SPLINTER & ASH

Can a disabled princess and her gender-nonconforming squire make a difference to their country’s war efforts?

Twelve-year-old Princess Adelisa, who goes by “Ash,” uses a cane and braces due to her easily dislocated joints. After six years away at school, she’s returned to Calinor, where discontented nobles—and her older brother, Crown Prince Lucen—dismiss her as “crippled” and “damaged.” Twelve-year-old Splinter, who uses she/her pronouns and is neither a girl nor a boy, longs to be a squire, despite custom restricting this role to boys. When her bravery and sense of justice impress Ash, Ash sponsors Splinter as her squire and companion, but bullying from other squires, especially Lucen, makes Splinter’s quest challenging. On the day Lucen’s actions get Splinter ejected from the squires, Ash is kidnapped. Splinter—and a guilty Lucen—go in pursuit. Nijkamp illustrates the price of betrayal in many forms. Nobles, unhappy with the queen’s more equitable policies, aggravate the war with the Ferisian Empire by betraying Calinor for promises of power. Ash and Splinter, while spying for Calinor to unmask traitorous nobles, agonize over necessarily betraying friends and helpers in the process, and Lucen betrays his sister’s trust. The characters all have depth and flaws and believably grow into stronger versions of their true selves who value their own self-worth. The limited worldbuilding may be addressed in sequels. Major characters are cued white.

A thoughtful fantasy exploring loyalty, self-worth, and the ethics of war beyond the battlefield.