Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Paladin's Hope by T Kingfisher Narrator: Joel Richards
Series: The Saint of Steel #3
Published by Tantor Audio on May 31, 2022
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Length: 8 hours, 30 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
Amazon, Audible, Libro.fm, Barnes & Noble, Apple
Piper is a lich-doctor, a physician who works among the dead, determining causes of death for the city guard's investigations. It's a peaceful, if solitary profession…until the day when he's called to the river to examine the latest in a series of mysterious bodies, mangled by some unknown force.
Galen is a paladin of a dead god, lost to holiness and no longer entirely sane. He has long since given up on any hope of love. But when the two men and a brave gnole constable are drawn into the web of the mysterious killer, it's Galen's job to protect Piper from the traps that await them.
Paladin’s Hope is the third book in the Saint’s of Steel series following a cast of broken characters who went a little insane when their god died. Not many made it back from that and those that did are shells of what they used to be but the Order of the White Rat has found uses for them and now we follow the stories of those who are mending just enough to find love, while solving a mystery of course.
T Kingfisher has built a fantastic world here. The Saint’s of Steel series is set in the same world as both Swordheart and the Clocktaur War series. I will say that it was Swordheart that initially made me fall in love with T. Kingfisher’s writing style and I’ve been working my way through her catalog since. In the World of the White Rat there are many different gods/saints and the Paladin’s or nuns in their service. Not all are good mind you, some are downright creepy but the Saint of Steel was one that protected people by calling Berserkers into his service. When he died, they all went berserk as Berserkers do, but with no hand to guide them they did horrible things that many cannot forgive themselves for, in true Paladin fashion. T. Kingfisher likes to make a bit of fun of the over the top nobility of Paladins and their need to take responsibility for everything.
Galen is one of the recovering Paladins in the White Rat’s service. He is helping Earstripe, the only Gnole (badger looking creatures that walk and talk and can smell much better than a human) in the guard, in the investigation of murders. Piper enters the story when they task him to help them determine the cause of death. Piper is great at his job, as a wonderworker his talent is to be about to touch a body and see the last moments before death. Very useful as a lich-doctor is basically a coroner used to determine cause of death. Not many know Piper’s secrets as some are distrustful of the magic he can do.
Galen, Earstripe and Piper all head off on a quest to find the source of the bodies showing up in the river. My favorite gnole from previous books, Brindle, makes an appearance to help get them to where they are going. I don’t want to give too much away because their adventure was harrowing and pressed into so much danger in such a short time Galen is able to get out of his own way a little so he can fall in love. Piper and Galen seem like a odd couple at first glance but they are both odd in their own ways and are very understanding of each other’s afflictions. It was easy to see why they would fall in love.
I enjoyed this story thoroughly. Piper is a great character and I’m incredibly interested to see what the next book covers as we might get a few answers on how a Saint could die. T. Kingfisher has another win with this story full of great characters, a journey into mostly certain death and a world I love spending time in.
Maybe a hero is just what we call someone who doesn’t have the sense to stop before they destroy themselves.
Narration:
Joel Richards is fantastic at narrating a self flatulating Paladin, an insecure but brilliant doctor and some gnoles who are really smarter than all the humans around them. I have enjoyed his portrayal of the entire series and all the characters within it. Really a winning combination for this story. I was able to listen to Paladin’s Hope at my usual 1.5x speed.
Listen to a clip:Â HERE
About Joel Richards
One day, when he was 11 years old, Joel realized that he enjoyed sharing stories with his friends as much as he enjoyed all the crazy things they did together. It was then that he knew–although he didn’t have a word for it yet–that he was storyteller. He tells stories on stage, through the written word, with a camera lens, and in front of a microphone. He has called New York City, North Carolina, Texas, Indiana, Utah, and Rhode Island home but has travel to or through most of the fifty states.
While his education as a storyteller began with trading stories with friends as a child, he did his undergraduate studies at the University of Utah graduating with a BFA in acting from their conservatory Actor Training Program and a BA in English. He then went on to receive a Masters in Storytelling from East Tennessee State University–the first, and perhaps only, graduate program to focus on the study and performance of oral storytelling. Joel is an Audible Approved Producer on ACX.
| Rating Breakdown | |
|---|---|
| Plot |
 |
| Writing |
|
| Characters |
|
| Dialogue |
|
| Narration (Audio) |
|
| Overall: | |
Friend me at Goodreads.
- 🎧 Bringer of Dust by JM Miro #JMMiro#BenOnwukwe @MacmillanAudio #LoveAudiobooks @SnyderBridge4 - September 16, 2024
- Buried Deep and Other Stories by Naomi Novik @naominovik @DelReyBooks @SnyderBridge4 - September 9, 2024
- Coven of Consequence by SL Prater #SLPrater @booksirens @SnyderBridge4 #KindleUnlimited - September 2, 2024
This sounds so good! I definitely need to read more of this author’s work.
It really is a case of too many great books and so little time. I’m glad she is putting more of her works on Audio
Good review! I recently picked up Paladin’s Grace, but haven’t started it yet. I think I may start reading T. Kingfisher with A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking, which sounds a little lighter.
My favorite is still Swordheart but that could just be because it was a refreshing surprise. Still I Wizards Guide to Defense Baking is cute and great if you have kids.
This sure looks good. I haven’t read anything by T Kingfisher, I’ve heard she’s very good
I love her sense of humor so everything she writes seems to work for me.
Piper sounds like a fun character to follow.
He totally had a cool talent. Sucks for his eating preferences but fantastic for solving murders.