My Five Word TL:DR Review : Oh My Giddy Aunt! Yes. 

Well, for a book that I didn’t even want to read in the first place, this has knocked my socks off. Yes, I’m not a lover of prequels. I just don’t get the point, it all feels like it’s simply leading to events that you’re already aware of. And, I admit, a feeling of being slightly miffed, cheated even, having sat anxiously waiting for the next instalment of the Blacktongue series to pop up on my screen, for it to eventually be in the offing only to discover it was a prequel. What?  Are you kidding me? So, at that point I’m not even sure why I requested this one. If steam could actually come out of a person’s ears then I’d be sat steaming.  Anyway, thank goodness I did request this because I can now admit I’m wrong and Buehlman is right. Prequels are the new black. This one is at least. 

I loved this book. The writing is superb. The main character is now the love of my reading life, my emotions are all over the place and I’m not even ashamed to confess that I went from laughing to crying within a few paragraphs. Who even am I?

I’m not going to talk of the story. Just read the book. Instead, my emotions and what worked for me. 

In a nutshell, everything. 

To be more specific. 

Galva dom Braga. I love her. She’s so brutally honest. You feel all her loves and fears and it’s almost addictive. I love the way she tells her story with such raw emotion. I mentioned I went from laughing in one moment to crying in the next. I mean that literally happened. And then I was furious and wanted revenge just like she did.  I’m undone. 

The Corvids. I loved them (where is all this love coming from right now, it’s outrageous?). Rushing into the fray screaming and terrifying the goblins. Such battle scenes. Yes, this is all about the war. There’s an almost hopelessness to everything. The goblins are so many and so brutal. It’s humanity’s last stand and the despair is off the charts. Not to mention the blood and viscera. Don’t be fooled into thinking this is a light and airy read where the battles take place off page in fact check out the cover, washed in bloody red with a mountain of slain bodies for your first clue in that direction. This is Grimdark with a capital ‘G’. 

The goblins. No of course I didn’t love them. But also, I did. I mean, what a fantastic enemy. You can really hate these goblins with a passion. No cookie cutout meanies here. This is an enemy with intent and with the means to carry out that intent. 

The writing is so good. These grimdark reads can be hard going but Buehlman has a way of sucking you in and almost making you forget about the bloody violence. His writing is a pleasure to read and he manages to switch POVs with ease, dropping in journal entries and letters, even including songs and poems that gave the story a layered feel and usually gave you a moment of respite. 

In conclusion. What a turn around. I picked this up somewhat begrudgingly and within a few short pages had completely fallen under its spell. 

And now I want to read the Blacktongue Thief again.   Did I mention I loved this already?  Okay then. 

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion. 

My rating 5 of 5 gripping stars