Scan barcode
miss_berry315's review against another edition
1.75
I am so fed up with how this series has fallen apart. After the end of Paladin's Hope, you would assume the next installment would touch on the main theme running through the series, but alas, we get nothing. If I didn't have some interest in knowing what happens with the running plot, I would have DNF'd this one.
This book did not feel like it was in the same series as the rest of them. They're in an entirely different location attending some royal court event, Marguerite is a ""spy"" who will do ~whatever it takes~ to get information out of people (this is the author's attempt at being pro-sex worker, a minor improvement from the blatantly anti-sex worker comments from previous books in this series).
The relationship is boring, there is no banter, no friendship built at any point, Shane is insecure and awkward and full of guilt for even feeling lust towards a woman. The title should be "Paladin's Catholic Guilt" because my goodness it was laid on thick in this book. I'm talking, every damn time Shane has even the slightest lustful thought, he feels the need to serve penance for it.
Even though we get both Shane and Marguerite's POVs, we don't get any thoughts about each other, no pining or emotions, just the author telling us they like each other instead of showing it.
If the synopsis did not explicitly state that Shane was the love interest for Marguerite, I would have assumed it was Wren -- which would have honestly been a better story for both characters.
Which leads me to Wren's storyline in this book. She deserved so much better than the unnecessary descriptions the author repeatedly gave to us. I'm so beyond tired of women who aren't hyper feminine being written in this way. Did we really need another book where a woman is described as meek, chubby, unstylish, not conventionally pretty, frumpy, and insecure only to be put in situations where she has to wear a dress (*gasp* how silly goofy to make someone feel dysphoria!!) and then gets bullied and made fun of by conventionally attractive women?? Like, is this high school?? And to then have a man pretend to like her and date her when he really has ulterior motives to get information and ofc he would never date someone who looks like her is outdated, hurtful, and cheesy. She doesn't even really get a revenge arch or find her power in any way. Huge thumbs down, even more so once she is forced to spend time with him after knowing he was using her, just so the MCs could be alone together. Like, do not give this man a redemption arch, make him go tf away.
Honestly, between how caricaturized all of the characters are, the lack of continuation on the whole Saint of Steel thing, and the lack of relationship building, this book was really not that good.
The last 5ish chapters are probably the only good part of the whole thing and finally gave us a little bit to work with moving forward.
I may just end up skimming the next book whenever it eventually comes out.
I wish I could replace these books with Swordheart 4 times over tbh.
This book did not feel like it was in the same series as the rest of them. They're in an entirely different location attending some royal court event, Marguerite is a ""spy"" who will do ~whatever it takes~ to get information out of people (this is the author's attempt at being pro-sex worker, a minor improvement from the blatantly anti-sex worker comments from previous books in this series).
The relationship is boring, there is no banter, no friendship built at any point, Shane is insecure and awkward and full of guilt for even feeling lust towards a woman. The title should be "Paladin's Catholic Guilt" because my goodness it was laid on thick in this book. I'm talking, every damn time Shane has even the slightest lustful thought, he feels the need to serve penance for it.
Even though we get both Shane and Marguerite's POVs, we don't get any thoughts about each other, no pining or emotions, just the author telling us they like each other instead of showing it.
If the synopsis did not explicitly state that Shane was the love interest for Marguerite, I would have assumed it was Wren -- which would have honestly been a better story for both characters.
Which leads me to Wren's storyline in this book. She deserved so much better than the unnecessary descriptions the author repeatedly gave to us. I'm so beyond tired of women who aren't hyper feminine being written in this way. Did we really need another book where a woman is described as meek, chubby, unstylish, not conventionally pretty, frumpy, and insecure only to be put in situations where she has to wear a dress (*gasp* how silly goofy to make someone feel dysphoria!!) and then gets bullied and made fun of by conventionally attractive women?? Like, is this high school?? And to then have
Honestly, between how caricaturized all of the characters are, the lack of continuation on the whole Saint of Steel thing, and the lack of relationship building, this book was really not that good.
The last 5ish chapters are probably the only good part of the whole thing and finally gave us a little bit to work with moving forward.
I may just end up skimming the next book whenever it eventually comes out.
I wish I could replace these books with Swordheart 4 times over tbh.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Sexual content, Violence, Sexism, and Death
Moderate: Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Dysphoria, Fatphobia, Body shaming, and Classism
marmaladereads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This was my least favorite in the series so far. While it was a solid adventure book much like the other Saint of Steel series, it felt like more of the same (Broken Paladin falls in love, feels guilty about it) and this book in particular felt like a filler side story as we follow Shane and Marguerite on a side adventure while Galen and Piper are investigating what killed the Saint off page. I really wished we got more movement on the main plot here, but I guess we'll see more of that in book 5.
I did enjoy the ending quite a bit here - this book was less sappy, with higher stakes, and quite a bit more world building than previous books in the series with some interesting implications leading into the next book.
