Anna Kashina is inspired by her diverse backgrounds as a Russian-born scientist, a competitive ballroom dancer, and a fan of martial arts, history, and folklore. She is the author of the award-winning MAJAT CODE series featuring adventure fantasy, medieval politics, assassins, and romance. She lives in the US Northeast, where she combines her career in biomedical research and her passion for writing.
Shadowblade by Anna Kashina
Anna Kashina’s 2019 second-world fantasy novel Shadowblade is pleasant entertainment: a mix of swordplay, political double-crossing, lost heirs and imposters all sweetened with a dollop of romance. It’s not my usual thing, but it was the right book for a drowsy, hot late-summer day with a big, sweating glass of iced tea close by.
Dal Gassan is present for the betrayal and slaughter of the Queen of Challmar and her entire court, ambushed by the Emperor Shabaddin just as she is signing a peace treaty with him. A newborn baby girl survives the mass killing, spirited off by one of the Queen’s loyal women. Because he is a member of the Daljeer Circle, Gassan is spared by the Emperor’s assassins, but Gassan begins to hatch a plan to be rid of rule of the Emperor.
Seventeen years later, Gassan visits the training grounds of the Jaihar Blademaste... Read More
