Of Mettle and Magic is the fifth book in the MagicSmith series by L.R. Braden. Readers do need to read this series in order to understand the character development and relationships. When the Unified Church in Rome is destroyed by rogue sorcerers, tensions explode. Alex Blackwood will do whatever it takes to prevent a war between the humans, fae, and Earth paranaturals--even turn herself over to the PTF. But when a man she thought long dead walks back into her life at the head of a sorcerer army, surrender is no longer an option. With all the world watching, and half hoping she fails, Alex and her friends scramble to find a peace that won’t cost them everything.
Of Mettle and Magic is a good continuation of the story, and also a building block for further developments. I was happy to return to Alex's world, and it was great to see some of my favorite secondary characters make appearances and some twists that I have been expecting to make themselves known. There is plenty of action, planning, and growth of power and understanding. Some dynamic shifts and some great moments. I was hoping for a bit more on the character growth side, and a little less of the world imploding. Do not get me wrong, there were some great moments and I was glad to read the book. But I love the complexity of the characters, and I feel like the growing complexity of the world and danger around them has overtaken some of what I really enjoy about this series. There were definitely some great growth and moments of revelation and understanding on Alex's part, but there were also moments were I was less engaged as the preparations for fighting and whatnot needed to happen. I still love this series- but this one just did not capture me the way I expected and hoped for.
Of Mettle and Magic is a solid continuation of this story, and I think fans of the series will need to read it, but it just did not resonate with me as thoroughly as the previous books. 
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