''City of Blades'' is a 2016 fantasy novel by

Robert Jackson Bennett Robert Jackson Bennett (born 1984) is an American writer of speculative fiction. Early life and education Robert Jackson Bennett was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He graduated from the University of Texas with special honors in English in 2005 ...

. It is the second novel in his Divine Cities trilogy.

Synopsis

Five years after the events of '' City of Stairs'', General Turyin Mulaghesh is called out of retirement so that she can carry out one last mission in the city of Voortyashtan.

Reception

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'' found the novel to be "(l)ess literarily allusive than its predecessor", judging it to be "richly detailed and expertly plotted" — albeit with a less-than-optimal voice for Mulaghesh.CITY OF BLADES by Robert Jackson Bennett
reviewed at ''

''; published November 15, 2015; retrieved November 3, 2018 ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' called it "astonishingly good" and "a deep, powerful novel that’s worth reading and rereading", with Mulaghesh — "a physically and emotionally wounded warrior who both loathes battle and excels at it" — being a "fascinating character".City of Blades
reviewed at

; published November 16, 2015; retrieved November 3, 2018 ''

Strange Horizons ''Strange Horizons'' is an online speculative fiction magazine. It also features speculative poetry and nonfiction in every issue, including reviews, essays, interviews, and roundtables. History and profile It was launched in September 2000, and ...

'' considered the novel to "rework(..) the fundamentals of 'Stairs''in ways that serve to make it a much stronger work", emphasizing that Bennett's depictions of

colonialism Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose their relig ...

had improved, but faulting him for "opaque" portrayals of the Voortyashtani citizenry.City of Blades by Robert Jackson Bennett
reviewed by Alasdair Czyrnyj], in ''

''; published January 9, 2017 ; retrieved November 3, 2018

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...

lauded the novel as better and more "streamlined" than ''Stairs'', and commended Bennett's decision to abandon both the setting and the majority of the cast of the first novel as "stupid and brave".In 'City Of Blades,' The Gods Are Dead. So What Happens Next?
by Jason Sheehan, at ''

''; published January 30, 2018; retrieved November 3, 2018

References

{{reflist 2016 American novels 2016 fantasy novels Broadway Books books