Title: Sword Catcher
Series: Sword Catcher / The Chronicles of Castellane - I’m not sure!
Author: Cassandra Clare
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Release Date: 10th October 2023
Pages: 604
Source: ARC - finished copy sent by publisher, but also preordered!
Rating: ✰✰✰✰.5
CAWPILE: 8.00/10
Synopsis
One was raised to rule. One was trained to die. Welcome to the Chronicles of Castellane.
In the vibrant city-state of Castellane, a young orphan named Kel is stolen from his old life to enter a new one of luxury and peril. He’s to become Prince Conor Aurelian’s body-double, shielding the Prince from all dangers. As his ‘Sword Catcher,’ he and Conor become close as brothers – yet Kel lives for one purpose: to die for Conor.
Lin Caster is an Ashkar physician, part of a community ostracised for its rare magical abilities. But events pull her and Kel together and into the web of the mysterious Ragpicker King who rules Castellane’s criminal underworld.
Together, they’ll discover an extraordinary conspiracy. But can forbidden love bring down a kingdom? And will their discoveries plunge their nation into war and the world into chaos?
Review
“Power is an illusion. Power exists because we believe it does. Kings and Queens—and yes, Princes—have power because we grant it to them.”
Okay so don’t hate me but… I’ve never read a Cassandra Clare book before… Okay there I said it, its out there. I honestly don’t know why I hadn’t, I was the right age for Shadowhunters but I only ever ended up watching the first season of the Netflix show, which honestly… I wouldn’t really recommend. I just didn’t get on with it at the time, though I think its one I will go back to if the time is right.
But, at YALC last year I ended up watching Cassandra Clare in conversation with Samantha Shannon, mainly to talk about her new book in The Last Hours series, which I do want to read at some point. However, she also talked about Sword Catcher briefly, and I was immediately intrigued, bought into this world she was talking about with the scenery, so when the opportunity arose I emailed to enquire about an ARC, and knowing that my students would be so excited - I have some massive Clare fans in my form group!
Just before publication I was sent a finished copy which is so exciting! And I immediately dived into the world of Castellane. As with any fantasy book, and especially one this chunky, I found it quite dense at the start and overwhelming but I persisted and loved the world building, I found the city believable and loved the way she built the history in. I thought there were some slight plot holes at the start, but it could just be the way I read it rather than the plot itself, I remember reading one page a few times wondering why a character wasn’t questioning something. However, overall I really enjoyed it, mainly because I love court politics, and this delivered in that aspect, in a GoT esque way, which I think will only heighten in the rest of the series.
My favourite character was definitely Kel, and his journey one I found really interesting, again mainly due to court politics and treachery. But I thought his character was also very funny and relatable at times, and I loved the relationship between him and Connor. I’m really intrigued to see where that goes because of the inequality within it. The good thing about the length of the book was that I felt I really got to know the characters and their motivations throughout it, Clare had the time to really flesh them out in a way that felt natural.
I found Lin’s story intriguing also, Clare has clearly taken inspiration for Lin’s Ashkari community from Jewish communities and how they were treated and demonised at times throughout history. I think it was an interesting choice as we have Lin in comparison to Kel who sits on the fence between the royal life and one on the streets, and Lin offers us a completely different perspective of the city and life, not only as an Ashkari but also a woman. I found some parts of Lin’s arc less interesting, at least in comparison to the more thrilling aspects of Kel’s story, but I’m really intrigued to see where her story goes next.
Overall, I think it was a really good book, one that shocked me with its ending and has made me want to read more of Clare’s work - it is certainly addictive! I think it could have been shorter at times, but I do also think that the character and world-building may have suffered if it was so I’m conflicted on that! I’m definitely excited to see where the next book goes, let me know if you’ve read Sword Catcher!
“All that is good comes from the Gods. All that is evil comes from men.”
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