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Ziva narrowly defeated a deadly warlord, but the price of that victory threatens to come at her sister’s life. Ziva; the handsome mercenary, Kellyn; and the young scholar, Petrik, race to the nearest city to find a powerful magical healer who can save her sister’s life. But when the events that follow lead to Ziva and Kellyn’s capture by an ambitious prince, Ziva is forced into the very situation she’s been dreading: magicking dangerous weapons meant for world domination.
Once, the forge was Ziva’s safe haven, a place for her to avoid society and the anxiety it caused her. Now, it has become her prison. She’s not sure just how much of herself she’ll have to sacrifice to save Kellyn, but one thing is certain. She’ll be forced to take center stage in the very war she’s been trying to stop if she hopes to keep those she loves alive.
Master of Iron picks up immediately after Blade of Secrets with hard and fast action and a time-sensitive mission.
Ziva’s character sees tremendous growth as she struggles to heal from past trauma, make sense of her gift, and deal with political maneuvering. Her anxiety still doesn’t feel like it’s portrayed right (there are several instances where she reacted adversely in the first book, but those situations no longer seem to faze her at all), but overall, it didn’t rub me as wrong this time as it did in Blade of Secrets. Perhaps because I was prepared.
In the acknowledgements, Tricia Levenseller mentions that she promised her fans a kissing book, and this book certainly delivers on that promise. However, she also offers readers a surprisedly healthy relationship, and I believe that’s what really shines through in Master of Iron. Kellyn and Ziva are nothing alike, but despite not understanding each other, they make the effort to communicate, compromise, and work things out in a way that respects the other. Kellyn is supportive of Ziva, helping her work through her anxiety attacks. And despite her crippling social anxiety, Ziva learned to show him she cared about him and thier relationship. I also loved that they aren’t shamed for wanting to “save themselves” for marriage.
While Master of Iron is less about the adventure and more about the politics surrounding the coming war, it’s still full of epic battles, magical weapons, and fun quips that make this a binge-worthy fantasy duology.
Rated: Moderate, for 3 uses of moderate language and 12 uses of mild language. Violence can be graphic at times, and there’s a lot of it, from bones broken to beheadings to intense bloody fighting. Sexual content includes frequent and lengthy make-out scenes. While characters ultimately resolve to save themselves for marriage, these kissing scenes become a little more exploratory each time, going as far as partial undressing. A character admits to having sex for the first time, and sisters talk about and share contraceptive herbs as a precaution against pregnancy.
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