Balanced on the Blades Edge (Dragon Blood, #1) by Lindsay Buroker

Balanced on the Blades Edge (Dragon Blood, #1) Reviews

• 
  Sabrina

  Sardelle!?
  
  *cringes*
  
  Dear Lindsay, I’m loving your Emperor’s Edge series. And I’ve forgiven you for an assassin called Assassin.
  (Sicarius >
  sicario, that translates literally as "hit man")
  
  Will I be able to forgive you for a heroine called Sardelle?
  (Sardelle > plurale of
  sardella, that translates as anchovy)
  
  
  
  I just wish for authors to stop randomly picking words from latin dictionaries. People who speak latin-based languages (Spanish, French, Italian, etc.) DO read english books, and these names sound ridiculous.
  I think for me it all began with Voldemort, that I read as Vol-de-mort > volo di morte > flight of death. Uh.
• 
  Krystal

  I really wanted less insta-love and more dragons but not a total drag. It was still more entertaining than I expected.
  
  I enjoyed the writing, and the audio was a big plus for me. It was interesting and lively and I think things that I would have rolled my eyes at on the page came across as more humourous when spoken out loud.
  
  The plot seemed a little weak, since it's predominantly about Sardelle trying to get her soulblade back and I honestly thought that would happen pretty quick. But there's also the handsome new commander mixing things up in this slave colony and he's taking an interest in this strange, beautiful slave girl who is clearly hiding something.
  
  Honestly, they're a cute couple but I just was not convinced by how quickly they fell in love. It was disappointing. I wanted more banter and tension and storytelling to bring them together. Instead, it read more like the story was contrived specifically to bring them together. Things that should have been badass and really progressed the story instead fizzled in the aftermath that brings the couple back together. I was a bit disappointed.
  
  Also I think I really wanted more mythology and info about this race that's now been gone for 300 years. Even just some mention of people Sardelle knew, as opposed to the generic 'all the people I once knew'. I wanted to get to know some of the people she'd lost so I could grieve with her. But she was way too busy flirting with the commander to really mourn at all.
  
  There were also, like, NO DRAGONS. Not in the conventional sense, anyway.
  
  I didn't mind the story because it still moved along quickly and had some interesting moments, and I've got the audio for the trilogy so I'll keep going. But I do really hope there's more action and less love-sickness in the next one.
• 
  Choko

  Obviously one of the author's earlier work, so not as good as I have come to expect from her, but not terrible either. The insta-love-lust thing always bothers me, and I didn't feel much chemistry between the characters. Also, the plot was quite thin and she has not yet developed the typical for her banter the readers have come to adore. Either way, I plan on continuing with the series and hope it gets better 🙂
• 
  Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽

  Kindle freebies, May 16, 2017, for the first three books in this fantasy series. They sound interesting. I have no idea when I'll actually read them, but into the Kindle freebie black hole they go.
  
  
  https://www.amazon.com/Dragon-Blood-C...
• 
  Denisa

  This is fun!
  
  
  I fell in love with this author after reading the Emperor's Edge series and was really curious if she could do it again, if she has another series just as good or better.
  Guess what! She did.
  
  
  The characters are fun and engaging, the world is amazing, and the plot is really interesting, making you curious about what's next.
  It's definitely a series I'd recommend to anyone who likes fantasy (although yeah, this is more steam-punk fantasy than High Fantasy, but it's definitely worth it).
• 
  Clarissa Asha

  This book is a gem!
  
  I'll mention in advance that I may be biased, but not because I received a copy of BotBE for reviews from the author. Lindsay Buroker is one of my favorite steampunk romance author, and I have bought 4 of her previous books in the Emperor's Edge+Encrypted series and borrowed all the earlier ones in the series. I'm confident that if she didn't offer this review copy, I would have bought the book anyway.
  
  What I love the most about Lindsay's stories are her fantasy world, her characters, and her sense of humor. She is brilliant at keeping a cast of unique, interesting, and borderline eccentric characters whose personalities should have clashed and building a relationship (in romance and friendship) between them. She's done this again in Balance on the Blade's Edge. True to Buroker-type of romance, acceptance is a central issue in Sardelle and Ridge's relationship. I love how grounded their romance developed. You could feel that they are supporting and accepting without overtly trying to shove themselves into each other's life, which made them at ease in their partners' presence.
  
