Paladin's Grace (The Saint of Steel)

I stumbled on my first Kingfisher book about a year or so ago, “What Moves The Dead”. Since then I have read everything I could find in our public library. I read “Paladin’s Grace” on the Libby app and had to wait most of two months to for it to become available. It was well worth the wait. Like most of Kingfisher’s books the protagonist is an intelligent, competent woman who has had a difficult past and lacks self confidence, despite the fact that all who know her recognize her for the treasure that she is. Grace is perfumer and once again Kingfisher has done her homework and written a character whose knowledge and skill of her craft is vast and realistic. Grace’s sense of smell and competence in her craft is key to events. The other title character is the paladin, Stephen. A tortured soul, wracked with self doubt and guilt. He lives a fragile life he fears could be shattered at any moment. Together they must deal with events which could cause a war. Or something even worse than war, because there is a deeper evil lurking over the city. This was a fun book. I often laughed out loud. At times it brought tears to my eyes. This is book filled with dark humor, dealing with how people cope with the trauma that life inflicts upon all of us. But there is also always hope. Strong characters, strong plot, strong dialog. Well worth the read, looking forward to book two! Cheers!

This story comes together very well because of the characters. Grace, our heroine, is a perfumer. Her remarkable sense of smell allows her to break fragrances into their components and to compound unique personal perfumes for customers. She has escaped an abusive past and is building a new life in a new kingdom. Grace is vulnerable, but also strong and determined to survive on her own and to solve her own problems. Stephen was a paladin called to work on behalf of his god, until the god died. Now the paladins that survived the death of their god are watching after each other and working for Bishop Beartongue who serves the White Rat. Stephen is a mighty warrior, but he struggles with his control and worries about his broken soul and his future. There is something charming about a powerful man who knits pink socks. The wise and wonderous Bishop is smart, empathetic, kind, and a skilled diplomat. She provided a home for the paladins after the death of their god despite the murderous berserker rage that overcame many of them when the god died. The background is rich, and the plot is complex. The nice thing is that the story does not get lost in lengthy explanatory passages to set up the characters, the world, and the elements of the plot. There are multiple plot lines, which reach resolution, although one of the plot lines is only partially resolved. The romance is romantic, with some passionate sex scenes. This is a pre-industrial world where travel is by horse or on foot, and lighting is with candles. It is a complicated social structure with multiple temples that serve different gods and a multiple political powers. There are details that are gross (an autopsy, decapitations, and oceans of mud) and some that are charming (the gnoles, small badger like creatures that engage in street cleaning and odd jobs). The pacing is brisk and the writing is good.

I read A LOT. I read a lot of different genres and authors. T. Kingfisher is at the top of my lists, and Paladin's Grace is just one more reason why! Kingfisher's world for this tale, and several others, is incredible. That she can carry across the feeling of stepping back into it, regardless of time or place, between "unrelated" tales is a true gift. Her characters are unique, believable, loveable, shareable, hateable, fearable, and on and on. I love the paladins, I love that you can count on them to be what they are in every book - they are hilarious, they give you warm fuzzies, they are tragic, and they are one of the best parts of any story set in this world. Zale is back and they are a stroke of human genius- T. Kingfisher's inclusive narratives are so seamless you wish real life could mimic her art. If you're new to T. Kingfisher, congratulations!! You are about to get sucked into a reading list that you'll eagerly dread reaching the end of. Never fear, rereading her work is even better than reading it for the first time. You do not need to have read any of her works to thoroughly enjoy this one!! But you'll appreciate the subtle references if you have, or when you return to it again. This one is touching, empowering, fun, and utterly satisfying. The characters are deeply nuanced, believable and - yeah, "just so great "! If you like fantasy, and romance with a story, with real emotions - you need to read this book. It's laugh out loud funny and heart-wrenching in some places, again - those Paladins! And just an all around satisfying read. And if you're already a T. Kingfisher fan, then you're just reading the reviews for fun - because you already know it's gonna be awesome.

I love all the author's works, and this is a long beloved favourite. Stephen the paladin is simply the perfect hero: kind, forthright, tortured by his tragic past, and he knits. I love him excessively. Grace is a lovely heroine: skilled, determined, very aware of who she is. The notes about perfumery are interesting and add so much colour to the story. Also, it's hot. The almost-kisses are as good as the actual kisses. The whole series is great, and I love the world these books exist in. Overall, an excellent fantasy adventure with a love story that really works. I know I've overused the word 'love' in this review, but I really do love this book. I want you to read it, because you deserve to love it as much as I do.

T Kingfisher has a great knack for observing people and writes characters so they ring true and you love them, and are amused by their habits and root for them. This book is a murder mystery, an adventure, a romance and a fantasy. The romance is heartbreaking because it is two people who do not value themselves trying to believe that someone else could love them. They are also the viewpoints of two people who have in common that they are really dedicated experts and see the world through the lens of their expertise. The perfumier always notes smells, pleasant or unpleasant - and this is integral to her character and is done well throughout the whole book, rather than being dropped after the first couple of chapters. The paladin tends to have combat advice running in his head and he sees the world in terms of threats and solutions to the threats. There is much warmth to this book despite the dark events the two main characters experience.

I expected a fantasy, and it is! Different world, powers, gods, fights. But the snark! And the jokes! And the romance at its core. Thoroughly enjoyed it in a light-hearted kind of way. I love these surprises, when they are well written like this. It was a joy to read.

Lovely story, I felt inside it the whole time, and the characters were captivating. Truly a good story, I'm definitely reading the next!

Adored this book, can't wait to read the rest. Stephen and Grace are so lovely ❤❤❤