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ditten's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Swordcrossed by Freya Marske is a fun, hot, low fantasy romp set in a queernormative world ⚔️
Matti has to hire a dualist for his upcoming marriage into a rich family which has been arranged to save his family's failing wool business. His bride-to-be has a very insistent admirer who may challenge Matti to a duel at the wedding, and so hiring a competing dualist who's good with a sword is crucial. The only person he can afford though, is Luca, the man who scammed Matti just the day prior. With no other choice, Matti pays (and blackmails) the mysterious, new-to-town Luca into becoming not only his dualist but also his new sword-fighting instructor.
Their mutual attraction that neither initially plan on acting on only grows stronger the more time they spend together which is frankly incredibly inconvenient since Matti's set to be married. While this arrangement was only meant to be one of business, soon Luca and Matti are falling into bed together, and Luca starts helping Matti trying to figure out if his family's business failing might be due to sabotage rather than accidents while also desperately trying to keep his own past a secret.
Swordcossed is full of hot, flirty fun between Matti and Luca while also diving into lots of schemes and secrets - from multiple sides. There are crushes, sword-practice used as foreplay, trickery, arranged marriage where neither party's particularly into it, complex family dynamics, honour, and quite a bit of insight into the wool trade 😆
Matti's a gentleman, comes from a fancy family, and has the burden of running an entire business on his shoulders. Luca is chaotic af, impulsive, has forever unruly hair, a mysterious past he'd prefer to not get into, and a giant crush on Matti. Which is great since Matti crushes right back though he's more reluctant to act on things. Once he does though? Phew, these two get hot and heavy, and there's some kink that's juuust out of reach but definitely implied. It felt a bit like kink-teasing to be honest 😂
I really liked the characters, and the plot was interesting but a little overly into descriptions of the intricacy of the wool trade at times.
Overall, a very enjoyable book with a hot, fun romance, great characters, and a plot with mysteries and schemes.
Thanks to Bramble, Macmillan, and Edelweiss for the ARC. Swordcrossed is out October 8
booksthatburn's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
*I received a free review copy in exchange for an honest review of this book.
Mattinesh Jay is the oldest son of Jay House, which, due to a string of bad luck, is long on respectability and short on funds. Matti is getting married to an acquaintance from a House whose finances are solid but whose reputation in the city is less firmly established. He’ll marry her for duty, and hopefully find companionship (maybe even love?), but Matti puts his family first without complaint. The trouble is, his intended has a paramour, who is very good with a sword and will almost definitely challenge at the wedding, so Matti has scraped together the funds to hire a Best Man to defend any challenge with steel (as is tradition). The night before he is set to contract a professional for this position, an accident in a bar leaves him short of funds, forced to hire an excellent but unknown and untested swordsman rather than the best of the best... but who turns out to be the one who swindled him out of his money. As recompense for his silence, Jay insists that the swordsman, Luca, teach him in the mornings for the weeks leading up to the wedding. The more they clash with steel each day, the more Jay and Luca are desperate for different swords to cross...
SWORDCROSSED advertises itself with the tagline “Low Stakes. High Heat. Sharp Steel.” Early on, I thought the first part might not be true, because I was instantly very invested in the future of Jay House and their financial trajectory and Matti's happiness felt like high stakes. But, while the stakes matter a great deal to those involved (and to me, goddammit), this is a very cozy and ultimately low stakes story that delivers with erotic scenes and steel. Swords are crossed, literally in morning practices, and metaphorically in physical passion between two cis men. I was delighted by this story which combines two of my hobbies, sewing and swordplay, as the title had only guaranteed one of those at first glance.
The most stressful parts of this story for me was the tension over betrayal and secrets between Matti and Luca, and the question of whether there was something more going on with Jay House's string of bad luck. Normally, I get very stressed out by books that have lying in relationships, but the way this was handled kept me engaged instead of getting too stressed to continue. There are so many subtle narrative layers, expertly woven, so that by the end an intricate story can be revealed, with dastardly deeds and hidden motivations, while the exact shape of it was obscured until the end. It has the appeal of a mystery story, the heart of a romance, and the swordplay of an adventure novel. All that while delivering on its promise of keeping the stakes low, the passions high, and the steel sharp.
