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A review by lilyrooke
Reforged by Seth Haddon
2.0
As Prime Paladin, Balen is sworn to serve King Zavrius, who is not only the unexpected ruler after the rest of his siblings were assassinated, but also the man he abandoned for duty. To save themselves and their nation, they will have to put aside their past and reforge the trust they lost so long ago.
In my opinion there were a few crucial foundations lacking in Reforged, which limited my enjoyment of the book. First, the tonal shifts swing between the heavy court politics of high fantasy and light-hearted fluffy romance, which to me as a reader felt inappropriate, given the severity of the plot events. Second, I wasn't convinced of Balan's capacity of being Prime Paladin, and I'm unsure how he earnt the title, based on his actions. For a long time, I felt sure he was going to be some kind of enemy plant, elevated to the position by Zavrius' enemies as a means of easily assassinating the king. Finally, while Reforged is a second-chance romance, very little opportunity is given to explore the backstory between Balen and Zavrius, which meant I struggled to feel the chemistry between them, or to understand why they would work as a couple, which meant I didn't root for them to reunite while reading. For these reasons, it didn't work for me personally as a reader, although I thought the reveal of who was responsible for the assassination of the royals was fresh and unexpected, and went some way towards explaining the behaviour of the one responsible.
In my opinion there were a few crucial foundations lacking in Reforged, which limited my enjoyment of the book. First, the tonal shifts swing between the heavy court politics of high fantasy and light-hearted fluffy romance, which to me as a reader felt inappropriate, given the severity of the plot events. Second, I wasn't convinced of Balan's capacity of being Prime Paladin, and I'm unsure how he earnt the title, based on his actions. For a long time, I felt sure he was going to be some kind of enemy plant, elevated to the position by Zavrius' enemies as a means of easily assassinating the king. Finally, while Reforged is a second-chance romance, very little opportunity is given to explore the backstory between Balen and Zavrius, which meant I struggled to feel the chemistry between them, or to understand why they would work as a couple, which meant I didn't root for them to reunite while reading. For these reasons, it didn't work for me personally as a reader, although I thought the reveal of who was responsible for the assassination of the royals was fresh and unexpected, and went some way towards explaining the behaviour of the one responsible.