The Last Shield by Cameron Johnston - ARC Review

This gender-swapped Die Hard set in a castle, will have Ripley & Furiosa violently approving

Die Hard is possibly one of my favorite action movies of all time & from all accounts, one of the most influential action movies as well spawning a whole bunch of Die Hard in a “setting” imitators, some of which are legendary as well – Speed for instance was internally marketed as Die Hard on a bus. A book invoking comparisons to Die Hard has quite the unenviable task – it is obviously helpful as a reference point and expectation-setter but on the flipside, it has to really meet those expectations & bring in something new to this genre. The Last Shield by Cameron Johnston doesn’t bother to hide its obvious love, affection, and inspiration for Die Hard and dishes out fabulous amounts of guts, grit, and glory in a terrific, bloody-minded, and entertaining book that exceeds all those expectations.

Briar is the commander of the Shields, an elite group of protectors who guard the matriarchal realm of Sunweald, its Lord Regent (who is a male and hence Regent), and Heir to the throne (also male).  Sunweald, a small kingdom that finds itself sandwiched between two larger opposing nations, boasts a vault that guards precious and powerful magical artifacts, long desired by the warring nations and brigands that populate the realm. When a vicious brigand group do a Nakotomi Plaza on Sunweald Palace, an injured, seemingly disabled Briar is the only one standing between the brigands and the safety of the Regent and the Heir.

“Shields endured. Shields never gave up. Shields protected”

The plot in itself is quite simple but it is the execution of it which makes this a fantastic read. The action is spectacularly grimy, gritty, and bloody. Briar’s injury makes for a rather level field as she goes up against 35 of the brigands and the 1 sorcerer within the palace (yes, the number is important since she counts each one off as she fights against them). Briar’s biggest ally in this is the palace itself – Sunweald palace may be home to the precious vault but it also hosts numerous secret tunnels and catacombs, all of which make for a tense, enclosed setting for Briar to even the odds. Staircases in the dimly lit palace play a rather important role in this action ride.

“Man tumbling down the stairs - practically a new sport of her own invention”

Briar has the whole Ripley & Furiosa vibe going all the way through – she is a protector who isn’t afraid to push herself to the limit to protect those who matter to her, no matter how dirty or bloody it gets. And oh boy, she gets both of those in spades. There is a softer side to her as well but the element of sacrifice and duty runs rather strong. The author also writes Briar with a wicked sense of gallows humor that periodically asserts itself given the various situations she finds herself in. 

While the setting is limited to the castle, the surrounding world is teased through the various parties in the castle (both invited & uninvited) and their conjurations. Some of these conjurations coupled with the age of the castle and its tunnels and catacombs bring about a sense of claustrophobic dread that obviously runs smack into our titular Last Shield. There are also hints of the magical creatures that inhabited this realm and the possibility of incursions from multiple realms. Given the limited scope of the setting & the cast, the scope for character development is quite limited – but what we do get is a very strong sense of who Briar is – strong, resourceful, stubborn, dutiful, righteous, and a fair bit of an asshole whom you would be happy to have on your side.

“Just a fly in the ointment, Hans. The monkey in the wrench. The pain in the ass” - John McClane, Die Hard

The blurb for the book calls out the Die Hard influence pretty hard and some sequences draw inspiration from some of the Die Hard scenes. The “Ho Ho Ho, Now I have a Machine Gun” moment hits towards the midpoint of the book through a particularly emphatic moment of violence that Briar uses to send a message. Even better is a moment that pays the ultimate tribute to John McClane – it’s a statement that Bonnie Bedelia (who plays Holly Gennero) makes when she says John McClane must be alive as only he can drive somebody that crazy. Also given that the central motive at the heart of this story is a break-in into a vault that has multiple levels to break, the parallel carries over to the sorcerer’s motives and the numerous magical locks needed to be overcome to break into the Sunweald Vault.  That is the ticking clock that Briar has to bear in mind as she carves her bloody way through, practically limping all the way.

The book is incredibly snappy and there is no putting the book down, especially after 40%. There are moments of tenderness, redemption, and atonement that characters try to go through initially, which lend a rich flavor to the story and help build some of the characters and Briar’s relationship, motivation, and belonging to these characters. There are also a couple of interesting twists within - one expected & one pretty unexpected that work well in the context of the book. The ending to an extent, teases out a central mystery & gives answers but I felt the book should have possibly ended after the climatic fight without extending it. But then I am sure, people must have told Tolkien that he had too many endings in LOTR & he still retained all of them to make it a fantastic book.

A standalone novel (at least for now), The Last Shield is a book tailor-made for a movie and reads pretty much like a fantastic script. It is fast-paced, thrilling, gritty, and enormously entertaining while wearing its inspirations proudly on its armor. It features a memorable lead and teases an interesting world that I hope the author explores further in other books. “Die Hard in a Castle” sounded cool to me when I read the blurb and it lives up to its inspiration and more

Thanks to the awesome folks at NetGalley for approving this ARC for me

Rating – 4.5 Secret Vaults on 5