Shield of Sparrows is the first in a trilogy by romance author Devney Perry. This is her first go at romantic fantasy and it seems to draw on familiar romantasy tropes. Specifically, there’s the arranged marriage between royals that slowly turns into true romance. Enemies-to-lovers tropes abound here.
The general plotline is that Princess Odessa Cross of Quentis is married to Prince Zavier of Turah in an unexpected turn of events. Odessa’s sister was groomed to marry Zavier as part of the Shield of Sparrows, which is a treaty between kingdoms, enforced by a magic blood oath. Prince Zavier comes to Quentis at the King’s request. They need a bunch of monsters killed and Turah is a monster haven so Prince Zavier and his troops are called in. Zavier kills 7 monsters, which entitles him to a bride prize. He picks Odessa.
Suddenly wild and untrained Odessa is shipped off to Turah with her silent husband and his right-hand man and bodyguard “the Guardian”.
The first part of the book is Odessa travelling with her lady’s maids through the treacherous lands of various kingdoms. She learns along the way about the various monsters, the struggles of different kingdoms, and the betrayals and true motives of her father. Odessa hates the Guardian, and of course ends up with him. I don’t want to offer any spoilers on how that happens but the plot will feel familiar to romantasy readers, which is not to say this isn’t worth the read.
First, there’s the enemies-to-lovers angle between the Odessa, the Sparrow, and the Guardian. They literally fight each other as the Guardian trains Odessa in swordfighting. Second, there’s the forced proximity in that they are locked together frequently. Sometimes hiding from monsters, most of the time because the Guardian doesn’t trust Odessa and thinks she’s spying for her father (true). Third, this is not exactly Romeo-Juliet forbidden love but these are people from different kingdoms with different cultures and traditions. And Odessa is married to the Prince, not the Guardian.
While Odessa is the seemingly fragile heroine, the Guardian is the “Shadow Daddy” in that he’s powerful, morally ambiguous, and dangerous. He’s sworn to protect the Sparrow by a blood oath so despite the monster fighting, you know with a trilogy that these two will survive.
Both characters have hidden powers, again Odessa appears weak or ordinary, but actually she holds rare and massive powers that are alluded to in book one and become clearer in book two and three.
If you liked A Court of Thorn and Roses by Sarah J. Maas then some of the setup and story will feel familiar, yet different enough. We have a hunter who kills magic monsters, a young woman dragged into a treacherous land, a creeping sickness among the magical creatures, maybe a curse or something has been set up on the lands, a romance that evolves between captor and captive, and a pending war or breakdown of alliances between kingdoms.
I thought it was a fun read and book 3 is out in Spring 2027.
