Kaldar held up his hand. “Spare me. Some children are born wearing a silk shirt; you were born wrapped in melancholy. When they slapped you to make you cry, you just sighed heavily and a single tear rolled from your eye.” He dragged his finger from the corner of his left eye to his cheek. “Your first words were probably ‘woe is me.’”
Steel’s Edge by Ilona Andrews
Summary: Charlotte de Nay is a healer who cannot heal her own barren status. Richard Mar feels responsible for his niece’s abduction by slavers, and he is out to destroy them. Put together by circumstances and a death of a loved one, Charlotte and Richard set out to destroy the slavers. With the help of family and friends, can they eliminate the slavers?
Review: Fate’s Edge, Kaldar’s book, left me discouraged. When Andrews announced that the series was ending at four books, I was somewhat disappointed but understood why. Having read Steel’s Edge, I wish there were more coming!
Steel’s Edge was a satisfying conclusion to the series. One of the areas Andrews excel at is world building, and the world of the Weird, Edge, and Broken is fascinating. Interwoven with elements of fantasy and real life, one falls into the world quickly and easily. There are many fun references to our world, such as the Princess Bride references.
Paranormal romances usually have two problems. One, the romance takes such a primary focus that the world building falls apart. In Steel’s Edge, that does not happen. There are equal parts romance and fantasy elements. It blends seamlessly, to the point that there are times where I can’t categorize the book. The passion did not overwhelm the paranormal, and the action did not eclipse the sweet moments between Richard and Charlotte.
Another problem of paranormal romance is that the individual voices get lost, especially when it’s a different couple every book. That was the primary sticking point for me with Fate’s Edge (I thought Kaldar’s voice got lost). However, in Steel’s Edge, Richard, Charlotte, Jack, George, and Sophie all had distinct voices not only from each other, but also from all the other characters in the series. Charlotte was bold and aristocratic, with a hint of “loss of direction”. Richard was brave and melancholy, but brightens when people he cares about are around him.
I love the George/Jack subplot, and the Sophie subplot. I have strong suspicions about the direction of a future romance, if there were more books. I think there is a lot of growing and understanding there for these 3, and I would love to see what would happen in the future.
This book almost got 5 stars, I really wanted to give it 5, but I still had some minor issues. At times, there were too many plots going on at the same time. The conclusion of Spider felt quick and meaningless. Finally, I wish we saw more in the relationship between Charlotte and her mom because the ending between the two appeared disjointed. There was more there that could have been teased throughout the book.
“Satisfying conclusion” doesn’t cover it. If you love Ilona Andrews books, especially the Edge series, this may end up being your favorite. Get a copy immediately!
Sex: Sweet sex scenes typical of paranormal romance
Violence: fighting and dead bodies, references to slavery and abuse
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Series Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
A Stranger In My Skin 