3.5

The Last Shield is an action-packed ride, reminiscent of Die Hard.. if it was set in a castle with a fantasy backdrop. The main character Briar is the commander of a group of warriors known as the Shields and their top priority is protecting the royals at Sunweald Palace. So when the king’s regent Alaric gets captured by the enemies, Briar and her allies race against the clock to return him safely back to the palace. I liked that the characters are older and I appreciated the way the author weaved Briar’s disability into the story. She’s still shown as a strong fighter who is very much capable, even with the severe damage done to her leg. There’s some great side characters as well as the added humor from Briar. I enjoyed reading this one but I have to admit that it never fully sucked me in— I felt no intense need to finish this book. I had a good time reading it but I just don’t think it’s one that will stick with me.

I really enjoyed this book! The first third introduced the world, the characters and the conflicts between different groups of people.

The final two thirds were my favourite and they flew by! Here we follow the main character as she tries to take down the enemies one by one to protect the Regent and the secrets hidden within the castle.

I thought this was a great setting for this book. All of the secret tunnels and the layout of the castle made for a very entertaining and quick read as the enemies were gradually picked off. I was really routing for Briar and really enjoyed her as a character.

Because of the nature of this book, there are trigger warnings for violence and death, but nothing overly graphic or gory.

Thank you to Angry Robot and Netgalley for sending me a copy to review.

Fantasy, gender-bent Die Hard with sorcery and lots of gore? Hell yeah.

The Last Shield was a fun, tower defense book that sees Briar fighting tooth and nail to protect the Wyrm Vault in the castle she works in. She's great... an older, witty and cunning character with a no BS attitude that definitely knows how to fight. This is quite the tale, although there isn't a ton of plot, following Briar pick off bad guys is 100% a good time.

The characters and struggles felt real, and I thought Cameron Johnston did a wonderful job portraying both the world and people in it.

The Last Shield is a great book to pick up in between massive fantasy series - such a refreshing standalone!

★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2 (rounded up)
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
---
WHAT'S THE LAST SHIELD ABOUT?
Briar is the commander of the Shield, the Royal Guard protecting the soon-to-be-King; his uncle, the Lord Regent; and the castle that serves as the capital for the realm of Sunweald. She's been in the post for several years, also serving as the personal bodyguard and confidant of the regent.

There are two neighboring kingdoms that would like to take over Sunweald, as well as to loot the castle's vault, which, according to legend, contains the kind of magical weaponry that can remake the world. Keeping that vault safe, secure, and unmolested is one of Briar's primary responsibilities.

The prince is set to take over in just a couple of years, and Kester is the prototypical spoiled, indolent, and irresponsible royal who no one can imagine can/should assume the throne. Maybe, if he grows up a lot before becoming an adult, but that seems unlikely. Meanwhile, the realm is in the incredibly capable and wise hands of his uncle Alaric

During a seasonal religious rite, an attack against the royal family leaves several guards dead and Briar near death, they have foiled the attempt, but at a great cost. After a long convalescence she's recovered enough to move around a little bit, but not fit to return to active duty. After half a year of waiting and plotting, the survivors and some mercenary allies attack the castle from within—taking Alaric and some of the staff hostage, and killing others. Briar and Kester happen to be in just the right place and escape the sweep that collected so many. It's up to them, each in their own way, to use Briar's knowledge of the castle (and hidden passageways) to mount a rescue mission and to take down the small force who have taken over.

SHIELDS
I'm talking literal shields here, not Briar and her guard.

Growing up, the only way I saw shields used was defensively—to block arrows or swords—until someone had to valiantly discard them because their dominant hand/arm was injured and they had to desperately use their shield arm to wield a sword, obviously. The only exception to this was Captain America (and a DC clone or two) and his implausible use of his.

And that's pretty much how I saw the objects until now. But Clay Cooper and Briar have got me thinking about them as offensive weapons now. Their shields are very different in terms of size and material—but they're both effectively used as a weapon. Briar does use her defensively, of course, but both prior to her time as a guerrilla fighter and now, she shows that a shield can be a potent weapon.

So my questions are: Have I missed how people use these things offensively all along? (either by reading the wrong things or not remembering anything but the swordplay, archery, and/or magic) Or have we entered an age where authors are embracing the full range of these objects strapped to an arm?

THE DIE HARD-NESS OF IT ALL
The Publisher's description of this novel starts off with, "A gender-flipped Die Hard set in a mysterious castle." And that's absolutely what the book is—is that description reductionistic? Yes. Is it apt? Also, yes. But it's also so much more than that summary. (but what a great elevator, pitch, right?)

