Tag: lady knight

Review: The Second Death of Locke by V.L. Bovalino

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment
Alexis in front of a bookshelf holding The Second Death of Locke

Alexis:

Welcome to another book review featuring a lady knight!

The Second Death of Locke follows Grey, a knight/hand who has dedicated her life to her mage and long-term best friend, Kier.

When a quest to protect the child of an enemy kingdom pulls them into the dangerous heart of their nation’s war, Grey and Kier will need to decide what they are willing to sacrifice to protect their secret.

For Grey is no ordinary magical well, but heir to the lost island of Locke—the root of all power. If she dies, all magic dies with her.

I debated picking up The Second Death of Locke after hearing mixed reviews, but I ultimately decided that lady knights are having a moment, so why not? ⁣

I’m glad I did!

I really enjoyed the first half of this book especially. The yearning, the vibes/atmosphere, and the magic system were all wonderful.

⁣I liked both Grey and Kier’s characters, learning about their pasts, and the battlefield/fight scenes.

The second half was a little slower paced, and while I enjoyed the more political intrigue that it brought to the story, it wasn’t quite as strong. However, this was still a solid read overall and is definitely one of the more standout reads in the romantic fantasty/romantasy space.

VERDICT: 🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️/5

Review: The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment
The Everlasting with a bookmark, candle, and glasses

Alexis:

The Everlasting was actually my first read of the year, so at least I started 2026 off with a bang.

While it took me a bit to really get into the story, once the first plot twist happened, I was hooked. 

If you want to learn more about the story, check out the synopsis below:

Synopsis:

Sir Una Everlasting was Dominion’s greatest hero: the orphaned girl who became a knight, who died for queen and country. Her legend lives on in songs and stories, in children’s books and recruiting posters―but her life as it truly happened has been forgotten.

Centuries later, Owen Mallory―failed soldier, struggling scholar―falls in love with the tale of Una Everlasting. Her story takes him to war, to the archives―and then into the past itself. Una and Owen are tangled together in time, bound to retell the same story over and over again, no matter what it costs.

But that story always ends the same way. If they want to rewrite Una’s legend―if they want to tell a different story―they’ll have to rewrite history itself.

What I Liked:

This was such an interesting concept overall, and that’s coming from someone who historically isn’t into time travel stories! Harrow approached time travel in such a unique way. She also tackled themes of war, love, family, and power.

As for the setting, it changes with the time travel. However, the beginning is set in a fantasy version of WWI that I found really interesting. But I won’t say any more so as not to give anything away. Just know that Harrow’s writing gives each setting a great atmosphere. 

A lot of romantic fantasy stories have copy and paste protagonists, so I found both Owen and Una refreshing. Owen is a bookish academic who is also a veteran, and Una is a lady knight. I found their characters and dynamic interesting and different—in a good way.

What I Didn’t Like As Much:

The only thing I wished we got more of was watching Una and Owen falling in love in action. ⁣I think this would’ve allowed me to get hooked even earlier in the story. But the rest of the story made up for it!

VERDICT: ♞♞♞♞♞/5 

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