Sword Catcher

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To sum up, Clare successfully transitions to adult fantasy, but her need to separate herself from YA caused her to overdo some things and as a result, the story suffered. I’m sure I will continue the series, but this first installment isn’t as strong as I had hoped it would be. Now, as someone who has finished the whole book, I'd say give it a go if the similarities aren't too bothersome for you. As for my thoughts, I guess, review to come. spoilers will only be *between red exclamation marks* I'm only sharing this to help you (as someone who doesn't mind spoilers) decide whether you'd like to continue reading this book even after all the similarities between both the books end: Character wise, I really liked Lin. I wanted to like Kel more, but he ended up being a bit bland. And maybe that’s due to the nature of his position at court where he’s meant to mirror Conor, but I was expecting an overly charming, charismatic person. He was capable and smart, but not particularly special. I look forward to seeing how he grows in the next book and if he will start to become more of his own person. Conor was fine. He was there to do just enough stupid things to cause some problems. But overall, the characters were fine, but they weren’t particularly compelling. There is a tiny bit of romance in this book, and I do mean tiny. Even with that, I didn’t really feel the connection between the characters, so if you’re reading this book for romance, you need to look elsewhere. The book even states “Forbidden Romance” as something you’ll find in this book, and I think that’s a stretch.

I for one must agree with Martin on every point. Clare’s first high fantasy novel is set a wonderfully built world that’s introduced bit by bit, something fantasy often forgets to do. Moreover, Sword Catcher finds a triumphant balance between plot and character, but more on that later. Cassandra Clare stated that Chain of Thorns is the first book to really be affected by the pandemic, since she was already in the editing stage of Chain of Iron when the pandemic hit. She wasn't able to do the on-location research she usually does due to travel restrictions and she wasn't able to have her assistant or companion writers around like she's used to. On top of all that, she had to help take care of some elderly relatives who couldn't safely leave the house. And like so many, the pandemic has taken its toll on Clare, as it has on so many of us. Lin on the other hand, is brash and bullheaded, burning bridges faster than she can build them. Orphaned as a child and abandoned by her grandfather, Lin has had to fight for everything, learning medicine with significantly less resources than her male peers within the Ashkari or the malbushim (the Ashkari word for “outsider”) doctors in Castellane. Like Kel, Lin has an understandable but extremely narrow perspective: She does not immediately recognize imminent danger to one of her clients, and accepts invitations from curious people in terrifying carriages. (Kel does this as well; apparently “stranger danger” is not a commonly taught concept in Castellane.) However, also like Kel, Lin’s adolescent perspective is amusing rather than grating. Cassie's strength is usually her characters. In the Shadowhunter books, she almost always made me care about all the characters and it was less the situation here. Kel and Conor are good characters. Lin is even better, and it was nice to see a female doctor in a fantasy setting which was refreshing. However, the rest of the characters were not as exciting. Clare also interweaves culture and history into her story so that Lin constantly feels guilty for thinking or doing certain things whilst trying to decide whether she wants to separate herself from the old traditions or ensure her place in her ancestor’s community.Sword Catcher is the first adult novel by Cassandra Clare. After almost two decades of urban fantasy Shadowhunters novels (and other teen and young adult stories), Clare is finally trying out a new genre more akin to epic and high fantasy with Sword Catcher. I think much is being made of the fact that Clare has finally written what is being marketed as an adult book, but as someone who has reluctantly at times followed the Shadowhunter Chronicles since childhood it really deserves to be underlined that it's just the first book to be marketed to an adult audience. Her middle-grade work aside I think Clare has long ceased writing for an actual teenage demographic, and the price of her books has been on the rise long before the YA category as a whole has seen the slow creep out of books that are readily accessible to every teenager. In some ways this being a non-Shadowhunter book feels more important, and honestly, the more telling factor in whether this was enjoyable. The characters in Sword Catcher are vibrant. Their relationships are well-crafted to a degree rarely seen in YA/NA books nowadays. The book is narrated through the points of view of two characters: the eponymous sword catcher Kel Saren and Lin Caster, an Ashkari physician. The other main characters, including Prince Conor Aurelian, are seen through Kel and Lin’s eyes, so we get their biased perspectives. It’s clear to see there is more than meets the eyes to most of them, but only time will reveal their true colors. Overall, I am intrigued to see where Cassandra Clare will take us on this new journey. I think it was time we left the Shadowhunter world (I write as my heart breaks), as Clare needs to expand herself as an author and explore other stories and worlds. In the vibrant city-state of Castellane, a young orphan named Kel is stolen from his old life to enter a new one of luxury and peril. He’s to become Prince Conor Aurelian’s body-double, shielding the Prince from all dangers. As his ‘Sword Catcher,’ he and Conor become close as brothers – yet Kel lives for one purpose: to die for Conor.

