Tag: The Broken Blades Series

Waiting on Wednesday – Three Shattered Souls by Mai Corland

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Waiting on Wednesday6 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  For this latest Waiting on Wednesday, I highlight the final upcoming entry in the excellent Broken Blades fantasy trilogy with Three Shattered Souls by Mai Corland.

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Last year I had the very great pleasure of reading Five Broken Blades by Mai Corland, an outstanding fantasy debut that saw five highly damaged killers, including a thug, a spymaster, a poisoner, an outlaw prince and a thief join forces to kill an immortal king.  Featuring a great plot, some excellent protagonists and an impressive audiobook format, Five Broken Blades was a very impressive read that ended up being one of my favourite debuts of 2024.  However, this was only the start of the fun I was having with Corland’s new series.

Due to how much I enjoyed Five Broken Blades, I made sure to listen to a copy of the sequel earlier this year, Four Ruined Realms.  An excellent sequel that moved the plot of the series along in some exciting ways, including with some additional character development and a good dose of tragedy, Four Ruined Realms was an awesome novel and one of the better audiobooks I enjoyed so far this year.

After having a brilliant time reading the first two books in the Broken Blades trilogy, I was naturally very excited to find out that Corland was finishing the series off this year with the third and final book, Three Shattered Souls.  Set for release in July 2025, Three Shattered Souls will wrap up the series as the remaining protagonists will face the combined wrath of their world as they try to finish their mission and remove the tyrant king from the throne.

Plot Synopsis:

THE UNMISSABLE FINAL CONCLUSION TO THE EPIC KOREAN-INSPIRED FANTASY SENSATION, THE BROKEN BLADES TRILOGY

Some betrayals cut deeper than blades.

The Blades were never supposed to survive this long. But after the battle in Quu Harbor, escaping is no longer enough. The most dangerous liars in the four realms have one last mission – return to Yusan and finish what they started.

But now a usurper sits on the serpent throne. And he may be more dangerous than the god-king.

With three relics of the Dragon Lord in their possession, the Blades will face the might of the four realms. Enemies will become allies. Allies will become traitors. And the ones they love most? They’ll be the ones to break them.

Grief will carve the Blades into something ruthless and unrecognizable. But only by losing everything can they win this game of kings and crowns.

Three Shattered Souls looks set to continue all the best storylines from the first two books, and I am deeply excited to see where this final entry goes.  It sounds like the character’s will be involved in a three-way war against all their enemies, and I cannot wait to see what carnage comes out, especially after the chaotic conclusion of the second novel.  Corland will also have to expand and then wrap up the remaining character arcs in this final book, and I cannot wait to see how the various complex relationships, motivations and secrets finally end up, especially as there is bound to be even more treachery, mistrust and sacrifices in this final novel (based on the title, I’m worried at least one more major protagonist is dying here).  As such, Three Shattered Souls’ narrative has so much potential, and I really hope that Corland has a powerful and memorable finale in store for us.

After having an excellent time getting through the previous novels in this series, there is no way I’m stopping now, especially as Three Shattered Souls sounds so damn good.  This final Broken Blades book by Mai Corland should be something very special, and I am very excited to see how this epic trilogy comes to an end.  As such, July cannot come soon enough, and I am planning on listening to Three Shattered Souls as soon as it comes out.

Four Ruined Realms by Mai Corland

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy7 Comments

Publisher: Recorded Books/Zaffe (Audiobook – 7 January 2025)

Series: The Broken Blades – Book Two

Length: 13 hours and 31 minutes

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

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One of the hottest fantasy sequels of 2025 is the impressive Four Ruined Realms by Mai Corland, that once again follows an entertaining band of killers and self-interested liars as they get drawn into dark events that threaten their entire world.

