I have been BEREFT since The Last Binding series finished so I am thrilled that Freya Marske decided to release another fantasy book in a queernormative world. I am a sucker for stories about people running cons. I love all the angst that goes along with the conflicting goals those characters usually have and this story was no exception. Watching Luca navigate his conflicting goals was super angsty and I had a wonderful time watching him fall for Matti while knowing his job is to ensure the success of Matti's upcoming marriage. This is a lower stakes story than Marske's previous series and it took me a little time to get into it but once I did I had a great time with the characters. I felt for both Luca and Matti and I wanted them to find happiness so badly. If cozy fantasy and character-based books are your jam then I definitely recommend this book!

4.75 stars.

Completely and utterly satisfying in every possible way!

I'm genuinely a bit sad this book is over. A part of me wanted to stretch out and make it last, but once I got past the halfway point, I couldn't put it down. The book did try to break my heart a few times, but it was all completely worth it by the end, I promise! I loved this book so very much. The characters were wonderful (if occasionally infuriating!), the romance was so well done, and the whole thing just felt like a warm, cozy hug of a story.

Freya Marske has a way of writing characters that makes them feel alive and vibrant in the way they interact with the world and each other, and I loved all of these so very much. Swordcrossed just has such spectacular cast of main and side characters! I can't help hoping that we'll get to see more written in this world (perhaps featuring a couple of side characters in particular...) because I'm not quite ready to say goodbye to everyone. Regardless, this is a book I expect I'll be coming back to occasionally just to relive my favorite moments again!

As far as the plot, I won't pretend that this is a deep literary novel, and a lot of it was predictable, but that was part of what made this book so very enjoyable to read. Freya Marske did exactly what I could have hoped for her to do, and did it very well! The intrigue and drama the plot involved was just delightfully fun to follow, and the relationship journey was the perfect blend of sweet, spicy, and dramatic. (So very dramatic. But what can you expect with Drama-King Luca involved!)

All in all, I really loved this book and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a satisfyingly delightful romance adventure!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley & Tor Publishing Group for the early copy in exchange for an honest review. I DNF'ed at 20%. I'll be in the minority here but so be it.

Ugh, this was incredibly disappointing. So much "worldbuilding" was just boring tax and mercantile stuff. If you're into that stuff, go for it, but it was such a slog to read. Lord So-and-So is about to buy all this fancy wool which will put Lady Meh into disrepair and Lady Whatever into poverty. Snore. I also can't feel bad for these rich folks losing money anyway, ha.

I also don't know where the "fantasy" aspect comes into play but it was just a period romance. Maybe fantasy shows up later in the book, but it just looked like a plain old Regency LGBTQ+ romance in a made-up world. The words were such gibberish and it was hard to keep track of WTF they were even talking about.

Matti was a robot and annoying as a Lord Rich Dude. Luca was a compulsive liar and had more chemistry with Matti than Matti did with anyone else. Matti was just beep boop going through the motions as emotionlessly as possible. Their sword-fighting training was absolutely hilarious because Luca was passionately explaining how to do this and that and Matti was like "Okay." I don't think that was intentional but I just kept laughing at how goofy it was rather than how romantic it should've been.

Lastly, the writing was so bizarre to me. Here's an excerpt:

“I hope we’ll see you there,” were the words that came out of Matti’s mouth, and he nearly felt his tongue spasm with the desire to suck them back in again.

This, coupled with odd world-building quirks made me turn this off pretty quickly. I don't think I'll be trying to read anything else by this author for a while. Though props to the artist for the amazing cover that sold me to this book originally.

This was a fantastic one! Love, war, politics. Everything to keep our heros apart but they face it with such grace and determination!

Started out a little slow, and took a while for me to really get invested in the story, but definitely picked up in the second half of the book. By the end, I was completely engrossed in Matti & Luca's story.

Mattinnesh Jay hires Luca Piere to be his best man. In this world that means he will fight a duel with swords if the marriage is challenged on the wedding day. What Matti didn't count on was falling in love with Luca over sword fighting lessons. Luca is hiding something form him, his past is a mystery meanwhile Matti's family is experiencing multiple misfortunes and Luca sets out to find out why. I like both the romance angle to the story and the mystery angle. The way that Matti and Luca came into their relationship felt comfortable despite the mystery of Luca's past and the mystery aspect of the story was genuinely intriguing and very well done. I am going to keep an eye out for more books by this author because I love how she writes.

