Interview now up with Marshall Ryan Maresca: https://bit.ly/2MFp5yg

Dayne has the highest respect for the order he’s joined, the Tarians. The Tarian warriors adhere to a chivalrous code of honor, though they live in a time period vaguely suggestive of post-Renaissance Europe during the Age of Discovery. When Dayne, a Candidate, returns to the order’s home in the city of Maradaine, he finds events of the past year prevent him from advancing to the level of Adept. Despite Dayne’s best effort, the boy he was to rescue from a criminal’s trap died when Dayne failed to protect him. Now the boy’s relatives are determined to block his ascent in the Tarian order, which means that Dayne will not be allowed to stay for good.

Though Dayne is saddened about his pending departure, he still takes the way of the shield and sword seriously. The shield, which appears in the title of the book, symbolizes protection, while the sword should only be drawn as a last resort. Dayne believes that protecting lives doesn’t mean taking other lives, though he is always willing to sacrifice himself, if needed.

His ideals will be challenged as he is drawn into events orchestrated by a conspiracy featuring ten masked men and women, most of them highly placed. What appears at first to be a movement to give more power to the commoners is actually a secret conspiracy to replace the King and achieve new alliances in the Parliament to further the aims of the Traditionalist Party, the political arm of the nobility. The plot is set into motion through pawns that are unaware of the true goal.

As Dayne rushes forth, despite the Tarian Grandmaster’s injunction, to save the day, he’s helped by another Candidate, Jerinne, as well as the daughter of his lordly sponsor, the Lady Mirianne, and an assortment of politically-radicalized writers.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2695769553

The Way of the Shield is the first installment in author Marshal Ryan Maresca's Maradaine Elite series. The fourth series of the Maradaine universe tells the story of Dayne Heldrin, an elite warrior and protector of the city of Maradaine. This is a series set to the back drop of high fantasy, which means lots of characters, political machinations, with the introduction of the grand ten, as well as plenty of action, magic and adventure.

The Maradaine Elite series introduces a new layer of the city—the aristocracy and powerful officials—building on the perspectives introduced in the other three Maradaine series for which you will see some crossovers with the other three series. In fact, Dayne and his colleague Jerinne Fendell appear in the next Maradaine Constabulary novel which I will be reviewing soon. This book shares the same setting with the authors other series – the sprawling metropolis of Maradaine, populated by mages, vigilantes, police investigators, criminals, cults, politicians – and now, knights.

For the first time, we are introduced to the Tarian Order, an order with a code who carry shields and swords. This group is one of the rare groups that hasn't been consumed by the navy, or the army, or the King's Marshal's. Dayne has spent 2 years in a place called Lacanja with his mentor. After a rescue goes sideways, Dayne is recalled to Maradaine where he discovers that his actions haven't been forgotten by the elite who choose who will gain a promotion to the next level.

In the meantime, a group of wannabe Patriots decide to try to kill members of Parliament, and he and Jerinne, one of the initiates, become involved in trying to stop the plotters, whose real leaders are very high in status. Dayne is a solid character who puts others ahead of himself. He is also self-punishing and self-deprecating at times. In fact, due to his attempt at saving an innocent from a vindictive villain who readers will see again soon, there is a very dark possibility that he won't be granted a promotion to the position of Adept.

This would weigh heavily on anyone in the same position hoping for a promotion to a position he is more than qualified for. Dayne also has an interesting relationship with the daughter of a Duke which we really need more background information on. Dayne isn't the only focus of this story. Jerinne Fendall is a 2 year initiate who gets caught up with Dayne's desire to see justice and to stop a serious threat towards those who serve in the Parliament.

The most curious characters of this book are the Grand Ten. These people come from all walks of political life and have gathered together to create a conspiracy not like anything that Maradaine has seen in a very long while. There is a very deep corruption in this city where not everyone gets a fair slice of the freedom pie. It is so corrupt, that the same people are being elected over and over again while the King seems to be vacant from his duties.

