I’m back with more Blue Rose. I enjoyed the first short story so much, I knew I wanted to share the next one I read as well. This one dives a bit more into some intrigue and political drama of the world, giving an interesting picture of a multifaceted conflict.
Tales of Blue Rose: Heartsong (2018)
Written by: Lindsay Smith
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Tales of Blue Rose
Publisher: Nisaba Press
The premise:
An agent of the Silence finds himself at a moral crossroads when he meets a rhy-bonded Jarzoni priest-adept.
Spoilers Below
Discussion: Since I so enjoyed Of Shadow and Light, I wanted to dive into another piece of the Blue Rose universe. With allergies kicking my butt, I wanted a short story to cozy up with and enjoy. This fit the bill perfectly.
This short story is slightly more intimidating than Of Shadow and Light in that it jumps straight into the world, introducing concepts like a Jarzoni priest, Hierophants, and new languages. If you’re not familiar with the world of Blue Rose, it can be a bit off-putting.
However, it’s relatively easy to look past these unknown terms. Even not knowing what they mean doesn’t hinder the enjoyment of the story, and this one hits some of my favorite tropes in the universe. We have Essa, a conflicted spy up to no good but with a moral conscience tugging at his heart, and Valor, a priest hurt in the past who needs no one and only wants to stay out of trouble. They clash together in a beautiful, chaotic way that absolutely made my heart sing.
The story begins with Valor capturing Essa and taking him to be interrogated. They banter as they travel, trading playful barbs and dancing around one another’s questions. The dialogue is snappy throughout the story, and it really shines as these two characters play cat and mouse in a verbal sparring match.
Both men have secrets they’re hiding and past hurts they want to escape from, though they’ve taken different routes to avoid that hurt. As it’s a short story, we only get a hint at what those deep hurts may be. Honestly? I would devour a novel about these two helping each other heal.
Essa’s perceptive nature lets him discover part of the priest’s secret, a bonding to a wolf that bans him from holding a higher role in his organization. He picks at the wound, both for a hope at escaping his captor and out of genuine curiosity toward the man who managed to capture him. While he gets to know the priest over weak stew and stale ale, Essa can tell he has a growing fondness for his captor but can’t quite seem to make himself fight it. Instead he leans into the curiosity, pulling some stories from Valor and sharing a few of his own.
The conversation over dinner is where we really get to see Essa’s struggle with his conscience. He knows the work he’s doing will bring death and ruin to the land while saving his own. The pain and guilt rolls through him with every word, and the dialogue beautifully captures his struggle.
An attack brings their talk to an end, and Essa’s restraints are cut free so Valor can defend the town. Faced with the choice to stay and help or run, Essa’s instincts kick in and he bolts, until Valor’s animal companion approaches him and begs him to help her save Valor.
I won’t spoil the decision Essa makes, but the ending really, really, really just makes me need a longer story with these two characters.
In Conclusion: For a short story, this one feels much longer, in a good way. The dialogue carries a lot of unspoken meaning, and the interaction between the two lead characters is electric from beginning to end.
Cover artist: Stephanie Law
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