Fox, Cog & Sword

by Emily Bellman

In the tumultuous year of 1244, amidst the crumbling walls of Castle Montségur in Southern France, the echoes of war resound through the land. As the last bastion of the Cathars falls under the assault of the Pope's army, fate intervenes to turn bitter foes into unexpected allies.

Jòrdi de Mirepoix, a Cathar inventor and engineer, and Ademar le Roux, a Crusader bound by a promise, find themselves thrust into an unlikely alliance when their roles are reversed by a twist of destiny. Meanwhile, Hélène de Mirepoix, Jòrdi's formidable sister and skilled swordswoman, leads a daring mission to safeguard her people's future amidst the chaos of the inferno.

While Jòrdi and Ademar navigate the complexities of their newfound companionship, Hélène grapples with the atrocities of war and her role as her people’s leader.

"Fox, Cog & Sword" is a story of love, redemption, and belonging against the backdrop of a world torn apart by faith and strife. Will the ticking heart of a mechanical clock and the fox-red hair of the man he cannot forget herald a new dawn of hope for Jòrdi?

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101 pages, ebook

Published June 1, 2024

About the author

Emily Bellman is a historical fiction and fantasy writer. Her debut novel is The 11th Code, Parts 1 & 2. Although she ended up working in marketing, she has always found herself intrigued by stories that explore unconventional love, address criticism regarding those who use religion to oppress and harm people, and portray women who really don’t need saving (by men).

Emily currently lives in Germany (you can probably find her exploring various castle ruins, churches, and museums across Europe).

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Reviews

[Lioba · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its okay.
I think if there was more pages it could be better. but as it is now it is really just okay.
The start is abrupt and drops you into the world which is ours, yes. But I am not that familiar with the Bon Chretiens, and their particular history in France, and so I got confused and irritated more than once with the theology and the background politics.
The sisters story feels a more like a sidequest and is not all that strongly entwined with the boys. I do appreciate that she is in there and how stubborn and strongwilled she is. But hers it gets not as much attention or anything that really speaks of character development. She is not questioned. She gets pushed out of her wants and comfort zone but she handles that too well to then be an interesting character.
For the lovestory of the brother - the further I got the better it got. It feels rushed, which is the ground problem with being just put into the story so suddenly with the fall of the castle and to the characters without knowing them at all. And it is more in the lines of Love at first honest interaction.
I can't really say much more. It is cute if a bit confusing.

[Reading_whimsically · Rating 3 out of 5]

Queerness: Gay mcs ,

I liked the concept of this book however upon closer inspection this book is clearly an AI cover which I dont know how to feel about so this will be a very short review

Loved the stop , I feel like there was way to much set up with the sister . If theres a book this is linked it it makes sense but if this is a stand alone it doesn't

I probably wont be reading more from this author