Title: A Taste of Gold and Iron
Author: Alexandra Rowland
Publisher: Tordotcom
Length: 505 Pages
Category: Fantasy, Alt-History
Rating: 3 Stars
At a Glance: To put a fine point on it, A Taste of Gold and Iron seems to suffer from an identity crisis, and I feel the story could have been half as long and much better for it being more focused.
Reviewed By: Lisa
Blurb: Kadou, the shy prince of Arasht, finds himself at odds with one of the most powerful ambassadors at court—the body-father of the queen’s new child—in an altercation which results in his humiliation.
To prove his loyalty to the queen, his sister, Kadou takes responsibility for the investigation of a break-in at one of their guilds, with the help of his newly appointed bodyguard, the coldly handsome Evemer, who seems to tolerate him at best. In Arasht, where princes can touch-taste precious metals with their fingers and myth runs side by side with history, counterfeiting is heresy, and the conspiracy they discover could cripple the kingdom’s financial standing and bring about its ruin.
Review: Having recently read and enjoyed Alexandra Rowland’s self-published Some By Virtue Fall, I was excited to dig into their latest release, a novel that, thanks to its lack of a full exploration of the synesthetic power of “touch-taste”, only meets the minimum definition of fantasy.
A Taste of Gold and Iron is more an alt-historical novel that leans heavily into the Turkish Empire for its inspiration. Rowland captures the scenery in vivid detail and meticulously describes the clothing and customs so readers can clearly imagine these elements of the story. That, however, also worked against the pacing much of the time. I’d have been happy with fewer embellishments and more characterization and building of the fantastical elements of the plot, which support the mystery that Kadou must solve.
What this novel does well is represent not only diversity among its characters but portrays anxiety (undiagnosed to fit the historical aspect) in a sympathetic and meaningful way. Kadou suffers panic attacks that leave him incapacitated, which, by his own definition, makes him weak and a coward. His inner voice berates him as useless, pointless, and at times he resorts to sex with a member of the royal guard, Tadek, in order to cope and recenter himself again. That is, until Kadou makes an error in judgment that causes his sister, the sultan, to assign him a personal guard to avoid exiling him.
Evermer is the quintessential bodyguard. He’s committed to His Highness by a deep sense of duty and loyalty to the sultan, but is less than respectful of Kadou thanks to rumors and misperceptions of Kadou’s character. As much as Kadou believes he’s weak, Evermer believes it even more, but of course his perspective changes as he gets to know and see who Kadou truly is. The switch is flipped with a lot of inner turmoil detailed for both men, thanks to their conflicting ranks. When their backs are against the wall—in both the literal and figurative sense—the story resorts to some familiar romantic tropes to offer them a handy escape from danger.
To put a fine point on all of this, A Taste of Gold and Iron seems to suffer from an identity crisis, and I feel the story could have been half as long and much better for it being more focused. While I did enjoy a few of the supporting characters who brought energy and personality to their scenes, I do think the touch-taste is not explored thoroughly enough for its fantasy category; it’s not technically a mystery since the antagonists are obvious from the start; and the romance between Kadou and Evermer relied a great deal on tropes and internal conflict rather than communication to evolve.
You can buy A Taste of Gold and Iron here:
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