Five Broken Blades

2.5 it just didn't work for me

This was our September/October book club read

Five Broken Blades has all the ingredients of a fantasy blockbuster with assassins, thieves, exiled royals, court politics, betrayals, secret identities, and a mission to overthrow an immortal king. Unfortunately, I never found myself emotionally connected to any of it. The story follows six characters whose lives become intertwined through a plot to bring down King Joon. Their paths cross through political schemes, dangerous missions, and shifting alliances as they work toward their common goal. Mai Corland builds an ambitious world filled with secrets and competing motivations. I can see why so many readers have fallen in love with it. My biggest challenge was the large cast. I struggled to form a strong attachment to any one character with so many perspectives. By the time I started getting comfortable with one storyline, the narrative had already moved on to someone else. The plot is packed with betrayals and reveals, but I found myself occupied with keeping track of who everyone was rather than in what happened next. I also think this may simply be a case of the book not being the right fit for me. The romantic tension relies heavily on yearning, lingering glances, and small moments of physical contact. Readers who enjoy that style of slow-burn relationship building will probably have a very different experience. I found myself wishing the story would spend less time on romantic tension and more time moving the central plot forward. The audiobook narration was solid. Despite having six narrators, the transitions felt seamless enough that I rarely noticed the different narrators. The voice performances supported the story well, even if the story itself never completely captured my attention. I can see Five Broken Blades working well for readers who enjoy YA fantasy, multiple points of view, court intrigue, and character-driven political plots. I felt the story was longer than it needed to be. By the time the final twist arrived, I was more relieved to have reached the ending than excited about what comes next. Pick this up if you enjoy sprawling fantasy casts, court intrigue, multiple POVs, slow-burn romantic tension, and stories where betrayal is around every corner.

Was gonna give 2 ⭐️ at best, but didn’t expect the twist at the end at all.

Corland delivers a wonderfully entertaining debut with Five Broken Blades. The world-building, interesting characters, and multiple POVs will suck readers in from the beginning. Each character’s POV is easily distinguishable and provides the perfect pace for this fantasy heist. The author delivers action, romance, and a mythology rooted in Korean culture that guarantees a fun ride from start to finish.

In-depth book review: https://cantinabookclub.com/review/five-broken-blades-by-mai-corland

Podcast interview with Mai Corland:
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-45-mai-corland-five-broken-blades/id1716042267?i=1000668330806
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3SMzaj9XuVSM8HEEapxh9s?si=53283506f14c4e2e
YouTube: https://youtu.be/RDcgR6i0-es?si=RmUbolzga8nqaapI