I do not know if Johnston set out to write this as a Fantasy Die Hard, but at some point, he had to realize that's what he was doing and (if you ask me) leaned into it. There are just too many similarities for me to believe anything else. But really, there's one paragraph that seals the deal—I won't give you details (but you'll recognize it), but it is borrowing/appropriating/stealing an indelible image from the film. After reading that I knew it wasn't just some ingenious marketer at Angry Robot who tagged it as "A gender-flipped Die Hard set in a mysterious castle," as I half-way wondered, but it was Johnston's intention. There's just no way he does that.

I should stress that just because it's a version of a movie that you likely know very well—do not think you know how this book is going to go. There's plenty of suspense for the reader, as well as magical creatures that might have sent John McClane running for the hills.

Would I have been thoroughly entertained by The Last Shield without all the parallels to one of my all-time favorite movies? Yes. But being able to watch Johnston's take on McClane, Nakatomi Tower, and the rest? It's just an extra layer of frosting on an already delicious cake.

I do wish we'd gotten a Thornberg/William Atherton-esque character (should that get a spoiler warning), a non-villain that you despise almost as much as (if not more than) Gruber/his crew. Not because the novel was lacking anything, it's just satisfying to see them get their comeuppance.

SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT THE LAST SHIELD?
This is a heckuva thrill-ride. Like its cinematic predecessor, the action in this novel is top-notch. It's not non-stop, there are moments of reflection, of exhaustion, of trying to figure out how to survive—much less succeed against this force. The set-up to the main action also takes longer than you might think (but you should really just relax and let Johnston do his thing, it's all important and helps establish what comes later). I was hooked almost immediately—and while I wondered when the "Die Hard" part of the book would kick in, I really didn't care. I was having a good enough time with Briar, Alaric, and the rest.

But, boy howdy, when the action kicked in? What was a perfectly enjoyable book got so much better. Johnston can write an action scene—whether the action is hand-to-hand, bladed weapon against something else, supernatural-based...you name it, he can handle it with panache and aplomb. It's well paced—with just enough downtime between fight scenes for you and the characters to be ready for the next. Once the book builds up enough steam, forget it—you're not going to willingly put it down.

It's not all about swords, shields, axes, and spells, however. Briar dealing with her injuries and recovery—both before the "Hans Gruber" moment and afterward—is done to almost perfection. There's real growth—and real injury (and not just physical)—to be seen in several other characters. No one survives this time unscathed in one way or another.

The noted attorney and political operative Ainsley Hayes, noted, "they're all about duty" when discussing the work of Gilbert and Sullivan.* This book, at its core, is just as much about duty as The Pirates of Penzance or H.M.S. Pinafore. Briar, ready to give her life fighting when she's unfit for battle; Alaric, giving up decades of his life to step in as Lord Regent and govern; Kester figuring out what his obligations are to those he rules; several servants, guests, and others in the castle during the takeover carrying out their duties in what limited capacities they can as hostages—and the utter abandonment of duty by others. The Last Shield doesn't have to be thought of in terms of good vs. evil (while it applies, it's problematic when it comes to some characters). Instead, I suggest that it's better seen whether these people live up to their duty/obligation or do they abandon that for selfish gain.**

And, there is something incredibly appealing to that way of thinking in our incredibly polarized and me-centric time. All sorts of people considering the cost and putting aside their wants/desires/lives in favor do doing what they're supposed to do anyway.

* Yes, there's no need to bring Ainsely into this, but I can't help thinking of her and that line—or Leo, or Lionel Tribbey, etc.—when I think about duty.
** There are one or two characters who took over the castle that you could put forward against my claim, but I think I could make a strong (spoiler-filled) case in my defense, so I won't do that pre-emptively.

I should probably talk a little about the three magic systems at work in this world—but this thing is going on too long already. But I really like seeing that diversity at work.

It wasn't until I was preparing this post that I realized that Johnston wrote The Maleficent Seven , a book I've been meaning to get around to for ages. Now I'm even more motivated to do that ( The Traitor God , too, come to think of it).

But that's for another day, for today, I just want to revel in the near-perfection of this roller-coaster of a novel. I had such a good time with this novel and I've been telling everyone I know about it (I even think I sold the manager of a local bookstore on it, hopefully, he continues that chain). I was ready to read it again as soon as I was done.

Fantasy readers and action-adventure readers alike will dig this one. Go get your orders in now, unless you're reading this on or after August 13—in that case, run down to your local indie bookstore and pick it up.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from Angry Robot Books via NetGalley—thanks to both for this.

I loved this! Briar is the very devoted commander of the Shields. After thwarting an assassination attempt, she is plagued with what will be a lifelong injury. While preparing to leave the Palace, she is taken by surprise when some of her own Shields attempt a takeover with a powerful sorceress leading them.

