Soul of the Blade

Guardians of Taron #1

by Brenda J. Pierson

Aeo, assassin for the king of Arata, thought wielding the legendary Bok’Tarong would be the ultimate show of power. Instead, his soul has become trapped inside the enchanted sword, and his only means of contact with the world is a new bearer who despises him for his crimes. They are humanity’s only defense against the mind-eating parasites preying upon mankind, and the key to possibly destroying them forever. Doing so would mean putting their trust in new, dangerous allies … but if they fail, they’ll have to watch the world fall to the Coming Madness.

Genres: Fantasy

327 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 25, 2014

About the author

Brenda J. Pierson is just a nerd living her dream. Inspired by Brandon Sanderson and R.A. Salvatore, she writes teen-friendly fantasy novels brimming with magic, monsters, and epic quests to save the world. In addition to writing she’s a crafter, dedicated bookworm, avid gamer, lover of tacos, and crazy cat lady. She’s living the good life with her husband and kitties in her hometown of Tucson, Arizona.

You can find Brenda skulking around Twitter (@bjpwrites), as long as you don’t mind seeing her cats as well as her books.

Reviews

[Kelsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought that this book was a roller-coaster of twists and turns! By the middle of the book, you feel as though you know the world back and forwards. My favorite part was watching the characters, particularly Aeo, grow and change with the people they met. When does the equal come out? :)

[Lyssa Chiavari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Soul of the Blade is a fantastic high-fantasy with a dash of science fiction. The story follows two sets of adventurers—Aeo and Dragana forming one reluctant team, and Raeb and Saydee another—on a quest to stop a mysterious disease, known as the Coming Madness, that is infecting the people of their world. Only the Taronese know what the Coming Madness is, how it’s caused and how to stop it. Long ago, they forged the Bok’Tarong, an enchanted sword that is the only thing that can kill the parasites causing the disease. But to end the plague, the adventurers will need more than just the sword—they’ll need to find a way to destroy the parasites’ source.

And I won’t say more than that, because this is an adventure I don’t want to spoil!

The story is an amazing, intricate roller coaster, with all sorts of mysteries that I got ridiculously excited figuring out. The writing is beautiful and reminiscent of my personal favorite author, Catherine Fisher. The characters are complex and endearing, and I loved watching them grow. I’m eager to re-read the book now, because it’s one of those stories with hidden layers of depth that come out with multiple readings. I highly recommend this book for fans of fantasy, particularly if you like Legend of the Seeker, The Legend of Zelda, or the anime Bleach.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first learned about Soul of the Blade after reading the stand alone novella, Soul of the Guardian (find it here). The novella made me literally cry at work, it was impossible to put down, and got me hooked on the terrifying Entenna and their war on humanity. I had to read the book.
Soul of the Blade introduced four engaging new characters, three of whom were POV characters. Each character contributed to the overall story and they were all easy to love and root for. The only character ,missing was Kole (from the novella), which was heartbreaking to say the least. However, a lack of Kole did not make Soul of the Blade any less of a wonderful book.
It’s definitely a positive addition to the genre - excellent fantasy elements, flawed heroes and heroines, terrifying villains, and an expansive and diverse setting. It was engaging with awesome fight scenes and appropriate pacing throughout- there were never times where it felt like it was dragging. It was an exceedingly optimistic and refreshing read. While some aspects of the plot were easy to predict, that was not a detriment to the book as a whole. It rather led to wanting to know if I was right and made plot reveals that much more satisfying. An excellent book that had me crying happy tears by the end.