
Here like her first series it's endless darkness and wallowing. Death and despair from page one. I finished it because I almost always finish a book. Here, I probably shouldn't have.”
About Anna Smith Spark
Anna Smith Spark is the author of the critically acclaimed, Gemmell and British Fantasy Awards shortlisted Empires of Dust grimdark epic fantasy series (HarperVoyager) The Court of Broken Knives, The Tower of Living and Dying and The House of Sacrifice, as well as short stories set in and around the series' world. Her books have been described as 'a masterwork' by Nightmarish Conjurings, 'an experience like no other series in fantasy' by Grimdark Magazine, 'literary Game of Thrones' by the Sunday Times, and 'howls like early Moorcock, converses like the best of Le Guin' by the Daily Mail.
Other books by Anna Smith Spark
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