Immediately I was drawn to Briar and her grit. She stood out among many great characters. And what followed was a fabulous adventure I didn’t want to end. It was full of magic, treason, battles and so much more. This went to the top of my favorite fantasy reads and I wish this was a series!

Thank you to Angry Robot for the copy!

The book releases August 13, 2024.

eARC Review: The Last Shield by Cameron Johnston 🛡️

I’m usually not a big fan of action movies as they leave me an even bigger anxious wreck than I normally am because of all the nonstop action scenes. This book though, I would happily watch this even though my anxiety levels would be through the ROOF! 😧

This book is described as a gender bent Die Hard set in a castle. I will be honest that I had to Google the movie and read the summary just to get an idea of what that description even meant. 😅

The story follows Briar, a kick ass knight in charge of protecting the realm’s regent, Alaric. I honestly couldn’t help but picture a mix of Brielle of Tarth from Game of Thrones and the Queen of American rugby, Ilona Maher, as Briar the entire time I was reading this, and man was this mental image EPIC. I loved that Johnston portrayed this warrior woman as someone who has worked hard to be where she is and doesn’t take her position for granted. I also loved the smidge of romance between her and her charge, and really enjoyed a relationship where the woman is physically stronger and more imposing than her male love interest. 🥹

The main action of the book happens around the 50% mark so this might not be fans who like action from the get-go, but once it gets going. . . oh boy, does it steam roll you. I thought the plot did a wonderful job building to that 50% mark and really showed how high stakes the whole thing was. I couldn’t have asked for a more thorough plot build than this! 🤯

This might be considered spoilerish, but the only thing I did find myself wishing more for was more of a history about Hisparren itself and how Imperatix was linked to it in the first place. 🦴

Other than that, this was a fantastic action packed fantasy standalone that really transports you to a wonderful Scotland inspired world. Big thank you goes to Angry Robot and NetGalley for accepting my request to read this in exchange for an honest review, and the author, Johnston, for making me enjoy an action movie like plot for once. I was happily stressed to the NINES with this. 😨

Publication date: August 13!

Overal: 4.75/5 ⭐️

Briar is the Commander of Sunweald’s elite guard, The Shields, and has been a warrior all her life. It is all she’s known. So when she is wounded at the Summer Solstice saving the Lord Regent from an assassination attempt, Briar is left struggling with her new reality. The thought of retiring leaves a bitter taste in her mouth, but when faced with the hard truths, she realises that she needs to put the protection of those she cares about first. She leaves without telling the Lord Regent, her long-time friend, who would try to talk her out of it.

When Sunweald is viciously attacked, it’s by pure luck that Briar is still in the palace when it happens. She had planned to be long gone by then. It’s a good thing she wasn’t because due to treachery she’s the last Shield standing. She may have a shaky injured leg, but she’s got stealth, surprise and a massive amount of fury on her side. Briar is going to make the brigands pay for attacking her home and friends, or die trying.

I was expecting good things from The Last Shield by Cameron Johnston after reading The Maleficent Seven. Going in, I wasn’t expecting the protagonist to be a disabled, older female warrior. Johnston writes about Briar’s journey through injury and recovery with care and sensitivity, demonstrating lived experience or thorough research. The way that Briar refers to how difficult stars are with her injury suggests the former might be the case; stairs as an enemy is a unique experience known only to those who have lived through that excruciatingly fun time.

Briar is not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. For me, though, she was right on the money. A woman who knows her place is damn proud of her achievements, and not afraid to let people know it. Despite Shields being open to men and women, misogyny is still very much alive and kicking, with several men under her command making their dislike of her known throughout the book. This just makes it even more satisfying when they realise who is lurking in the shadows, ruining all their plans.

Other than the obvious differences between The Last Shield and Die Hard (gender and genre swap), the biggest one is that Cameron has not made Briar all-powerful. Not only is she nursing her injury from the Summer Solstice, but he considers all the wear and tear taking its toll on his character’s body versus their experience. Although action films are good fun, they don’t take things like limitations or consequences into consideration. While Briar has the experience, she needs to take into consideration her limitations, and this makes for a much more interesting story.

The world-building of The Last Shield is beautiful in its simplicity. Cameron has dangled enough information about Sunweald, its history with the mysterious fae creatures the Sleaghan Mhath, and the surrounding lands of Ves and the Holy Wrendel Empire to give context. This is very much a book about the characters and action rather than lore. That doesn’t mean there isn’t any world-building or that it should be viewed as bad, but rather as a positive, as Cameron clearly knew what type of atmosphere he was trying to create with this novel.

