Thank you so much to Fierce Reads for a finished copy of this book and Netgalley for an arc!
Ziva is a smithy, working literal magic onto the weapons that she forges for those who can pay across the kingdom. But when she makes an indestructible blade for a warlord and discovers they want to use it for world domination, she has to face her fear of social situations and get help to escape the warlord and keep the blade safe.
I enjoyed the characters that Levenseller built in this book. Ziva was very interesting, and I really loved her sister. I also really liked the premise of this book, the way the magic worked and how few people had it. I loved the interactions with their estranged family and their group of friends.
This book definitely has a found-family dynamic which I loved! I did wish that some of the interactions were described better and that things weren't glossed over so much. I usually don't think this, but I honestly thought this book should have been longer. It cut out a lot of parts that I would have liked to see that would have helped develop the characters more.
I also didn't personally find the description of the panic attacks to be very realistic. Maybe others do, but it seemed to be more focused on depression than anxiety, even though the character clearly has trouble with anxiety. I also would have loved to see more diversity among the characters.
All that said, I will definitely read the sequel when it comes out and I still really enjoy Tricia Levenseller's storytelling!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Violence, Murder, Mental illness, and Gore
Minor: Vomit and Grief