Kel is an orphan, stolen from the life he knew to become the Sword Catcher—the body double of a royal heir, Prince Conor Aurelian. He has been raised alongside the prince, trained in every aspect of combat and statecraft. He and Conor are as close as brothers, but Kel knows that his destiny is to die for Conor. No other future is possible. It’s the story of an orphan whose life is stolen in service to the royal family. They must act as a body double to the crown prince, to protect him and die in his place, if need be. Kel and Prince Conor’s relationship is a tangle of love, understanding, and a hint of resentment. Sword Catcher is also the story of a singularly gifted healer whom society won’t let become a physician because of her gender. Only Lin may have the key to more than just curative remedies within her. Many other characters frame the action, from nobles to common folk to criminals, all of it taking place in a fictional city state that seems to come alive with vivid descriptions. The book really has two plots running parallel to one another with occasional moments of intersection. Kel/Conor are purely wrapped up in the events happening at the Court. It's where a lot of the city buidling is going on, it's meant to be a political intrigue situation. Conor seemingly is going to need to marry for an alliance in the very near future and there are some things that could get in the way of that. Cassandra Clare’s writing has a reminiscence to it. As if those who grew up reading the Shadowhunter Chronicles have been given space to explore the adult fantasy genre in the skin that they have been so comfortable in all these years when following her previous series. Whilst the worlds are vastly different, Clare’s strongpoint across all her work is her characterisations. She has the unique ability of making her readers severely attached to her characters. Kel is a fine young man, and a thrilling protagonist; he is witty, smart and multi-faceted. His struggle with identity takes the centre of his characterisation in this book, as we find he struggles to grasp on to who he truly is and who he is supposed to be. You would expect him to develop a sort of hatred towards the Prince he is to die for, but he is instead fiercely protective of him, which I found quite refreshing. His friendship with Conor falls into the remit of brotherhood (not a theme unfamiliar to Clare), and it is truly one of my highlights of the novel. In a Court of corruption, the love between Kel and Conor is a beam of light. Conor is the most morally lenient of the two; he never truly does anything quite immoral, but he often toes the line. At a Sword Catcher event, Clare stated that ‘loving Kel is Conor’s great humanising quality’, which I think encapsulates Conor’s characterisation well, in that his affection for Kel is what tethers him to the reality of what is expected of him as the Crown Prince. Lin Caster is a fierce character, shunned for what she believes in, a blueprint for many female protagonists in fantasy. This does not make her boring or repetitive; although I do feel as if we have only seen a fraction of her personality in this book. I would have loved to have learned more of her and her Ashkari magic, as the tidbits we are privy to in this book are super fascinating. The characters were all one dimensional. I could not understand them at all. Their motives were pretty clear in the beginning but it soon tried to develop into something more and eventually got all messed up.Everything I look for in fantasy' - George R. R. Martin, New York Times bestselling author of Game of Thrones The first book barely scratched the surface of the story. So much conflict has just barely been hinted at. What we see at the end of the first book is clearly just the beginning of a war that could very well bring House Aurelian to its knees. Clare plunges us into a thrilling world built with precision and brimming with enchantment. Her spellbinding cast of outlaws, healers, royals, and rogues will have you questioning your allegiances with every delicious turn of the plot. This is fantasy at its finest.” —Leigh Bardugo, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Hell Bent all things similar between ADSOM and SC that i couldn't stop thinking about, and that annoyed me [ spoilers for both the books ]❗️ I considered doing that too, (esp. because the writing wasn't much fun) but after 27% or so into the book, things changed, became interesting and stopped irritating me.