Instead of trying to make The Last Shield too heavy with world-building, he has pulled from Celtic history and mythology, creating a world that echoes Scottish history and culture. With druids serving as the religious leaders and medical authorities, as they did in Celtic society, the Sleaghan Mhath are reminiscent of the Tuatha Dé Danann from Celtic mythology.

It’s a world that Briar and the rest of the characters fit into neatly, providing Cameron with the opportunity to introduce characters that range from the ruling family, and cast-out sons of noble families to servants. The characters are diverse and complicated, accompanied by stellar dialogue that will have you laughing. There are a few particular scenes that will keep me giggling for a very long time. There is also a brilliant animal companion that is not your typical animal companion, to say the least.

The fight scenes are well-written and diverse using a wide array of weapons, tactics and locations. A lot of fantasy books rely on just sword fighting or certain characters being experts in one particular weapon, often forgetting that shields were used for more than just deflection. The majority of the action takes place inside the palace, and Cameron has done his homework, using every single part of the palace and its grounds to get very creative. The results are some very creative and bloody fight scenes.

The level of blood and gore was deeply satisfying to read, especially as it comes from a mature female warrior avenging her people. Too often in fantasy are women not allowed to be this violent, and if they are, they are a lot younger. As some other reviews have mentioned, yes, there is a romantic subplot. I didn’t consider it that noteworthy, to be honest, and wasn’t even going to mention it until I saw other reviews referring to it in a slightly negative way – because, oh no, we can’t have a fierce tough as all hell female character AND romance, can we?! Give me a break.

The romance subplot is very minor. It is there and runs along beneath the main plot in the sense that Briar has feelings for someone and she wants to see them safe, as would anyone in this situation. There is no swooning or the like, and due to the situation, there aren’t many romance scenes at all.

If I’ve not convinced you by now, then this probably isn’t the book for you. The Last Shield by Cameron Johnston delivers a page-turning adventure with a strong female warrior who will do everything in her power to take back her home from the enemy – and she plans to make it as painful as possible for them.

I am not a big reader of fantasy - science fiction and pulp are more my jam - but I make an exception for Cameron Johnston's books. He writes the most outrageous, bonkers, brutal, and fun fantasy I've read. And what's more, in an age where everything is a series and a franchise, Johnston refreshingly sticks to one-and-done books. Of course that means that he has one book to build the world and the characters, develop said characters, and write the beginning, middle, and end. But he pulls it off with aplomb.

His latest standalone novel, The Last Shield, scores a perfect 10 on all the above mentioned points. Plus, the setting is brand new - at least in my limited experience. Instead of going for the High Middle Ages or Renaissance Europe, Johnston has set his books in a Bronze Age Celtic milieu, complete with druids, stone castles, animal spirits, and lots and lots of bronze weapons. As I understand, he's a student of archaeology and sword-fighting and uses the old adage "Write what you know" to great effect.

Of course,, the setting wouldn't have meant much if the characters were not up to the mark. And here Johnston shines again. Over the course of the last several books he's created a number of wonderful characters - Edrin Walker, Black Herran, Maeven. Now he's added Briar to that list. Briar is your typical action heroine - except that she is far older than your typical action heroine, a cynical, world-weary warrior who's seen it all and done it all in the service of her country.

By the time the book ends, things have wrapped up as neatly. But the world Johnston has created is big enough for more stories and Briar would definitely take up arms again even if she cursed and cussed and cursed and cussed. She's just that sort of person.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.
4 stars book from me. Loved the plot and the storytelling in The Last Shield and the relatable, likable characters,. Loved every single second reading it.

Mixing fantasy and action, Cameron Johnston’s new book tells the story of Briar, the commander of The Royal Guard, known as shields.

At the beginning of the book, Briar suffers a life changing injury in the line of duty. The injury, a poisoned arrow to the leg, leaves her changed forever and with an inability to serve her duty to the regent of the the land of Sunweald. The first part of the book deals with Briar’s failed rehabilitation, and the realisation that she can no longer be close to the man that she has come to love in the years protecting him, so that the rightful heir, Kestor, can take his place as heir to the throne.

As the seasons move on and Briar comes to the realisation that the injury that she has taken has, in her mind, left her incapable of doing her job. She plans to take a bow from castle duties and make her way to her brother’s farm, convalesce and reevaluate her life. However, things don’t go according to plan, and as she takes her leave, a band of brigands under the leadership of sorcerer Imperatrix, storm the castle whilst it is at its weakest. They kill most of the inhabitants that they deem worthless and take the nobility hostage in the hope that they can break into the secret vault of magical artefacts under the castle.

Let me take you back in time to the mid eighties.