Last year I had the pleasure of reading the outstanding debut Five Broken Blades by Mai Corland.  The first book in Corland’s Broken Blades trilogy and one of my favourite debuts of 2024, Five Broken Blades was an impressive fantasy novel with some great Korean aesthetics that followed five deadly killers who are recruited to kill the king of Yusan and steal the magical crown that makes him invulnerable.  However, their planned assassination and heist becomes complicated by secrets, treachery and the fact that each member of the group had hidden motivations for being there.  Corland provided a pretty wonderful story for this first book, loaded with betrayals, lies and compelling character-driven perspective chapters, and I loved the great twist at the end that saw the protagonists captured and forced to engage in a new heist.  As such, I have been eagerly awaiting the sequel since last year, especially as I couldn’t wait to see how Four Ruined Realms resolved the awesome cliffhanger Corland left the first book on.

The group known as the Blades are five of the best killers, liars and thieves in the kingdom of Yusan.  Made up of a master spy, a beautiful poison-maiden, a murderous banished prince, a lethal thug and a mysterious thief, the Blades were hired to pull off an impossible task: kill Yusan’s God King Joon and steal his crown.  Each of the killers had a reason for becoming involved with the plot, as well as their own dark secrets that drove them onwards.  However, all of them underestimated Joon’s manipulations and greed, as the entire job was a ploy from the King to bring them together and evaluate their skills.

Captured and forced by bribes and threats to accept a new mission, the Blades now find themselves journeying to the neighbouring nation of Khitan, which has long resisted the armies of Yusan.  Ruled over by Joon’s vengeful sister, Quilimar, Khitan remains free thanks to the power of the Golden Ring of the Dragon Lord, one of five legendary magical treasures gifted to the ruling houses of the rival realms.  Determined to possess all the treasures, Joon gives the Blades one month to steal the ring and return it to him.  If they succeed, they will have everything they desire, but if they fail, then they and everyone they love will be killed.

Arriving in Khitan, the Blades find dangerous enemies all around, an impossible theft before them and their once cohesive group fractured thanks to their uncovered lies.  But even with their conflicting motivations and secrets out in the open, these killers can all agree on one thing: King Joon is their true enemy.  Determined to fight back, the Blades embark on a mission to gain an audience with Quilimar and find a way to use Khitan’s resources to defeat Joon.  However, there is a darker conspiracy at play within the borders of Khitan, and the Blades have once again underestimated the lengths their enemies will go to win.  Worse, each of the band still has secrets, and soon a new set of lies will tear them apart from within.

Four Ruined Realms was another exceptional fantasy novel from Corland that effortlessly drags you in with its fun action, compelling story, doomed romances and outstanding and damaged protagonists.  Perfectly telling a massive, multi-character narrative, Four Ruined Realms was a very worthy sequel to Five Broken Blades that proved very hard to put down.

Corland set forth another complex and emotionally charged narrative in Four Ruined Realms, and I loved how well she continued after the cool cliffhanger ending of the first book.  Taking place right in the aftermath of the betrayals and lies of Five Broken Blades, Four Ruined Realms begins just as the Blades arrive in Khitan and are forced to work together to survive and secure the prize, despite the complete lack of trust and the anger brought about by their revealed secrets.  Corland works a lot of great character development into these early chapters, as the book flits between the protagonists and showcases their respective mindsets.  There is a good blend of early planning, espionage, and personal issues, as the protagonists try to work together, while also maintaining additional secrets that they know will tear the group apart.  The first part of the book features some very fun sequences, especially when the male protagonists depart on an expedition for knowledge, while the girls attend a party that ends in turmoil.  At the same time, there are hints of a bigger conspiracy beneath the surface of the new realm they are in, and Corland provides some interesting clues that perfectly come into play later.

As Four Ruined Realms continues, Corland enhances the book by including more chapters from the perspective of returning protagonist Tiyung.  Tiyung, while a perspective character in Five Broken Blades, only had a relatively minor point-of-view role, so it was interesting to see him as more of an equal protagonist in the sequel.  His storyline of being stuck in a notorious prison back in Yusan proved to be particularly compelling, especially as he gets to interact with two of the book’s best supporting characters.  Tiyung’s storyline blends well with that of the main protagonists, and thanks to the simultaneous timeline, you get to see him react to the events occurring over in Khitan and find out secrets that have potential impacts on how the Blades succeed in their task.

