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A review by fantasyfunk
Cold Iron by Miles Cameron
4.0
I really loved this book at the end but we had a difficult beginning together. The 1/3 of the book is a 5 star for me and I almost rated the book that overall. Upon reflection, I dropped it to a 4. I think the beginning of the book struggles with some pacing. There were some moments where I just wondered what the point was or where I wondered how I was still reading a book where nothing was really happening, at least to the main character.
There are, however, all these hints of deeper political intrigue. So much more is going on in the world than we really get to see from our classic fantasy hero, the farmboy. It is fun to learn of the things as Aranthur learns of them, but some times this leads to a heavy struggle of the reader not knowing enough. It kills the pacing in the beginning when the farmboy knows nothing until the end when he's figuring out thing after thing after thing. It's definitely a difficult struggle as a writer.
Luckily Aranthur is a likeable enough character to keep you going through the book. He plays the classic hero quite well. Solid, dependable, a good friend and always willing to jump into the scrap to save others. He's easy to identify with and root for.
The world reminds me a lot of Miles Cameron's Traitor Son series which I also enjoy. It's very rooted in medieval history despite the hints of magic. Miles Cameron also has a deep love for swords and swordplay which shines in this series as much as his other. It can be too much for me at moments. The swordplay is so detailed that I'm either slowing in my reading to envision it or skimming because the intense detail is taking me out of the action of the moment.
Overall though, I can't wait to get a copy of the second book. I highly recommend this even if you struggle in the beginning.
There are, however, all these hints of deeper political intrigue. So much more is going on in the world than we really get to see from our classic fantasy hero, the farmboy. It is fun to learn of the things as Aranthur learns of them, but some times this leads to a heavy struggle of the reader not knowing enough. It kills the pacing in the beginning when the farmboy knows nothing until the end when he's figuring out thing after thing after thing. It's definitely a difficult struggle as a writer.
Luckily Aranthur is a likeable enough character to keep you going through the book. He plays the classic hero quite well. Solid, dependable, a good friend and always willing to jump into the scrap to save others. He's easy to identify with and root for.
The world reminds me a lot of Miles Cameron's Traitor Son series which I also enjoy. It's very rooted in medieval history despite the hints of magic. Miles Cameron also has a deep love for swords and swordplay which shines in this series as much as his other. It can be too much for me at moments. The swordplay is so detailed that I'm either slowing in my reading to envision it or skimming because the intense detail is taking me out of the action of the moment.
Overall though, I can't wait to get a copy of the second book. I highly recommend this even if you struggle in the beginning.