Imagine little old me at the tender age of fourteen. I had tried for many years to get into fantasy and had struggled with the old Tolkien bloke’s huge tome, struggling with the formal language that it was written in.

Going to the local library, I wanted something different to the normal steady diet of horror and had found things like David Eddings and Terry Brooks. However, one day I stumbled on a shiny new author called David Gemmell and his first book, Legend. I took this home and devoured it in a day, and it has been one of my favourites since (in fact I read it again earlier this year!)

When reading The Last Shield, this put me firmly in mind of reading Legend and the excitement that I had when I read the exploits of Druss the Legend as he defended a castle against insurmountable odds. Now I know that The Last Shield is billed as a kind of fantasy Die Hard, and I have seen many reviewers referring to this, but for me, whilst it does have these elements and it is an obvious tonal reference, I felt that the book had the same qualities of Legend that I love so much. It has the flawed, older character fighting for against a foe that by rights should beat them to a bloody pulp. It has a similar brand of characters, and you can’t help falling in love with the main character Briar who, similarly to Druss, fights against what ails them the most. As well as that, there are a good set of side characters. Alaric, the Lord Regent, stoic in his mind to carry out his duty. Then there’s Kestor, the foppish heir to the thrown who undergoes a kind of redemption arc, and finally there’s Gwilherm, who is there for comic relief.

Now, some may say that these are archetypal characters, but I have no problem with that. I like archetypal characters when they are done well, and I thought that in The Last Shield they were done very well indeed.

The world building of the book is interesting, based on a Celtic influenced society, but with a quasi Christian culture in one country and what could have been a Viking style country at the other side. However, the world doesn’t encroach too much, except when the story needs it to.

In addition to this, there is a magic system that works when needed, but doesn’t give too much explanation of the mechanics of the system, and there are also magical creatures in the form f the Fae.

The Last Shield is a great piece of escapism. It doesn’t demand too much off your attention and is a good little page turner. Yes, the book does take some time to build Briar’s character, showing how she reacts to adversity etc, but when the main plot kicks in, the pace of the book just flies.
If you are going to read one fantasy book this then make sue you read The Last Shield.

5 🌟
1 🌶️

Holy smokes, what a fun read! When the description said a gender-flipped "Die Hard," it wasn't lying! Briar is such a badass; that is the only way to describe her; she truly kicked butt and took names. The good guys were good, and the bad guys were horribly bad, but it worked. The excitement keeps you invested and I read this book so quickly. I could not put it down; I had to know how Briar would fight her way out and rescue Alaric. It was an honest read about how our lives change when we experience a life-altering injury. She must learn to acclimate to her body's new reality (coupled with Briar's aging body) while the rest of the world carries on as normal. It was a teeth-clenching, eye-popping action book that left you flipping pages and sitting on the edge of your seat. There was humor, a bit of romance, and a whole lot of fighting with a good amount of gore. But if the gore is not there the story would not have worked as well as it does. It concluded fantastically and was so much fun. I enjoyed the heck out of this book. Do you know how some people consider "Die Hard" a Christmas film? It makes me want to start a holiday for a yearly read of "The Last Shield" just to re-acquaint myself with Briar. She's unforgettable and awesome.

Thank you, NetGalley and Angry Robot, for the eArc. The opinions are mine.

This book does what it promises, a gender-flipped die hard in a castle with swords. Non-stop action where our protagonist gets to wipe out all her enemies single-handedly. We see Briar, focussed only on revenge, fight her way to the ruler of Sunweald - one fight after another, after another, after another...

This book was a quick read, with a plot that was straightforward to follow and writing that was easy-going. The promised political turmoil took on a very easy black and white early on, making it easy to hate Briar's enemies without having to think too hard. If you're looking for a book with some more 'grey' this is not for you.

I expected more from some of the secondary characters early on, but this really did turn out to be a story about a one-woman-wonder, once I had emotionally abandoned the hope other characters might feature more heavily I was able to get into the story enough to enjoy it.

I enjoyed this read. I found the action well written, the characters were easy to root for. I easily read this in one weekend bc I couldn’t put it down

This gender-swapped Die Hard set in a castle, will have Ripley & Furiosa violently approving

Die Hard is possibly one of my favorite action movies of all time & from all accounts, one of the most influential action movies as well spawning a whole bunch of Die Hard in a “setting” imitators, some of which are legendary as well – Speed for instance was internally marketed as Die Hard on a bus. A book invoking comparisons to Die Hard has quite the unenviable task – it is obviously helpful as a reference point and expectation-setter but on the flipside, it has to really meet those expectations & bring in something new to this genre. The Last Shield by Cameron Johnston doesn’t bother to hide its obvious love, affection, and inspiration for Die Hard and dishes out fabulous amounts of guts, grit, and glory in a terrific, bloody-minded, and entertaining book that exceeds all those expectations.


