Truesilver: A New Favorite

Are you looking for adventure, Beautiful Themes, and Masterful Wordsmithing?

Then this is the book you are looking for.

And the gorgeous hardcover is currently on sale for cheaper than the paperback! (I have no idea how long the sale will last, but the button will also take you to the other formats if you prefer paperback or kindle).

A young man stained with his father's sins. A sword of ancient power. A legend rises.

I’ve read all of DJ’s full-length novels, and I’ve enjoyed them all, but this one is my FAVORITE of his so far! And I can’t wait for the sequel!

Things I Loved:

Characters

Kion Bray - The main character of this book is 10/10 adorable. Young Kion has been living in the shadow of contempt for years. Not only is he a shepherd—one of the lowest of the low in his society—but it is believed that his father died a coward in the recent war with the haukmarn (a race of creatures bent on conquering the human kingdoms), and that is a stain upon his entire family. Kion refuses to believe that his father was a coward or a traitor, and he dreams of redeeming his name, either by winning his town’s annual sword-fighting competition, or by getting Strom (a bladewarden) to blade-mark his father’s helm.

Kion follows a classic hero’s journey through this book, but don’t mistake “classic” for “cliche” because there are plenty of twists and turns and surprises along the way. Starting out a fairly normal young man, responsible for his family at a younger age than most, Kion dreams of simply restoring his family’s name and maybe not being reviled by his neighbors. Maybe, if he can win the tournament, he could be a hero.

But fate has other plans in store for him, and Kion must face far more than just the neighborhood bully to prove his worth. And more than his family’s honor will be at stake. And when those stakes change, Kion discovers what is truly important, and what is truly worth defending and fighting for. Possibly even dying for. In this book, Kion grows up a lot (and yet, there is still room for him to grow even more in the coming series). He is not an insta-star, good at everything he puts his hand to. We see him training and working and learning. We even get to see him fail a few times, too. But one of the things I love about Kion is his determination and his willingness to get back up over and over again.

I also love that Kion has a huge heart. Even though he is mistreated, over and over again he chooses to put others first, even if they don’t deserve it.

Strom Glyre - Strom is 10/10 my new favorite character of ever. And he’s barely in this particular book, but I fell in love with him when I beta’d this book and I love him even more reading it the second time (and I’ve gotten the privilege of beta-ing the prequel that is all about him and… WOW. When the author releases it, you’re in for a treat. Just sayin).

I totally expected Strom to be this aloof, kind of uppity, snobbish sort of general character, and I was 100% pleasantly surprised at being completely, 180-degrees wrong about him. He is a noble, heroic, extraordinary character who holds a deep love for his people and the country he defends. He is kind and compassionate and treats others with respect. He is bold and self-sacrificial and noble and strong. More people need to be like Strom.

Zinder - Zinder is Kion’s best friend, and the one who has taught him everything he knows about sword-fighting. A more loyal and cheerful companion you could never ask for. Zinder is a nyn—a race that is known for their quality craftsmanship. I’m intrigued to know more about the nyn. So far, what we know is that they are on the short side, have white hair, and don’t live as long as humans. Zinder is also a fount of wisdom for young Kion. One of my favorite parts of the book is where Zinder tells Kion a story about a young man who gets everything he ever wanted, but it is never enough:

‘That’s not the point at all. The point isn’t that he wasn’t satisfied.’ Zinder turned a serious eye on his young friend. ‘The point is that he did not know how to deny his own desires. Neither did his poor mother, for that matter. Satisfaction is a state that may or may not come. It certainly never did for Avrix. It’s the learning to be unsatisfied that matters: taking one dumpling when you really want two, maybe even need two. Not all desires are meant to be fulfilled. That’s what Avrix, and most of the rest of the world, for that matter, never figure out. And that’s why men do terrible things to each other. That’s what drives the haukmarn to raid and pillage, and forces men like Strom and your father to leave their homes and take up arms against them.’

Zinder’s tone had a sobering effect on Kion. ‘Hmm… to be unsatisfied and still go on as if you weren’t. I suppose that does make some sense.’

—Truesilver, DJ Edwardson

Tiryn - Kion’s little sister, Tiryn is a gifted musician and dancer. She misses her father as much as the rest of her family, but she deals with the loss differently than Kion. Her sweetness and kindness is given indiscriminately to all, even to her aunt later in the book who barely has a good word to say about anyone.

