I used to be invited to take part within the SPFBO (Self Revealed Fantasy Weblog Off) Champions League evaluation by Mihir over at Fantasy Ebook Critic. As a part of this invitation, I used to be given the chance to pick out one of many 10 SPFBO winners from first 10 years of the competition and convey a brand new set of eyes to evaluation considered one of these books. I’d learn a few the books on this group of 10 books beforehand. JL Odom’s By Blood, By Salt stood out to me after I did a fast scan of critiques of the e book and I noticed folks draw comparisons to Robin Hobb, considered one of my favourite writers. Maybe that’s an unfairly excessive bar to set for any author.
J.L. Odom’s debut novel By Blood, By Salt, a Navy Fantasy novel, the primary of the Land of Exile collection. The story focuses on a navy unit on a mission, led by Azetla who’s an outsider, a “jackal.” Whereas Azetla has been within the navy for over a dozen years as a debt soldier, he’s an outcast due to his outsider nature. This mission: catch a Sahr satan, a brutal desert inhabitant. Appears a straight-forward sufficient project, however after all it’s not as a result of this Sahr Satan is a talented warrior and way over anyone anticipated them to be.
Azetla has served the Maurowan Military for 13 years. There are seven left to pay. A pariah and a debt soldier, he’s a commander with no rank, a soldier with out citizenship, and wears a sword that it’s illegal for him to both personal or use. He has discovered to carry his tongue or threat shedding the whole lot.
When Azetla’s battalion is distributed into the desert to catch a Sahr satan—one of many famously brutal inhabitants of the area—his tenuous place is threatened. He discovers that there’s way more to this mission than catching a fiend. For the Emperor of Maurow, it’s a technique to show that he fears nothing, not even devils. For the Emperor’s brother, it’s a stepping-stone to riot. For Azetla it could possibly be lethal both means, as he’s cornered into selecting a facet within the coming coup.
However the satan that Azetla finds within the desert is just not what anybody expects or desires. Because the conspiracy in opposition to the Emperor turns into entangled with the simmering ambitions of the desert tribes, Azetla should determine if he’s keen to strike a cut price with a satan with a view to survive.
Naturally, she is to not be trusted. However then once more, neither is he.
Azetla is a highly-skilled chief and navy thoughts, he instructions respect from his personal folks particularly his battalion. His captain overlooks the truth that Azetla is seen as a “decrease race” due to the advantages and glory Azetla’s management can deliver. Sadly, different males within the navy firm attempt to undermine Azetla every time alternatives current themselves. Odom attracts a variety of enthralling political drama out of this case and a part of why it’s so efficient is as a result of Azetla is an empathetic, well-realized protagonists.
Then there’s the “Sahr satan,” a posh particular person. In addition to Odom constructed the character of Azetla, there was one thing further concerning the Sahr satan. Different characters within the navy group feared and hated the Sahr satan and didn’t fairly know what to make of them. The layers of this character are revealed with the precision and endurance of a practiced craftsperson…in different phrases, very spectacular for a debut novelist.
One other aspect that impressed me was the vibrancy of the world. Superficially it was a desert panorama, however as Odom revealed extra concerning the characters and the place they originated, an image of a various world started to emerge. There’s clearly loads occurring on this world from a societal and geographic perspective and the characters are the proof of that.
Whereas By Blood, By Salt has an ideal deal to admire and luxuriate in, I discovered the secondary characters to considerably interchangeable and vague from one another. Just a few occasions I felt the necessity to backtrack within the novel to ensure I knew which characters have been being referenced or interacting with one another. To be clear, that could possibly be on me… my consideration span just lately has been somewhat suspect, however as your humble reviewer, I try for honesty. The strongest parts of the novel have been the Sahr satan and Azetla, their interactions with one another and the way different characters handled them and the precise plot appeared considerably secondary at occasions. Whereas the Sahr satan and Azetla have been the most important characters within the novel, I believe the novel could have been even stronger if a number of the supporting characters have been stripped away and the novel centered much more on them.
I famous the Robin Hobb comparability different reviewers have made, however a couple of third of the best way into the novel one thing clicked for me, by way of one other author/story that resonated with By Blood, By Salt. Carol Berg’s Rai-Kirah novels (the primary of which is Transformation) have sturdy similarities particularly in the same “indentured” nature of their protagonists; each Azetla and Seyonne (the protagonist of the Rai-Kirah novels) are ill-respected due to their race however are elevated to stations of energy amongst those that look down upon them. There’s something about Odom’s prose and the way she isn’t precisely sort to her protagonist that rings true with the Robin Hobb comparability, although.
Ultimately, whereas I discovered By Blood, By Salt to be uneven at occasions, it exhibits a variety of promise for J.L. Odom as a result of the nice components have been excellent.
© 2025 Rob H. Bedford
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