Briar is the commander of the Shields, an elite group of protectors who guard the matriarchal realm of Sunweald, its Lord Regent (who is a male and hence Regent), and Heir to the throne (also male). Sunweald, a small kingdom that finds itself sandwiched between two larger opposing nations, boasts a vault that guards precious and powerful magical artifacts, long desired by the warring nations and brigands that populate the realm. When a vicious brigand group do a Nakotomi Plaza on Sunweald Palace, an injured, seemingly disabled Briar is the only one standing between the brigands and the safety of the Regent and the Heir.

“Shields endured. Shields never gave up. Shields protected”

The plot in itself is quite simple but it is the execution of it which makes this a fantastic read. The action is spectacularly grimy, gritty, and bloody. Briar’s injury makes for a rather level field as she goes up against 35 of the brigands and the 1 sorcerer within the palace (yes, the number is important since she counts each one off as she fights against them). Briar’s biggest ally in this is the palace itself – Sunweald palace may be home to the precious vault but it also hosts numerous secret tunnels and catacombs, all of which make for a tense, enclosed setting for Briar to even the odds. Staircases in the dimly lit palace play a rather important role in this action ride.

“Man tumbling down the stairs - practically a new sport of her own invention”

Briar has the whole Ripley & Furiosa vibe going all the way through – she is a protector who isn’t afraid to push herself to the limit to protect those who matter to her, no matter how dirty or bloody it gets. And oh boy, she gets both of those in spades. There is a softer side to her as well but the element of sacrifice and duty runs rather strong. The author also writes Briar with a wicked sense of gallows humor that periodically asserts itself given the various situations she finds herself in.

While the setting is limited to the castle, the surrounding world is teased through the various parties in the castle (both invited & uninvited) and their conjurations. Some of these conjurations coupled with the age of the castle and its tunnels and catacombs bring about a sense of claustrophobic dread that obviously runs smack into our titular Last Shield. There are also hints of the magical creatures that inhabited this realm and the possibility of incursions from multiple realms. Given the limited scope of the setting & the cast, the scope for character development is quite limited – but what we do get is a very strong sense of who Briar is – strong, resourceful, stubborn, dutiful, righteous, and a fair bit of an asshole whom you would be happy to have on your side.

“Just a fly in the ointment, Hans. The monkey in the wrench. The pain in the ass” - John McClane, Die Hard

The blurb for the book calls out the Die Hard influence pretty hard and some sequences draw inspiration from some of the Die Hard scenes. The “Ho Ho Ho, Now I have a Machine Gun” moment hits towards the midpoint of the book through a particularly emphatic moment of violence that Briar uses to send a message. Even better is a moment that pays the ultimate tribute to John McClane – it’s a statement that Bonnie Bedelia (who plays Holly Gennero) makes when she says John McClane must be alive as only he can drive somebody that crazy. Also given that the central motive at the heart of this story is a break-in into a vault that has multiple levels to break, the parallel carries over to the sorcerer’s motives and the numerous magical locks needed to be overcome to break into the Sunweald Vault. That is the ticking clock that Briar has to bear in mind as she carves her bloody way through, practically limping all the way.


The book is incredibly snappy and there is no putting the book down, especially after 40%. There are moments of tenderness, redemption, and atonement that characters try to go through initially, which lend a rich flavor to the story and help build some of the characters and Briar’s relationship, motivation, and belonging to these characters. There are also a couple of interesting twists within - one expected & one pretty unexpected that work well in the context of the book. The ending to an extent, teases out a central mystery & gives answers but I felt the book should have possibly ended after the climatic fight without extending it. But then I am sure, people must have told Tolkien that he had too many endings in LOTR & he still retained all of them to make it a fantastic book.

A standalone novel (at least for now), The Last Shield is a book tailor-made for a movie and reads pretty much like a fantastic script. It is fast-paced, thrilling, gritty, and enormously entertaining while wearing its inspirations proudly on its armor. It features a memorable lead and teases an interesting world that I hope the author explores further in other books. “Die Hard in a Castle” sounded cool to me when I read the blurb and it lives up to its inspiration and more

Thanks to the awesome folks at NetGalley for approving this ARC for me

Rating – 4.5 Secret Vaults on 5

I mean, let's face it, if there is a kingdom and a king-ling and a Lord Regent, you can be damn sure there are some funky artifacts hidden somewhere that some grubby hands want to get their mitts on. This is essentially the story - a band of ambitious ingrates ambushing a castle. What could be better than a contained stand-off? Oh, the betrayals and painful lessons and terrible injuries and unbearable losses. Johnston doesn't beat around the bush, he dials the tension up high from page one in this tale that is as fantasy as fantasy gets. A few druids and all. A sect and a vault that have very cool names.