  Not quite the full-fledged epic hi-fantasy story which focused more on the plot and world building, but unlike many Romantic Fantasy that focused hard on the characters, I find that Balance on the Blade's Edge is just the right blend of the two. At times I felt like she could have done so much more with this characters and this world, but that would made the story a long series instead of just one book. (read: I want more)
  
  BotBE's world reminded me to the EE's world that mix magic with steam machines with technology and cultural conflicts going about. What makes the world even more special is that, the characters actually feels like they belong to that world, instead of just being thrown in the mix to get some plot going. For example, Ridge's lighthearted childhood that was cleverly woven into the story and his bias for magic.
  
  
  Verdict:
  A steampunk romance with sensible characters and grounded relationship development.
• 
  ✘✘ Sarah ✘✘ (former Nefarious Breeder of Murderous Crustaceans)

  I discovered Lindsay Buroker with the Emperor’s Edge series (one of my favourite series ever) and am trying to get my hands on everything else she has written so far. I thought the premise of the book was really interesting but unfortunately the rest of the book was a bit disappointing. It was entertaining enough but the biggest turn off for me was the romance aspect of the story. I was expecting something in the Emperor’s Edge vein (lots of action with a hint of romance as the series develops) but it’s quite the contrary in Balance on the Blade’s Edge. And the insta-love aspect of the plot annoyed me to no end!
  
  The book felt like a really light read and the writing isn’t up to Buroker’s usual standard. The novella is structured in two parts and the three-week time lapse between the parts is a bit unsettling. I don’t mind the idea of the time-lapse in itself, it’s just that it feels awkward here. It almost feels like Buroker lacked the inspiration to go from one point of the plot to the next and just decided to skip it all, eating up three weeks in the process. This wasn’t handled very smoothly. Added to the fact that the second part of the novella wasn’t as entertaining as the first… I don’t know, this wasn’t really satisfying.
  
  The characters I did like here. I like Sardelle, I like Ridge and the addition of the talking soulblade was a great idea as it gave the book some much-needed humour.
  
  I’m having a hard time rating this book but I think I’ll settle for three stars. Balance on the Blade’s Edge has many flaws but I still think the story has great potential. I’m curious to find out what Buroker has in store for the next instalment in this series and I’m willing to give it a try when it is published. Here’s hoping this won’t turn into yet another corny-mushy steampunk romance series!
  
• 
  Pen Pen

  Unlike some people, I do my best to support independent authors as much as I can. Independent authors offer a fresh perspective as compared to the cookie-cutter traditional publishing house "best sellers" some of which don't deserve the best seller accolade.
  
  Many of Ms. Buroker's books deserve that praise. Including this one.
  
  That said, Balanced on the Blade's Edge is yet another engaging, exciting adventure from Ms. Buroker. The characters are enchanting (Jaxi particularly is amusing), the situation is imaginative and creative. I would hope to not only read a sequel to this novel, but I also long for a prequel. (At the rate at which Ms. Buroker writes I expect to see both in no time).
  
  This (along with The Emperor's Edge series) would make a fantastic movie! (Hollywood, are you paying attention?)
  
  Keep writing, Ms. Buroker and I'll keep reading.
  
  I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves to read and lose themselves in the escapism.
• 
  Simply Sam ツ

  ***3.5 Stars***
  It seems that most of the books I've read lately fall into the "better than 'meh' but still not great" category. This is no exception. It's quick and really easy to read. Like very readable. I was drawn in to the story pretty easily and stayed fairly engaged throughout, though I will admit I got a little bored there towards the end.
  
  My biggest hangup, aside from the instalove factor (which I almost expect from a fairly short novel with a romantic interest), was with the magic "system". Sardelle could literally do almost anything, just on the fly. No sacrifice. No give and take. No preparation. She just thinks it and it happens. There's no explanation and no depth to it. That bothers me. However, I did find Jaxi, her bound soulblade, really fun and a great addition to the story and Ridge was a decent, non-assholey leading guy. Still, at the end I was just "Eh. Okay."
  
