Shadow Sword

by Kaila Desjardins

Defending those they swore to protect might cost more than they bargained for.

Sellsword Morrígan wants nothing more than to defend innocent people. So when Dàibhid, the king of Cunlaran, offers her and her friends the opportunity, she can hardly say no. But working for Dàibhid could expose her secret—she’s not only a princess but Dàibhid’s childhood ex-best friend. If he ever realizes who he has in his castle, Morrígan’s life will come crashing down. The problem is, it’s more difficult keeping her distance than it should be.

Dàibhid is desperate to protect his subjects against an invading enemy intent on stealing his throne. Cautious with lives and hoping to avoid war, Dàibhid hires sellswords to gather information undercover. But when the mission goes sideways and people get hurt, Dàibhid’s fear of failing his subjects worsens. The only effective balm seems to be spending time with one of his new hires . . .

As the pair grows closer, enemy attacks turn deadlier and the team’s mission becomes paramount. With secrets and lives on the line, Morrígan and Dàibhid must ask themselves what they’re willing to risk before everything they’ve worked for is lost.

Shadow Sword is the first book in a New Adult romantasy trilogy inspired by Irish mythology and the fairytale The Twelve Dancing Princesses. While book 1 does not contain spice, future books in the series will.

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, High Fantasy, Romantasy

443 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 27, 2025

About the author

Kaila Desjardins is a writer and freelance editor from Ontario, Canada. Having never grown out of fairytale magic, she adores stories with epic loves, enchanting worlds, and sword fighting princesses. When not working on a book or editing for a client, she’s likely reading, watching Disney, or wishing Starfleet was real.

Reviews

[Sophie (lambsbooks) · Rating 4 out of 5]

And toying with him was too much fun. Fuck caution. Let’s see what I could get away with.

All the stars because it’s my bestie's debut novel 🤭🥳

You know, I don't think I've read a book based on Celtic mythology? Or at least not like this one! And the Twelve Dancing Princesses! It was so unique! The research that went into it was 👏

Get ready to meet the most cinnamon roll-y man you've ever met. A golden retriever dream. A cinnamon retriever, a golden roll, if you will.

A golden roll.

What tf am I saying at this point?

Anyway, what a great debut novel featuring a badass FMC, found family, all the middle ages vibes (is that a thing? I didn't know how to word it lmao), cheese biscuits, and slow burn romance!

“I’m clearly the eldest if this behavior is anything to go off. They need me.”
“Well, then you’re the eldest of us all,” Brí said.
“How dare you,” Dàibhid said.

I loved Brí and Dàibhid's banter, and I especially loved that she didn't betray her brother because I have trust issues and was expecting it the whole time lmao

The thing I loved most was the family aspect tho, the trio, and I'm hoping we maybe see some more of Rígan's family too 👀 and I'm obvvviously hoping for more Rígan and Dàibhid

“You two really are alike. Time-wasting caution and maybe action later if the mood suits you.”

Regan took no shit from anyone and I loved that *clap*

Thank you so much, Kaila, for this ARC!


_____________

okay, that's cool that Goodreads didn't save anything I wrote, or even the star rating 😗

rtc

[NathyReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm so grateful for the opportunity to read this for free. Sadly, work and life got in the way and is inky now that I may post my opinion.

Rigan is quite the stabby and smart-ass FMC. I truly adored her. The chapter could be shorter, in my opinion, although, that didn't take from the story.

I loved the ambiance, the rising tension, the looming war and the growing feelings between Rigan and King Dàibhid. An exceptional slow burn and very worth it! I can not wait to read what will the Exile leader Balor will do next to try and dethrone Dàinhid.

[Aluralyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never read a book with such a clear "cinnamon roll" male main character until this one. King Dàibhid perfectly embodies this trope, and I loved him. Rígan is the stronger, kickass heroine, and together they balance each other beautifully.

