Publishers Weekly
04/29/2024
Buehlman builds on the lore of his Blacktongue series with this thrilling prequel to The Blacktongue Thief. It’s presented as the journal of Galva dom Braga, who recalls her journey to and experiences in the goblin wars, dwelling on memories of late friends and lovers and supplementing her account with letters from family members. To save humanity from goblin occupation, Galva is off to join an all-female unit tasked with fighting the goblins using their corvid companions, large mutated attack birds. She marches across Gallardia with her brothers Pol, Migaéd, and Amiel, each of whom is in a different squad of the Western Army of the Illuminated Kingdom of Ispanthi. Readers know from the start that Galva survives, but all other lives hang in the balance, and Galva’s unwavering love for her imperiled friends and family keeps the stakes of the many battles high. The result is an introspective look into how Galva came to be a fierce warrior. Series fans looking for insight into Buehlman’s badass heroine’s psyche will want to check this out. (June)
From the Publisher
Buehlman has a real gift for writing complicated, endearing characters trying to do their best in a complicated, fully lived-in world. I can’t wait for his next book.”—Kelly Link, bestselling author of the Pulitzer Prize finalist Get in Trouble
“Christopher Buehlman’s worldbuilding is second-to-none, so grimly evocative it feels like the worst parts of history in the best possible way. Galva’s story is full of heartbreak and despair, but its darkness is balanced by exquisitely-crafted moments that explore the bonds of friendship, sisterhood, and love that endure despite the soul-shattering horrors of war.”—Nicholas Eames, author of Kings of the Wyld
“Thrilling. . . Series fans looking for insight into Buehlman’s badass heroine’s psyche will want to check this out.”—Publishers Weekly
“When I read The Blacktongue Thief, I immediately wanted more in this fascinating world and especially more of Galva; thankfully, Buehlman has delivered! Her character shines from every page, grizzled and naïve both at once. Poetic, insightful, and grim without being hopeless. I loved it!”—Django Wexler, author of The Thousand Names
“A masterful tale of war and loss. The Daughters' War is achingly beautiful, and once it has you in its grip, it will not let go until you turn that final page.”—Shauna Lawless, author of The Children of Gods and Fighting Men
"Fans of the previous book will relish this prequel, while those who have never read The Blacktongue Thief will find much to enjoy in this unflinching look at family, loss, love, and war. Highly recommended for all fantasy collections.”—Booklist, STARRED review
“Beuhlman bursts through the confines of modern fantasy with a story by turns profane, brutal, beautiful, devastating. A work of towering imagination, twists of a razor-honed wit, Galva’s indelible voice, characters that move with undeniable authenticity to their fates—The Daughters' War shows what fantasy can be in the hands of a master. Prepare yourself.”—John Hornor Jacobs, author of A Lush and Seething Hell
"The Daughters' War is so exactly what I want in a fantasy novel it almost feels as if Chris wrote it for me."—Christian Cameron, author of Killer of Men
"Readers who were caught up in the political shenanigans, hopeless battles, and pyrrhic victories of Brian McClellan’s In the Shadow of Lightning or Daniel Abraham’s Age of Ash will be enthralled, while those who like their grimdark fantasy to trip over into horror will find similarities between the characters of Galva and Alex Easton from T. Kingfisher’s What Feasts at Night.”—Library Journal, STARRED review
"The Daughters’ War is the rare prequel that makes you want to pick up the first book again. . . . It's a story of loss and horror and inexplicable beauty.”—Locus
Library Journal
★ 04/01/2024
The first war against the goblins was the Knights' War, because the Knights of Gallardia won. The second was the Threshers' War, because the goblins sliced through the once-invincible knights like threshers through a field of grain. Now comes the Daughters' War, because the Gallardians' daughters (aided by hard-to-defeat war-ravens) are all they have left to send into battle against the goblins. This is the story of how the hard-bitten Galva of The Blacktongue Thief came to be that exceptional knight, and of her coming of age through the loss of innocence, faith, and hope. It's also the story of how Galva, her ravens, and her cohort win the war, lose the peace, and hide as best they can from the consequences that are coming for them. VERDICT Readers who were caught up in the political shenanigans, hopeless battles, and pyrrhic victories of Brian McClellan's In the Shadow of Lightning or Daniel Abraham's Age of Ash will be enthralled, while those who like their grimdark fantasy to trip over into horror will find similarities between the characters of Galva and Alex Easton from T. Kingfisher's What Feasts at Night.—Marlene Harris
