In The Bloodforged, Erin Lindsey picks up the story of Alix Black which began in The Bloodbound and in typical second-book fashion, widens the scope, cast of characters, reveals more of the world, and ups her game. This is a fine novel that builds upon the strengths of the first novel, and steps above it in terms of quality. Here’s the publisher blurb:
As war between Alden and Oridia intensifies, King Erik must defend his kingdom from treachery and enemies on all sides—but the greatest danger lurks closer to home…
When the war began, Lady Alix Black played a minor role, scouting at the edge of the king’s retinue in relative anonymity. Though she’s once again facing an attacking Oridian force determined to destroy all she holds dear, she is now bodyguard to the king and wife to the prince.
Still, she is unprepared for what the revival of the war will mean. Erik is willing to take drastic measures to defend his domain, even if it means sending Prince Liam into a deadly web of intrigue and traveling into the perilous wild lands of Harram himself.
Only the biggest threat to the kingdom might be one that neither Alix nor Erik could have imagined, or prepared for…
After Alix marries Liam, the king’s half-brother, she learns she must accompany the King on a secretive diplomatic mission to Harram, Alden’s westerly neighbor. Liam, openly acknowledged as the King’s brother in the previous novel, must represent the crown on an equally important political mission to the eastern nation of Onnan. Namely, to determine why the fleet of Alden warships are taking so long to be built. Onnan is Republic, which leaves Liam unprepared for how politics are played out.
So here we have parallel narratives that drive much of the novel. Lindsey’s skill is making each narrative equally compelling, to the point that upon the end of each chapter when she jumps to one of the other storylines, it is both a welcome return to the other characters, but a frustration of leaving the ‘current’ characters. Lindsay also introduces Alix’s brother Riggard (or Rig) as a POV character, which gives readers a more personal account of the battle lines of the war, rather than the outer view provided by Alix and Liam. Rig’s storyline also leads to some more fantastical elements in the widening world Lindsey is revealing. His role at the head of the military forces gives him a unique perspective, but also forces him to control his otherwise impulsive tendencies.
Much as I enjoyed reading the story from Alix’s point of view due to how well-developed, empathetic, and genuinely likeable she is, getting the story from Liam was quite fun, too. He is a bit more sarcastic and especially because he is now officially a member of the royal family, a little less assured. Not that Alix is 100% confident, but her progression through the first novel and The Bloodforged gives her a bit more confidence and stability and allows for the exploration of another character coming to grips with his newfound status in the world. In other words, Lindsey performs a nice balancing act in the character development of these three focal characters.
Although Liam and Alix have their moments of intimacy and there’s still a bit of unresolved tension between Alix and King Erik Lindsey those elements don’t fuel narrative quite as much as they did in The Bloodborn. Rather, political tension, trust, and flat out physical tension from battle fuel the narrative. We get to see rather more of the world, the lands of Harram and Onnan and how they fare under Alden and King Erik’s reign.
The conclusion of the novel finds Alix and Erik are stuck together in Harram, with Erik becoming less in control of his fears as he grows more paranoid. This could be initially attributed to the claustrophobic nature of their entrapment in Harram, but the seed of that paranoia grows even beyond Harram and becomes quite noticeable and more pronounced when Erik and Alix finally return home to Alden.
The storytelling choices Lindsey make in The Bloodforged are smart and pay off extremely well as the story progresses to that bombshell/revealing ending, which is very much a game-changer.
© 2016 Rob H. Bedford
http://www.erin-lindsey.com
Ace, Mass Market Paperback October 2015
Review copy courtesy of the publisher, Ace
