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The Queen's Blade #6
Lord Protector
The Queen’s Blade returns to Jashimari to await the reward the Idol of the Beasts promised him for saving Minna-Satu’s life – the rebirth of his familiar. Rivan is reborn in the spring, and Blade knows the wonder and joy of bonding with his familiar again, which he lost when the Cotti slew the wood cat at the Rout of Ashtalon, when Blade was just twelve years old. Prince Dravis, however, who has fled to Contara to evade the Cotti courts that have condemned him for murdering Trelath, seeks vengeance. His soldiers capture Blade in the village where he is living while Rivan reaches adulthood and take him to Contara. There, Dravis tries to force the assassin to kill Kerrion, After escaping with the aid of a few lies, Blade assassinates the Prince instead, but then falls foul of another of Kerrion’s half-brothers, this time an older, illegitimate one. In Jondar, Chiana receives a message that the Queen’s Blade is dead, along with a half-rotted head. Although Kerra refuses to accept it at first, Chiana fears that it is true and sends a company of soldiers to Ashmarad, capital of Contara, to find him, or his body. In Cotti, the news of Blade’s death saddens Minna-Satu, and Kerrion promises her retribution, but no one knows who killed the Queen’s Blade, or if, indeed, the legendary assassin is truly dead.
322 pages, Paperback
First published December 31, 2010
12 people are currently reading
184 people want to read
About the author
T.C. Southwell
37 books156 followersT. C. Southwell was born in Sri Lanka and moved to the Seychelles when she was a baby. She spent her formative years exploring the islands – mostly alone. Naturally, her imagination flourished and she developed a keen love of other worlds. The family travelled through Europe and Africa and, after the death of her father, settled in South Africa.
T. C. Southwell has written over thirty novels, ranging from fantasy and science fiction to romance and adventure, as well as five screenplays. Her hobbies include motorcycling, horse riding and art, and she earns a living in the IT industry.
T. C. Southwell has written over thirty novels, ranging from fantasy and science fiction to romance and adventure, as well as five screenplays. Her hobbies include motorcycling, horse riding and art, and she earns a living in the IT industry.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
October 13, 2012
All of the previous books in the series were great. They kept me reading with the same suspense and anticipation of the next event and resolution, so when I got to this one, the last in the series, I expected it to end with everything resolved. It didn't happen. It is like the author was tired of writing and hurried through the last few chapters to put an end to the book and the series.
Situations without resolution: the minor situation between Blade and the young queen who needed to begin showing her maturity. It would have been nice to read that Blade's animosity towards Kerrion had ended with an extended hand of friendship, and most disappointing of all was the unresolved threat of the mystery person behind Blade's imprisonment! Talk about leaving a reader dangling! Very disappointing!
For those reasons I could not give this last book more than 3 stars.
Situations without resolution: the minor situation between Blade and the young queen who needed to begin showing her maturity. It would have been nice to read that Blade's animosity towards Kerrion had ended with an extended hand of friendship, and most disappointing of all was the unresolved threat of the mystery person behind Blade's imprisonment! Talk about leaving a reader dangling! Very disappointing!
For those reasons I could not give this last book more than 3 stars.
March 13, 2023
The moral of the story is that having a cat solves everything.
I read the first book in this series eleven years ago on Amazon, but because the rest of the series were only released as ebooks, I never had access to them until now.
The good:
The writing in these books is surprisingly good, considering that they are independently published.
While I didn't end up very attached to any of the characters, they were all very interesting, and most of them were easy to read about.
The plot is fascinating, and kept me hooked throughout the majority of all six books.
The world-building is also fascinating, and so original in so many ways. Normally overemphasis on world-building is something I am not interested in, but the contrasts between the patriarchal Cotti and matriarchal Jashimari cultures especially were actually very interesting.
As someone who has always had cats, I loved the relationship between Blade and Rivan.
Six books and nineteen years may be the slowest slow-burn I've ever read. The happy ending for Blade and Chiana might have been unrealistic, and possibly even unbelievable, but I had been waiting for it for eleven years on my end, and nineteen years on theirs, and it was perfect.
The bad:
The same two things kept me from giving the rest of the series five stars. Firstly, until the last half of the last book, I hated Chiana for her lack of capability and lack of dignity. Nothing about her character throughout the entire series suggests that she was capable of the status and responsibilities she was given. She did not rule with certainty, she did not raise Kerra well, and she demanded what she agreed to go without.
Secondly, I cannot take the Dance of Death seriously, in part because it is called the Dance of Death, but also because the long drawn-out descriptions of leaping and kicking made me think of Nick Miller every time-
Not to mention the fact that we get detailed descriptions of the Dance of Death at least twice in each book in excruciating detail. Perhaps there were fewer instances in the last book. Perhaps by that point I knew to just skip five or six pages ahead.