  If you're looking for something quick to read with a touch of action, magic, and romance then this may be worth a shot.
• 
  Andrea

  3.5
  
  Finally got around to finishing this one.
• 
  Mei

  I've written the review for the first 4 book bere:
  
  
  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
• 
  retro

  Good for a quick read and, if looking for a steampunk fantasy fix, definitely worth considering. But while the writing is decent and I quite liked the worldbuilding (airships! magic crystals! shamans!) my enjoyment of the story was spoiled by the characters.
  
  Spoilers below.
  
  I couldn't stand Ridge from the get-go and Sardelle began to grate on my nerves as the story progressed. Their interesting names aside, Ridge is your standard Han Solo-type hero. Badass captain of his own airship, he punches the wrong diplomat in an effort to defend the honor of a female crew member (it had to be a woman, of course) and gets sent to manage a prison mining operation. Sardelle, for her part, has been hibernating for three hundred years after Ridge's ancestors buried her magically-inclined people inside a mountain. And, you've guessed it, the mountain is what the prison mining operation is built around, which is how Sardelle gets woken up and the plot is set in motion.
  
  Of course, common sense dictates that Sardelle should hotfoot it right out of there - and doubtlessly she would if her soul-bonded sword, possessed by the spirit of a dead teenage witch, weren't also stuck inside the mountain with her. If Ridge is a proud graduate of the Han Solo school of leading men, Sardelle starts off with an advantage. She's a lot more complex. The last of her people, she wrestles with the moral quandary of using her abilities against men who mean her harm and adapts to her new surroundings as best she can. She's interesting... and then she meets Ridge.
  
  In a world where crystals power airships and soulblades can be inhabited by teenage witches, perhaps it's only normal that language doesn't change at all in three centuries and the same two people are still fighting each other. And perhaps it then follows that the last of the witchy kind should make peace with helping the descendants of those who killed literally everyone she ever knew, going as far as to risk her own life for them, all within the space of a month. But perhaps not. Perhaps that only happens because the descendants in question are now led by the aforementioned Ridge.
  
  He's a man. She's a woman. From the moment he sees her, he can't stop thinking about her. From the moment she sees him, she becomes a lovesick teenager, on par with the actual teenage witch with which her soulblade is infused.
  
  And there's nothing wrong with that, if the emotional stakes measured up. The narrative repeatedly seeks to drive home the point that witches = bad in this brave new world of Ridge's and Sardelle's constant need to save him/be useful inevitably lead to side characters suspecting her of espionage. But there's never any doubt that Ridge/Sardelle are end-game. He's so enthralled with her that it's hard to imagine he won't forgive her if she were to reveal she's a serial killer on par with Hannibal Lecter and she's so mind-bogglingly concerned about morality that it's clear she'll be nice to the bad men who burn witches (or women they think are witches) because they're all on the same side.
  
  From canoodling in a cave after being chased by a giant owl (just go with it) to midnight rendezvous in the prison library (again, just go with it), Ridge and Sardelle really did seem to fall in love awfully quick. I can only assume the sex was just too good for common sense to enter the equation. Perhaps their thirst for each other was intended as a character flaw, but as a reader I just found it frustrating that two supposedly bright people in their thirties would go from vague mutual attraction to sleeping together, to defying orders (on his side) and risking life and limb (several times, on hers) for each other all within the space of a month.
  
  And if that's not bad enough, we have the obligatory insertion of a would-be romantic rival in the last third of the book (as well as a second older bureaucrat who rains on Ridge's parade and is then killed off-screen), who is presented as little more than a bad knock-off of Sardelle. Vespa's only role seems to be to give Sardelle someone to be jealous of - other than Ridge's only (now dead) shipmate, and don't get me started on that response to finding your lover literally drinking his grief away - and give Ridge the chance to once more reiterate why she's better than other women.
  