I did enjoy the ending quite a bit here - this book was less sappy, with higher stakes, and quite a bit more world building than previous books in the series with some interesting implications leading into the next book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Murder, and Sexual content
Moderate: Animal death
glowingrabbits's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Sexual content, and Death
Moderate: Abandonment, Blood, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Gore, Child abuse, Vomit, and Animal death
neighbor_reads's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
mary_soon_lee's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This is the fourth of the Paladin books, which combine fantasy with romance. It's very good. The romance is interwoven with a solid plot. The paladin in question, Shane, is a complete delight, twice-deserted by gods, ridiculously good, ridiculously hard on himself. The sections that deal with paladin matters such as gods and demons are handled very well [not quite as surpassingly well as Megan Whalen Turner achieves, but I have yet to discover an author to match her in that regard, and I am digressing....]
Marguerite, the other half of the romance, is clever, highly competent, used to looking out for herself, and able to appreciate every inch of Shane's appeal. I very much appreciate romances that show both viewpoints, as this does, and I also enjoyed the short dips into other perspectives. There are several secondary characters whom I hope to see again -- Lady Silver, Davith, the ever-wonderful Bishop Beartongue -- and a couple whom I suspect may get their own book in the series (Wren, Judith). Marguerite herself was a supporting character in book one in the series, Paladin's Grace, which is itself very good.
There's also a nice vein of humor running through this, and moments that moved me, and, unexpectedly, a sense that all might not end happily, which I usually don't experience in romance.
So, yes, very good. Four and a half out of five steel stars.
About my reviews: I try to review every book I read, including those that I don't end up enjoying. The reviews are not scholarly, but just indicate my reaction as a reader, reading being my addiction. I am miserly with 5-star reviews; 4 stars means I liked a book very much; 3 stars means I liked it; 2 stars means I didn't like it (though often the 2-star books are very popular with other readers and/or are by authors whose other work I've loved).
Marguerite, the other half of the romance, is clever, highly competent, used to looking out for herself, and able to appreciate every inch of Shane's appeal. I very much appreciate romances that show both viewpoints, as this does, and I also enjoyed the short dips into other perspectives. There are several secondary characters whom I hope to see again -- Lady Silver, Davith, the ever-wonderful Bishop Beartongue -- and a couple whom I suspect may get their own book in the series (Wren, Judith). Marguerite herself was a supporting character in book one in the series, Paladin's Grace, which is itself very good.
There's also a nice vein of humor running through this, and moments that moved me, and, unexpectedly, a sense that all might not end happily, which I usually don't experience in romance.
So, yes, very good. Four and a half out of five steel stars.
About my reviews: I try to review every book I read, including those that I don't end up enjoying. The reviews are not scholarly, but just indicate my reaction as a reader, reading being my addiction. I am miserly with 5-star reviews; 4 stars means I liked a book very much; 3 stars means I liked it; 2 stars means I didn't like it (though often the 2-star books are very popular with other readers and/or are by authors whose other work I've loved).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Sexual content
purplepenning's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Sexual harassment, Body shaming, Violence, Death, Fatphobia, Kidnapping, Murder, Blood, Classism, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Animal death, Body horror, and Abandonment
Minor: Chronic illness, Bullying, and Child abuse
booksthatburn's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
PALADIN'S FAITH follows Marguerite and Shane. Marguerite was last seen in PALADIN'S GRACE, where she vanished quite suddenly in the middle of some stressful events and it was discovered that, while other characters knew she was a spy, "Marguerite" was in fact the name of a different spy who had died years earlier. As we never get another name for this character, both the book and this review will continue to refer to her by her chosen name of Marguerite. What happened to her after this point was a great mystery, especially to her friend Grace, the perfumer who got together with Stephen in that book. Now, in PALADIN'S FAITH, Marguerite has returned to ask Bishop Beartongue for the loan of some paladins so that she can find an artificer with an economy-changing invention that has the possibility of fixing a great many of the White Rat's current problems. Shane has been around in the previous books, present, but not generally playing a major role. Wren, the other paladin who travels with them, has hitherto been mentioned only incidentally as part of the group of the late Saint of Steel's paladins.
I like Wren, I'd been waiting for any of the female paladins to get as much attention as their brother paladins and I'm quite pleased with the result. I enjoy Marguerite and Shane, both separately and together. Shane is consistent with his brief appearances in earlier books, and to whatever extent there’s more variation from Marguerite's early appearance, much of that is due to finally knowing more about her. I love how T. Kingfisher keeps finding new permutations of the kind of person who would become a paladin and end up looking like guilt-ridden walls of muscle from the outside, but turn out to be kind, strong, very capable, guilt-ridden walls of muscle from the inside.
