What do you think?
Rate this book
The Saint of Steel #3
Paladin's Hope
Piper is a lich-doctor, a physician who works among the dead, determining causes of death for the city guard's investigations. It's a peaceful, if solitary profession…until the day when he's called to the river to examine the latest in a series of mysterious bodies, mangled by some unknown force.
Galen is a paladin of a dead god, lost to holiness and no longer entirely sane. He has long since given up on any hope of love. But when the two men and a brave gnole constable are drawn into the web of the mysterious killer, it's Galen's job to protect Piper from the traps that await them.
He's just not sure if he can protect Piper from the most dangerous threat of all…
Galen is a paladin of a dead god, lost to holiness and no longer entirely sane. He has long since given up on any hope of love. But when the two men and a brave gnole constable are drawn into the web of the mysterious killer, it's Galen's job to protect Piper from the traps that await them.
He's just not sure if he can protect Piper from the most dangerous threat of all…
300 pages, ebook
First published October 9, 2021
779 people are currently reading
16091 people want to read
About the author
T. Kingfisher
59 books25.4k followersT. Kingfisher is the vaguely absurd pen-name of Ursula Vernon. In another life, she writes children's books and weird comics, and has won the Hugo, Sequoyah, and Ursa Major awards, as well as a half-dozen Junior Library Guild selections.
This is the name she uses when writing things for grown-ups.
When she is not writing, she is probably out in the garden, trying to make eye contact with butterflies.
This is the name she uses when writing things for grown-ups.
When she is not writing, she is probably out in the garden, trying to make eye contact with butterflies.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,010 reviews
January 30, 2023
Insane gay people in love 🤝 me giving the book five stars
October 10, 2021
I’m going to be thinking of that last line for MONTHS
Read
November 30, 2023Reread in prep for book 4 coming out shortly, absolutely life enhancing.
I'm delighted to learn there will be more in this world, and that we may find out how the god died! A joy as ever. Sweet romance, lovely CSI-type set-up with Piper the adorable lich doctor and much pining, and as ever, the gnoles effortlessly steal the show. Definitely the best thing that happened to me all week.
I'm delighted to learn there will be more in this world, and that we may find out how the god died! A joy as ever. Sweet romance, lovely CSI-type set-up with Piper the adorable lich doctor and much pining, and as ever, the gnoles effortlessly steal the show. Definitely the best thing that happened to me all week.
November 10, 2021
I'm guessing every single person who makes it to the last line of this book is going to have the same question I had: "Aaaah, is this story going to continue, and WHEN?" This Twitter thread from the author is immensely helpful: She's thinking probably seven books total, with the one after this not solving the mystery being teased at, but dropping "some clues," and maybe significantly more about that plot in the fifth book, depending on the order they come out in. This one's Galen's story, and she's saying book 4 will be Shane and Marguerite, and books 5 and 6 will be Marcus and Wren, respectively, but she isn't sure in what order. And here I thought it was just a trilogy! Very excited to think that the central mystery of this series is actually one that is maybe meant to be solved, and not just a compelling and horrifying background for love stories. Even if many of them are very engaging love stories.
But getting into this one in particular: Very late into this book, one character accuses another of dithering. I feel like this entire trilogy (and the related Clocktaur duology set in the same world) could just be labeled The Dithering instead of The Saint Of Steel. I love a good slow-burn romance, but I'm afraid the ones in this series have become kinda samey for me, because this world's particular brand of paladins is so strongly built around a very specific brand of noble self-sacrifice and self-denial and guilt, with the added bonus for the Saint of Steel's paladins of feeling broken and damaged and useless and extra-unworthy.
And the one featured in this book, Galen, fits the same pattern, but this particular book is so short that he doesn't get much characterization apart from that. We know a little about him and his reckless sense of humor and tomcatting around from previous books, but there wasn't much focus on his particular personality quirks here, just on the brokenness and longing and self-denial all the others have gone through as well. Apart from being gay, Galen just didn't stand out for me that much from Steven and Ishtvan in the previous books, or Sir Caliban in the Clockwork Boys series. He thinks he's a monster and that he doesn't deserve love, and that when he finds it, the noble thing to do it is to deny it. And he doesn't want to. So he dithers. And so does the object of his lust/love, who also doesn't think he's good enough for romance. Which is all fine, except that was the pattern of so many of Kingfisher's previous books as well.
The third member of their party on their adventure — which I don't want to get into at all because the discovery process is so much fun — is a gnole, and that was really the heart of the book for me, because the author's gnole characters are always a solid delight, and everything new we learn about their society is a gift. And the gnole characters aren't about dithering at all. In fact, the gnole character here is enjoyably dismissive about the human characters' dithering, and how they need to get over it and move on — which is very much how I'm feeling at this point, over yet another couple that both start burning with lust within seconds of meeting each other, but also spend nearly the whole book trying to deny it for various reasons, mostly based in misunderstandings and self-hatred. I'm burning for stories in this world told from gnole viewpoints, if only because while there are definite hints in this volume that gnoles can also experience fraught romantic longing, it sounds like theirs is of an entirely different flavor, and the series could use the variety.
The non-romance part of the plot this time around (which again, I'm not going to get into) is pretty fascinating, especially given how it openly ties into a small unresolved mystery introduced in this book, a big issue around human/gnole relations, a new facet of the gnole caste system, and the Big Mystery hanging over this entire series. But I wish there'd been a little more focus and detail around those things, and a little less on Galen and Piper's "I want to but I shouldn't" romance.
But getting into this one in particular: Very late into this book, one character accuses another of dithering. I feel like this entire trilogy (and the related Clocktaur duology set in the same world) could just be labeled The Dithering instead of The Saint Of Steel. I love a good slow-burn romance, but I'm afraid the ones in this series have become kinda samey for me, because this world's particular brand of paladins is so strongly built around a very specific brand of noble self-sacrifice and self-denial and guilt, with the added bonus for the Saint of Steel's paladins of feeling broken and damaged and useless and extra-unworthy.
And the one featured in this book, Galen, fits the same pattern, but this particular book is so short that he doesn't get much characterization apart from that. We know a little about him and his reckless sense of humor and tomcatting around from previous books, but there wasn't much focus on his particular personality quirks here, just on the brokenness and longing and self-denial all the others have gone through as well. Apart from being gay, Galen just didn't stand out for me that much from Steven and Ishtvan in the previous books, or Sir Caliban in the Clockwork Boys series. He thinks he's a monster and that he doesn't deserve love, and that when he finds it, the noble thing to do it is to deny it. And he doesn't want to. So he dithers. And so does the object of his lust/love, who also doesn't think he's good enough for romance. Which is all fine, except that was the pattern of so many of Kingfisher's previous books as well.
The third member of their party on their adventure — which I don't want to get into at all because the discovery process is so much fun — is a gnole, and that was really the heart of the book for me, because the author's gnole characters are always a solid delight, and everything new we learn about their society is a gift. And the gnole characters aren't about dithering at all. In fact, the gnole character here is enjoyably dismissive about the human characters' dithering, and how they need to get over it and move on — which is very much how I'm feeling at this point, over yet another couple that both start burning with lust within seconds of meeting each other, but also spend nearly the whole book trying to deny it for various reasons, mostly based in misunderstandings and self-hatred. I'm burning for stories in this world told from gnole viewpoints, if only because while there are definite hints in this volume that gnoles can also experience fraught romantic longing, it sounds like theirs is of an entirely different flavor, and the series could use the variety.
The non-romance part of the plot this time around (which again, I'm not going to get into) is pretty fascinating, especially given how it openly ties into a small unresolved mystery introduced in this book, a big issue around human/gnole relations, a new facet of the gnole caste system, and the Big Mystery hanging over this entire series. But I wish there'd been a little more focus and detail around those things, and a little less on Galen and Piper's "I want to but I shouldn't" romance.
February 8, 2022
Spongiform Erectile Tissue: A Romance
(with dismemberment)
(with dismemberment)
April 14, 2025
a tomato-man and a bone-doctor get trapped in a labyrinth
August 7, 2025
1st Read: January 2023
Gosh, I adored this!
This series just got better with each book. Although, I liked Clara and Istvhan, I absolutely LOVED Piper and Galen! They were so cute and I was so invested in their romance. Earstripe, however, stole the show and must be protected at all cost! I adored him and the friendship between the three of them. I'm super glad that Kingfisher decided to focus a bit more on the gnoles in this book - they are so freaking precious!!!
While the first two books in the series directly build on each other, this one feels a bit more separate in terms of the mystery. It also referenced Clockwork Boys and The Wonder Engine quite a bit more than the other books in this series, so I found the lore a bit hard to follow. I think I'd very much like to reread this book after reading that duology, though.
Overall, this book brought back the atmosphere, humor and tension I adore from all other T. Kingfisher novels.
2nd Read: December 2024
This was such a comforting reread! I absolutely adore the gnoles (I'd literally read an entire book just about them) and love Piper and Galen's relationship. This book is far from perfect, but it just makes me so happy!
3rd Read: August 2025
I'd die for Earstripe!
Gosh, I adored this!
This series just got better with each book. Although, I liked Clara and Istvhan, I absolutely LOVED Piper and Galen! They were so cute and I was so invested in their romance. Earstripe, however, stole the show and must be protected at all cost! I adored him and the friendship between the three of them. I'm super glad that Kingfisher decided to focus a bit more on the gnoles in this book - they are so freaking precious!!!
While the first two books in the series directly build on each other, this one feels a bit more separate in terms of the mystery. It also referenced Clockwork Boys and The Wonder Engine quite a bit more than the other books in this series, so I found the lore a bit hard to follow. I think I'd very much like to reread this book after reading that duology, though.
Overall, this book brought back the atmosphere, humor and tension I adore from all other T. Kingfisher novels.
2nd Read: December 2024
This was such a comforting reread! I absolutely adore the gnoles (I'd literally read an entire book just about them) and love Piper and Galen's relationship. This book is far from perfect, but it just makes me so happy!
3rd Read: August 2025
I'd die for Earstripe!
June 14, 2022
Just couldn’t get into this one. The audio was good though.
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
September 5, 2025
Doctor Piper dealt with corpses and for the most part, he preferred them to the living. He didn’t mind living people, he was perfectly happy to meet them and talk to them and even work with them, but corpses never, ever asked stupid questions.
