Synopsis:
No Mercy, No Questions Asked.
Cork has quickly made a name for himself among the Kosellan mercenaries, but now his boss has come to him with an unusual job. Cork’s erstwhile countrymen, the Winn, have hired him to travel into the barren Frozen Lands and destroy a convoy, leaving only one survivor.
Cork isn’t sure he can trust the Winn. He feels like a pawn in their political game. However, his mother is sick and the Winn have promised to heal her if Cork does the job. And killing is what Cork does best.
To make matters worse. Cork’s crew has been decided for him: Arabella, an inexperienced and infuriating archer, and Nessa, a gloomy criminal with murder on her mind.
Cork will have to figure out how to complete the job, avoid Winn treachery, and manage conflicts with Arabella and Nessa along the way.
It’s going to be chaos.
Review:
The Pawns of Havoc is a novella that takes one of the side characters (and best character by far) from Lawson’s The Envoys of War and not only deepens the lore, but weaves an interesting tale that makes said character far more likeable than he already was. Winn and win (yes, that’s a in-world pun…).
Cork is a big, axe-wielding merc living with his sick mama. See, mama is Winn, and when the Winn leave their island for extended periods of time, they become increasingly ill because of magic. So Cork takes jobs to pay for mama’s meds. He gets a job to attack a convoy, killing all but one. The problem, it’s given to him by the dastardly Winn. Along with Cork, we get a stab-happy harpy of a killer named Nessa, and a naive, cobbler’s daughter who can shoot a bow named Arabella. And unlike the main book of the series, there is no failed plans. Mostly.
Everything about this novella is a step up in storytelling from the previous outing. While Envoys was enjoyable, it is clear that Lawson leveled up as an author in almost every category and I love seeing this from authors. The prose was the standout for me here in Pawns. It was very dynamic, very precise, very engaging, which was one of my small bugaboos from the first book. I was engrossed in every scene. The plot was perfect for a novella, and it didn’t stray at all. The tone was darker, less jokey, which for me, that’s a total win. The banter is still there as that’s Lawson’s specialty, especially between the three mains, and each joke hit very well and didn’t come across as forced. Pawns is definitely a more mature outing and I enjoyed every minute of it.
As I said, Cork was by far my favorite character in Envoys and it was nice to be with him as a POV. His arc was very well done and I felt like this will only enhance the character in the next books of the series. Despite his size and weapon-swinging abilities, Cork is a very deep and introspective character. He’s loyal to a fault but also realistic about life in general. His determination to help his mama is admirable. Essentially, Cork is just a giant cinnamon roll. Buuuuuut, Arabella outshone Cork here in this novella though, I won’t lie. She’s a fabulous foil for Cork. She’s funny, she’s brave, she’s headstrong. Just all sorts of all-around fun with her. I especially enjoyed her calling Cork ‘Connick’ and watching it go from annoyance to lighthearted ribbing to affection. Their potential romance arc was great. And Nessa, yeah, this little harpy was a blast. So bloodthirsty and snarky. Loved her. As a trio, you cannot ask for a better grouping of characters to carry a tale.
The Pawns of Havoc is my third outing in this world Lawson has created (shhhh he might have a short story about a Winn cook coming out this summer, don’t tell anyone…) and I can definitely say that he’s onto something here, especially as he continues to grow as a storyteller. It’s got me really excited to see where he goes next!
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