The Sword-Edged Blonde

By: Alex Bledsoe

Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki

It should have been a case like any other: a missing princess, a king willing to pay in gold for her return. But before he realizes it, private investigator Eddie LaCrosse, a slightly shopworn sword jockey with a talent for discretion and detection, is swept up in a web of mystery and deceit involving a brutally murdered royal heir, a queen accused of an unspeakable crime, and the tragic past he thought he'd left behind.©2007 Alex Bledsoe (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Stylish and self-assured: Raymond Chandler meets Raymond E. Feist." (Publishers Weekly)
"Fans of Glen Cook's Garrett novels or hard-boiled detective fiction will appreciate this well-crafted gem of a tale." (Library Journal)

A 17th century Philip Marlow

For those who like a mystery mixed with Fantasy and noir style story telling, this is a great listen. the Fantasy aspects are not overwhelming, there isn't a spell for every occasion, and the people are consistent in their actions and motivation. I enjoyed listening to it, the performance is appropriate for the material and style.

castle Noir is what I would call it.

I was hooked in this storyline from the get go. it was like a old detective story but with swords and castles. I liked it very entertaining had me not wanting to stop. I kept saying one more chapter then I'll stop. that happened too many times on this story for me.

Story was kinda meh

Average story, wasnt great, wasn't bad. Narrator carried this book during the dull parts. I will give the other books in the series a try.

Horrible Title, great story

A real winner from Audible Plus. The character's were interesting, the story drew you in, and it was smoothly narrated. I really thought this was going to be something completely different, but was pleasantly surprised. Rudnicki usually does a good smooth job of narrating the story and did not disappoint with this book. I'm getting book # 2 right now.

A wonderful clash of great generes

Performance: Takes a little bit to get used to, I think as far as the sudden jump between people talking with some of his voices. but overall, I couldnt and wont ever want a different narrator speaking for these books. His voice is some silky smooth deep tone, relaxing and very easy to listen to. Amazing work, and he NAILS this character.

Story: If you like Medieval, sword and sandal type stuff, along with mystery(s).. and enough fantasy here and there, there really isnt a reason to not check this one out. It nails all 3 generes and honestly, an hour in and I was already excited there is more than 1 book. It's not going to blow your mind, but it's a great story I really really enjoyed. Don't overthink on this one, just honestly enjoy the ride.

some audio errors

a couple of time the narration was muffled and once or twice words were repeated

Interesting Story!

I read a lot of reviews before reading this story and I have a different perspective (maybe because I am a male reader). The perspective for me is based on life in medieval times which means that life was much more brutal and women were essentially property. I will say that I am happy to NOT live in that time frame as I could not treat people that horribly.

The H has lost the love of his life and goes off on his own as a sword for hire. He goes through some really dark times and doss some bad things but a horrific event sets him back to the right path.

Women are treated poorly, brutalized and raped (not graphic but still disturbing) but the H mostly tries to right wrongs and help people.

It does get a bit convoluted, some of which is explained further in the second book of the series. It is an entertaining story with a few brief adult moments. The H does not always make the best decisions but my guess is that he survives through several books as the series is written about him.

great story

i enjoyed this story. the narrator is good. his voice is a little deep to do great women , but still enjoyable.

an old fashioned sword jockey story

this is the author's first book I believe it's a nice story old fashioned kind of a blend of detective noir and sword jockey, with a little fantasy thrown in it was a good performance lots of interesting voices well worth an audio listen if you like those kind of genres.

Like Mike Hammer but with crossbows...

Rudnicki also narrates the Matt Helm series and he does a great job on this one too.