The cover art on every book except the first is very ugly, and would have been off-putting had not the art on the first book looked good.
The only character who goes through tangible change or growth is Blade himself. Drastically at the end of the last book, but subtly throughout the entire series as well. Otherwise everyone else's characters and motivations stay the same, except for Kerra whose personality flip-flops between being mild and unforgivably awful regularly with no real excuse.
Some of the more heinous things in the series go unaddressed, or are ultimately swept under the rug, the worst of them being
- Minna basically date raping Kerrion for political reasons.
- Kerra trying to seduce Blade, who is not only twice her age, but also married to the woman who raised her.
Average rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
I read the first book in this series eleven years ago on Amazon, but because the rest of the series were only released as ebooks, I never had access to them until now.
The good:
The writing in these books is surprisingly good, considering that they are independently published.
While I didn't end up very attached to any of the characters, they were all very interesting, and most of them were easy to read about.
The plot is fascinating, and kept me hooked throughout the majority of all six books.
The world-building is also fascinating, and so original in so many ways. Normally overemphasis on world-building is something I am not interested in, but the contrasts between the patriarchal Cotti and matriarchal Jashimari cultures especially were actually very interesting.
As someone who has always had cats, I loved the relationship between Blade and Rivan.
Six books and nineteen years may be the slowest slow-burn I've ever read. The happy ending for Blade and Chiana might have been unrealistic, and possibly even unbelievable, but I had been waiting for it for eleven years on my end, and nineteen years on theirs, and it was perfect.
The bad:
The same two things kept me from giving the rest of the series five stars. Firstly, until the last half of the last book, I hated Chiana for her lack of capability and lack of dignity. Nothing about her character throughout the entire series suggests that she was capable of the status and responsibilities she was given. She did not rule with certainty, she did not raise Kerra well, and she demanded what she agreed to go without.
Secondly, I cannot take the Dance of Death seriously, in part because it is called the Dance of Death, but also because the long drawn-out descriptions of leaping and kicking made me think of Nick Miller every time-
Not to mention the fact that we get detailed descriptions of the Dance of Death at least twice in each book in excruciating detail. Perhaps there were fewer instances in the last book. Perhaps by that point I knew to just skip five or six pages ahead.
The cover art on every book except the first is very ugly, and would have been off-putting had not the art on the first book looked good.
The only character who goes through tangible change or growth is Blade himself. Drastically at the end of the last book, but subtly throughout the entire series as well. Otherwise everyone else's characters and motivations stay the same, except for Kerra whose personality flip-flops between being mild and unforgivably awful regularly with no real excuse.
Some of the more heinous things in the series go unaddressed, or are ultimately swept under the rug, the worst of them being
- Minna basically date raping Kerrion for political reasons.
- Kerra trying to seduce Blade, who is not only twice her age, but also married to the woman who raised her.
Average rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 20, 2014
Like I probably mentioned in my attempt at a review for The Queen's Blade, the story here seems to rival The Night Angel trilogy. Actually I don't know. They are similar, but different. I like these books a lot. The cool thing about T.C Southwell's The Queen's Blade series is that it doesn't drag on, you can see time passing etc. lots if stuff happens, but it's not all in your face. I'm just annoyed I finished the rest of the books so soon! Deninitely a good read :D
January 13, 2023
I have enjoyed this entire series a great deal and the last book is no different. Where I do agree with some other reviews that there where still one ore two plot lines that could have been explored I felt that the ending fit really well with the character of blade and where I felt he was at in his character development. In the end I feel the same as I do when I finish other equally amazing series, sad that it is over because you never want to see something you love come to an end, but very content with the way everything raped up.
September 20, 2017
He's so happy I'm crying.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 15, 2015
This is a blanket review for the series as I didn’t find enough differences between the books to warrant separate reviews. The Queen’s Blade Series consists of six books, eight if you count the two prequels, that tells the story of two kingdoms torn by war. Queen Minna-Satu is determined to end the fighting that is destroying her kingdom and sets forth on the path foretold by a seer. In her quest to complete the prophecy she takes the assassin Blade into her employ and the perilous journey described in the following six books begins.
The first book in the series, “The Queen’s Blade,” is a free book. It starts out a bit slow but once the story begins following Blade the action is never absent for long and that trend continues through the series. Of course, the first free book ends in a cliff hanger so you just have to buy the next one, and the next one, and the next one…
The main character in the series, Blade, is a well rounded character that draws readers in. He is a hard man who cares for none but himself, however, the occasional glimpses of his consideration for others and the slowing growing revelation of his horrendous past builds a relationship between him and the reader that keeps the pages turning. Blade is supported by a full cast of well developed characters, both friend and foe, leading to a very readable book.