The second half of the book primarily details the Blades’ attempts to learn more about Khitan and find a way to get an audience with its queen.  Their plans to achieve this see them once again split up into dramatic groupings, and you get some interesting adventures and interactions as a result, especially as all the powerful emotions come to the surface.  It also perfectly sets up the final massive sequence of Four Ruined Realms, which really delivered in both action and tragedy.  While I don’t want to spoil too much, readers will come away from this novel pretty heartbroken, and there are some very intense moments going on in the last third of the book.  Combined with a series of final reveals and twists, all of which are nicely foreshadowed by earlier subtle inclusions from the author, you come away from Four Ruined Realms both moved and extra excited to see how the series is going to come to an end.

As with the first book in the series, Corland sets Four Ruined Realms out in a fantastic manner, and I deeply enjoyed how the complex narrative came across.  The use of six separate perspective characters was a major highlight as it allowed for a multi-layered narrative with a focus on character development and interactions.  The author did an outstanding job of balancing the different perspectives, with all the protagonists getting their chance to shine in their respective chapters, and even the increased use of Tiyung didn’t throw this out of whack.  Indeed, Tiyung’s chapters honestly pulled the other perspectives together into a tight and captivating overarching narrative, as the inclusion of an outsider character viewing events from afar increased the complexity of the plot.

The author makes full use of the book’s alternating viewpoints to insert a lot of great story elements into the plot, so there is a little something for everyone here.  The constant intrigue and danger that the protagonists found themselves in was well balanced by the author’s excellent worldbuilding, while the cool action scenes are guaranteed to get anyone’s blood pumping.  There are also multiple romance subplots that none of the protagonists are immune to.  While not a full-on romantasy novel, a good chunk of the book is focused on the complicated relationships that have formed between various protagonists, which will appeal to some readers, especially as the doomed nature of many of these romantic affairs leads to some excellent drama and heightened personal tensions.  While there were a few more romantic subplots than I typically enjoy in a fantasy novel, I felt that Corland got the right equilibrium here, with the focus on relationships and failed love enhanced the main fantasy intrigue elements of the plot rather than distracting from them.

Four Ruined Realms proved to be a very worthy sequel to Five Broken Blades, and I really enjoyed how effectively the author continued her elaborate storylines and continued to build up her great characters.  Corland uses this book to substantially expand the overarching setting of the series, including exploring a second realm and diving into the larger politics of the world.  The primary new setting, Khitan, worked extremely well as a background to the story, especially as its history and inherent intrigue played nicely into the chaotic mission of the protagonists and the plots surrounding it.  While I loved how the narrative continued in this sequel, readers should be warned that Four Ruined Realms isn’t necessary the best place to dive into the Broken Blades books, primarily because it is the second entry in a complex ongoing fantasy series.  While Corland does a great job of recapping the key events of the first book throughout Four Ruined Realms to make it accessible to newcomers, readers should really start at the start of the trilogy as it will give you the full emotional impact, especially when it comes to the character arcs.  Still, there is plenty for everyone to enjoy here, and I feel that Four Ruined Realms was a great book and sequel for readers new or returning.

As with the first book in this trilogy, the element that really ensures Four Ruined Realms stands out was its well-crafted main characters through whose eyes we see the narrative unfold.  Corland brings back all six protagonists from the first novel, made up of Royo, Sora, Euyn, Mikail, Aeri and Tiyung, and features them as equal parts of the plot.  After exploring their tragic backstories in Five Broken Blades, Corland spends this second novel diving into the drama and turmoil caused by the events of the first book, including the reveal of their darkest secrets and hidden motivations.  This brings out a lot of mistrust, antagonism and broken romances, which works to create quite a turbulent and entertaining plot.  I really appreciated how well each of these protagonists came through as a result, and it was fascinating to see their next set of secrets and hidden concerns, especially the deeper you get into their new mission.