  I'm actually sorry I didn't like this more. The worldbuilding has so much potential and I wanted to see more of the prison, to get to know the people there. Instead, because the story all too quickly becomes the Ridge-and-Sardelle show, the Cofah attack on the fort doesn't really pack much of an emotional punch. I don't care how many prisoners or soldiers die. I feel about as conflicted as Sardelle when she literally stabs a man through the heart - which is to say, not at all. Although I am a little bit sad that that man isn't one cocky flyboy...
• 
  Becky ♡The Bookworm♡

  2nd Read: Started Oct. 3, 2018 Finished: October 17, 2018
  
  
  *********************
  
  1st Read/Review (Aug 6, 2016)
  
  I really enjoyed this book! You never know what you're getting when you download a freebie, but this time I scored! Balanced on the Blade's Edge is the first book in the Dragon Blood series and it's definitely worth checking out! The author writes a fun mashup of science fiction fantasy, steampunk and romance that doesn't skimp on character development or creativity. The dialogue is rich in humor and never boring. The plot isn't extremely complex, but I prefer this "show as we go" approach to world building over the dull narrative of info dump any day!
  
  The characters are unique and very easy to like and/or despise. Of course, I immediately liked Ridge's humor and easy-going attitude. Sardelle's situation was very fascinating to me and added an interesting twist to her growing relationship with Ridge. I had a feeling their romance would be something special. I'm curious to see what will happen between them in the future.
  
  I should also mention that the writing flowed easily and painted vivid pictures in my mind, especially during the battle scenes with the Cofah. My heart beat faster and I was glued to my e-reader all through the second half of the book! This author has a wonderful imagination and a true gift for storytelling. I can't wait to move on to book two!
• 
  Minxy Melissa

  True Rating 3.5 stars
  
  This book was the book of the month for my library book club . I was excited to read it because it is toted as a steampunk romance. It was a fast read that was entertaining and witty. I think it is steampunk-ish but not full on steampunk.
  
  Sardelle's character was one that I want to know more about. She is a mage that has awoken after a three hundred year stasis and has no idea what that three hundred years have passed. Her soulblade Jaxi luckily has been aware and learning while Sardelle was in stasis so she was able to help her acclimate. Sardelle's one focus is to retrieve Jaxi and search the world looking for others like her.
  
  Ridge was hilarious. I enjoyed his character immensely. He was a typical pilot who enjoyed taking to the skies more than anything. Unfortunately he thumbed his nose at his superiors one to many times and was put "in charge" of the mountain prison that Sardelle found herself at. He was taken with her when he first laid eyes on her but his interest soon turned to suspicion as he tried to figure out who Sardelle really was.
  
  The relationship between the two main characters was pretty fast and not based on anything besides lust initially. There was witty banter and a true relationship did start to form. Overall, it was humorous, entertaining and I think I want to continue on with the series.
• 
  Sadie Forsythe

  I'm a Buroker fan and I enjoyed this almost as much as the
  The Emperor's Edge series. I liked the characters (especially the fact that they were in their 30s and 40s) and thought the world an interesting one. There was humor and a little bit of romance. Unfortunately, I didn't think it was quite as meticulously written as past books and there was a little too much he felt drawn to her but didn't know why sort of hand waving. It made the whole thing feel a bit rushed. But despite that I'd be happy to read more of series.
• 
  cEe beE

  Lindsay Buroker is an expert in writing charming heroes and heroines, witty and funny dialogue and break-neck adventure. Balanced on the Blade's Edge is a perfect example.
  
  The world building and character depth here is much lighter compared to The Emperor's Edge series but it has the same type of fast action and suspense. It overrides one's sensibilities to keep turning the pages and find out what happens next. A light escapist fast, fun read.
  
  If you are a fan of Buroker, I highly recommend this!
• 
  Hallie

  Seems an astonishingly quick romance (or whatever) for those who've read all of the Emperor's Edge books, but still a lot of fun. Interesting premise too, and good characters.
• 
  Matilda ❣️

  3.5 stars
  
  Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed this book and read it in a day - but I still felt like it could have just been so much more. You got glimpses of Sardelle's power but I felt like we never really got to see her full potential - it was just hinted at. The world-building was also a bit mediocre and I would have been interested for the characters to explore more of the underground city somehow. The side characters were also pretty poorly developed - I don't think we were ever really introduced to any of the prisoner women that Sardelle was housed with for her time in the camp. It was definitely a missed opportunity and would have helped with character development overall. The plot was fine, it trotted along and drew the H and h together. It was a bit abrupt at the end though and I feel like we never really got a true resolution on the situation. Overall, it was okay and I enjoyed reading it.
• 
  Amanda (Is Not a Panda)