My biggest complaint was the repetition that becomes more noticeable towards the end of the series. Eventually it seems to be a cycle of Blade being wounded nearly to death, being rescued and nursed back to health, being captured, escaping, being wounded, being nursed, being captured, escaping, etc. That aside, the backdrop for the story is constantly changing and, while assassinations figure prominently in the plot, the storyline has enough changes to keep the reader interested. When all is said and done I would recommend this book to any readers of fantasy, especially the young adult category.
The first book in the series, “The Queen’s Blade,” is a free book. It starts out a bit slow but once the story begins following Blade the action is never absent for long and that trend continues through the series. Of course, the first free book ends in a cliff hanger so you just have to buy the next one, and the next one, and the next one…
The main character in the series, Blade, is a well rounded character that draws readers in. He is a hard man who cares for none but himself, however, the occasional glimpses of his consideration for others and the slowing growing revelation of his horrendous past builds a relationship between him and the reader that keeps the pages turning. Blade is supported by a full cast of well developed characters, both friend and foe, leading to a very readable book.
My biggest complaint was the repetition that becomes more noticeable towards the end of the series. Eventually it seems to be a cycle of Blade being wounded nearly to death, being rescued and nursed back to health, being captured, escaping, being wounded, being nursed, being captured, escaping, etc. That aside, the backdrop for the story is constantly changing and, while assassinations figure prominently in the plot, the storyline has enough changes to keep the reader interested. When all is said and done I would recommend this book to any readers of fantasy, especially the young adult category.
August 11, 2013
This is a minireview for the whole series, since the books are somewhat similar:
This series follows an assassin, aptly called an instrument of destiny at some point, who changes the fate of three kingdoms while finding himself in the process (mostly in the last book. It's a very slow finding of self)
Thus, awesome characters, slow plot and next to no drama(until #6). There's a lot of action scenes, quite a lot, and the protagonist gets caught and makes a daring escape in every book, sometimes even twice or thrice in the same book.
Three stars is my assessment of the series, growing to four when there's a discussion that does nothing but reveal something about the character or the relationship between characters and their place in the world.
This series follows an assassin, aptly called an instrument of destiny at some point, who changes the fate of three kingdoms while finding himself in the process (mostly in the last book. It's a very slow finding of self)
Thus, awesome characters, slow plot and next to no drama(until #6). There's a lot of action scenes, quite a lot, and the protagonist gets caught and makes a daring escape in every book, sometimes even twice or thrice in the same book.
Three stars is my assessment of the series, growing to four when there's a discussion that does nothing but reveal something about the character or the relationship between characters and their place in the world.
December 3, 2015
What a wonderful conclusion to this series.
Blades final harrowing days as an assassin, left to die in a remote inescapable prison. The debauchery queen Kerra-Mannu sinks into after his disappearance brought up short by the decayed head delivered to the palace with a note attesting that it is that of Blade. Chiana's assumes her unofficial title of widow regent wearing mourning black.
However in all of this is a promise made by the idol of the beasts Shamsara. And his promises are no small thing for they are that of the god Tinsharron.
This last book is filled with sorrow and joy in equal measure all brought about by the man who changed 3 kingdoms - The Queens Blade
Blades final harrowing days as an assassin, left to die in a remote inescapable prison. The debauchery queen Kerra-Mannu sinks into after his disappearance brought up short by the decayed head delivered to the palace with a note attesting that it is that of Blade. Chiana's assumes her unofficial title of widow regent wearing mourning black.
However in all of this is a promise made by the idol of the beasts Shamsara. And his promises are no small thing for they are that of the god Tinsharron.
This last book is filled with sorrow and joy in equal measure all brought about by the man who changed 3 kingdoms - The Queens Blade
August 3, 2012
I was so sad this series was ending when I downloaded this final book in The Queen's Blade series. I don't want to give anything away about it, but this was the favorite of mine in the series because everything came together as perfectly as it possibly could have. The action keeps your heart pumping, the temptation Blade faces to run away keeps you wondering, the broken heart of Chiana keeps you pining and the toll of the mounting assassinations Blade must perform makes you wonder if he'll ever make it out alive.
April 13, 2014
Glad to reach the end of this particular volume. There are only so many times when the same story line will enthral a reader and unfortunately the repeating theme of capture, suffering, vengeance and escape occurred just too often in this book. I am however glad I persisted as the last third of the volume was the best and to me the most enjoyable. That in itself is the reason I apply three stars to this particular episode and I am pleased to offer my thanks to the author but I'm glad the story is now told.
