Blood & Steel

The Legends of Thezmarr, Book 1

De: Helen Scheuerer

Narrado por: Mollie Stark, Sebastian Grove

With her death foretold, Althea Zoltaire only has three years to become what she’s always dreamed of being: a warrior legend. Women are forbidden to wield blades, so she has trained in secret her entire life. Now racing against the clock, she fights to secure her place in the elite guild charged with the protection of the five kingdoms.

The sparring and hazing of the new trainees border on deadly, but even more dangerous is her growing attraction to Wilder Hawthorne, her unwilling warrior chaperone. All around them, schemes are afoot and darkness looms.

Will Althea pass the perilous initiation test and take her place as a champion of Thezmarr—or will the invading evil snatch away her dream before it starts?

Blood & Steel is the gripping first book in the heart-pounding, epic romantic fantasy series, The Legends of Thezmarr.

©2023 Helen Scheuerer (P)2023 Dreamscape Media

So so so good

This is the book I’ve been trying to find for a while. Something to scratch my romantic fantasy itch. It’s perfect in every way. So excited for the next books!

So good! Spicy but not vulgar great storyline!

This may be controversial but I’m not big on smut always feel like it’s too much, however this book does great at being spicy and a good story but not over the top! Great characters and story line! Absolutely love!

Interesting

Kept my interest the whole time, looking forward to reading book 2! It fell a little flat towards the end but picked right back up.

An orphan fights for the little life she has left

I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly I engaged in Thea’s story. Aspects of the tale gave me Witcher, Throne of Glass, and Fourth Wing vibes. Athough this novel hasn’t reached the level of my love for Throne of Glass and Fourth Wing yet, The Legends of Thezmarr certainly has potential.

Interesting story

This was my 1st book by this author. I enjoyed it. I liked how fearce the fmc was. I hope that the next book has more back story for the mmc.

good storyline

I really enjoyed the storyline and world building. reminds me a bit of Fourth Wing, but I think I like this better.

Great story, not so great male narrator

I loved the story, the romance, the found family & unique magic system. I didn’t love the male narrators voice for Wilder Hawthorne. His voice was too stuffy and old sounding for Wilder. His voice isn’t bad, just not at all fitting for Wilder. I actually preferred the female narrators version of Wilder’s voice.

Good story, female voice actor too dramatic

Overall the story was engaging although predictable. I found the beginning slow and didn’t love the FMC but she grew on me as the story progressed. People are calling this a slow burn but from the moment the FMC sees the MMC she’s talking about his rippling muscles so I wouldn’t really call it slow burn, definitely felt insta-lust. The female voice actor though was so dramatic and would do things like sigh, clear her throat, yell (!) etc when characters did it in the story, but I found that level of acting a bit off putting and distracting. She also read the FMC’s lines to sound a bit immature and defensive. I think I would have enjoyed the characters more with a difference narrator. The male voice actor was fine. Ultimately, I’ll continue on to the next audiobook.

Not just another Hunger Games

Several of my FAVORITE romantasy books are reminiscent of the theming of Hunger Games or trials of some kind. This book was NOT that and was a truly unique story of a woman racing against time to make her mark on the world and be something great.
While I sort of guessed the reveal at the end, it was done well and still leaves you guessing about the full truth.
Immediately purchased the second audio book in the series.
Spice: strong slow burn with one brief open door scene, but the tension build was the best part
Shelf Trophy? Yeah, I can see myself buying this if the author is at a book convention and I can get it signed, or I come across a special edition with some awesome sprayed edges.

Amazing start to my new obsession

Wow. This book has been on my TBR for months and I feel like a fool for not picking it up earlier. This was my first Helen Scheuerer book however it will not be my last. This book has all of my favorite elements.

Found Family
Strong MMC
Brooding, Mysterious Hero,
Prophecy
An Epic Quest

I really felt a connection to Althea. She is an incredibly determined woman who, despite all odds knows what she wants, and is willing to fight for it. (even to her own detriment). Althea’s death was predicted when she was a young girl, and as the clock ticks down, she is ready to go all out to achieve her goals. Wilder is our brooding hero and he is everything Althea wishes to be. He has accomplished everything that Althea wishes to and while he doesn’t always believe in her he is inspired by her and is willing to help her fight. All the side characters were very well flushed out. They all had flaws and quirks that made them feel like real people. I really hope that we get to see more Kipp, Cal, Wren and Torj in the future.

I thoroughly enjoyed all aspects of this book. The premises intriguing, the characters are compelling, and the world is fully immersive. I will definitely be entering with this series as soon as possible. And the narration on this audiobook was top-notch.