T. Kingfisher continues the Saint of Steel series with Galen's story, who gets pulled into a rogue investigation of strange mutilated bodies turning up, along with the lich-doctor Piper in Paladin's Hope.
Piper grimaced. You could never tell with soldier types. Either they wouldn’t complain even if their leg was falling off, or they’d whine over every hangnail. He suspected that Galen was more of the leg-falling-off variety, but there was no telling until you actually had one in front of you.
Galen and Piper are quite compelling characters, each dealing with their pasts and their talents that come with a footnote, but their endearing personalities soon grow on each other. Their growth and their relationship over the course of the novel is simply heartwarming to see, and was more focused than the plot or pacing of the novel which lag a bit in the middle. Earstripe the gnole is an amazing character with a strong moral sense and integrity, driving the plot forward since they started the investigation.
It occurred to Piper that he had just flung himself into Galen’s arms like a long-lost lover, rather than like a friendly acquaintance and travel companion.
The world-building is rich and layered, with human - gnole interactions, the speciesism, as well as gnole language and culture all woven together, along with the strange technology left over from the ancients, all making the The World of the White Rat a very interesting universe. T. Kingfisher's proficiency in writing humour without overshadowing the character arcs or the world-building is apparent in the novel structure.
On the whole, a fun read and my favoriteof the series so far, definitely recommended for T. Kingfisher fans!
Earstripe spread his hands, claws gleaming. “A gnole saves some human. Same thing.” He took a deep breath, clearly choosing his words carefully. “A gnole’s compassion does not require fur.”
🌟🌟🌟🌟
[3/4 star for the premise; One star for the characters and their arcs; Half a star for the plot and themes; 3/4 star for the world-building; 3/4 star for the writing - 4 stars in total.]
T. Kingfisher continues the Saint of Steel series with Galen's story, who gets pulled into a rogue investigation of strange mutilated bodies turning up, along with the lich-doctor Piper in Paladin's Hope.
Piper grimaced. You could never tell with soldier types. Either they wouldn’t complain even if their leg was falling off, or they’d whine over every hangnail. He suspected that Galen was more of the leg-falling-off variety, but there was no telling until you actually had one in front of you.
Galen and Piper are quite compelling characters, each dealing with their pasts and their talents that come with a footnote, but their endearing personalities soon grow on each other. Their growth and their relationship over the course of the novel is simply heartwarming to see, and was more focused than the plot or pacing of the novel which lag a bit in the middle. Earstripe the gnole is an amazing character with a strong moral sense and integrity, driving the plot forward since they started the investigation.
It occurred to Piper that he had just flung himself into Galen’s arms like a long-lost lover, rather than like a friendly acquaintance and travel companion.
The world-building is rich and layered, with human - gnole interactions, the speciesism, as well as gnole language and culture all woven together, along with the strange technology left over from the ancients, all making the The World of the White Rat a very interesting universe. T. Kingfisher's proficiency in writing humour without overshadowing the character arcs or the world-building is apparent in the novel structure.
On the whole, a fun read and my favoriteof the series so far, definitely recommended for T. Kingfisher fans!
Earstripe spread his hands, claws gleaming. “A gnole saves some human. Same thing.” He took a deep breath, clearly choosing his words carefully. “A gnole’s compassion does not require fur.”
🌟🌟🌟🌟
[3/4 star for the premise; One star for the characters and their arcs; Half a star for the plot and themes; 3/4 star for the world-building; 3/4 star for the writing - 4 stars in total.]
June 24, 2025
I'm not sure this plot and this romance went together seamlessly, but I like both the plot & the couple, so it was still an enjoyable read
December 8, 2023
Actual rating: 3.564589622 stars.
· Book 1: Paladin's Grace ★★★★
· Book 2: Paladin's Strength ★★
· Book 4: Paladin's Faith ★★★★★
· Book 1: Paladin's Grace ★★★★
· Book 2: Paladin's Strength ★★
· Book 4: Paladin's Faith ★★★★★
June 26, 2024
5 stars. With a love story that had me kicking my feet and fantasy-horror elements that had me flipping the pages like I was in a trance, Paladin’s Hope is the kind of romantasy I deserve to read during Pride Month and absolutely gagged me with its last line.
June 20, 2023
« Well, if you want my professional opinion, this great goddamm hole in his chest is probably what killed him. »
Señora, Kingfisher, me rindo. Me rindo ante usted y su forma de escribir historias tan bonitas y llevaderas con personajes carismáticos. Ahora bien ¿Qué peca de falta de información del mundo y necesito más respuestas? Sí. ¿Qué los personajes les faltan un poco de desarrollo sobre todo en su relación frente a otros personajes? También, pero, siempre hay un, pero desde que supe quien era el protagonista de esta historia no dudé ni un segundo en empezarlo. Amé ese personaje desde su pequeña aparición en el primer libro y ha sido una gozarla leerlo.
«The dead didn’t say thinks like “Are you sure he’s dead?”when the man’s head was half off or, “Dear god, what happened?” when it was bloody obvious that someone had shoved a sword through him. The dead just laid there and got on with being dead. »
Quizá el argumento es el que menos me ha gustado, pero siento que con ese final la autora dará pie a una a otra historia, o eso espero. Siento que ha sido uno de los descubrimientos de este año y no puedo estar más contenta.
«But we can still love someone and be loved. Even as broken as we are ».
PD: Me he enterado que hay unos libros anteriores a esta saga sobre el mismo mundo. No puedo estar más feliz. Tengo enganche para un poco más.
«It’s what the Rat does. They solve problems ».
Señora, Kingfisher, me rindo. Me rindo ante usted y su forma de escribir historias tan bonitas y llevaderas con personajes carismáticos. Ahora bien ¿Qué peca de falta de información del mundo y necesito más respuestas? Sí. ¿Qué los personajes les faltan un poco de desarrollo sobre todo en su relación frente a otros personajes? También, pero, siempre hay un, pero desde que supe quien era el protagonista de esta historia no dudé ni un segundo en empezarlo. Amé ese personaje desde su pequeña aparición en el primer libro y ha sido una gozarla leerlo.
«The dead didn’t say thinks like “Are you sure he’s dead?”when the man’s head was half off or, “Dear god, what happened?” when it was bloody obvious that someone had shoved a sword through him. The dead just laid there and got on with being dead. »
Quizá el argumento es el que menos me ha gustado, pero siento que con ese final la autora dará pie a una a otra historia, o eso espero. Siento que ha sido uno de los descubrimientos de este año y no puedo estar más contenta.
«But we can still love someone and be loved. Even as broken as we are ».
PD: Me he enterado que hay unos libros anteriores a esta saga sobre el mismo mundo. No puedo estar más feliz. Tengo enganche para un poco más.
«It’s what the Rat does. They solve problems ».
October 9, 2021
THIS WAS SO SO GOOD. All of the books in this series is good but ESPECIALLY THIS ONE and the ending sentence made me YELL.
Read this book! Read the entire series, but definitely read this book!!!
Read this book! Read the entire series, but definitely read this book!!!
June 10, 2025
idk how she does it or what she puts in these books, but t. kingfisher manages to outdo herself EVERY 👏🏼 SINGLE 👏🏼 TIME 👏🏼
June 22, 2022
In parts absolutely brilliant and it is my favourite of the series but the pacing is a bit wonky. That last sentence though!
October 21, 2025
tomato man and bone doctor i love you.
this series never fails to bring me tremendous amounts of joy. galen and piper were utter cuties, and so was everyone else. it’s always so nice to see everyone together and mentions of other loved characters.
THE ENDING THOUGH? yeah that was rude to leave us with that 😭. hopping into the next one immediately
.𖥔 ݁ ˖ fave quotes ˖ ݁݁ 𖥔.
"if you have any enemies i'll kill them. then you can dissect them if you like. would you like that? i'll do it. marry me."
"all i want in life is to have a sexy man make passionate love to me, eat a nice meal together, and then i'll leave to go chop up corpses. is that really so much to ask?"
this series never fails to bring me tremendous amounts of joy. galen and piper were utter cuties, and so was everyone else. it’s always so nice to see everyone together and mentions of other loved characters.
THE ENDING THOUGH? yeah that was rude to leave us with that 😭. hopping into the next one immediately
.𖥔 ݁ ˖ fave quotes ˖ ݁݁ 𖥔.
"if you have any enemies i'll kill them. then you can dissect them if you like. would you like that? i'll do it. marry me."
"all i want in life is to have a sexy man make passionate love to me, eat a nice meal together, and then i'll leave to go chop up corpses. is that really so much to ask?"
February 2, 2024
After loving the first two books in the series, Paladin’s Hope was severely underwhelming. First and foremost, insta-love is a insta-no for me. I usually love how T. Kingfisher develops nuanced relationships but Galen and Piper got very little development. From Paladin’s Strength, I really enjoyed Galen as a somewhat wry and funny character, but in his own books he’s relegated to self-deprecation and the big sad. Big oof. As for the plot, I was totally lost during the drawn out dungeon crawl that never really made sense mechanically or plot-wise. Then the ending tried to introduce an entirely new problem that gets introduced in one chapter and solved in the next. It’s not the first time Kingfisher’s pacing and plot have been off, but it felt particularly clunky when paired with an insta-love couple that keeps arguing about which one of them is worse for the other.
November 7, 2023
2021 Fall Bingo (#FallInLoveBingo🍂): HEA
Love Galen and Piper as a couple. Just wish we had more of them and less murder maze. Jump from last chapter to epilogue was sudden — could’ve used another 10K to flesh out the HEA, imo.
Love Galen and Piper as a couple. Just wish we had more of them and less murder maze. Jump from last chapter to epilogue was sudden — could’ve used another 10K to flesh out the HEA, imo.
Read
October 17, 2021Sad shvatam da nisam ništa zabeležila ni o prve dve knjige u serijalu... a u suštini, sve tri knjige uz vrlo malo promene variraju jedno te isto: laganu i paperjastu ljubavnu priču za koju od početka znamo da će se završiti hepiendom čim se njih dvoje dozovu pameti, i već neki fentezi zaplet. Nije da se T. Kingfišer/Ursula Vernon ne potrudi pošteno svaki put, ali ovo su prosto ljubići kalibrirani za sredovečne čitaoce fantastike koji bi malo da se opuste od stresa i tu nikakvom specijalnom učitavanju nema mesta. Ali jesu krajnje prijatni i opuštajući i nekako nepatvoreno dobronamerni romani i mnogo hvala Ursuli što ih piše jer je život, pa, stresna pojava.
December 11, 2025
Days later, Piper was wrist-deep in a corpse.
This wasn't an unusual situation for him. He spent a lot of time with his hands in corpses. He didn't like it. He didn't dislike it. It was just what he did. He enjoyed putting the mental pieces together about why someone had died, and he liked being able to provide certainty to families, but mostly what he liked was being good at his job.
And Piper was, for reasons he kept to himself, very, very good at his job.
Finally it looks like I'll actually finish my book goal this year - cut it close! - and what a great way to wind it down. This series is phenomenal, as is the author; as usual, you can definitely read this as a standalone, but you'll get the little references if you read the books in order, and you get more T. Kingfisher writing that way, too.
I didn't entirely dislike the last book I read in the series, but I definitely thought it dragged. Paladin's Hope definitely doesn't - it's a little shorter, but it's also tighter, the action feeling much more propelled, but still readable. Galen is a sweetheart, though some of the angsting about being relationship ready or not did treat old ground - it might just be that I read this much closer to my last from the series than usual, though.
But most importantly, this hits that sweet spot that T. Kingfisher invented and then wrote a bunch in - funny, imaginative fantasy with a hefty skew to horror in all the right places, and some sweet (and occasionally steamy) romance to round it all out. Oh, and gnolls, who I'm happy to report get a lot more page time in this one (when we get a gnoll protagonist with a mostly gnoll cast is when there's enough of them, that's when). All round a great entry in the series, and I'm SO hanging out for the next to be released!
This wasn't an unusual situation for him. He spent a lot of time with his hands in corpses. He didn't like it. He didn't dislike it. It was just what he did. He enjoyed putting the mental pieces together about why someone had died, and he liked being able to provide certainty to families, but mostly what he liked was being good at his job.
And Piper was, for reasons he kept to himself, very, very good at his job.
Finally it looks like I'll actually finish my book goal this year - cut it close! - and what a great way to wind it down. This series is phenomenal, as is the author; as usual, you can definitely read this as a standalone, but you'll get the little references if you read the books in order, and you get more T. Kingfisher writing that way, too.
I didn't entirely dislike the last book I read in the series, but I definitely thought it dragged. Paladin's Hope definitely doesn't - it's a little shorter, but it's also tighter, the action feeling much more propelled, but still readable. Galen is a sweetheart, though some of the angsting about being relationship ready or not did treat old ground - it might just be that I read this much closer to my last from the series than usual, though.
But most importantly, this hits that sweet spot that T. Kingfisher invented and then wrote a bunch in - funny, imaginative fantasy with a hefty skew to horror in all the right places, and some sweet (and occasionally steamy) romance to round it all out. Oh, and gnolls, who I'm happy to report get a lot more page time in this one (when we get a gnoll protagonist with a mostly gnoll cast is when there's enough of them, that's when). All round a great entry in the series, and I'm SO hanging out for the next to be released!
October 12, 2021
Well, this was just wonderful. :) I mean, I'm not surprised - I've loved this series so much - but still. I am beaming at the end of it! Fabulous banter among great, quirky characters, sweet romance, creepy magic, and exciting adventure. Total joy all 'round! And after that ending, I CANNOT WAIT for the next book in this series.
As usual with this series, you probably could read this one as a standalone, but why would you want to? The first two are fabulous, and there's so much pleasure in seeing how the recurring characters have developed.
As usual with this series, you probably could read this one as a standalone, but why would you want to? The first two are fabulous, and there's so much pleasure in seeing how the recurring characters have developed.
January 29, 2024
Shorter than the first three and maybe not quite as good as those, this was still a great read. I've been wanting to learn more about Galen. (The Tomato Man!)
*Thanks to my local library for the free audio download. Libraries rule!*
*Thanks to my local library for the free audio download. Libraries rule!*
May 30, 2022
This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart
Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Paladin's Hope is the third book in the Saint's of Steel series following a cast of broken characters who went a little insane when their god died. Not many made it back from that and those that did are shells of what they used to be but the Order of the White Rat has found uses for them and now we follow the stories of those who are mending just enough to find love, while solving a mystery of course.
T Kingfisher has built a fantastic world here. The Saint's of Steel series is set in the same world as both Swordheart and the Clocktaur War series. I will say that it was Swordheart that initially made me fall in love with T. Kingfisher's writing style and I've been working my way through her catalog since. In the World of the White Rat there are many different gods/saints and the Paladin's or nuns in their service. Not all are good mind you, some are downright creepy but the Saint of Steel was one that protected people by calling Berserkers into his service. When he died, they all went berserk as Berserkers do, but with no hand to guide them they did horrible things that many cannot forgive themselves for, in true Paladin fashion. T. Kingfisher likes to make a bit of fun of the over the top nobility of Paladins and their need to take responsibility for everything.
Galen is one of the recovering Paladins in the White Rat's service. He is helping Earstripe, the only Gnole (badger looking creatures that walk and talk and can smell much better than a human) in the guard, in the investigation of murders. Piper enters the story when they task him to help them determine the cause of death. Piper is great at his job, as a wonderworker his talent is to be about to touch a body and see the last moments before death. Very useful as a lich-doctor is basically a coroner used to determine cause of death. Not many know Piper's secrets as some are distrustful of the magic he can do.
Galen, Earstripe and Piper all head off on a quest to find the source of the bodies showing up in the river. My favorite gnole from previous books, Brindle, makes an appearance to help get them to where they are going. I don't want to give too much away because their adventure was harrowing and pressed into so much danger in such a short time Galen is able to get out of his own way a little so he can fall in love. Piper and Galen seem like a odd couple at first glance but they are both odd in their own ways and are very understanding of each other's afflictions. It was easy to see why they would fall in love.
I enjoyed this story thoroughly. Piper is a great character and I'm incredibly interested to see what the next book covers as we might get a few answers on how a Saint could die. T. Kingfisher has another win with this story full of great characters, a journey into mostly certain death and a world I love spending time in.
Narration:
Joel Richards is fantastic at narrating a self flatulating Paladin, an insecure but brilliant doctor and some gnoles who are really smarter than all the humans around them. I have enjoyed his portrayal of the entire series and all the characters within it. Really a winning combination for this story. I was able to listen to Paladin's Hope at my usual 1.5x speed.
Listen to a clip: HERE
Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Paladin's Hope is the third book in the Saint's of Steel series following a cast of broken characters who went a little insane when their god died. Not many made it back from that and those that did are shells of what they used to be but the Order of the White Rat has found uses for them and now we follow the stories of those who are mending just enough to find love, while solving a mystery of course.
T Kingfisher has built a fantastic world here. The Saint's of Steel series is set in the same world as both Swordheart and the Clocktaur War series. I will say that it was Swordheart that initially made me fall in love with T. Kingfisher's writing style and I've been working my way through her catalog since. In the World of the White Rat there are many different gods/saints and the Paladin's or nuns in their service. Not all are good mind you, some are downright creepy but the Saint of Steel was one that protected people by calling Berserkers into his service. When he died, they all went berserk as Berserkers do, but with no hand to guide them they did horrible things that many cannot forgive themselves for, in true Paladin fashion. T. Kingfisher likes to make a bit of fun of the over the top nobility of Paladins and their need to take responsibility for everything.
Maybe a hero is just what we call someone who doesn’t have the sense to stop before they destroy themselves.
Galen is one of the recovering Paladins in the White Rat's service. He is helping Earstripe, the only Gnole (badger looking creatures that walk and talk and can smell much better than a human) in the guard, in the investigation of murders. Piper enters the story when they task him to help them determine the cause of death. Piper is great at his job, as a wonderworker his talent is to be about to touch a body and see the last moments before death. Very useful as a lich-doctor is basically a coroner used to determine cause of death. Not many know Piper's secrets as some are distrustful of the magic he can do.
Galen, Earstripe and Piper all head off on a quest to find the source of the bodies showing up in the river. My favorite gnole from previous books, Brindle, makes an appearance to help get them to where they are going. I don't want to give too much away because their adventure was harrowing and pressed into so much danger in such a short time Galen is able to get out of his own way a little so he can fall in love. Piper and Galen seem like a odd couple at first glance but they are both odd in their own ways and are very understanding of each other's afflictions. It was easy to see why they would fall in love.
I enjoyed this story thoroughly. Piper is a great character and I'm incredibly interested to see what the next book covers as we might get a few answers on how a Saint could die. T. Kingfisher has another win with this story full of great characters, a journey into mostly certain death and a world I love spending time in.
Narration:
Joel Richards is fantastic at narrating a self flatulating Paladin, an insecure but brilliant doctor and some gnoles who are really smarter than all the humans around them. I have enjoyed his portrayal of the entire series and all the characters within it. Really a winning combination for this story. I was able to listen to Paladin's Hope at my usual 1.5x speed.
Listen to a clip: HERE
August 27, 2022
Ok here’s the final? of this series I’ve seriously loved. It’s Galin the Paladin of the Saint of Steel (and once again I ask how does a god die?) Dr Piper, (be still Galin’s beating heart) and Earstripe the gnole who encouraged them on his quest beyond the city to find out where the headless bodies were coming from. We learn a whole,lot more about gnoles and “snicker, snicker” spongiform erectile tissue! Some very funny moments, awkward moments and sad moments.
June 15, 2024
As soon as I managed to get my hands on a copy of “Paladin’s Hope”, it immediately went to the top of the book pile. If you had told me last year that I would be squeaking in excitement about this sort of book, I might have laughed in your face, but I guess T. Kingfisher is the one laughing now, because as soon as I realized book 4 was available in paperback, guess what I did?
As with the previous books in this series, this is a fantasy/romance (gag) involving one of the surviving paladins of the Saint of Steel. This time, the story focuses of Galen, who is known in the series so far for being a ginger and not really into women, if you catch my very obvious drift. The story begins when a body washes up on the shore of the river, dead from a large wound that seemed to have punctured his back, but there is no clear way to determine what could have caused such a wound, even for Piper, the lich-doctor the paladins have worked with before. Earstripe, a gnole belonging to the city guards seems to think, however, that this death is connected to other dead bodies that were discovered recently, but his captain won’t let him investigate further. But Galen and Piper agree that something seems odd, and they decide to go with Earstripe to see if they can’t solve this mystery, and proceed to get stuck in a strange place that makes the cave at the end of “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” look like a cake walk.
I am quite excited about Piper the pathologist (that’s not really what they call him, but I love an alliteration) being brought front and center in this story because I always find that line of work fascinating, and it is not often written about in fantasy settings. He also has a fantastic gallows’ humour that I really enjoyed – as one might expect from someone in his line of work. The budding romance with Galen is just sweet enough for me, and I really appreciate that Kingfisher created a fantasy world where no one freaks out at queerness and just lets people be who they are. The idea that as a society, they decided that they had bigger problems to worry about than who sleeps with who is so refreshingly sane! Alas, just like the White Rat being an order of kind and efficient bureaucrats, that’s how you know this is fantasy… The point is, those two are cute together, and even people who have shrivelled husks where their hearts should be would be mollified by the way they behave around each other. More than with the previous two books, this one addresses gnoles and their place in society on a deeper level, with Earstripe being such an integral part of the story. That seemed a bit forced to me at first, but as the world expands and the stories involve the little guys more and more, it actually makes sense to expand our view of their society and their relationship to humans at the same time.
As with the previous books of the series, the humor – dry, a little dirty, very witty - shines on almost every page and makes it a delight to read. Kingfisher also has such a charming and quirky way with words (like when she describes Galen has having cheekbones you could slice cheese with, or when Galen wonders if Piper got toned lugging dead bodies around, because those are heavy!), and I am really enjoying the way she broadens the world with each book. I know these technically belong to a larger series set in this universe, and I might get around to them some day, but until then, I am loving the way she introduces the reader to new elements of world-building with each book, which keeps the series fresh because there is always something new to discover. The mysteries of the Ancients and their machines is awesome, though I suspect it has been explored in some of her other books…
I have so much more fun than I expected with this series, these books are my new favorite treats, and I can’t wait for the fourth book to arrive!
As with the previous books in this series, this is a fantasy/romance (gag) involving one of the surviving paladins of the Saint of Steel. This time, the story focuses of Galen, who is known in the series so far for being a ginger and not really into women, if you catch my very obvious drift. The story begins when a body washes up on the shore of the river, dead from a large wound that seemed to have punctured his back, but there is no clear way to determine what could have caused such a wound, even for Piper, the lich-doctor the paladins have worked with before. Earstripe, a gnole belonging to the city guards seems to think, however, that this death is connected to other dead bodies that were discovered recently, but his captain won’t let him investigate further. But Galen and Piper agree that something seems odd, and they decide to go with Earstripe to see if they can’t solve this mystery, and proceed to get stuck in a strange place that makes the cave at the end of “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” look like a cake walk.
I am quite excited about Piper the pathologist (that’s not really what they call him, but I love an alliteration) being brought front and center in this story because I always find that line of work fascinating, and it is not often written about in fantasy settings. He also has a fantastic gallows’ humour that I really enjoyed – as one might expect from someone in his line of work. The budding romance with Galen is just sweet enough for me, and I really appreciate that Kingfisher created a fantasy world where no one freaks out at queerness and just lets people be who they are. The idea that as a society, they decided that they had bigger problems to worry about than who sleeps with who is so refreshingly sane! Alas, just like the White Rat being an order of kind and efficient bureaucrats, that’s how you know this is fantasy… The point is, those two are cute together, and even people who have shrivelled husks where their hearts should be would be mollified by the way they behave around each other. More than with the previous two books, this one addresses gnoles and their place in society on a deeper level, with Earstripe being such an integral part of the story. That seemed a bit forced to me at first, but as the world expands and the stories involve the little guys more and more, it actually makes sense to expand our view of their society and their relationship to humans at the same time.
As with the previous books of the series, the humor – dry, a little dirty, very witty - shines on almost every page and makes it a delight to read. Kingfisher also has such a charming and quirky way with words (like when she describes Galen has having cheekbones you could slice cheese with, or when Galen wonders if Piper got toned lugging dead bodies around, because those are heavy!), and I am really enjoying the way she broadens the world with each book. I know these technically belong to a larger series set in this universe, and I might get around to them some day, but until then, I am loving the way she introduces the reader to new elements of world-building with each book, which keeps the series fresh because there is always something new to discover. The mysteries of the Ancients and their machines is awesome, though I suspect it has been explored in some of her other books…
I have so much more fun than I expected with this series, these books are my new favorite treats, and I can’t wait for the fourth book to arrive!
December 7, 2023
There’s some questionable goofy decision making by the characters in this but it allowed for some really great moments that I ended up getting over it fairly quickly. It’s a total page turner. It manages to take the best qualities of the previous books in this series and mash them together! I think Piper might be my favorite kingfisher romantic lead and Earstripe my favorite gnole/side character. I highlighted this book to death because literally every passage was THAT good. Keep these guilty paladins coming, T Kingfisher!!
2023 reread: This book is a love letter to gnoles and I'm still obsessed with Piper.