The Saint of Steel series has hit its stride, with a level of obvious consistency in quality where I'm super happy with this book, it's everything I wanted but couldn't anticipate, and I'm very excited for the next one. This also is a point where it gets harder for me to have non-spoiler specifics for a review. I had a great time, and if you are this far in the series, you, too, probably like fluffy paladin romances with some death and relative gore (but remarkably fewer severed heads than the first three books).
PALADIN'S FAITH. is definitely not the last book in the series, it appears that there are supposed to be seven in total, one for each of the paladins. Regardless of the eventual tally, this is not the last book and there is a hell of a teaser at the end for something that will be very relevant in future books. Even without that teaser, this book is not devoted to solving the mystery of the Saint's death and so that plotline is ready to receive more attention later. Shane does get a few insights from an unlikely source, and I'm interested in how that will all pan out.
I like Wren, I'd been waiting for any of the female paladins to get as much attention as their brother paladins and I'm quite pleased with the result. I enjoy Marguerite and Shane, both separately and together. Shane is consistent with his brief appearances in earlier books, and to whatever extent there’s more variation from Marguerite's early appearance, much of that is due to finally knowing more about her. I love how T. Kingfisher keeps finding new permutations of the kind of person who would become a paladin and end up looking like guilt-ridden walls of muscle from the outside, but turn out to be kind, strong, very capable, guilt-ridden walls of muscle from the inside.
The Saint of Steel series has hit its stride, with a level of obvious consistency in quality where I'm super happy with this book, it's everything I wanted but couldn't anticipate, and I'm very excited for the next one. This also is a point where it gets harder for me to have non-spoiler specifics for a review. I had a great time, and if you are this far in the series, you, too, probably like fluffy paladin romances with some death and relative gore (but remarkably fewer severed heads than the first three books).
PALADIN'S FAITH. is definitely not the last book in the series, it appears that there are supposed to be seven in total, one for each of the paladins. Regardless of the eventual tally, this is not the last book and there is a hell of a teaser at the end for something that will be very relevant in future books. Even without that teaser, this book is not devoted to solving the mystery of the Saint's death and so that plotline is ready to receive more attention later. Shane does get a few insights from an unlikely source, and I'm interested in how that will all pan out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Sexual content, and Death
Moderate: Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Gore
Minor: Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Murder, Child death, Vomit, Kidnapping, Suicide, Torture, and Death of parent
wilybooklover's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
5.0
Another fantastic instalment in this series. Shane and Marguerite were a perfect pairing of opposites — the former honourable and gentle yet plagued with guilt, and the latter practical and flirty with absolutely no patience for guilt. I really loved how Marguerite took the reins in their relationship; it felt right for the couple and I'm never opposed to a hint of femdom.
The plot took a good while to kick in (I think it could've done with a bit of a tougher edit in the first half) but by the end it was absolutely fascinating. I cannot wait to see where the plot is going with Judith.
I really hope that Wren isn't paired up with Davith though. I hate second chance and theirs is a dynamic that I just don't enjoy.
The plot took a good while to kick in (I think it could've done with a bit of a tougher edit in the first half) but by the end it was absolutely fascinating. I cannot wait to see where the plot is going with Judith.
I really hope that Wren isn't paired up with Davith though. I hate second chance and theirs is a dynamic that I just don't enjoy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual content, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Confinement, Gore, and Kidnapping
Minor: Sexual harassment, Suicide, Child abuse, Suicide attempt, and Suicidal thoughts
directorpurry's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Sexual content
bookwyrmknits's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I greatly enjoyed this installment of the Saint of Steel books. It was really nice to get to know some of the Saint's paladins we haven't seen much of before. (And I'm really looking forward to Wren's book, in whichever order that comes! But Judith, what have you done?) The side characters were really what made this book for me.
I liked both Shane and Marguerite, and thought that by the end they make a really good couple, but it took a while for me to accept them together. It wasn't really until their main on-screen sex scene 2/3 or so into the book—which was steamier than I had expected—that I was properly okay with them together.
This book had its own plot, which was wrapped up nicely by the end of the book, and I appreciated that. However, this is the middle book in a series and in many ways it feels like it. There were at least as many series plot points as book plot points, and (as you would expect) the series plot does not resolve here. I can't complain about that part; it's what you expect when you reach the presumed midpoint of a series, that there will be things that carry over.
I liked both Shane and Marguerite, and thought that by the end they make a really good couple, but it took a while for me to accept them together. It wasn't really until their main on-screen sex scene 2/3 or so into the book—which was steamier than I had expected—that I was properly okay with them together.
This book had its own plot, which was wrapped up nicely by the end of the book, and I appreciated that. However, this is the middle book in a series and in many ways it feels like it. There were at least as many series plot points as book plot points, and (as you would expect) the series plot does not resolve here. I can't complain about that part; it's what you expect when you reach the presumed midpoint of a series, that there will be things that carry over.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Sexual content
Minor: Suicide attempt and Animal death
CW details: