Review: The Glass Blade by Ryan Wieser (Hunters of Infinity #1)

The Glass Blade (Hunters of Infinity #1)
Ryan Wieser
Published: March 6, 2018 (Rebel Base Books)
Purchase: Book Depository or Amazon
Review source: copy provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review

Reviewed by: Beth

Rating (out of 5): 2.5 stars

Jessop is a warrior with exceptional powers and skill. She saves the lives of a couple of men who turn out to be Hunters of Infinity, a select group of men who protect the galaxy. When she ends up back at their base while helping to keep one alive, she is viewed with distrust and suspicion—more so when the Hunters’ leader falls ill suddenly. As Jessop tries to prove herself, there will be more deaths, betrayals, and revenge.

The story takes place in a galaxy far, far away. Well, it’s never actually made clear whether the Earth really exists in relation to this story at all. Most of it actually takes place within the Hunters’ base, a sterile place where the transparent walls and floors hide more than most would guess. There is a short bit that takes place in an outpost, which seemed almost like what one would find in an old western.

The main character is Jessop, along with a Hunter by the name of Kohl, and a former Hunter named Falco—long considered a traitor. None of the characters, including Jessop, really felt complete to me. I struggled to really contextualize her as a person, partly I think because there is so much mystery surrounding her presence and her goals. I really didn’t feel a connection to any of the characters, and often I felt more frustrated with them than anything. And without any spoilers, there is a major twist at the end that simply did not feel realistic. When you have a character who has trained for something for pretty much their entire life, then the focus to accomplish that goal would have to be laser. And instead, it was wishy-washy at best.

The story was also very frustrating to me. So much time was spent weaving the mystery of Jessop throughout that it felt like far too many puzzle pieces were missing. There is mystery, and there are just holes—and this story had holes. Much of the backstory is explained at the very end, but it was too little, too late. In addition, there was pretty much an immediate sexual relationship between Jessop and Kohl that felt…off. I’m not a prude by any means, but this felt more like the author was writing for a YA group and felt that—in order to keep their attention—there MUST be a relationship happening. It was far too forced, and so detracted from the story rather than adding to it.

Frankly, the best part of the book came in about the last quarter. If the rest of the story had been written with the same tenseness and thoroughness in the first three-quarters, I feel I would have liked it much better. As it was, while this is the first part in a series, I’m afraid that The Glass Blade has severed any chance of pursuing the story further.

Sexual Content: None