This book is delightful from start to finish. The title of the book is very apt in the sense that looks like starcrossed lovers, but there are sword fighters involved. It’s charming and the world building keeps you involved from start to finish. It is a queer romance That feels cozy and comforting and charming all at the same time

✨"But you," Matti breathed. "You are the most exquisite thing in this city, and I want you, and I'm going to have you."✨

Mattinesh Jay, a dutiful heir to his struggling family business, needs to hire an experienced swordsman to serve as the best man for his arranged marriage. The only one he can afford is part-time con artist, charming menace, Luca Piere. Luca, for his part, wants to make some easy money and try to forget the crime he committed in his hometown. However, neither Matti's business troubles nor Luca himself are quite what they seem. As the days count down to Matti's wedding, they become entangled in the intrigue and sabotage that have brought Matti's house to ruin as they get closer than ever.

This book was. Interesting!

After absolutely loving Freya Markse's The Last Binding trilogy (specifically A Marvellous Light and A Power Unbound), I was expecting to love this one and for it to be in a similar vein but instead this was very different! I also didn't love it! I didn't dislike it! It was just fine. A very fine book. (honestly, I would much rather read a one-star book that offends all of my senses than a book that is. fine.)

Unlike The Last Binding, this is more of a soft cozy fantasy. The stakes aren't as high, the world isn't at an end, and no one is going to die. We just have problems that affect the main character directly.

Which brings me to my next point, I think... I hate cozy fantasy? I haven't read much of it, but every single one that I've read I come out of it thinking ok??? And??? Did I ask?? Also, I don't know if anyone has noticed this too, but most of Tor's recent fantasy releases that feature an m/m romance are all soft cozier fantasy with some kind of political intrigue, what's up with that!!! It's starting to annoy me!!!

With Swordcrossed, I think the biggest issue for me is that the stakes are so low, and the plot is so uninteresting that it's hard to get invested. It also doesn't help that the world-building feels very randomly cobbled together.

I also feel like the book is being very mismarketed. The tagline on the cover says "high heat, low stakes, sharp steel", which would make you think that the plot would involve a lot of sword fighting (which is also in the title); maybe the romance would develop with the sword fighting as foreplay, and that. doesn't happen. This should have named this wool trading instead bc there was more of that than swords being crossed.
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There wasn't even that much "high heat" either!! "Swords" (wink wink) weren't crossed that many times in this book for the tagline to say that the heat is high. Actually, I would even say that the smut in this book is tamer than all of the Last Binding books.
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All that being said!! I still think Freya Marske is a really talented writer. She shines when she writes the romance and the interaction between the two main characters. The smallest of moments, the smallest of gestures, manage to be so romantic and sweet. I don't think it's a coincidence that the book started getting a lot more enjoyable for me as soon as the romance actually started happening, and had time to breathe around all of the plot points. The characters are also both likable. Especially Luca!!
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So, overall!! This wasn't a new favorite or anything, which was a shame, but it was still an enjoyable time!! Unfortunately, it is not as good as the cover is. ✊😔

4.5
I had an absolute blast reading this! Matti and Luca make for a great couple, and there's a surprise couple among side characters that I also loved. Freya Marske does a great job of portraying this historically-inspired fantasy world with its various customs.

Matti is engaged to marry for money and, while he's not thrilled about it, he's happy to do his duty for his family. The problem is that there is a high chance that the match will be challenged, so plans to hire the best duelist he can afford. Unfortunately, he falls for a con that might cost him the little he has saved, but he's able to blackmail the con artist, Luca, into both serving as his duelist best man at the upcoming wedding and to giving him sword lessons. But this brings up a new problem, because the sexual tension between them is strong despite Matti's dislike. And what if it's even more than just simple desire, easy to ignore?

Just so much damn fun. Matti is a dutiful son, working hard for his family's cloth business, sacrificing sleep, friends, freedom, and finally his single status to the well-being of the business. Matti is about to marry a woman he does not love, but who he family needs - only if he can prevent a challenge at the wedding! He hires Luca Piere, a handsome fighter with a mysterious past and a tendancy towards breaking rules, to fight for him and make sure the wedding goes through. Too bad the two start falling for each other! Swashbuckling ensues, along with romance and laughs. Much recommended for lovers of romantasy, fun, and queer love.

Swordcrossed was a really fun and action-packed read! I loved both of the main characters! Matti is incredibly relatable, with a deep sense of duty and responsibility to his family. Luca is mischievous and delightful, yet heartbreakingly sincere. Their development—both in their relationships with each other and their personal journeys—is so beautifully crafted and all came together for a very satisfying ending. I initially worried that the various locations and house/guild politics might get confusing, but everything is explained clearly without being excessively plain. I was able to follow the story smoothly without having to stop and flip back and forth to reference things or sort out any confusion.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bramble for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was fun! It felt very lighthearted and was a cozy fantasy. The historical elements were entertaining. I don’t read a ton of books set in this time period, so it was a nice treat. Getting my mind around the fantasy world took a little bit, I’ve mentioned before that I can struggle with fantasy and that was a little apparently here. I do feel however that the author did a nice job with their world building and after I had the groundwork, I was off and ready to run with it. The love story in this book was a true delight. I loved how the story between Matti and Luca progressed and came to be about. The main characters, as well as the side characters were well developed. The side characters added a lot to the story without bogging it down or feeling overwhelming.