Of the six, Royo, Mikail and Tiyung probably had the best arcs in Four Ruined Realms.  Royo continues to be the loveable, tough street thug with a past, and his more straightforward approach to life and honest need for redemption are quite refreshing amongst the rest of the schemers in the group.  Mikail, the dark spy master, proves to be the book’s ultimate badass, and his entertaining persona, complex backstory, and conflicted opinions about his love interest Euyn, ensure that he is one of the better perspectives in Four Ruined Realms, especially as he continues to mislead and lie to everyone.  Tiyung, as I mentioned above, gets much more of a chance to shine in this sequel, and his transformation from spoiled rich kid to starving prisoner ensures you get a better look at his character.  A genuinely good person, Tiyung continues to rise above his family legacy here, and his narrative of prison life and unexpected connections was a true highlight of the book.

The rest of the Four Ruined Realms protagonists also had some excellent moments, and I really appreciated their storylines.  Euyn, the fugitive prince of Yusan, has a troubled time in this sequel, primarily as he has the most paranoia and mistrust after the events of the first book.  This leads to a lot of conflict, and Euyn’s character growth from the first book starts to reverse in places as he seeks fights and alienates his allies.  However, Corland works this conflict into an excellent overarching narrative for Euyn, with its resolution being a key part of the plot.  I also felt that Sora, the beautiful and deadly poison-maiden, had a great arc in this sequel, especially as she loses her confidence and her killing edge, becoming the group’s conscience.  The final protagonist, Aeri, is my least favourite, although she ties the central cast together nicely.  The secret child of the main antagonist Joon and the group’s traitor in the first book, Aeri is the most mistrusted protagonist, despite being in the same boat as the rest of the Blades, and spends much of Four Ruined Realms trying to prove herself again.  While her storyline is really interesting and an essential part of the overall plot, I still didn’t connect with Aeri.  I’m not sure if this is because of how she is written, or because of the narrator assigned to Aeri’s chapters, but I feel that there is a huge disconnect between Aeri and the other protagonists which makes her not quite fit in, especially with her overly manic (and horny) personality.  Still, she does have some great moments in Four Ruined Realms, and it will be very interesting to see where Aeri and her doomed romance ends up.  Throw in an array of excellent supporting figures, including outstanding and ruthless antagonists, and this proves to be an amazing overall cast, whose layered roles and interactions helps to turn Four Ruined Realms into quite an exceptional read.

As with the first book in the series, I chose to listen to the audiobook version of Four Ruined Realms, especially after Five Broken Blades came across so epically on the format.  Unsurprisingly, the sequel was just as impressive on audiobook with Four Ruined Realms also featuring talented narrators, Greg Chun, Zion Jang, Roger Yeh, Donald Chang, Jaine Ye and Sophie Oda, each of whom voiced the chapters of a particular character.  These multiple narrators worked wonders to tell Four Ruined Realms’s elaborate character-driven story, and I loved how each of them inhabited the role of their respective protagonist.  All the narrators really impressed me in Four Ruined Realms and thanks to the even spread of chapters between characters, they all got a chance to shine.  There was a fantastic array of voices featured in each chapter, and we get to hear several differing tones for the same characters throughout the course of the audiobook.  I will admit that the narration for Aeri’s chapters still didn’t quite seem to fit the tone of the rest of the audiobook, but the other chapters more than made up for it, and I really enjoyed some of the elaborate and varied voices that emerged.  Featuring a 13-and-a-half-hour runtime, this was a quicker audiobook to get through than Five Broken Blades, and it ended up being a wonderful way to appreciate Corland’s fantastic story.  As such, this format comes very highly recommended for Four Ruined realms, and I am currently planning to finish this series off on audiobook.

With even more betrayals, secrets and tragedy, Four Ruined Realms was another exceptional novel from Mai Corland, who is really starting to impress me as an author.  An outstanding sequel to Five Broken Blades, Four Ruined Realms perfectly continues the trilogy’s captivating narrative, and you won’t be prepared for all the cool twists, turns and major moments.  A brilliant and moving fantasy novel with some dramatic character moments, Four Ruined Realms was such a good book and I’m so very glad I continued this fantastic series.  I cannot wait to see how this trilogy concludes, and luckily the final book, Three Shattered Souls, is out in July.

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Waiting on Wednesday – Four Ruined Realms by Mai Corland

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Waiting on Wednesday6 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  For this week’s Waiting on Wednesday, I check out the awesome upcoming sequel to a great fantasy novel I read in 2024, with Four Ruined Realms by Mai Corland.

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Earlier this year I had the great pleasure of reading the fantasy debut, Five Broken Blades by Mai Corland.  An exciting, intense and clever character-driven fantasy novel with some strong romantasy elements, Five Broken Blades was a fantastic read that saw several of the biggest liars in a fantasy kingdom team up to take down their immortal king.  Essentially one big heist novel with over-the-top characters, excellent action, tons of intrigue and a whole lot of personal issues, Five Broken Blades was a deeply enjoyable book, and I had a brilliant time getting through it, especially in its audiobook format which featured multiple excellent narrators.

While I didn’t love absolutely everything about Five Broken Blades (I’m not a huge romantasy fan, although Corland kept these elements fairly subtle), I did get really caught up in the narrative and I am very curious to see how it is going to continue.  As such, I am eager to get my hands on the upcoming sequel, Four Ruined Realms, which looks set to send the protagonists on another deadly heist.  Set for release in early January 2025, Four Ruined Realms has a great plot behind it, and I’m looking forward to finding out how Corland builds on the clever twist and cliffhanger at the end of Five Broken Blades.

Plot Synopsis:

The lies are bigger and the plots more treacherous when your favourite backstabbers return in the mind-blowing sequel to instant Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller Mai Corland’s epic adventure fantasy Five Broken Blades.

The King of Yusan may be the greatest liar of them all.

His sister’s ring is in his sights, and he will do anything to get what he wants. Even manipulating the five blades to steal it…

Bonded by deceit, the blades must rely on their skills to pull off King Joon’s pursuit or risk his legendary wrath.

A foreign rule of law stands between them and Quilimar, the Queen of Khitan. Now they have one month to steal the powerful Golden Ring of the Dragon Lord. But that impossible task might be easier than trusting one another, even though their lives, their families, and the realms depend on it.

They can all agree on one thing: the king can’t win. But can they beat him at his own game?

Because for the blades, this time it’s not just personal, it’s revenge. Lies may have torn them apart, but now vengeance will bring them together.

The lies have only just begun…

Four Ruined Realms sounds like a very fun read, and I cannot wait to see how Corland’s protagonists fair during their next heist.  There are so many cool elements from the first book that need to be continued here, including the consequences of their various lies and manipulations, their own unique desires that often run counter to each other, and the fact that they now all want vengeance on King Joon, the man who brought them together in the first place.  I cannot wait to see how the characters interact in Four Ruined Realms, especially now that all their cards are on the table, and I am sure there will be even more backstabbing and betrayals along the way.  As such, I am imagining that Four Ruined Realms will be another intense, clever and captivating read, that continues to explore the excellent protagonists, while also presenting an exciting new target for them.

Due to how much I enjoyed the first book in this series, there is no way that I won’t be grabbing Four Ruined Realms when it comes out early next year.  I am very curious to see how Corland continues this story, and the author has really hooked me with her various cool characters.  This will probably be one of the first books of 2025 I read in the new year, and I am hoping to grab it on audiobook again after the great experiences I had with the format for Five Broken Blades.  No matter how I read it though, I have no doubt that Four Ruined Realms is going to be an outstanding and addictive fantasy read.

Five Broken Blades by Mai Corland

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy16 Comments

Publisher: Recorded Books (Audiobook – 7 May 2024)

Series: The Broken Blades – Book One

Length: 15 hours and 1 minute

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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I was in the mood for some awesome fantasy fiction, so I decided to check out something a little different for me, Five Broken Blades by new author Mai Corland.  The debut adult book from Corland, who previously wrote children’s and young adult fiction under the name Meredith Ireland, Five Broken Blades was an addictive and exciting fantasy novel with some tragic romance at its core.

In the kingdom of Yusan, the God King Joon is a tyrannical and despised figure whose rule has seen the lives of the poor and innocent disadvantaged even further.  There are many people who want Joon dead, but to even think about it is high treason, punished by the most painful of deaths.  Worse, killing the king is next to impossible, as he is immortal, granted extended life and invulnerability by his magical crown.  Despite this, a small group of desperate killers are about to try to take him down.

Mysteriously summoned from across the nation, five of the most dangerous killers and rogues in Yusan have been tasked with working together and doing the impossible, stealing Joon’s crown and killing him in public.  Each of the five has their own reason for taking part in this apparent suicide mission, including a hired hitman seeking the money he needs for his redemption, a trapped poison-maiden hoping to gain freedom for herself and her sister, the royal spymaster looking for revenge, a banished prince who wants his life back, and a slippery thief seeking to reconnect with her family.

As the group begin to put their plan into motion, these independent killers will need to learn to work together with the rest of the group if they have any hope of surviving.  However, each of them has their own deeper motivations regarding their planned mission, and none of them truly trusts the other rogues they have been tasked with working with.  As they get closer to their goal, the five experience setbacks, twisted romance and unexpected opportunities.  But can they succeed and kill a God King, especially when they have a traitor in their midst?

Five Broken Blades was an excellent and highly enjoyable novel from Corland, who produced an amazing debut adult fantasy novel.  A clever fantasy novel with some entertaining romance elements, Five Broken Blades has an outstanding story of deceit, betrayal and bloodshed set in a Korean-influenced fantasy realm, which really drew me in with its impressive and fun story.

I had an outstanding time with the elaborate story that Corland came up with for Five Broken Blades, and the author produces an intense and moving, character-driven story.  Despite the name and the discussion about the five killers in the synopsis, there are actually six protagonists in this book, which produces a well-balanced narrative with a variety of intriguing character perspectives, arcs and motivations.  Corland starts the book by initially focusing on three of the protagonists and working the reader into their own unique circumstances and backstory.  The author does a good job of quickly and effectively introducing these figures in the initial chapters of the book, and then pairing them off with an additional protagonist who seeks to bring them into the main assassination plot of the book.  These new characters generally serve as great foils for the initial protagonists, and Corland then works to expand their roles in the book, providing their own backgrounds and motivations for being there.  Once established together, these three pairs of characters, then set off to meet up with the other protagonists as they plan their attempted regicide.

The first half of the book primarily focuses on the three separate pairs as they set up their own storylines both individually and as a couple, which I felt worked to really hammer home the complex character arcs Corland was setting up.  There are some fantastic moments in these early pages, including fights against monstrous birds, pirate warfare, and some intense personal scenes.  While the romantic entanglements that emerge within all three of these initial pairs are very predictable and forced, you generally grow attached to all six protagonists, and it proves interesting to see the various hidden motivations and background, especially as Corland expertly trickles out their respective secrets to the reader.  While I quite enjoyed getting to know the characters separately, I felt that Five Broken Blades’s story really took off once all six characters joined together in one group.  The six protagonists all play off each other nicely, and it was intriguing to see the different opinions they had of the rest of the group.  The mismatched styles and motivations make for some compelling interactions, and Corland also works in a particularly intense fight sequence, that helps to cement the protagonists as a team.

While there is some excellent camaraderie, and more romantic tension, the second half of the narrative is strongly defined by mistrust and secrets.  Corland does an excellent job of showcasing the conflicting motivations and hidden desires of the protagonists to the reader, and it was entertaining seeing the various ways the characters all lied to each other as they progressed.  Everything leads up to an intense final act, where the assassination attempt is made, and everyone’s secrets are brought out into the light.  There are some excellent reveals here, and I loved the big twist that comes out as a result.  While I did feel that the identity of the traitor in the group was slightly predictable, the full extent of their motivations and the reasons why they are there was compelling, and it ties in well with all the other clever reveals.  The last few chapters of Five Broken Blades were so damn good, especially as nearly every big question from the book is answered, and I loved the excellent cliff-hanger that Corland left it on, as it really raises the bar for the sequel’s potential plot.

I really enjoyed how Corland set out Five Broken Blades, and the exciting narrative came across in an excellent way.  The key highlight of this is probably the use of six separate perspective characters to tell the complex story.  While too many narrators can sometimes ruin a story, I felt that Corland had the right balance, as Five Broken Blades’ story never felt too crowded or diluted.  While the author probably could have left out Tiyung’s perspective, for the most part the split and switch between narrators worked extremely well, and I loved how it enhanced the overall story and allowed the author to explore multiple compelling character arcs.  The way in which the specific character-focused chapters started off long at the start of the book, allowing for introductions and initial character development at the front, and then got shorter once all six protagonists were together, was very clever as well, and I appreciated how the sudden shift in perspectives with the shorter chapters helped with some of the books more intense or action-packed scenes.

Corland ensures that there is a great mixture of different story elements featured throughout Five Broken Blades, and I personally appreciated how the focus on the characters was balanced with action and so much intrigue.  All this is well surrounded by an intriguing new fantasy realm, Yusan, with some distinctive Korean influences.  While I did feel that parts of this world were a little basic, for the most part this was an excellent background setting, and I appreciate how well Corland worked her fantasy ideas into the larger narrative.

Another key aspect of Five Broken Blades was the inclusion of multiple romance arcs, due to this book being marketed as a romantasy.  I must admit that I’m not the biggest fan of romantasy fiction, and while a good romance arc can greatly enhance a fantasy story, I don’t go out of my way for books that feature excessive romance added in purely to make it a mixed genre novel.  Still, I gave Five Broken Blades a chance, and I honestly thought that Corland did a great job with the romance elements.  While two of the main three romances are very forced (although Euyn and Mikail’s arc of betrayal and forgiveness was pretty strong), for the most part they were fun or interesting to see unfold.  It helped that they didn’t overwhelm the rest of the story and instead were well balanced against the constant machinations of the characters.  Indeed, the romances added an extra layer of heartbreak to some of the betrayals, which ensured a more intense plot.  As such, Five Broken Blades was a romantasy most fantasy fans can probably enjoy, although people will have issues with the predictable way that all three of the initial pairs of protagonists couple up.

While the excellent and twisty story is a great part of Five Broken Blades, the best part of this book is the well-crafted main characters who the narrative is set around.  Corland came up with six excellent protagonists for this book, all of whom have complex and tragic backstories that come into play throughout the course of the book.  Indeed, the narrative is strongly driven by each of their personal tales and experiences, and you really get drawn into the backgrounds and thoughts of the protagonists, especially as understanding their motivations and interactions with the other protagonists is key to working out the upcoming twists.

Of these characters, I felt that Royo and Sora were probably the best written, and I loved their complex stories filled with tragedy, regret and a loss of freedom.  Royo, the tough street thug with a severe need for redemption proves to be the heart of the story, especially as he has a particularly tragic backstory.  He is well matched by the beautiful Sora, a young woman who was forced into a life of death as a poison-maiden, whose poisonous body brings death to those who try to get close to her.  Required to perform assassinations to keep her sister safe, Sora longs for freedom, and will take any opportunity to get revenge and ensure her sister’s safety.  Royo and Sora and well matched by the entertaining pairing of Euyn and Mikail, whose respective arcs were nearly as complex as theirs.  Euyn, the former crown prince of Yusan, had been forced from his life of luxury due to his murderous predilections, and now seeks to become king after years on the run and a better understanding of the common people.  However, Euyn is constantly bedevilled by his former lover Mikail, the royal spymaster, who blows into his life once again to recruit Euyn for the plot against his brother.  Mikail is probably the most entertaining figure in the book, and I loved his constant manipulation of the others.  Corland did a good job of building up a complex backstory behind Mikail, and you grow to like him even more once you understand the reasons behind his inner rage and the lengths he wishes to go to resolve it.

While these four protagonists are pretty awesome, I did feel that the story was slightly let down by the other two protagonists Aeri and Tiyung.  Tiyung is underused (he’s not one of the titular five broken blades), and his unrequited love with Sora and rebellion against his father had some benefit for the story.  However, I had a hard time liking the character of Aeri.  While she did grow on you a little as Five Broken Blades continued, I honestly felt that Aeri’s bubbly personality really didn’t match the other figures in the book, and it was hard to take her seriously as a protagonist.  Corland makes her way too manic (and horny if we’re being honest), and her chapters are a bit too discordant to the rest of the book.  Still, she had some interesting background elements, and there were some compelling reveals around her that explain her unusual behaviours.  Throw in several great additional characters, including some villainous nobles, and this proved to be an outstanding cast, who really help to turn Five Broken Blades into a distinctive and powerful read.

I ended up grabbing the audiobook version of Five Broken Blades, which I always find to be a great medium to enjoy a fun fantasy book.  This proved particularly true for Five Broken Blades, and I loved how well the audiobook format enhanced its compelling and exciting story in some fun ways.  I particularly enjoyed the inclusion of six separate narrators, Greg Chun, Zion Jang, Roger Yeh, Donald Chang, Jaine Ye and Sophie Oda, each of whom voiced the chapters of a particular point of view character.  I really love audiobooks with multiple narrators, and when done right it can help to produce an epic listen.  I felt that the Five Broken Blades audiobook was a great example of this, as all six narrators did an amazing job voicing their protagonist throughout the novel, and you really saw them dive into the role of their specific character, capturing their essence and personality.  While this mixture of narrators does result in an interesting array of different takes on the main characters when they appear in other protagonist’s chapters (a natural side effect of having multiple narrators), I honestly felt the flow of this audiobook was extremely strong, and narrators came together extremely well to produce an excellent overall performance.

Audiobook highlights include Royo’s narration, which really captured the tortured and tough nature of the figure, as well as his exasperation of Aeri’s antics.  Sora was also perfectly showcased as a reluctant assassin in all her manipulative glory, and you really felt for her tragic story because of the voice work.  I was also a big fan of the audiobook’s main portrayal of Euyn, and I also loved his narrator’s take on Mikail, which I felt was a little better than that character’s own voice actor.  While I wasn’t the biggest fan of Aeri’s chapters, especially towards the beginning, for the most part this was an overall epic production, and I really loved how this elaborate audiobook came together.  With a runtime of 15 hours, this is a lengthy audiobook, but that really gave the six narrators the room they needed for their performance, and I managed to get through this audiobook relatively quickly.  This was an overall fantastic and elaborate audiobook, and I would strongly recommend this format to anyone interested in checking out Five Broken Blades.

I ended up having an outstanding time with Five Broken Blades, especially as Mai Corland came up with an excellent and captivating story of betrayal, intrigue and complex motivations.  An entertaining and addictive read from the very beginning, Five Broken Blades was a great fantasy read that makes excellent use of all its story elements, characters, and romantic inclusion.  An impressive debut adult novel from Corland, Five Broken Blades is really worth the read, and I am really keen for the sequel coming out early next year.

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