Is it a story that will attempt to bring something unique to the table? Well, no. The focus of the story is on the stand-off, and more so even on Briar, our powerhouse of a female character, the commander of the Shields. Frankly, The Last Shield felt less of an action flick, although, yes, there is a good romp through the tunnels and within the walls. It felt more like a look at Briar's character and what she's like when she has been delivered a blow, and how she behaves and what she feels when faced with adversity. And in that sense, The Last Shield is an ode to her, she's tough as nails and loyal to boot. She's like a rusty railroad nail that you will never be able to pry out.

I absolutely loved her relationship to Lord Regent. It's clear off the page, from the very first interaction in between them, that these two are just head over heels for each other. But these two - they're so bound to their duty that you ain't ever seen two characters more steadfast than Briar and Alaric. Plus, they're older in age than your just out of teenage years characters and thus infinitely a lot more enjoyable to read about.

So, political and religious intrigue it may have, but the whole story stands on its two feet because of the absolute stubbornness of Briar the Shield. Her unshakable resolve and bravery. There is no such thing as unfavorable odds when you know the fighting grounds like the back of your hand.

So, for hard-ass fantasy fans. Will you get fighting action? Yes. Will you receive cunning and grit? Absolutely. Any weird lulls in the story? Nope, none. Mystical and otherworldly stuff? Some, yes. Is there a love story? Also, yes, but not in an annoying, eye-rolling way. I think Johnston does it well in The Last Shield. No sneaky shenanigans, no blabbery pining over raw, open, weeping wound in the heart. Simply the acknowledgement of love, right there, a strong undercurrent. A fresh breath of air in that sense.

Thus, with strong characters and a thrilling, twist-delivering stand-off within castle walls, the action is non-stop. In fact, I will go so far as to say that the storytelling is so strong in this one that I would have loved a tad more dialogue, because the dialogue I did get was full of sass and energy, and I enjoyed it a lot.

Did The Last Shield knock the breath out of me with its absolute awesomeness? Well, no. It was okay, solid. But, I do think Johnston is one I will keep my eye on from now on. As I said, the dialogue in The Last Shield got me most excited, it showed a level of skill that could deliver some greatness. You know, like some people are really good at choosing appropriate gifs for every occasion? Yeah, Johnston did that dialogue really well and I most certainly want me some more of that!

This book was good. It just wasn’t for me though. I didn’t connect with the characters. The magic and fights scenes were done really well.

The Last Shield is advertised as a gender-flipped Die Hard set in a fantasy world, and it has all the elements to deliver. The kingdom of Sunweald is trapped between two larger, rival nations, creating a suitably tense political environment. The leads are easy to like. The villains are easy to hate. The action is impressively visceral.

Unfortunately, the first third of the book delivers little of this. It has sporadic action, primarily devoted to world-building (largely through info-dumping) and the mental struggles of the protagonist Briar. The details of the world are often generic and peripheral to the main plot. Briar’s resiliency and moral strength are admirable, but she is not especially multi-faceted. The side characters are even less so. Without the necessary quick pacing, the story drags.

Once the assault on the castle begins, the story delivers. There is plenty of danger and gory action. Briar is relentless in her efforts to protect the realm and the story matches her intensity. Still, it doesn’t quite make up for the slow beginning. While managing a few nice twists, the plot is largely predictable (using little of the world-building), and the action isn’t quite inventive enough to avoid repetition.

I would recommend The Last Shield for fans of gory, action fantasy. The ending provides nice, satisfying endings for all the (good) characters, and the best twist is saved for last (even if it also highlights how underused the broader world is).

Received as an ARC from Netgalley:

This was absolutely outstanding. A book that really incorporates disability exceptionally well to make a 'fantasy Die Hard' that both supersedes that description and delivers upon it.

A disabled female Kings guard Briar has to fight against the forces hellbent on dismantling the Regent she has protected her entire life.

The first half of the book really focuses on character writing and as a disabled person with leg issues myself it captured the emotions of the newly disabled incredibly well. A book about overcoming your inbuilt ableism from living in a society that isn't built around or for people who are disabled.

Once the action gets going it is a blast, with some truly nail-biting fight scenes. Briar is forced to fight smart and fight dirty to survive, which is just a blast to read.

Plus this book has a charming fat dog who farts a lot....truly a novel with something for everyone.

There is a lot of talk online about how to incorporate disability into a fantasy setting and Cameron Johnston shows how it's not that hard, you just have to care.

