Audiobook Review – Paladin’s Strength (Saint of Steel, Book 2) by T. Kingfisher, Narrated by Joel Richards (4/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Fantasy/Romance
Length: 15 hours and 38 minutes
Publisher:‎Tantor Audio
Release Date: November 23, 2021
ASIN: B09HW2ZWCJ
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Saint of Steel series
Source: Bought Audiobook
Rating: 4/5 stars

“He’s a paladin of a dead god, tracking a supernatural killer across a continent. She’s a nun from a secretive order, on the trail of the raiders who burned her convent and kidnapped her sisters.

When their paths cross at the point of a sword, Istvhan and Clara will be pitched headlong into each other’s quests, facing off against enemies both living and dead. But Clara has a secret that could jeopardize the growing trust between them, a secret that will lead them to the gladiatorial pits of a corrupt city, and beyond….”

Series Info/Source: This is the second book in the Saint of Steel trilogy (at least right now it’s a trilogy). I bought this on audiobook through Google Play.

Thoughts: I enjoyed this book even more than the first Saint of Steel book. This book follows one of the Saint of Steel paladins that was introduced in Paladin’s Grace, Istvhan. He is tracking the killer that was introduced in that book and ends up getting into some trouble with one of the clans. Clara is offered to him as payment for a debt owed. Clara is grateful to leave her captors but has secrets of her own and she is definitely Istvhan’s match in many ways.

This story follows two main plots: Istvhan tracking down the decapitating murderer introduced in the first book and Clara trying to track down her enslaved sisters. I liked that there was a lot more action and plot in this book than there was in Paladin’s Grace. There is still a lot of Istvhan and Clara hemming and hawing over how they are not worthy of each other, but it didn’t completely take over the story like it did in the first book.

I listened to this with my family on a roadtrip and the narration was well done. My son is 15yrs old and it was a bit awkward listening to some of the sexual talk and sex scenes with him. However, he informed me and my husband he hears a lot worse at school (which I don’t think made us feel better). The relationship in here is respectful and well done, so I enjoyed it and didn’t mind my son listening to it.

I continue to really enjoy Kingfisher’s writing style. She puts a lot of humor in her stories. As mentioned above I thought there was a better blend of intriguing plot, excellent action scenes, character development, and romance in this book than there was in the first book. We do get to spend a bit more time with Wonder Makers as well. I still enjoyed the Clocktaur Wars a bit more, but this has been a fun read too.

My Summary (4/5): Overall I enjoyed this even more than the first book in the series. I felt like the character development and romance were better balanced with an intriguing plot and some excellent action scenes. I look forward to reading the final book in this series, Paladin’s Hope, soon.