  It was...it was pretty great. Balanced on a Blade's Edgethoroughly captured my interest throughout, and instead of being some sappy forbidden love story, it was actually driven by a plot and characters that I enjoyed. That being said... I have a thing or two to say about the romance. I actually just bought this trilogy on amazon because it looked interesting and it was on sale... so I didn't go into it expecting any actual romance. So I was surprised when I was reading and then BOOM there was sex scene all of a sudden, in the most unlikely of places. Oh, would you look at that!
  
  
  
  I still wanted to keep reading because I have trouble leaving a story unfinished, aaaand in the end I didn't regret reading it all! After the aforementioned one, there weren't any more scenes like that, and it really just focused on the antagonist vs. protagonist plot. I was rooting for both Ridge and Sardelle individually since they were first introduced, and then I was rooting for them to stay together. This was a nice quick read, and I'll give it an actual rating of 3.5 stars.
• 
  Vero

  Great fantasy novel - with a very engaging romance I did like a few of her other novels, though they had a too slow slow burn...
   
  Here, it had delicious tension and a very sweet love story. World-building was solid, story gripping enough.
   
  It felt more like an epic fantasy than a steampunk novel, but I don't care, I like epic fantasy.
   
  It reminded me a bit of "An Accidental Goddess"  - the long sleep, the powers, the set-up.
  Since AAG was one of my favourite books, nothing wrong with that, since it is not a cheap rip-off, just a slight resemblance.
   
  Off to the next installment!
• 
  Barbara ★

  I enjoy fantasy, steampunk and romance so this book was right up my alley. I really liked both Ridge and Sardelle and Jaxi was a hoot. I particularly liked that they weren't teenie boppers but adults in their 30s and 40s. It's rather refreshing to see grown-ups in fantasy novels. Being 50, it gets kind of old dealing with teenage angst and stupid love triangles.
  
  This is my first Lindsay Buroker book but it definitely won't be my last. I'll be back to this series soon to see where it heads next.
  
  
• 
  Lyndi W.

  I'm too tired to write a review.
  
  Was good book. Me like. You maybe read?
• 
  Maddie

  This one was actually pretty good :) Read it for a challenge, and it was much better than my last read, but I still didn't find it as intriguing as other books. I liked the idea of their being sorcerers and witches who were bound to swords with their own personalities as I haven't really read anything like it before. I also liked the way the romance didn't seem forced, and how it wasn't a cringe read. The occasional multiple POV was also really cool. Not sure what'll happen in the next book, or whether it's from someone else's POV.
• 
  Marijan Šiško

  I've read the book as part of three-book deal on Amazon. I din't expect much from it, thinking it was just another in endless row of steampunk/fantasy/romance hybrids that seem to be breeding faster that tribbles for the last several years.
  I must say I was pleasantly surprised. True, there is no deep character development, no earth-shattering answers to the meaning of life, universe and everything, but...
  It was fun. It was excellently written with much more show than tell, well paced, and with just enough background to explain the plot of the book, without smothering the reader with encyclopedic details.
  Overall, it was fun and relaxing summer read, and I'm looking forward to reading the next book.
  3.5 stars
  
• 
  Jeffe Kennedy

  A delightful fantasy romance! I loved both the hero and heroine, and the magic sword. Terrific worldbuilding and magic system. I would've liked to see the romance developed with a bit more conflict, but it was also fun to have two people who genuinely like each other overcome external conflicts. I fully expect the stories and world to deepen and am eagerly embarking on book 2. I think anyone who enjoys my books will gobble this one up - go grab it!
• 
  Louise

  Enjoyable and not challenging
• 
  Coco.V

  🎁 Part of The Dragon Blood Collection, Books 1-3 which is FREE on Amazon today (5/14/2021)! 🎁
• 
  Pauline

  A quick, light-weight & fun read by a new author for me - Lindsay Buroker.
  