The Last Shield gives us the story of Briar, commander of the Shields. The protectors of the realm of Sunweald. She’s not what she used to be and is the only one capable of stopping the forces that stormed the palace.
It’s Die Hard in a castle!!!
I had honestly been looking for a book like this not too long before the book was announced.
I can honestly say that it didn’t disappoint me. The book moved well and had great character interaction.
The characters felt lived in and real. The Bronze Age setting was a nice touch. This is something that I feel Cameron Johnston does well. He creates excellent characters and settings. Most of the time, I’d like to see another book in some of the worlds he creates.
If there was one downside to the book. I feel that it took too long to get to the Die Hard aspect of it.

Cameron Johnston’s latest offering comes to us in the form of the standalone The Last Shield, with the enticing blurb “Fantasy gender-swapped Die Hard!”. It was enough to get me roped in!

The Last Shield is a straightforward no-nonsense action fantasy story focusing on the titular Shield Briar, veteran bodyguard and elite warrior tasked with protecting the Lord Regent Alaric against evil forces both without and within. Following the Die Hard influences closely, The Last Shield is Briar’s harrowing tale as she faces down an entire host of warriors led by an evil sorceress, with nothing but her wit and grit.

The tale leads with Briar getting grievously injured by a poisoned arrow as she foils an assassination attempt upon the Lord Regent whom she is sworn to protect. Much of the first act of the book deals with her physical, mental, and emotional recovery as she comes to terms with her new limitations she deals with the inane hindrances and her internal struggle to accept that she cannot serve as an elite guard to her charge anymore.

Just when she is about to give up the goat and retire to a quiet life away from her duties as Shield, her life is turned upside down as she finds herself amid a plot within her ranks as she and the Lord Regent are betrayed by many of her fellow Shields in a plot to take down the Lord Regent and steal several sacred magical artifacts that the royal line was sworn to protect from falling in the wrong hands.

Briar finds herself down on her luck, with no help from the outside world, with only her bum leg and internal fire of vengeance to drive her to take down all the evil henchmen to get to the big bad sorceress who has kidnapped Alaric as it is his blood that would open the vault that houses the magical treasures.

The Last Shield comes off as a pulpy action blockbuster flick-esque novel with a focus on Briar taking down goon after goon as she ninjas her away around the castle. Much like Die Hard, she spends most of her internal conversation musing on her situation while spewing stereotypical lines of avowed vengeance upon her enemies in a bog-standard narrative. To expect any depth to this standalone will only lead you to a bad time, as it did me. I expected a wee bit more nuance, even in a tale obviously focused on being an action-forward romp. The setting of The Last Shield has Celtic influences with mention of druids and forest-magic, along with various Irish and Celtic folklore elements that added a little flavor to the worldbuilding, but felt like mere wall-hanging that Johnston placed to give the tale some kind of geographic face.

The characters are wooden and one-dimensional. The main protagonists are Briar, your classic Jane McClane, down on her luck hyper-competent warrior, the wooden Lord Alaric, and the heir apparent, the snot-nosed Kester. Kester is the only one with even a smidge of character development, moving from spoiled child-heir to someone who attempts to become a mature leader as he is dragged into the book's plot. Sadly, the constraints of The Last Shield being a standalone doesn’t give nearly enough page space to develop his (or anyone else’s) character or motivations, as we move from one action set-piece to the next.

The motivations of the main antagonist are flimsy at best, and she is nothing more than a “mustache” twirling (what’s the female equivalent here?) villain as she also goes from one trope to another, with tired played-out dialog that adds no weight nor threat to the narrative. Even the “sub bosses” like Hardgrim and Maddox are beige in their mannerisms and characterization, coming off as cardboard placeholders that the author inserted in his list of checkboxes.

At the end of the tale, as well as through most of my time with this book, I got an overwhelming feeling of “sure, fine, why not?!”. The narrative forces you into several instances of suspending your disbelief as Briar goes from one deus-ex-machina-y instance to another. By the fifth instance of her escaping into a hidden tunnel or crawlspace that was conveniently placed to further the plot, I felt myself rolling my eyes and wished Johnston flexed his creativity even a bit more to come up with a less lazy plot driver. Though, this also reeks of his Die Hard brief.

I picked up The Last Shield, purely because I rather enjoyed another one of Johnston’s grimdark standalone The Malevolent Seven which told a much more robust and nuanced tale with plenty of violent action as well. Sadly, The Last Shield is a lackluster followup to that book. Even though the influence is clear, The Last Shield is held back by the author trying too hard to stick to the brief he set out for himself, taking away the potential of telling a different, more rewarding tale.