I absolutely love Tricia Levenseller’s writing! This was a wonderful conclusion to the Bladesmith Duology. It’s wonderful to see a character, who is so obviously bad-ass, struggle with her mental health. It really helps to reduce the stigma associated with those struggles. I love the relationships in this series. Whether it be romantic or sibling, Tricia Levenseller makes them so dramatic and normal at the same time. Her writing is nothing short of magical.

Emily Ellet is a wonderful narrator for this story. Her voice is perfect for Ziva and she seamlessly switches voices to bring the story to life!

Why did no one tell me this was only a duology?? How am I supposed to live in a world without Kellen???

I mean… I loved these books so much! The magic system was unique and well-thought out. I really loved the dynamic between Kellen and Ziva.

I also can’t stress how amazing it was to have a main character with social anxiety (1) educating the public and (2) representing the population with anxiety disorders. Panic attacks were well described along with coping/comforting methods. It was so realistic! Yeah. Sometimes your anxiety doesn’t attack at the best times or for any reason at all. 10/10.

This series was everything I look for in YA: cute romance, magic, strong female characters, and journeys of self-discovery.

I really enjoyed this audiobook of MASTER OF IRON, and was happy to be back in the world of BLADE OF SECRETS. Book 2 picks up where book 1, with Ziva, Kellyn and Petrick racing to find a captured healer to save Temra. When Ziva and Kellyn are captured by an ambitious prince, Ziva finds herself on a path she never thought she'd find herself: on the path to war. Once again, the way that Tricia Levenseller portrays social anxiety through Ziva was just refreshing to see, just as it was in the first book. I am always here for good anxiety representation and that is one of the most powerful things in this duology. I could relate to Ziva and her thought processes in many different ways. I also love seeing her and Kellyn, and the way that he loves and supports Ziva through asking her what she needs and doing it. It's a great picture of the ways that loved ones of people with social anxiety and other anxiety issues can lovingly support their loved ones. While Ziva did get on my nerves at times, I thought her character development and that of her relationships with others was really strong. I also liked watching Ziva grapple with her confidence and her power, and the consequences of it, in a way where the character stayed true to herself. This book ties up this duology quite nicely with some heart-pounding twists at the end (iykyk) and is a fitting send off to Ziva and the crew, and from the setting, to the plot, to the narration, both the author and narrator did a great job.

First line: We don’t have time for this.

Summary: Ziva, along with her companions, are speeding towards the capital in search of a magical healer to help her sister. But as they arrive they find the healer missing which sends Ziva and Kellyn on a quest to retrieve her in time to save her sister’s life. The mission is thwarted when Ziva and Kellyn are captured by a rival prince who then forces Ziva to do the one thing she has been trying to avoid. Make weapons for someone who plans to destroy everything she holds dear.

My Thoughts: I enjoyed this one much more than the first book in the duology. The action was immediate and the story was much faster moving. My favorite but also least favorite part was Ziva’s social anxiety. It is great to see a character who is plagued by doubts and fears. Many heroes doubt their abilities but Ziva fears interaction, notice or vicinity to other people. It is endearing for the character because I think many people can connect with her but at it also gets to be rather frustrating. She is forever fighting her fears but it makes it more real than her just overcoming them so easily.

I liked the ending. It is definitely not what I was expecting. I was surprised by it but pleased.

FYI: Romance, violence and a little language.

Master of Iron is book 2 in the Bladesmith duology from Tricia Levenseller.

"Ziva defeated a deadly warlord but at great cost. Now she must head to a nearby city with the mercenary, Kellyn and young scholar, Petrick to find the magical healer who can save her sister's life. But another king wants more - more land, more of Ziva's magical weapons and Ziva herself."

One thing I like about Levenseller's books is her strong female leads. Ziva is a different type of character. She suffers from severe anxiety around people. She only wants to work in her forge and hang out with her sister. She is forced into situations that stretch her and make her grow. Levenseller does a good job with everything going on in Ziva's head - how she's trying to deal with the situations and people around her.

This is YA Fantasy so we have the bad-boy kings, the firends on a quest and the unlikely hero. The ending is different. Levenseller figures out a way to put her own spin on it.

A great performance on the audiobook from Emily Ellet. There are a lot of characters - male and female - and she captures the emotion and personality of all of them.

Some nice YA Fantasy from Levenseller.

**Review will be shared on release day on my social sites!!**

ABSOLUTELY LOVED.

Audiobook notes: NO NOTES. I loved the narrator and had zero complaints listening to the book. I flew through it.

Tricia Levenseller books are some of my absolute favorite YA reads. She is an auto-buy author for me and once again, has hit it out of the park. I was a bit neutral after the first book in this duo, but this ending, AMAZING.

I loooooved Ziva. The social anxiety rep here feels so spot on and I could relate 1,000 different ways to how she was feeling talking to others, making friends, and being assertive when the time came. Ziva showed great character growth and the ability to listen and learn how to communicate with those she loved.

The ROMANCE. SO DANG SWEET. I adored Kellyn. I liked that they got a lot more time together and that there were legitimate relationship struggles they worked through. It was authentic and I liked how both parties learned to COMMUNICATE and lean on one another as a bond of trust deeply formed. Oh my gosh they were just the best y’all. And some well placed pet name use had me swoooooning.

There’s also a beautiful sister relationship here. Temra and Ziva have one of the tightest connections I have read about. And I liked they way they were always there for each other and also could say, I can do this myself, too. There was a great give and take and acknowledging ones’ place in the world.

Within all of this greatest was a solid plot of action and battles. I love that I felt like nothing overshadowed one plot aspect over the other. There was balance between the romance, the big plot, friendships and subtle quiet moments. I devoured this book and anxiously await Levenseller’s next great read.

Overall audience notes:

YA Fantasy Romance
Language: a little
Romance: mentions of closed-door
Violence: medium
Trigger/Content Warnings: murder, war themes, kidnapping, physical and magical altercations, torture

Master of Iron is the epic conclusion in the Bladesmith duology. After loving the first novel, Blade of Secrets, I could not wait to get my hands on this sequel. While my expectations were high, I am glad the story lived up to them. As the story picks up right where the previous novel ended, it is highly recommended to read the two stories in order. The first chapter opens with the four main characters, Ziva, the magical bladesmith, Temra, Ziva’s younger sister, Petrick, the scholar, and Kellyn, the mercenary, right in the action as they determine their next steps. Throughout the chapter there is some nice recap of what happened in the previous story, which worked well for me as I read the two stories a year apart.

Temra has been injured after the last battle where they defeated Kymora and the team is on the lookout for a healer to save her. They discover the healer that they need is in the possession of a rival ruler and they must set off on an adventure in enemy territory. Along with the main romance developing between Kellyn and Ziva, there is also one between Petrick and Temra. This one is done more in the background, but I loved watching these two characters try to figure out their relationship.

Ziva’s relationship with Kellyn continues to grow, although her self-doubt and lack of experience make her a little dense about understanding that they like each other. I can understand how this can frustrate some readers as it is obvious that these two have eyes only for each other, but neither of them fully acts on it right away. For me, I think this progression in the relationship and in the inner turmoil in Ziva’s head fit with the character that was introduced in the first story. There is some banter between them, but I do wish the name-calling was reduced a little bit. There were moments where Ziva referred to Kellyn as an idiot or other terms, which at times felt like banter and others just added up to be too much.

Along with the action plot of war and the relationship subplots, the story continues to deal with Ziva as an individual with social anxiety. She continues to grow over time and become more confident in herself, so I loved this aspect of the story. There were a few moments, however, where I felt that her growth was too perfect. These came where Ziva had comebacks right away or had something to say quickly where it seemed that she was not struggling as much. For me, who has anxiety, I wish there were a few more backslides in her progress, where it was some forward and some back as it would feel more realistic.

Overall, I loved how this story balanced the simplicity with the complex. The characters were all likable and their personalities were distinct. Each of them played a role in the story, but they meshed well together, even the villains and secondary/tertiary characters. I may have a few issues here and there with some elements, but this was still a fantastic duology. I could see myself re-reading both novels without any hesitation. While this may be the end of the duology, I hope one day there is a novella or something introduced where readers can catch-up with the characters. Until then, I greatly look forward to my next Levenseller read!

**I give a special thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to read this entertaining novel. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.**