Kithian - I can’t say much about Kithian because MASSIVE SPOILERS. But suffice to say, Kithian is awesome.

There are several other characters in the story worth mentioning, but at some deep level I truly do believe that a review should be sliiiightly shorter than the book it’s about, so I’ll move on.

Themes

Family - I loved the importance of family highlighted in this story. Even though Tiryn and Kion have their differences and their fairly normal sibling interactions (Kion often picks on his little sister and would rather die than let her know he loves her songs), you can still tell that they love each other and their mother deeply, and that she loves them.

There’s a fantastic line about the importance of fathers, which I wanted to quote here, but I apparently didn’t bookmark the location when I was reading, and scanning through the book I’m having trouble finding the quote again.

UPDATE: Many thanks to the author for finding the quote I was looking for and sending it over! Here it is. Such a needful, timely bit of truth for these days in which we live:

You’re too young to remember, but your father was the best friend I ever had. And when he left, I promised him I’d watch over you. And your mother and your sister, too, but especially you, because it’s hard for a boy to grow up without a father. A lot of men who turned out bad might have ended up different if only they’d had a man to guide them, to keep them straight when they turned the wrong way.

—Truesilver, DJ Edwardson

Coming-of-age - For Kion, this is definitely a coming-of-age story. He starts out the book in one place, and ends up somewhere he never would have expected, but he is better for it. Stronger. Wiser. More “centered.” He has learned what is truly important, and he has grown past his own desires and now is more likely to look out for the concerns of others. He has learned that there are things that are bigger than him, and that honor and nobility and courage do not need to be proven in order to be important or real. They just are. And often those traits go unrecognized, but that doesn’t detract from their worth.

Perseverance - More than once, Kion learns the hard way what it is like to get knocked flat on his face, to fail. But he also learns that his worth is not measured in his success, but in his willingness to get up again, to carry on, to keep fighting, to not let his failures defined him.

Honor - What is honor? Can honor be stolen? Can it be removed? Is honor only real if it is believed to be present, or is honor steadfast, whether or not it is recognized? These are questions that Kion wrestles with, and they are questions that the reader will wrestle with right alongside him. I appreciated the way that Edwardson takes the reader on this journey, rather than just telling us the answer.

Final Notes

I loved how Edwardson created a lot of things from scratch in this world. The Haukmarn and the Nyn and the Bladewardens and the culture and society of this world are all reminiscent of things you might find in other fantasy worlds, but this well-thought-through world is very much its own unique place.

While this is the first in a series, the story actually wraps up quite nicely. There are definitely loose threads that need to be followed and eventually woven into the story, and I am currently very concerned about one of the characters, but it is not a cliff-hanger ending by any stretch of the imagination.

This epic, squeaky-clean, fantasy adventure, is definitely one of my new favorites. (The writing style is a little more mature, so I would recommend to ages 12+, though I think some younger readers might enjoy it if they are don't mind expanding their vocabulary to include some bigger words). Think Ranger's Apprentice, but with a more Tolkien-esque writing style, or maybe Terry Brooks’ Shannara but with a more singular focus.

Edwardson is a master craftsman of words, and this book does not disappoint. It is a veritable smorgasbord of beautiful imagery and description, balanced against entertaining dialogue and character development and filled with plenty of action. The pace is just the right blend of slowly easing you into this new fantasy land and fast-paced action as events transpire and whisk the characters off on an adventure bigger than any of them anticipated.

If you want a fast-paced, “Casino Royale” style adventure, then this might not be your cup of tea. But if your heart is longing themes of friendship and forgiveness and nobility, for heroic characters that grow gradually into your affections, that you want to root for and fight alongside and persevere with all set against a back-drop of a vast new fantasy land to explore that is uniquely its own new world and yet also might seem somehow achingly familiar to those of us who love an older-school style of fantasy story-telling, then I guarantee you will love Truesilver.

Five Dragon Eggs

Talk to me, dear Reader!

Do you enjoy stories that simmer for a bit and draw you in slowly, or do you want to be drawn in immediately with a chase scene across rooftops? (Or both? I like either depending on my mood).

What is your favorite fantasy weapon you’ve ever read about?

Who are your favorite heroic characters in fantasy?

What are you reading this month for fun?