  When pilot Colonel RidgeWalker Zirkander defends his female lieutenant's honour by threatening a diplomat's 'flesh stick' he doesn't expect a round of applause, and certainly didn't anticipate being 'grounded' and sent to manage a prison camp.
  
  Meanwhile when sorcerer Sardelle wakes up to find herself trapped underground, she figures she has been caught in her magical escape pod for a couple of hours, maybe a day or two - definitely not 300 years. Finding herself trapped inside a prison camp, it becomes essential for her to rescue her soul-bonded sword and get out of there, particularly when she learns that simply threatening someone of sorcery is a quick way to ensure their torturous death in this day and age.
  
  I enjoyed this story and the characters. There was plenty of action to keep things moving, and the moments of humour kept everything generally light-hearted (even when you're dealing with big themes like war, genocide and prisons). And maybe that's the biggest advantage and flaw here - the book is exceedingly light-weight. It hints at a lot and really could have dived further into both the characters and the world, but instead it simply lets everything play out in a really superficial way.
  
  The other problem I had is how... convenient (read: manufactured) a lot of pivotal moments are. It's pretty clear here that the author wasn't wasting any time getting their characters exactly where they wanted them. There aren't really any 'ahah!' moments, you're just jumping from one big scene to the next as things inexplicably fall into the main character's laps.
  
  But as mentioned, this was a quick, light-weight read - and I suspect that any deeper world/character development would have ended up on the cutting room floor in favour of keeping this book as tight as possible.
  
  I also didn't really find it especially 'steam punk' - but I wonder if that might change in future books in the series. I also hope that we see a bit more world-building in future books, and maybe a bit of extra character development too (it looks like we're switching to a new character for the next book in the series, but I'm sure we'll revisit older ones as well).
  
  In all, I can recommend it as a quick read. The romantic scenes were pleasant but not explicit or particularly erotic. The characters were generally straight forward and pleasant - no dark clouds or damaged goods here.
  
  3.5 stars rounded down to 3 stars for Good Reads.
• 
  Nigel

  This was an OK novel and was the first I have read by Buroker. The pace was good and kept the reader turning the pages. I feel however that there were a few deficiencies that prevent it from being a good or even a great book. Firstly the book seems to suffer from a crisis on identity. Amazon has it categorised as ‘Steampunk’ but the only feature of this genre I could recognise was the use of airships and balloons, on the other hand the extensive use of and reference to magic felt more in ‘Fantasy’ genre. But aside from the magic there was little else one would expect in fantasy as all the characters are basically human with none of the other races one would suspect.
  Secondly there is very little world building considering this is the first of a new series. We only really get exposed to a small area of the world, that containing the mine to which Ridge is sent to command as a punishment. We are aware, almost by accident, that there is war going on but we receive no details of the history, or the whys and wherefores of the war which makes it difficult to set the described action in its correct setting.
  Thirdly I found the behaviour and action of many of the characters inconsistent a best and unbelievable at worst. Sardelle who was held in stasis in a protection chamber is released by the prisoner miners it is obvious to all that she is not one of the prisoners, no one recognisers her, she hasn’t go either a prisoner number, or file yet she is no detained but simply allowed to wander around the prison. She seems to make ‘friends’ with Ridge and keeps cropping up in unlikely places to help him, even managing to sneak out of the prison (for which she receives no punishment).
  As I said it was an OK read but it hasn’t gripped me enough to read more of the series or the author.
• 
  Amyiw

  This was really good. A mix of scifi romance with steampunk and paranormal mixed in. Set on a planet where over 300 years ago a war destroyed a city housing the good sorceri during a festival. Most were present in the mountain fortress when the mountain collapsed leaving only Sam alive but in stasis. Three hundred years later, she is awakened from stasis when the penal colony digs too close while excavating crystals from a mine utop the ruins. They don't even know about the ruins or that there was a city because today all sorcerers are feared and killed as witches. Sam is a sorcerer so immediately hides this ability. Luckily Ridge is taking over the penal station and is much more fair than the last commander.
  
  So I take a star off for the abrupt ending and the quickness of Ridge trusting Sam even though he knows that she is hiding something. She is allowed a bit too much freedom to move around. Still I like them together and this is more a romance than anything else. Things worked out a little too convenient but I really liked how they got together in the end.