The Book Stacks

This week, I have for you a guest review of one of my favorite books: The Blue Sword By Robin McKinley.

Guest Reviewer: JM from Fiction Scribe

I didn’t always want to write. I knew I was advanced for my grade. I knew I had a flair for storytelling. But I didn’t always want to write.

Until I met Harry.

Harry Crewe, otherwise known as Angharad, comes to live in the desert country Damar after the death of her father. The desert is hardly boring, however, as it harbors many secrets, including the magical Free Hillfolk and the Blue Sword, Gonturan, which no woman has wielded for generations.

When the Hillfolk King, Corlath, finds himself kidnapping Harry – much against his better senses and the advice of others – it begins a journey of learning and opening doors to the past for both of them.

Their journey isn’t to be easy on any level, though, as they get to know each other during the harsh battle with the people to the north.

I’ve always been attracted to stories from and about deserts, and I loved this one so much, I found myself checking it out from the library every time I was there. I searched for it for years before finally finding it in a bookstore and buying a copy of my own.

The land and the people of Damar are very real, as is the magic throughout the land. This book may take place after The Hero and the Crown, but it rightfully stands as its own fantastic book. A combination of magic, battle, self-discovery, and romance made me want to move people with my stories as much as I had been moved by this one.

This book will appeal to anyone who ever wanted to be a warrior.

And to Robin McKinley – thank you.

The Blue Sword, Robin McKinley, Fiction Scribe