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oldandnewbooksmell's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Trigger Warnings: racism (including blackface), sexism, murder, violence
Sixteen-year-old Joan Sands is a “gifted” craftswoman who creates and upkeeps the stage blades for William Shakespeare’s acting company. Joan’s gift comes from a magical ability she was blessed with from her Head Orisha, Ogun. Because her entire family is Orisha-blessed, they’ve kept tabs on the Fae presence in London. Usually, they just see a faint glow around a Fae’s body as they try their best to blend in with regular society. After a pack has been broken though, the rise of brutal Fae attacks has risen. After saving the son of a cruel Lord from a Fae attack, Joan gets thrusted into the political world of humans and Fae.
The writing really shows the author’s background in theater and acting and of the historical time period (including the treatment of Black people living in London, which I hadn’t known about).
Some of the parts didn’t interest me as much, but I did really enjoy the fight scenes as I felt like they were well written. There could have been a lot going on, but I would never feel like I was lost but rather right in the middle of swords swinging around.
Overall, this was a fun and action-packed YA fantasy with an alternative history twist. I can see YA fantasy readers and those who love theater enjoying this book with the twist of Shakespeare. I will definitely be keeping my eyes out for the next book in the series to continue with Joan and her story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Blood, Death, and Murder
caseythereader's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Kidnapping, Racism, Religious bigotry, Classism, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Violence, Sexism, Alcohol, Excrement, and Injury/Injury detail
heather667's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
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? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, Sexism, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Gore, Racism, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol and Misogyny
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic, Animal cruelty, and Sexual assault
fareehareads's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I almost didn't finish this book. I nearly dropped in several times. But something propelled me forward to just blaze through it in one sitting after days of going back and forth with it.
The story itself follows Joan Sands and her brother James, two fae living in the Elizabethan era and working as a part of Shakespeare's acting company. James is an actor and Joan is the swords expert that teaches everyone how to fight. Their family are blessed by the Orisha, meaning all of them have special abilities, for Joan it's the ability to manipulate iron and other metals. There is a political plot in this, a group of actors with wild personalities, a male and female love interest for Joan, and some fae deaths that lead to an investigation and further choas.
All around the premise sounded so promising but where it felt flat for me was the worldbuilding and convoluted plot. It was very clear that the author was setting up this book to have some larger implications that wouldn't be explored till the next book and I wish it was less heavy handed. The focus of the task at hand kept getting lost and while Joan's motivations weren't unclear, her desires felt very strained and pulled in too many directions. She was clearly meant to be an honorable character with a sense of justice and care for her fellow family and friends. Yet she often acted for her own self interests and didn't actually make any real effort to find out why she was the only one from her family other than her uncle with the specific very important ability that could change everything. It came up and was dropped like it meant nothing.
Also her parents didn't make a lot of sense to me, her mother was hell-bent on keeping Joan from knowing things by saying "she's too young" and that didn't feel like the strongest argument considering how she was killing monsters every other day and supporting her brother completely. It felt like Joan was carrying a lot but there was 0 acknowledgment of that from everyone around her. Also Shakespeare himself being an active character was an interesting choice, but I almost wish it didn't happen at all.
I had a lot more complaints about this than I thought. Anyway a lot of this book had potential, but it really didn't stick the landing.
The story itself follows Joan Sands and her brother James, two fae living in the Elizabethan era and working as a part of Shakespeare's acting company. James is an actor and Joan is the swords expert that teaches everyone how to fight. Their family are blessed by the Orisha, meaning all of them have special abilities, for Joan it's the ability to manipulate iron and other metals. There is a political plot in this, a group of actors with wild personalities, a male and female love interest for Joan, and some fae deaths that lead to an investigation and further choas.
All around the premise sounded so promising but where it felt flat for me was the worldbuilding and convoluted plot. It was very clear that the author was setting up this book to have some larger implications that wouldn't be explored till the next book and I wish it was less heavy handed. The focus of the task at hand kept getting lost and while Joan's motivations weren't unclear, her desires felt very strained and pulled in too many directions. She was clearly meant to be an honorable character with a sense of justice and care for her fellow family and friends. Yet she often acted for her own self interests and didn't actually make any real effort to find out why she was the only one from her family other than her uncle with the specific very important ability that could change everything. It came up and was dropped like it meant nothing.
Also her parents didn't make a lot of sense to me, her mother was hell-bent on keeping Joan from knowing things by saying "she's too young" and that didn't feel like the strongest argument considering how she was killing monsters every other day and supporting her brother completely. It felt like Joan was carrying a lot but there was 0 acknowledgment of that from everyone around her. Also Shakespeare himself being an active character was an interesting choice, but I almost wish it didn't happen at all.
I had a lot more complaints about this than I thought. Anyway a lot of this book had potential, but it really didn't stick the landing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, Murder, Colonisation, Blood, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Hate crime, Bullying, and Gaslighting
Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Classism
jessicaludden's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
I wanted to like this book but it fell kind of flat for me. I love the premise of a religion-based magic system set in Shakespearean London with POC and queer main and side characters. I really liked Joan and her brother’s relationship, but the side characters didn’t do a lot for me. The romance also felt very instant and I couldn’t really see the chemistry with either of her love interests. As far as the plot goes, I feel like things kept happening but nothing connected or flowed well. We never circled back to the overarching theme or goal. Overall, I liked the idea of this but the execution wasn’t what I hoped it would be. I wish we had gotten more world building and explored the magic system more.
Content Warnings
Minor: Gore, Body horror, Death, Racism, Blood, Murder, and Racial slurs
knlipke's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
I enjoyed reading this book so much!! The story is unique, while tying in old tales of fae and the Orisha. I love Joan, James and everyone else! They’re great characters.
The ending was kind of abrupt. I understand there to be more books in the future of this series; however, it was just a little rushed for me. But the twist at the end was great!
Overall can’t wait to read more in the Forge and Fracture Saga
The ending was kind of abrupt. I understand there to be more books in the future of this series; however, it was just a little rushed for me. But the twist at the end was great!
Overall can’t wait to read more in the Forge and Fracture Saga
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Death, Murder, Blood, Racism, and Racial slurs
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