September 20, 2012
I was so depressed when I finished this book because I wanted this series to go on forever. Blade is captivating to the point where I still think about him, weeks later, and he's not even real!! This series will be one I will read time and time again. A truly timeless, classic tale of the human spirit, true love, and the sheer will to go on even when the road ahead is gloomy. Love love love this series!!!!!!! I will never ever forget it.
December 13, 2013
... And so they lived (almost) happily ever after. I think it would have made more sense for these last two books to switch titles. Kinda think Blade dances more in this one than the last book, but maybe that is just me. I almost feel like there could be another book if this one hadn't ended on such a high note. I am left with a few questions about a plot point and yet am satisfied with the ending. In a small way I compare series this in my mind with one by Robin Hobb.
April 12, 2011
This book had A LOT of twist & turns in it (More so then the other 5). At one point I though I was at a happy ending...look down & saw pg. 200 & realized I had 500+ pages to go & it twisted yet again. I enjoyed how the author wrapped up Blade & Chiana's story. All in all, I enjoyed the end of this series. I would definitely recommend it.
May 9, 2013
Ending felt slightly rushed but was wonderful. (spoiler alert for the last 3 or so books)
An epilogue would've been nice, what happened with Minna, Kerrion and their sons, whether Blade ever addressed Kerra as queen, etc. Little fluffy things to tie everything up a little more. The entire series needs some proofreading, typos here and there but they don't affect the books themselves.
An epilogue would've been nice, what happened with Minna, Kerrion and their sons, whether Blade ever addressed Kerra as queen, etc. Little fluffy things to tie everything up a little more. The entire series needs some proofreading, typos here and there but they don't affect the books themselves.
June 19, 2011
I enjoyed this series overall, but had begun to feel it was becoming more than a bit repetitious. This last book, however, justified my holding on through volumes four and five. A lovely end to an often bitter tale.
September 30, 2011
The series started feeling a bit long to me at this point, perhaps because I wasn't in love with book four, but I think this book did a great job of ending the series and I'm more than happy that I stuck with it. Again, I recommend the series as a whole.
May 9, 2013
This was a perfect ending for the series both in terms of continuting and wrapping up the previous 5. I have enjoyed this series and would recommend it to most others. In fact, I'm giving it to my husband to read next.
October 18, 2012
A lot of introspection, a few ordeals and a wonderful gift.
Book VI is a beautiful ending to the series.
I recommend The Queen's Blade. Touching, tough, harsh, violent, emotional...and so much more.
Book VI is a beautiful ending to the series.
I recommend The Queen's Blade. Touching, tough, harsh, violent, emotional...and so much more.
May 9, 2013
Totally anti-climactic ending. Blah. After six books and thousands of pages, this should have knocked my socks off at the end. No such luck. I did enjoy the series for the most part though. I was considering the prequels, but after that ending, I'm done.
June 3, 2013
This was a good ending to the series. Possible spoiler: I have like some sort of epilogue only because there are some unresolved thoughts, such as the othere brothers, does Chiana have the fear that Blade will leave years later, etc. Overall I really enjoyed this series.
October 30, 2013
Lord Protector, as far as I can tell, is (probably) the final book in the series. I liked how it left some minor plot points hanging, leaving the door open for future sequels, while also tidying up most of the major plot threads.
May 7, 2016
Does Blade find his heart or leave it broken?
We know this is the closing chapter ( or is it?). After all, we know that he shares the.Idol's blood which should easily give him another 100 years or so.
We know this is the closing chapter ( or is it?). After all, we know that he shares the.Idol's blood which should easily give him another 100 years or so.
October 19, 2011
I absloutly love how she ended everyone's stories, the loose ends were neatly tied up and it was a satisfying end. It was just as good the others and quite gripping.
September 29, 2012
I loved this book so much. It was the perfect end to an incredible story! One of my favorite series ever!
January 5, 2013
This last book finally got better than the previous books. It still wasn't great. I'm sad I spent so much time and effort on this series.
January 23, 2013
Great book. The only I put 4 stars instead of 5 is because of the issue between blade and Kerra. And at the end of the book I thought he would "My queen" at least once.... Still good book.
March 11, 2013
Can't believe I read the whole thing.
June 17, 2014
And so it ends. I am happy about how things went for Blade but there are loose threads in previous books that were not addressed in this one.
January 2, 2015
Amazing characters and story!
March 24, 2015
A most satisfying end to the series. I'm glad I didn't give up and finished all the books!!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews