Maddileh is a knight intent on regaining her honor and place after a mishap leads to her disgrace. Her decision is to pursue the Fireborne Blade, a mythical blade believed to be held in the demesne of the White Lady, an long-lived dragon known for its cunning. Maddileh's journey to procure the blade is interspersed with records from 'The Demise and Demesne of Dragons' sharing what is known about other knights who have bested dragons. A slower start but many unexpected twists for a satisfying ending.

Not gonna lie, I’ve been DYING to read this since the moment I saw the cover. Huge kudos to the artist.

I made it chapter 3 (10%) and didn’t find myself wanting to continue. The narrative style, alternating viewpoints, and other things just didn’t work for me personally.

I think this will work best for people who like old-fashioned high fantasy, except those people also generally prefer much longer books, so I’m sort of confused by who the target market is. I’m not really sure how the market will respond to this one, but I’d guess it will be extremes - either loved it or hated it. I don’t know that there’s a lot of middle ground with it. As such, leaving five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for the ARC.

The Fireborne Blade by Charlotte Bond
⭐️⭐️

What didn't work for me:
🗡The formatting of the story. I didn't like the alternating between present, past, and stories of other Knights. As for the stories of other Knights, they were mostly irrelevant and used as ways to introduce what the FMC was about to encounter in the next chapter
🗡The lack of character backstory and development. I didn't care about any of the characters. Their motivations either weren't clear or they were underdeveloped.
🗡Hunting and killing dragons for little to no reason. There was very little backstory given to how and why dragons were hunted or why dragons were deemed such pests. Some dragons didn't seem to be a bother but were just killed because they existed.
🗡The seemingly endless journey through the tunnel to get to the dragon that took the entire book to complete. I got so bored. That was way too long, especially when it seemed they got out almost immediately.

The whole book was very underdeveloped and didn't flow well. It was extremely jumpy and the characters weren't really likeable. There was barely any backstory for the characters. No development. Saralene was actually an important character but was barely involved. I don't want to bash this, but overall, everything was underdeveloped. More world building is needed to justify the dragon executions. I would have loved more time in the final battle against the White Lady dragon because it went way too quick. The characters need expanding. In every single way. The end was super quick and not satisfying. The main character's dislike for magic needed expanded. Petros needed a lot more development. The twists were unbelievable because they lacked the proper set up due to lack of development.

This reads like a rough draft that needs the author to go back in and add, well, everything. Since this is only 192 pages according to Goodreads, there's definitely room to expand.

I think this is a good book for people who love Brienne of Tarth and are in their dragon reading era. I liked the romance subplot, though I typically like more romance-forward stories. I thought it was well done. The story is pretty short so I understand that world building would be hard to do so thoroughly, and I think the academic/journal entries were a smart way to provide this background without taking too much space, which would’ve taken away from the story. I liked it a lot!

This is an example of a novella that could have been a really good full length novel. As it is, it has an intriguing plot, lots of fun dragon-related action, and good characters. It ended up being really straightforward plot-wise, and just didn’t have time to breathe, world-build, and fully flesh out the characters. I’d read more from this author, and hopefully the next one is a full length novel! Thanks to Tor for the ARC!

I saw someone compare this to the Six Deaths of the Saint and I genuinely couldn’t agree more.

Though short, the Fireborne Blade was wonderful. Rich with interesting dragon lore and characters who felt real, I’m extremely impressed with the author’s ability to craft such an immersive story in a book of this length. The world was fascinating and as I write this review, I find myself wanting more.

I also found the romantic side plot to be compelling because it was not overtly romantic. That said, Bond still made me feel so deeply for Maddileh and Saralene.

I truly cannot recommend this book more and I sincerely hope that it finds itself in the hands of all the people (like me!) who went feral for the Six Deaths of the Saint last year.

This is what books about dragons should be like.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own :)

The Fireborne Blade was a really unique book. I really loved the overall premise and thought the world building was really cool. The chapters of journal entries were a really cool way to learn about the lore and the world without everything feeling too bogged down. Maddileh gave me Brienne of Tarth vibes and I loved her. The twist towards the end had my jaw on the floor. I didn’t exactly see it coming though I had a few suspicions. What lost me was the pacing. It would be interesting and fast paced and then would teeter out to the point where I lost interest.

I don’t think this was for me. No world building just jumped right into the story. Writing was good just found that I need world building to go with it.

Charlotte Bond’s The Fireborne Blade was obviously meant for me the second I saw that cover — or perhaps even more meant for my sister, let’s be honest. It has an interesting structure of jumping back and forth in time, and it becomes obvious why at the end (it’s not just the author not knowing where to start the story!).

It seems like a straightforward quest story, with an object at the end, and what we get is something a bit more tricksy. I was also expecting to feel much less ambivalent about how the book ends, but the book dodges being too obvious and straightforward about that, and gives us something unsettling and morally ambiguous. At least, I found it so — vengeance probably shouldn’t seem the clean and simple thing it is in some novels, so this isn’t a criticism at all!

I have so many questions about the world, and loved the little glimpses of other knights, other dragons, and all the customs around them. It’s a story that’s pretty complete in itself, but left me curious about what more would look like.

3.5 stars

The Fireborne Blade has so many elements that I love, but it needed more time to build up to the reveal. This story mimics the weird, mind-bending fantasy stories that I love. It is particularly reminiscent of The Six Deaths of the Saint. However, this novella doesn't quite pull off the big ending it is going for due to rushed pacing in the second half, a lack of build-up to the reveal, and shallow character work.

I really enjoyed the first half of this novella. I love how the story switches between the quest for the fireborne blade, moments in Maddileh’s past, and testimonies of encounters with other dragons. The story very much dumps you in the middle of the quest which is a disorienting, but intriguing, choice.

Unfortunately, The Fireborne Blade really fell apart in the second half. I like the idea of the plot twist a lot, but it isn't executed well in this case. I personally think the story would have worked better as a full-length novel. That way we could have spent more time getting to know the characters and building suspense. To work as a novella the story needed to have more really weird and disorienting moments to make the reader question what is happening.

The conclusion of the book is rushed and, honestly, absurd. Once again if I had known the characters more or if there had been better lead-up to the event I would have liked it more.

There are some incredible ideas in The Fireborne Blade, but they were not given the room or detail to shine.

Really solid 3 stars! I'm always game for a modern take on a classic style adventure/quest story. Would have really liked for this to have been a bit longer. I feel like I needed more time with the characters to really explore their relationships, especially between Maddileh and Petros. I did think the interlude chapters were an interesting way to help flesh out the world and magic in a novella length story.

A lady knight who decides to kill a dragon and steal a famous blade to regain her honor after being rejected by the man she loved. Maddileh is on a quest to kill a famed dragon known as The White Lady to get the Fireborne Blade. Yet when she finds herself with a mage she is positive she didn't hire... especially because of her strong dislike of them... her memories are too foggy for her to deny it though. Her journey will take an unexpected turn and the mage she's stuck with will definitely play a larger part in the outcome of her journey. This one was a weird one for me, it's a short novella so I know it didn't have a lot of space to world build, but the story itself felt a bit stilted and the confusing at times. It's short and shouldn't be as boring as it was. I was really hoping for more from a story about a female knight and a dragon ( I'm a sucker for stories involving both so this should have been right up my lane...). It's alright overall but I was just hoping for more. The twist of the story was okay but it just didn't really pay off in the end. Overall it was an okay novella and if you like lady knight stories with dragons give it a go, maybe you'll have a better time with it than I did.

*Thank you Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group, Tordotcom for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

This was a really interesting and super fast read! It was great to read a high stakes story that is not a long and drawn out epic tale. This was a great read after spending some time with longer stories recently.

I enjoyed the framing of this story and the three different through lines. There are chapters from texts within the world, Maddileh’s quest for the blade, and flashbacks to the past that led Maddileh to this point. It was really nice to have them alternating in the way that they did and seeing how the story came together in the big picture. These three threads really put together an interesting story of how magic works within this world and the role that dragons play in it.

The only thing that falls a little flat is Maddileh’s development. She is the primary character we are spending time with, and she doesn’t necessarily have a lot of depth as a character. I really liked her character but I was definitely left wanting more from her and for her.

Overall a cool and enjoyable read! 4⭐️

My thanks to NetGalley for making an eARC of this book available to me.

This one just eked out a fourth star for me. Interesting characters. Lots of backstory, including alternating chapters comprised of interviews with and stories about earlier dragon hunts. The ending may even have left it open for a possible continuance of the story, or at least more related stories. I'll be looking for them.

I was given the opportunity to read an electronic ARC of this book prior to its release.

I wish that I did half ratings but I don't, thus, I am rating this a three.
The story was interesting, a fallen female knight is trying to regain back her power and position. In order to do so she must defeat a dragon called The White Lady and reclaim the Fireborne Blade for her king. The story is about her adventures.

While an interesting story and there was a twist I did not anticipate...the flow and pace was off. I found myself confused, uninterested, and just wanting to finish the book - which was short to begin with.

So while, for the most part, enjoyable...I will be unlikely to recommend.

The female knight and dragons drew me in to this book and it did not disappoint. I was surprised by the length but it introduced us to the lore/world and built the story at a pace that didn't feel rushed but also felt like a longer book. I devoured this book and will be looking out for the sequels

3.5 stars

I think The Fireborne Blade was a really unique book. I really loved the overall premise and thought the world building was really cool. The chapters of journal entries were a really cool way to learn about the lore and the world without everything feeling too bogged down. Maddileh gave me Brienne of Tarth vibes and I loved her. The twist towards the end had my jaw on the floor. I didn’t exactly see it coming though I had a few suspicions. What lost me was the pacing. It would be interesting and fast paced and then would teeter out to the point where I lost interest. The writing was also a little too straight to the point, but that didn’t bother me too much. Overall, I enjoyed this quite a bit.

Than you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you Netgalley and Tor for the e galley.

What a fun read!!
This novella was so good and adventurous, The characters dynamic was so solid. And the best thing was the format of this story. Some parts were the interviews and the other were like the real event. Solid 5 stars for me!

3.5 rounded up.

I enjoyed so many elements of this book. The dragon lore and the dragon-dead were fun and felt inventive (although I am a person who hasn't really kept up with dragon books since the 90's, so grain of salt), the in-world records of various dragon encounters were eerie and delightful, and I'm always here for a big lady with a sword.

However, the three strands of narrative (the in-world records, the flashbacks, and the present-day action) are braided together a little too unevenly for me. As much as I loved the records (they were easily my favourite part of the book), I felt like I was left with too much information on dragons and not enough on Maddileh. Her story felt underdeveloped, and with Bond going for intrigue in so much of Maddileh's current-day storyline, I felt like I barely got to know her in a way that would have made certain moments hit harder. I do hate to be the person to critique a novella for being a novella (I love novellas, short-form fiction is a gift), but this concept felt a little too ambitious for the medium and I think would have benefitted from more room to breathe.

All that said, I had a good time and will happily read more of Charlotte Bond's work.

Thank you to Tor Dot Com and Netgalley for providing a free digital copy of this book in return for an honest review.

I could not explain to you just why The Fireborne Blade irritated me to the extent it did. It was, unfortunately, just one of those books where, within a page or two, I’d set my mind against it. I say this like I can’t articulate reasons for it, but I can! I have reasons, although, as I said, why they irritated me so particularly here is harder to unravel.

The plot is a simple one: our main character, Maddileh, butthurt after a rejection from the man she loves, decides the solution to the fantasy misogyny she keeps facing as a female knight is to kill a dragon and steal the eponymous Fireborne Blade. She finds herself lumped with a squire she doesn’t really like and can’t remember hiring besides. And also there’s some brief flashbacks to what she’s been doing in the past six months since said rejection — which become important later.

Firstly, let’s take the fantasy misogyny. Oh, woop de doo!, you say, another fantasy book which can’t seem to envisage a made up world without this real world bigotry. And I do understand the desire to write books that tackle such issues but this one just didn’t do it well. It being a longer novella, there could have been time to develop something a bit more, but, with absolutely as much respect as it sounds, this author didn’t have the range. (And, honestly, the main character simply decided that she could solve fantasy misogyny by defeating a dragon (difficult task) and suddenly all the fantasy misogynists would respect her. Sorry, I must have missed the part where it’s that easy to erase misogyny (or any other bigotry in fact).)

Second point: the writing felt entirely stilted. It was clearly trying to sound fairytale-esque but it didn’t do it in a natural way. A lot of it, as a result, had me rolling my eyes and skimming just a bit quicker so I could finally be done. The plot is also interspersed with made up sources from this in-world book about hunting dragons which felt unnecessary (to the extent they were in it).

The reveal, when it comes, feels rushed and unearned, like the book was trying to cram too much plot into too short a space. I hadn’t come to care about any of the characters I was supposed to, so why would any of it matter to me? Further, the magic system seemed more like a bunch of hand waving, so they can do this now, magic rather than something bound with checks and balances. Again, a lot of this is a product of the book being a novella and lacking the time to flesh out much. That being said, I would hardly want to read a full-length version of this, as mind-numbingly dull as I found it. I wasn’t even inclined to read the sequel before the ending, which once again had me rolling my eyes. Deus ex machina much?

So, yeah. It turns out I am able to explain why this book irritated me. The perfect confluence of more minor things, compounding themselves until this: a one-star read.