Things I love, in no particular order: Maya (Matti's sister), how the swordplay is discussed, the wedding, Matti's parents, Luca's brother. The characters are vibrant and wonderful. Keeping the important cast of characters small gave room for several people to shine without becoming too many to track in detail. The intricacies of wool and swordplay are described in a manner that threads the needle between infodumping and vagueness, explaining the important relationships between concepts without getting stuck on specifics that would slow down the story. Part of this is achieved by giving information in scenes where one person is new to the information but isn't ready to handle a mountain of details. One of my favorite moments is when Matti innocently asks whether there is more than one style of fencing, and Luca oscillates between stunned silence the impulse to convey the complexity of fencing and its history in a dizzying spiel.
Mattinesh Jay is the oldest son of Jay House, which, due to a string of bad luck, is long on respectability and short on funds. Matti is getting married to an acquaintance from a House whose finances are solid but whose reputation in the city is less firmly established. He’ll marry her for duty, and hopefully find companionship (maybe even love?), but Matti puts his family first without complaint. The trouble is, his intended has a paramour, who is very good with a sword and will almost definitely challenge at the wedding, so Matti has scraped together the funds to hire a Best Man to defend any challenge with steel (as is tradition). The night before he is set to contract a professional for this position, an accident in a bar leaves him short of funds, forced to hire an excellent but unknown and untested swordsman rather than the best of the best... but who turns out to be the one who swindled him out of his money. As recompense for his silence, Jay insists that the swordsman, Luca, teach him in the mornings for the weeks leading up to the wedding. The more they clash with steel each day, the more Jay and Luca are desperate for different swords to cross...
SWORDCROSSED advertises itself with the tagline “Low Stakes. High Heat. Sharp Steel.” Early on, I thought the first part might not be true, because I was instantly very invested in the future of Jay House and their financial trajectory and Matti's happiness felt like high stakes. But, while the stakes matter a great deal to those involved (and to me, goddammit), this is a very cozy and ultimately low stakes story that delivers with erotic scenes and steel. Swords are crossed, literally in morning practices, and metaphorically in physical passion between two cis men. I was delighted by this story which combines two of my hobbies, sewing and swordplay, as the title had only guaranteed one of those at first glance.
The most stressful parts of this story for me was the tension over betrayal and secrets between Matti and Luca, and the question of whether there was something more going on with Jay House's string of bad luck. Normally, I get very stressed out by books that have lying in relationships, but the way this was handled kept me engaged instead of getting too stressed to continue. There are so many subtle narrative layers, expertly woven, so that by the end an intricate story can be revealed, with dastardly deeds and hidden motivations, while the exact shape of it was obscured until the end. It has the appeal of a mystery story, the heart of a romance, and the swordplay of an adventure novel. All that while delivering on its promise of keeping the stakes low, the passions high, and the steel sharp.
Things I love, in no particular order: Maya (Matti's sister), how the swordplay is discussed, the wedding, Matti's parents, Luca's brother. The characters are vibrant and wonderful. Keeping the important cast of characters small gave room for several people to shine without becoming too many to track in detail. The intricacies of wool and swordplay are described in a manner that threads the needle between infodumping and vagueness, explaining the important relationships between concepts without getting stuck on specifics that would slow down the story. Part of this is achieved by giving information in scenes where one person is new to the information but isn't ready to handle a mountain of details. One of my favorite moments is when Matti innocently asks whether there is more than one style of fencing, and Luca oscillates between stunned silence the impulse to convey the complexity of fencing and its history in a dizzying spiel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Alcohol, Violence, and Cursing
Minor: Stalking and Sexual harassment
holyschmitz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Everything I wanted it to be, and more. A perfect romance.
jordandotcom's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
this was soooo cute & sooooo fun <333 love it sm
katebriar's review
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
juliaobservateur's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
currentlyrhiding's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was one of my most anticipated books of the year, and having previously read and adored Freya's Marske's The Last Binding trilogy, I had high expectations for Swordcrossed. Unsurprisingly, it lived up to all of them. I absolutely loved this low-stakes fantasy romance full of all the wit, charm, and spice I crave from Freya Marske's writing. Matti and Luca were such delightful characters, and it was impossible not to root for and believe in their relationship from the jump. The pining was delicious and perfectly emphasized by the vibrant and atmospheric writing. I want to live in this book.
Thank you to Edelweiss and Bramble for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to Edelweiss and Bramble for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
book_hound_ross's review
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Full Review to Come
kberg96's review
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
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