This is a world that doesn't allow women the opportunity to vote, but women like Jerinne are able to stand tall as an initiate and join Dayne is fighting for what's wrong, and not what's easy. The Way of the Shield is full of intrigue and interesting characters, I will be eager to see where the author takes his characters next. As I said before, Dayne and Jerinne also appear in the next Maradaine Constabulary series which I think you will find interesting. I like the crossover aspects giving each story a bit more depth and excitement.

A great addition to the Maradaine world, this book is also pretty satisfying on its own. Maresca has invented a complex political bureaucracy for his characters to get stuck in and/or run up against. In the case of this book's particular (and new) main character, Dayne, a sort of Knight-in-Training who is so morally upright as to be a pillar, the bureaucracy becomes such an obstacle that it's like a character in itself. The crux of the matter is basically how Dayne and co. handle it, versus how the ostensible Bad Guys handle it, and how easy it can be to manipulate people. Especially when they feel they've been wronged by a political system. Parallels to real life, anyone?

Maresca's plotting here is deft, though sometimes a little repetitive, and his writing defter than in the last Maradaine book I read (with this many books in four years and counting, he's been honing his craft). Assuming you don't dislike political thrillers, whether you like this book/subseries as much as the others in the Maradaine world will depend on how much you like this set of characters. Dayne himself can be a little too do-good, and not very complicated, but this book also gives us Jerinne -- Yay, Jerinne!! She is a younger initiate in Dayne's knightly order, and she is awesome. I think she's the first outright LGBTQ character in the Madaraine world too, though I can't really tell if she's "out" because these books have been SO straight up to now, and it's never been stated whether homosexuality is legal in Maradaine. (Speaking of textual unclarity, I find it a little weird that in this world, women can't vote but can be knights, and constables and such, but hey, slow progress is still progress... like in real life...)

The Way of the Shield is the start of a new fantasy series from
Marshall Ryan Maresca. It shares a setting with his other series – the sprawling metropolis of Maradaine, populated by mages, vigilantes, police investigators, criminals, cults, politicians – and now, knights.

The centre of the narrative is Dayne. Dayne is a member of the Tarian order, a group of heavily armed individuals with a code. There used to be more of these orders, but they’ve been slowly subsumed into the army and other government initiatives over the years, and now only the Tarians and one of the others are left. Dayne is an exemplar of Tarian values – keen to help those who can’t help themselves, and to protect lives. He has a degree of guilt for his inability to stop the deaths of those tht he’s protected in the past – but the Tarians demand he gets up in the morning, picks up his shield, and goes on to see what’s text.

Dayne is almost worryingly wholesome. He’s perpetually self-deprecating and self-punishing, at the same time as he lvies up to all the higher ideals of his order. A nice guy, but stern – a paladin in the making. Fortunately, perhaps, he’s backed up by a posse of other characters with their own flaws, I particularly enjoyed his friendship with a group of newspaper-folk, which provided the opportunity for exposition, some charmingly sharp witty banter, and a chance to explore the subtext of the role of the press in a less-than-free society.

Because that’s what Maradaine is, to be sure. It’s a metropolis, a city whose economy is thriving, whose people are surging through the streets. But it’s a city whose body politic is moribund. There’s a king who seems absent, and a parliament populated by the rich, the venal, the power hungry, or some combination of all three. Parliament represents the people, as long as the people are people like themselves – and that leaves those outside their circle fuming and aware of the injustice. If you can vote, but your vote will bring in one of two identical candidates – then where’s the choice? The Maradaine electorate is on the boil; the air of the city thick with tension.

Into thishotpot of havoc slides a conspiracy – I won’t get into details here, but they plan to change Maradaine’s politics, they would claim for the better. If the detailed, in-depth world-building is one of this book’s strengths, another is its antagonists; their goals are, if not laudable, at least understandable in a world of realpolitik. If their means are unpleasant, involving riots, deaths, assassinations, they’re backed by the pragmatic service of an achievable goal. These are not villains in their own minds, and we get some exposure to their point of view.

