A review by wonderedpages
Shield of Sparrows by Devney Perry

adventurous dark mysterious slow-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

Shield of Sparrows is a slow-burn romantasy full of monsters, mystery, and men who refuse to answer basic questions. And I devoured it.

Odessa begins as an undertrained, unchosen princess thrown into a political marriage because of an outdated magical treaty. She’s woefully unprepared to play secret spy, and yet that’s exactly the mission she’s tasked with. I spent half the book yelling “GIRL, THEY KNOW,”

At first, it’s frustrating how in the dark she is about her role, her past, the politics, and even her new homeland. As the pages turn, it becomes clear that everyone is hiding something from her. The suspense is layered so well that I found myself flying through chapters just to uncover each new secret.

The plot is dense (and the book is loooong at 666 pages), with many of the answers and action saved for the final chapters. The first half is heavy on travel, worldbuilding, and suspicion. But the back half? Absolute chaos in the best way. Magic, identity reveals, science experiments gone wrong, betrayals, and secret siblings. I was never bored, and even though many of the twists were easy to predict, that only made them more fun to watch unfold.

Now let’s talk romance. Ransom, aka the Guardian, is the best kind of book boyfriend. Ransom is a mysterious, silver-eyed, weapon-slinging dreamboat who trains Odessa with a sword and flirts like it’s his job.
Ransom is part of a failed super-soldier experiment involving a bitey bariwolf and potion-enhanced blood.
The chemistry with Odessa was deliciously tense, but I would’ve loved more heat once the slow burn finally ignited. His line about praise belonging in the bedroom? Chef’s kiss. 

Romance-wise? It’s sloooow. Like, page-553 slow. And for a 666-page book, that’s borderline cruel. When we finally got spice, it was brief and too polite. Give me something I shouldn’t be reading at work, please and thank you.

This book is a tangled web of secret identities, backstabbing, alchemy, book burnings (automatic villain behavior), and monsters infected by a science experiment. Monsters get stronger. People get weird. Some die. And Odessa is somehow the key to everything because… well, her mom is a mystery, her relentless questions reveal the truth, and monsters seem to really want a piece of her (maybe it’s the necklace).

I figured out most of the big reveals early, but weirdly, that made it more satisfying? Like watching the drama unfold exactly as I hoped. That said, all the action (and plot clarity) is jammed into the final pages, so buckle in.

If I had one major gripe: I need badass Odessa to show up earlier in Book 2. She’s on her way, I can feel it. Give her a better sword, a full map of Turan, and answers, and let her wreak some havoc.

Final thoughts: The pacing could use a trim, the romance needs more teeth, and I swear if the sequel makes me wait another 500+ pages for Odessa and Ransom to finally go feral, I will riot. Lovingly.
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