Synopsis:
In the deep quiet of the Whispering Wood, Sorin has made a life out of being forgotten. That silence shatters when a dying Elven messenger collapses at his door, carrying a sealed warning meant for a king who may already be too late to listen. Hunted by fanatics, shadowed by ancient powers, and burdened with a message that could change the fate of realms, Sorin must decide what kind of man he will be when the world demands a voice.
Review:
The Last Breath of Peace is a prequel novella to Sutcliffe’s upcoming Thaneweave series and is a nice introduction to his world. And while this story does have visceral action, it is more on the cozier side of things because it focuses on one man’s internal dilemma of forsaking one’s isolationist silence for the greater good.
The story is fairly straightforward from a plot perspective: dude self-isolating in a secluded forest has a wounded dude show up at his cabin and wounded dude has an important message for a king about to start a war because he has a murder-happy son.
But where TLBoP really shines is in the small moments between travel where Sorin (isolated dude) and Kaelen (wounded dude) discuss how sitting on one’s hands/keeping one’s tongue silent in the face of oncoming atrocity can soil said one’s soul. I won’t lie, whether Sutcliffe did it on purpose or not, I couldn’t help but see the parallels to a number of horrific things happening in the world today (which I won’t name so this lovely review blog doesn’t get blacklisted or threatened…). As much as we, as people and individuals, would love to have rose-colored glasses on and think one person can’t make a difference, I really did enjoy Kaelen’s fire in insisting the tide will still affect us and we can choose to be on the side of right, but we have to actively make that choice.
On a lighter note, Sorin and Kaelen were excellent foils for one another. Sorin has some history (not fully discussed in depth) and him going from self-imposed isolation from the world to helping Kaelen was some great character growth. And I liked how Sorin does it because he believes in kindness despite wanting to stay out of things. On the other side, Kaelen’s fire comes from his own tortured history, seeing Bad Things™️up close and deciding he can’t stay silent any longer. Their interactions range from antagonistic to agreement, and everything in between. Their growing friendship was awesome and I really liked where they ended up by the end of the novella.
There are a couple other characters, including an ancient watcher as interludes, but overall, this story is about Sorin and Kaelen. The other characters do a great job of being part of S&K’s story but also setting up the greater conflict of the Thaneweave series. Also, the Thaneweave concept is really neat, if only touched on, but similar to other stories (like WoT) there is the belief the world is a tapestry and certain weaves are crucial for the world (in a nutshell).
I did have one niggle and that was the battle scene Sorin and Kaelen fight in. The battle was amazing, the fog and smell of war was visceral as all get out. Sutcliffe nails it and I seriously hope there are many more to come in the later series. That said, it felt a bit out of place in terms of Sorin just deciding to go to war after spending the whole of his existence and novella not wanting to be a part of it and not being a warrior. Believe me, I get the point of why it is included, I just didn’t think it was necessary to his arc. Again, just picking nits here.
The prose of this novella is excellent, there are so many great lines here. Metaphors about the setting or battle that really just evoke emotions. Phrases like:
…the rain came down in sheets so thick they blurred the line between earth and sky.
The clouds dragged their bellies across the horizon, heavy and bruised, throwing pale light over the hills.
The road east wound through the bones of old wars.
Harbingers of doom preparing for a dawn of blood.
Sutcliffe has a way with words that just makes you nod your head like that Robert Redford Jeremiah Johnson GIF.
The Last Breath of Peace is one heck of a debut novella, setting up a greater series that I’m excited to check out. This novella releases on October 27, 2026, get it on your TBRs now, friends!
*I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review
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