Blade of Memories

Black Shadow #1

by Tina Hunter

When Lynn's criminal employer shows up with a piece of her broken past, she will do anything to get it back. And as Iridan city's foremost thief, 'anything' means an impossible heist.

But stealing magic crystals from the most regulated facility in the world is only the start of her problems; which includes a team she doesn't trust or like, a runaway with magic abilities, an ex who still makes her weak in the knees, and family drama that could change Lynn's whole world.

Brimming with action, adventure and intrigue, readers will be gripped by this imaginative tale of a magic filled world on the cusp of change.

Genres: Fantasy

340 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 12, 2018

About the author

Tina Hunter is a Science Fiction and Fantasy author. She’s been published in several anthologies, and her first novel length work is Blade of Memories: Black Shadow 1.

Tina has spent many years working in the publishing industry, including co-founding a small Canadian science fiction and fantasy publishing house.

So basically she is; a geek, a mother, a science fiction fan, and a super cool lady who loves to tell stories.

Reviews

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel was a good read. It involves action and adventure, with magic. The Inborn has magical abilities, which many places outlaw. Lynn is a thief known as the Black Shadow. She plans on leaving a life of thievery after this last heist. However, her employer does not like to let his employees go. He has her mother's necklace, once believed to be lost. She strikes a deal with him to steal the crystals in return for her mother's locket. She does not know how important the locket until later on. Lynn has to face people of her past, including her cousin, an ex, and her uncle, who has his own agenda. She has to bring her employer's "goons" on her task which needs to be accomplished in 2 weeks. She meets a Inborn girl who has run away, but promises to help her get someplace safe. Lynn learns about her family, much of it kept secret from her. She tries to deal with her ex, who might have some feelings towards her, but has his own secrets to which Lynn discovers. Lynn needs to accomplish the job in time otherwise she will become a servant to her employer. With so much betrayals in the mist, will Lynn be able to succeed?

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an action packed story. I couldn’t put the book down. Can’t wait for #2 Awesome read!

[Christina D.Z.A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Full (spoiler-free) review here:

http://www.dzamarie.com/blog/book-rev...

[Fiona Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was totally enthralled with the main character Lynn. She was a well written character who whilst living in a man’s world proved that girls can do anything. Strongly written characters with a well developed world. Recommended read.

[Christina Morley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blade of Memories is the first book in an exciting young adult fantasy series by Tina Hunter. The main character, Lynn, is a young woman and thief known as the Black Shadow. She steals to survive, but ends up working for a ruthless self-serving boss who finds a way to trap her into further service. She has learned not to trust people and besides being the best thief, she’s also extremely intelligent and uses her wits to stay ahead of the game. But when her boss sends her on an impossible mission with a team of untrustworthy men, she might just be out of her depth.

This story has it all! It’s full of action, adventure, and intrigue with a bit of chemistry and unrequited love. The descriptions are vivid, the characters are complex, and the magic elements or rules are unique.

It has a good balance with relationships. Most of them are dysfunctional, but there are a few people that Lynn can trust. I like how some of the characters aren’t all bad or all good. You wonder about them and since they will probably be in the sequel, there’s opportunity for them to support or hinder Lynn. The author also develops the chemistry well and uses the little moments in a powerful way to great effect.

There are plenty of twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat. The story has an element of closure, but the author also sets up the sequel with the epilogue. And, there are a few unresolved issues in the story that are great hooks. I can’t wait to find out what happens next!

I received an ARC of this book. This is an honest and voluntary review.

[Irene S · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good read. With Drakan holding Lynn's family heirloom, she will need to do steal one more item for Drakan. With three untrustworthy and unhelpful men accompanying her, provided by Drakan, Lynn will need to keep her wits about her to succeed. I received a free copy of this book. This is my honest and voluntarily given review. In this book, there are an interesting cast of characters that I am sure will be in future books in the series. This book was suspenseful and the characters are well drawn. This book kept me captivated. I look forward to reading more in this series and recommend this book.

[Crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book in a new series starts off with a lot of action and a good cast of characters. Lynn is a thief to survive, but her boss has something that belongs to her family. She is willing to do anything to get it back. Dorjee was an awesome character as well, and I am looking forward to seeing where the journey takes them all.

[Forrest Weldon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blade of Memories is a book that looks to rekindle your YA Fantasy nostalgia, but without the eye-rolling cringe that you'll have to endure in many other books of it's type, and I couldn't be happier for it.

In so much YA Fantasy, you usually have to endure the worst kind of character: The Power Fantasy Insert. Lynn, while still competent and resourceful fortunately lacks the most annoying trait of these characters: a lack of challenge. Lynn has everything stacked up against her from the start, and plays catch up while trying to prevent further disaster, and makes watching to see how she unravels it all the more enjoyable.

The main cast are dynamic, endearing, and carry most of the novel, something that is also usually lacking in similar stories. While the secondary cast suffers a bit more, and maybe could have used a little bit of compressing, there's enough there that nobody feels unneeded narratively.

Overall, this all speaks to book's main hook to me: tight storytelling. Nothing feels out of place, pointless, or like filler and the smooth pace made this book hard for me to put down.

Is this a book that is going to knock your socks off with a huge message or themes? Nah. To me, this isn't a book made to be pondered over a book club, but a fun read to blow through when you're looking to relive some YA Fantasy nostalgia with more coherent design in world and characters. I enjoyed my time with it, and I look forward to more.

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

[Silver Surfer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is quite a good book. Epic fantasy isn’t the sort of thing I read usually, but this one had magic involved so how could i resist. Looking out for book two that’s for sure Highly recommended.

[Jacquie Stewart · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/review...

My amazon review because I can't be bothered to type it all again lol

[Tina Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so excited to share this book with the world.

Lynn has a lot to learn in Book One. Who can she trust? Is her family who she thought they were? Is she more than just a thief? Her world is a lonely place before the book starts and I can't wait to show you her journey.

[KB · Rating 4 out of 5]

Blade of Memories is such a good book! Lynn is a professional thief, known as the Black Shadow-she's also a woman. Women have many limitations in this world, so Lynn often dresses in men's clothing. It's a useful disguise, especially when she's on the run or trying to go unnoticed in a crowd. Her personas are often hilarious, especially when she's disguised as an old alcoholic or as a young flirt.

At the beginning, Lynn is on her last job as a thief for a cruel man named Darkan-at least she was hoping it would be her last job. Darkan had other plans for her. When Lynn goes to confront Darkan about resigning he shows her a necklace he stole from her. It had belonged to Lynn's grandmother and then mother before being passed on to her. How much is this necklace worth? Lynn agrees to a new contract to "earn" back the necklace that was stolen from her. And so she is set off on a dangerous mission with three dangerous and untrustworthy men contracted to Drakan. What could go wrong?

Magic, thieves, religion, and family make up this story.

I'm looking forward to book #2! What will Lynn do next? Will she finally give up her life as the Dark Shadow? What lines will she cross to protect her new family?

[Zaquira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow....this was a joy that I can just enjoy over and over again. Lynn was interesting character. I love reading stories where the mc is truly human makes mistakes( of coursethere was many others).Plus she was a thief so that was a huge plus. Also she fierce in her own way . Although i didn’t like the way she acted with her ,” ex” So, I was happy at it being very minimal . But then I never had a crush or fell in love to know how it feels. I really enjoyed the fact that Lynn took disguises . although I wish there was more stories where a person crossdresses cause they wanted to . But oh well, I really cannot wait for the sequel to come out. Cause the first book left me on huge hunger for it to come out.

If you love stories where you can’t trust anyone, magic, swear words, characters with heart , and violence . Then this book is for you.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read and entertaining.

[Katherine M · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thief takes one more job to get a prized family heirloom back. Entertaining fantasy.

[Veerle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story, loved the characters and the plot, I'm a little confused though, because in the book it says that the sequel came out in 2019, but it's still not here?