In another book, they might even serve as the heroes; here though, they are reflected in Dayne’s moral certitude, and found wanting. That said, Dayne’s not on his own; he’s backed by a Tarian trainee, and her attitude can mostly be described a stubborn and fierce. In between debates with the press-gang, seeing her work with Dayne is a joy. The fights are gloriously choreographed and kinetically hefty; you’ll taste the iron in the back of your throat, and slip on the blood on the floor from the drawn blades.

This is an adventure story. Dayne throws himself into righting wrongs, almost by accident. If he carries his own guilt, that just makes him more genuine. Despite his competence, his relative youth seems to leave him emotionally vulnerable in a city filled with movers and shakers with less moral rectitude and more emotional armour. But Dayne does right wrongs, and does so with a force of personality which you can feel pervading every word on the page. This is a story of heroes. Dayne, for sure, the moral beacon. But his friends bear him up, and keep hom facing in the right direction. His trainee – well, she’s amazing. Stubborn, forceful, confident in her own capability, refusing to take any crap from anyone. If Dayne is the centre, the spine of the story, she and his other friends are the muscles.

It's a poitical story, one which both demands and rewards your attention. It’s a personal story, dealing with pain, loss, heartbreak and forgiveness. It’s a story about morality, about sacrifice, about what people want from life. It’s a fun story – there’s quips, swordfights, chases through the streets. It’s a compelling, convincing work of fantasy, and a worthy addition to the rich tapestry that is the works of Maradaine. Pick it up, give it a try – you won’t be disappointed.

The Way of the Shield is the first book in the final series from Marshall Ryan Maresca.. We've been previously introduced to a vigilante college student, some exceptional if odd constabulary folks, and a crew of misfits from Holver Alley. This book introduces us to the more powerful among the Druthal nation - we meet the Parliament and the various orders of protection for the nation. I enjoyed the Maradain Series, really enjoyed the Maradaine Constabulary series, and loved the Streets of Maradaine. I wanted to enjoy the Maradaine Elite, but it just didn't hold the same appeal.

The Way of the Shield is action packed and full of intrigue and interesting characters, but we don't really get much development of the characters. There is a lot of potential here, but I felt like character development was sacrificed in order to bring the big overarching plot of intrigue. There are even interludes within the book that switch the point of view of events to those ultimately planning to orchestrate a large-scale coup. I realize all of the other books and series were hinting at this, but they did so without rushing.

The main character, Dayne, has the affections of two women. But this never seems to come into play for him (though it does for the women - which is frustrating). We don't really know Dayne. I found myself wanting more of the newspapermen than those of the Tarian Order most involved in the book.

This book is clearly laying more threads to pull everything together, but I think it did so sacrificing an individual story that made all the other series and books so enjoyable. That said, I will keep reading because I am dying to see how it all comes together (particularly the crash between the Holver Alley boys and Satrine and the potential importance of Satrine and her daughter).

Maresca continues to produce intricate fantasy. This latest book in Maradaine is the first of a new series and was quite good. We've had a view of Maradaine from the following viewpoints: student/magician's, policeman's perspective and thief. Now we get the military perspective-or maybe the Templar perspective as I think that's the closest analogy we have.

As usual, great characterization and lots of surprising reveals and plot twists. I keep thinking I need to go back and read them all in order because I'm sure I'm missing clues to the overarching plot that is clearly woven between all of these books.

Recommended!

This is a great read for those interested in politics, philosophy and mystery. Maresca does a good job mingling fantasy style writing with different feeling genres, at times it feels as if you're reading a great murder mystery and the next you're right in the middle of political intrigue. The story at time does feel bogged down by all the different details given be the characters about what they are doing and why, but this also plays into how those characters are filling their roles as political activists.

The Way of the Shield by Marshall Maresca, a very nice read. A true fantasy though not from the ordinary person finds out they have special powers but from a member of an Order standing true to the ideals of himself and the Order. Not every problem can be solved by hitting it with a sword and this book demonstrates that remarkably. Additionally it sets up the sequels nicely. Put this book on your TBR list if you like fantasy books.