The Silverblood Promise

by James Logan ★★★★★

Lukan Gardova is meandering through life with little purpose and even less motivation. Expelled from the Academy, estranged from his father, and the unintended architect of the downfall of his family's good name, he spends most days recovering from the previous night's drinking and card playing. But then his childhood tutor, Shafia, tracks him down to give him difficult news: his father is dead, stabbed to death in his study. But as his father lay dying, he scrawled on a piece of paper three words: Lukan Saphrona Zandrusa.

"Lukan" is obvious, as is "Saphrona", a city several weeks' journey away at the southern tip of the Old Empire. But neither Lukan nor Shafia have any idea who or what "Zandrusa" is. After seven years of running from his past, Lukan suddenly has a direction and a purpose. He swears a "silverblood promise": "to carry out my father's final wish. I'll go to Saphrona. I'll find his murderer and bring them to justice."

Over the next 500 pages, first-time author James Logan fills his debut novel with characters ripped from legends, coupled with a murder mystery that stands up to most tales from that genre. Lukan is bound by his oath, and must navigate an unfamiliar city with almost no information on which to chart his path. But his quick wit and determined bravery allow him to gradually unravel the origins of his father's dying note and the mystery associated with his death (and others). Logan's world-building is upper tier, and the story's pacing and construction are solid. While there are perhaps too many "monologuing moments" from villains unnecessarily oversharing details of their dastardly deeds for no reason other than to inform the reader, and Lukan's inability to control his tongue seems absurd at particularly perilous points in the story, those moments of mild clunkiness pale in comparison to all of the goodness here.

The novel can be enjoyed as a stand-alone story, but I'd wager most readers will find themselves, like me, eagerly awaiting the next entry in what is supposed to be a four-book series. Fortunately, Book 2 (The Blackfire Blade) is scheduled to be published in November 2025, and Book 3 is, allegedly, planned for 2026. My hope is that Logan falls into the Brandon Sanderson camp of prolific writing vs. the George R. R. Martin / Patrick Rothfuss camp of interminable waiting for the next book, but even if we're made to wait beyond Book 2, this is still a series worth starting. High marks across the board, and I will be reading The Blackfire Blade on release.