Castellane is the beating heart of trade in the region, commerce is its lifeblood and it is controlled by the aristocracy who charter certain goods. In homage to the “super diverse” nature of Ancient Rome, Castellane is home to numerous peoples and cultures. “I didn’t want to do something monocultural,” explains Clare who, having previously set her novels in recognisable settings such as London, New York and Los Angeles, describes creating the world as “both refreshing and difficult”. She continued: “You have to remember the whole world. It has to make sense. It has to feel lived in by people and those people have to have relationships that seem realistic. They have to have jobs that make sense to you and the economy has to work in a way that makes sense to you.”Lose yourself in a vibrant world of power, intrigue and magic in this spellbinding epic from an internationally bestselling sensation. Whilst this doesn’t rank as high as Clare’s other books for me, this feels like an exciting debut into her new era of writing and her future! Or, perhaps more accurately, the theft of a boy’s life and future. Young orphan Kellian could never have expected a grand life in the vibrant port city of Castellane if fate had not intervened, but fate did. At the tender age of 8, he is removed from his orphanage and offered a unique position: to become Sword Catcher to Conor Aurelian, Prince of Castellane and heir to its throne. Kel will be raised in luxury in the palace alongside Conor, trained and educated as befits a royal, and given every advantage in life–with one notable exception: His life will never be his own again. Bespelled to resemble Conor, Kel essentially becomes Conor for any occasions where the prince might be in danger, or at which he would rather not put in an appearance. He is Conor’s double, his shadow self, tied forever to a person he both loves and resents–and from whom he might never be free. Since her family moved around so much she found familiarity in books and went everywhere with a book under her arm. She spent her high school years in Los Angeles where she used to write stories to amuse her classmates, including an epic novel called “The Beautiful Cassandra” based on a Jane Austen short story of the same name (and which later inspired her current pen name).

If you're part of the newsletter, you've probably already seen this, but Cassandra Clare announced the release dates of her next two books. Kel is an orphan taken to the Palace for the protection of the Prince at the age of 10 and Kell was an Antari sold to the Palace around the age of 5, brought up knowing his duty to protect the Prince. I was so excited when Cassie announced a new series that she is working on that is actually not in the Shadowverse and is adult fantasy. My pre-reading review said that I am so ready to read 20 novels in this world. The book came out and then there were accusations that she ripped of Schwab this time -who is also one of my favorite authors- and after getting my hardcover copy, I was having second thoughts, and my excitement was waning. These two storylines intersect much later in the story than I might have expected, but there’s an instant connection between the characters - hostility, animosity, and intrigue. You’ll have to read to find out who feels what, and why.

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The worldbuilding was fine, but I really could have used a world map. It’s hard for me to really get a sense of the world an author is trying to build if I can’t physically see the places being talked about. That’s not really the ARC’s fault, though. If there is a map, I’m sure it’ll be included in the finished copy. If there are no plans for a world map (not a city map, I know for sure Clare posted a photo of that), then that’s a real shame. I allowed the book to surprise me, to subvert the expectations I had built. For the first time in many years, I was not sure where a Cassandra Clare book would lead me, so used as I am to her style and patterns. It felt refreshing. It was thrilling. Review: Sword Catcherby Cassandra Clare He had not known what it meant to be needed by someone else: that it made you want to protect them. To his own surprise, he wanted to protect this boy, the Prince of Castellane. Significantly, in the vein of George R R Martin’s Game of Thrones series, magic no longer exists as an immensely powerful force in Clare’s world. The Ashkar, including Lin, still possess the ability to use magic, known as “gematry”, but it is “low magic” primarily performed using amulets and other objects to help with small tasks and healing. It was an intentional decision to craft a world “where magic was mostly gone” to explore what would happen in this power vacuum. “We’re developing a more flexible definition of fantasy and the magic is less numinous,” says Clare. “Politics is a tool, power is a tool and magic is a tool. You decide how significant these things are going to be in your world.” More of a practicality than an epic miasmic force, the treatment of magic in Sword Catcher is an example of the “evolution of how the fantasy genre works”, explains Clare. “I was interested in a more modern approach where we talk a lot about cities, about trade, about power, about machinations, treachery, betrayal. I want the characters to drive the story not the magic.” Branching out The Last Hours is a Shadowhunters trilogy set in 1903 in Edwardian London. It follows the children of characters from The Infernal Devices, though you can certainly read it without knowing those books. Now is a great time to start catching up to be ready for book three!