Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Romantsy, Adult
Pages: 550
Format: Audiobook
Rating: .5

Goodreads summary: With her death foretold, Althea Zoltaire only has three years to become what she’s always dreamed of being: a warrior legend.

Women are forbidden to wield blades, so she has trained in secret her entire life. Now racing against the clock, she fights to secure her place in the elite guild charged with the protection of the five kingdoms.

The sparring and hazing of the new trainees border on deadly, but even more dangerous is her growing attraction to Wilder Hawthorne, her unwilling warrior chaperone.

All around them, schemes are afoot and darkness looms.

Will Althea pass the perilous initiation test and take her place as a champion of Thezmarr – or will the invading evil snatch away her dream before it starts?

You know, this was almost a four deer-star read for me—until the very last few lines in the epilogue. More on that later.

The Plot

All Althea Zoltaire wants is to become a champion of Thezmarr and fight for the five kingdoms. She’s honorable, determined, and headstrong—reminding me a lot of Disney’s Mulan. Much like Mulan, Althea lives in a world where women aren’t allowed to fight, but that doesn’t stop her. She’ll accept any challenge to prove herself worthy. One particular training scene gave me strong “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” vibes, and I was living for it.

The story’s pacing was excellent, keeping me engaged the whole time. Despite being 550 pages, it didn’t feel long, thanks to fun, well-developed supporting characters like Wren, Kipp, Cal, Dax, Malik, and our broody MMC, Wilder. I especially loved Kipp and Cal—their dynamic gave me all the found-family feels.

The Tropes

This book hit some of my favorite tropes, and they never get old. I mean, who doesn’t love:

• The FMC comforting the MMC during a nightmare?
• A “Who did this to you?” moment?

To me, those moments are chef’s kiss.

The Romance

The romance is a slow burn—depending on your definition. For me, it worked, though I know some readers prefer slow burns to take two or three books for the FMC and MMC to get together. The little spice at the end was nice, but one scene left me scratching my head. They’re outside, against a tree, without clothes on… Is it just me, or does that sound painful….?

The Ending

And now for the epilogue. It was all going so well—the story was wrapping up nicely—until the very last few lines. If you’ve read Twilight, you’ll immediately recognize the similarity in phrasing. It’s not a direct quote, but it’s close.

While this might not bother most readers, it was enough to pull me out of the story and cost the book half a deer-star.

Final Thoughts

Despite the nitpicks, I enjoyed Blood and Steel and will continue the series (eventually – I use Libby and the book isn’t on there yet). The book ends on a cliffhanger, and even though Althea can be a little whiny for a 24-year-old, I like her enough to follow her journey. I do hope phrases like “she steeled herself” and “she started” are reduced in the sequel—I can only take so much!

If you’re looking for an action-packed fantasy romance with strong characters, compelling tropes, and a bit of spice, give Blood and Steel a try. If you’ve already read it, let me know your thoughts!