2023 reread: This book is a love letter to gnoles and I'm still obsessed with Piper.
April 17, 2023
Great last book in the Trilogy. Fantastic world the writer has created with some very interesting ideas. While the story line wraps up there are still some interesting background items left open for future books. I look for ward to trying more of this writer;s work. Very recommended
June 10, 2022
Still 5 stars, but I'm not as enamored as I would like to be. T. Kingfisher books are pretty much automatic 5 stars. And I am thrilled that this was a male same-sex couple, where always before T. Kingfisher books have featured heterosexual couples. But, I dunno...
This is set in the same wondrous, impossible world I'm getting used to. There are still "wonder workers" capable of performing a single magical trick. One of the two male leads in this installment is a wonder worker. He's a "liche doctor" (forensic pathologist) who can touch a corpse and experience its last few moments before death. Then there are still these paladins dedicated to a dead god. Where the last two books in this "Saint of Steel" series were about two different heterosexual ex-paladins, this one is about a gay male ex-paladin. All the ex-paladins share the same superpower, in that they're berserkers capable of super strength. But because the god they served is inexplicably dead, they are all struggling with depression, and difficulty coming down from their berserker rage after it's activated.
Where the last couple books in this series focused upon a magical mystery, this one has less meat to work with. Previously, the other ex-paladins solved a mystery about who was creating these half-golem/half-zombie monstrosities, killing random civilians for body parts. That was pretty satisfying.
This book, however, has less of a mystery. There is a murderer, and once again the story starts out with decapitated corpses that need to be investigated. But the mystery doesn't last as long and isn't as satisfying. Then, without going into spoilers, the story turned into a medieval version of the "Cube" film franchise.
There was a lot of attention on the same-sex romance. As usual for T. Kingfisher novels, the protagonists are middle-aged or close to middle age. There usually isn't teenage nonsense in these novels, but in this installment, the emotional reactions were a little distressingly melodramatic. Maybe the author just thinks all gay men are like that. But, I shouldn't criticize too much. The author did not indulge any real stereotypes.
One gay man was a warrior, dealing with depression, berserker rages, and nighttime PTSD. The other gay man was a skinny forensic pathologist, a full-fledged medical doctor struggling with his own emotional problems and poor bedside manner. Neither of them engaged in interior decorating or hair styling, for which I am grateful. No character expressed shock at the idea of a gay man being a warrior, for which I am emphatically grateful.
This is set in the same wondrous, impossible world I'm getting used to. There are still "wonder workers" capable of performing a single magical trick. One of the two male leads in this installment is a wonder worker. He's a "liche doctor" (forensic pathologist) who can touch a corpse and experience its last few moments before death. Then there are still these paladins dedicated to a dead god. Where the last two books in this "Saint of Steel" series were about two different heterosexual ex-paladins, this one is about a gay male ex-paladin. All the ex-paladins share the same superpower, in that they're berserkers capable of super strength. But because the god they served is inexplicably dead, they are all struggling with depression, and difficulty coming down from their berserker rage after it's activated.
Where the last couple books in this series focused upon a magical mystery, this one has less meat to work with. Previously, the other ex-paladins solved a mystery about who was creating these half-golem/half-zombie monstrosities, killing random civilians for body parts. That was pretty satisfying.
This book, however, has less of a mystery. There is a murderer, and once again the story starts out with decapitated corpses that need to be investigated. But the mystery doesn't last as long and isn't as satisfying. Then, without going into spoilers, the story turned into a medieval version of the "Cube" film franchise.
There was a lot of attention on the same-sex romance. As usual for T. Kingfisher novels, the protagonists are middle-aged or close to middle age. There usually isn't teenage nonsense in these novels, but in this installment, the emotional reactions were a little distressingly melodramatic. Maybe the author just thinks all gay men are like that. But, I shouldn't criticize too much. The author did not indulge any real stereotypes.
One gay man was a warrior, dealing with depression, berserker rages, and nighttime PTSD. The other gay man was a skinny forensic pathologist, a full-fledged medical doctor struggling with his own emotional problems and poor bedside manner. Neither of them engaged in interior decorating or hair styling, for which I am grateful. No character expressed shock at the idea of a gay man being a warrior, for which I am emphatically grateful.
February 22, 2022
Don't get me wrong, I love T. Kingfisher and always enjoy what she brings to the table. But this one was oddly paced, unbalanced somehow. It as set up as a murder-mystery, but the who was solved almost immediately and then suddenly the book switched into the how of it, except that even the how of it wasn't a mystery so much as an involuntary exploration of the death-trap mechanisms responsible. So I was expecting the puzzle solving sense of enlightenment that comes from solving a mystery, but it happened too quickly and too early, and wasn't replaced by anything terribly interesting (beyond the romance plot). Also, the balance between the death-traps sequence and the rest of he frame narrative was off. There was too much frame narrative if the point was to serve as an impetus to get Piper and Galen into the labyrinth to work out their relationship; but because the point of the labyrinth was mostly an entertaining backdrop to plot the romance again, it was insufficiently interesting on its own to occupy so much of the book without more frame narrative to flesh out the other points, such as gnole-human relations, or the customs and capabilities of the ancients who built wonder engines and other ivory-tech.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,010 reviews