The Daughters’ War

Buehlman builds on the lore of his Blacktongue series with this thrilling prequel to The Blacktongue Thief. It’s presented as the journal of Galva dom Braga, who recalls her journey to and experiences in the goblin wars, dwelling on memories of late friends and lovers and supplementing her account with letters from family members. To save humanity from goblin occupation, Galva is off to join an all-female unit tasked with fighting the goblins using their corvid companions, large mutated attack birds. She marches across Gallardia with her brothers Pol, Migaéd, and Amiel, each of whom is in a different squad of the Western Army of the Illuminated Kingdom of Ispanthi. Readers know from the start that Galva survives, but all other lives hang in the balance, and Galva’s unwavering love for her imperiled friends and family keeps the stakes of the many battles high. The result is an introspective look into how Galva came to be a fierce warrior. Series fans looking for insight into Buehlman’s badass heroine’s psyche will want to check this out. (June)