A review by vengefuldime
The Warden by Daniel M. Ford

2.0

Newly graduated necromancer Aelis is assigned a faraway post in rural Lone Pine. The inhabitants are terrified of her and she feels her talents are being wasted, but she gradually begins to make connections. It ends up having a mostly cozy feel that I enjoyed. The world has a very stereotypical DND fantasy build (one may say... too stereotypical), and the tone reminds me of classic stories- but with a female (and bisexual) protagonist. The scale starts small with a series of quests that help Aelis begin to convince the villagers of her good intentions. It gradually opens to a larger mystery, which I think unfortunately takes her farther away from the building-trust aspect, and into her own separate plot. While there was definitely necromancy here, I picked up the book for necromancy, so I wish there was a bit more. I did like how both Aelis and her love interest were kind of assholes- especially for Aelis, as her background as a rich city girl made her struggles to connect to Lone Pine feel more realistic and rewarding. However, the romance was unfortunately completely obligatory (I mean that), and I truly hate that in a story. I appreciated her friendship with Tun, who is great, and someone that felt much more connected to Aelis emotionally and plot-wise. Unfortunately, her speaking to herself EVERY TIME she had a thought was terrible, especially when it connected with drawn-out flashback scenes that could have been more concisely summarized. Overall, it was somewhat enjoyable but of bad quality.