I didn’t read the author’s previous Last Binding Trilogy, but if it’s like this book it’s not to be missed either.

If you are a romantasy reader, especially those who love queer historical romantasy, then you need to check this book out.

*Actual rating 3.5*

This book is a lot of fun, and a great romance. The banter and dialogue between Matti and Luca is just wonderful, and I loved getting to know them and watch their relationship develop throughout the book. Going from reluctant allies to friends to something more.
It had a pretty slow start which made it hard to get into, but once the romance kicked in I definitely started to become more interested and invested in the story, and seeing how their relationship would continue to progress. In fact, it set up a potential relationship to follow in a sequel and I think I would like to see that!

What I think really made this book suffer is unfortunately the marketing. This book is published and marketed as a "fantasy romance" but it is not. It is just a romance book that doesn't take place in current day. It has sword fighting and dueling, but that does not make a fantasy book - there is no magic in this book. And I am okay with a book that is pure cozy romance, don't get me wrong. But I went into this book with certain expectations because of what it is pitched as, and ended up disappointed through no fault of the book. If I had known that this is not a fantasy book I would have been able to adjust my expectations before going in expecting a lot more than I got.

Overall this was a nice cozy read with a great central relationship, it was just missing that oomph that I need to rate it a full 4 or 5 stars.

I'm honestly really disappointed I didn't love this because I adored Marske's earlier series. I guess it just felt... slow. I love romance but -- without going into spoilers -- it took forever for the action to commence. Longer RTC.

This historic queer romantasy is full of yearning, pining and good! I loved the historic setting in a queernormative emancipated fantasy world full of feminist women. This book has a set of great characters with unique voices and a solid plot full of schemes. While the authors writing style sometimes bordered on a little overly descriptive at times, I enjoyed learning about specific themes (like the wool trade). Plot, Romance and Setting meshed really well together and I truly recommend it for the vibe and diversity alone.

Marske secured herself as a favorite author for me with her previous works, and 'Swordcrossed' only shows that she's continually getting better and better. Overall, this is a lighthearted read set in an original world with aspects of historical fantasy. Refreshingly, the likable main characters are generally good at communicating with each other and it's a treat to see the relationship progress. Readers will be eager to see how the seemingly impossible situation keeping the major characters apart will be resolved and the ending is nothing short of being dramatically delicious. Readers who enjoy illustrative prose will be pleased with Marske's flowery, but accessible, writing style. This is a fantastic addition to the genre of light romance and I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a cozy read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group | Bramble for providing an ARC.

this one was great!!! Freya is a trusted author so I had no worries going into this one. The dynamic was incredible and and the world was amazing! I love how Frey weaves magic and romance together! I need more!

A great read! this was my first by Freya Marske and i'm very excited to pick up their other works. The romance in here has me kicking my feet and giggling.

I did find this one slow to start, but once I was drawn in, it was easy to keep reading!

I really enjoyed the characters in this one, and the romance.

I did find the plot a little hard to follow at times, mostly because of the names of places/people/guilds etc. feeling hard to follow. Overall I don’t think it takes away from anything though.

Thanks for the eARC!

Rating 3.5 stars

Mattinesh Jay needs someone to be his best man for his wedding, a wedding that will save his family business from bankruptcy. Luca Piere needs a place to lay low and a way to make cash. Matti and Jay meet, the seemingly perfect solution to each other's troubles. As they become more entangled in each other's lives, their stories are not quite what they seem….

I found this book a little slow to get into, as I was not a huge fan of the economic intricacies of the novel, and only found myself invested near the second half of the book. That being said, I really enjoyed the latter half. The drama picked up, the romance picked up and things were finally clicking into place.

I would recommend this book for anyone who enjoys historical romance and likes a focus on economic or political intrigue. While I was a little bored during discussions of the wool trade, the book is not short on romantic moments and the overall mystery kept me reading.

I would put this at a solid 3.5 stars but as my first introduction to Freya Marske, I’m definitely interested to see what else she has to offer. As someone who doesn’t often read historical romance, maybe that impacted my overall enjoyment but I still thought it was a fun, cutesy book!

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC ^_−☆