I thoroughly enjoyed this first book in the series. While there's minimal spice—just a kiss or two near the end—it's filled with heart-wrenching emotional struggles. The side characters create a wonderful found family dynamic. This story weaves together secret lives, an uprising, and lost-and-found friendships that completely drew me in. Though it ends without resolving the main conflict, there's a strong determination to continue their fight against a power-hungry villain. I'm excited to see how everything unfolds in the next book. If you enjoy the following elements, you should read this:

💚Cinnamon Roll MMC
⚔️Strong & Stabby FMC
💚Hidden Identity/Royalty
⚔️Childhood ex-best friends to lovers
💚Found Family
⚔️Slow-burn Romance
💚Inspired by Irish Mythology

[Holiday · Rating 4 out of 5]

⚔️ 𝓢𝓱𝓪𝓭𝓸𝔀 𝓢𝔀𝓸𝓻𝓭 𝓐𝓡𝓒 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀 ⚔️

🌿I had a blast reading Shadow Sword, the first book in the Shadow Sword Trilogy by @kailadesjardinsbooks ⚔️ The world building and characters were compelling. Desjardins created a perfect mix of action, character interactions, and romantic intrigue to keep me turning pages late into the night!

⚔️The story follows Morrígan (Rígan), a sellsword with a secret, and Dàibhid, the King of Cunlaran. Rígan hopes to keep her identity a secret after Dàibhid hires her and her fellow sellswords to complete a royal mission. Both characters are fighting for peace for the land that they love dearly, but a mysterious enemy is set on stealing Dàibhid’s throne by any means necessary. Meanwhile Rígan’s secret is at risk of being discovered, making the independent life she’s worked hard to build at risk as well.

🌿You’ll love this book if you love🌿
⚔️Sellsword FMC
⚔️Secret Identity
⚔️Royal MMC
⚔️Found Family
⚔️Childhood Friends to Lovers
⚔️Slow Burn

**I received an advanced copy of Shadow Sword - All opinions are my own**

[Jess - Reader of Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shadow Sword by Kaila Desjardins 💚
Series, Book 1

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
New Adult • Romantasy
ARC Review
501 Pages
🗓️ May 27

💚childhood friends to strangers to lovers
🤎🗡️ FMC
💚cinnamon roll MMC
🤎secret identity
💚found family

📌”I like how much you care. Might be one of my favorite things about you.”

📌 “Why aren’t you telling him?”
“You’re too important to me.”

I think I’ve entered my cinnamon roll MMC era. This might be the beginning of an age because I’m so not leaving Dàibhid, our king with the biggest heart.

But if I adored our golden retriever monarch, I also very much adored our “I will not apologize for kicking everybody’s rear end” FMC. Rigan was strong, resilient, loyal and so sweet under all that hard shelling.

Kaila’s writing was top top 👏🏼 I was sold from the very beginning and so invested in this two in a blink of an eye. I know I shouldn’t but I just can’t help it… I’m already thinking about book 2 🫣

[kasey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Kaila Desjardins for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Rigan is a sellswords man, Dàibhid is the king who hires her. However there is more to their story then he knows, its a past Rigan hoped to leave behind. While she struggles to keep who she is a secret Daibhid is fighting to keep control of his country.
Rigan and Daibhid have a multilayered relationship that hinges on trust and acceptance.

Rigan has truly focused on being herself she has built a relationship with 2 friends that ended up becoming her family and the bond those 3 share was fun to read about.

Tropes
Found family
Sells swordsmen
Childhood friends
Hidden identities

I really enjoyed seeing how this complex relationship develop and change throughout this book and cant wait to see what happened next.

[Miriam St-Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

You know a book is great when you stay up way too late and shirk your responsibilities to finish it. The characters were filled with heart, the world was artfully crafted, the romance was the perfect amount of squee. Loved it.

[Sara]

Soft DNF’ing this 18% simply because I don’t think I’m the right target audience for this . . . 😥

Thank you to the author for sending this to me in exchange for helping reveal the cover and give an honest review of the book! ❤️

[Indy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read, well built out world and characters. Can’t recommend it enough. A tale about the various kinds of love, the families we have, the families we choose and finding our own paths.

[Sarah Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book means so much to me. The characters, the story, the warmth from all around is like a hug in book form.

I loved the FMC Rígan, a true bad@ss in every sense of the word. And despite all that, she still loves her dresses. Multi-faceted, and breaking stereotypes all around, she was a delight on the page.

And the MMC, Dàibhid, a true all around cinnamon roll, also broke stereotypes of his own. His power given to him by birthright, his imposter syndrome by his genuine care for the country for which he is ruler, he is the type of king everyone wishes they had on their side.

With the sweetest found family, and a strong sense of altruism, the characters will weave their way into many hearts.