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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
Jay Kristoff's Stormdancer is an adventure I have never delved into before. It brings a new flavor to the young adult world of dystopia and fantasy. It gives readers a new taste of government tyranny and Japanese culture. Set in a chaotic Japanese world, samurais, shoguns and mythical creatures like the arashitora come alive in this marvelous story of war and uprisings, discovering genuine honor and finding family in any shape and size.
Though I have greatly struggled with this book in the beginning, I did not lose hope and still continued reading it. Due to its somewhat complex theme and abundance of Japanese terms, I did not easily grasp the plot. I lost interest and took a long break. But thank the Lord Izanagi for bringing my attention back to the book. I would not have experienced such great story.
Basically, it stars our fierce heroine, Yukiko, who accompanies his father to hunt for the Arashitora - the great thunder tiger believed to be extinct. But the turn of events have lead Yukiko and the arashitora helping each other.
The plot was great. Enough said. Drama, the thrill and action, a little romantic affair and a tad bit of humor all wrapped into one. The romance did not please me, though. It was not really interesting enough to have you all worked up. The lack of it was compensated by the growing brotherhood/sisterhood of Yukiko and Buruu (the arashitora). The strength of their bond was far more interesting than Yukiko's fondness of the green-eyed samurai. Also, the battle scenes were terribly detailed (and I mean that not in a negative way), describing every spew of blood and every tearing limb.
It may not be as fast paced as a lot of readers would hope for. It is very descriptive due to the strong building up of the fictitious world, so expect a lot of lengthy non-conversational paragraphs. And readers might get tired of flipping back and forth to the glossary just to decipher the meaning of a Japanese term. But overall, a great reading experience. :)
Though I have greatly struggled with this book in the beginning, I did not lose hope and still continued reading it. Due to its somewhat complex theme and abundance of Japanese terms, I did not easily grasp the plot. I lost interest and took a long break. But thank the Lord Izanagi for bringing my attention back to the book. I would not have experienced such great story.
Basically, it stars our fierce heroine, Yukiko, who accompanies his father to hunt for the Arashitora - the great thunder tiger believed to be extinct. But the turn of events have lead Yukiko and the arashitora helping each other.
The plot was great. Enough said. Drama, the thrill and action, a little romantic affair and a tad bit of humor all wrapped into one. The romance did not please me, though. It was not really interesting enough to have you all worked up. The lack of it was compensated by the growing brotherhood/sisterhood of Yukiko and Buruu (the arashitora). The strength of their bond was far more interesting than Yukiko's fondness of the green-eyed samurai. Also, the battle scenes were terribly detailed (and I mean that not in a negative way), describing every spew of blood and every tearing limb.
It may not be as fast paced as a lot of readers would hope for. It is very descriptive due to the strong building up of the fictitious world, so expect a lot of lengthy non-conversational paragraphs. And readers might get tired of flipping back and forth to the glossary just to decipher the meaning of a Japanese term. But overall, a great reading experience. :)
Initial thoughts: I'm fairly sure that I'm experiencing the definition of a "covergasm" with this book. I'm not kidding. Look at the colors and detail of it - from the heroine's hair to the clouds and the level of detail of her sword and outfit. It's...there are no words. Even the title, "Stormdancer" has quite the striking ring to it, and the thematic of the book promises a wonderful blend of steampunk meeting a Japanese themed-story with epic fighting scenes, conflict, family dynamic, betrayal, love, and the onset of war.
So the Book Gods have deemed me worthy of an ARC of this book. I have read it. So what do I say in response to it?
Bring on the second book, Kristoff. Bring. It. On.
Full review:
I do have to say, in the initial stages of this review that I liked "Stormdancer" on an overall note. Probably not from point one to final point in its entirety, but there's much about it that I came to enjoy, especially with reflecting on the journey in an overarching measure. It did feel like a journey of sorts - walking in the shoes of a multitude of colorful characters in their kingdom and progressing into an epic battle against a tyrant of a leader, with many crosspoints of plot between. I couldn't help but feel that, as I was reading this, it felt like watching an anime series. Starting off with a great battle scene, transitioning to sort of a slice of life scenario where you're getting to know the characters, world, and following several strong humored points, taking the progressive transition to the task at hand, and then ultimately leading into some of the more rich, epic battle artistry that suggests that there's more to the task, the oppression of this land, and to the character histories than meets the eye. (There's even a bathhouse scene! *cough*)
With the overarching setup, there are some strong points of resonance, and some that, well, aren't so strong.
Jay Kristoff has a talent for rich description - he can pull the core of detail through the lens he writes through, and I'm a detail oriented reader myself - so this made me very happy to hear initially. I was very surprised to see a YA work aiming for this kind of epic dystopian fantasy adventure with a blend of interesting, dissimilar elements. But I'll readily admit to something as I'm writing this that might surprise some people - I wasn't enamored completely for the first 120-some pages of this book.
Before you start saying "Gods Take the Wheel!" - hear me out. I did like parts of the initial segment of the story, but I felt it could've been streamlined in the prose much better than it was - to move from point to point without being hampered by the hyperfocus to detail. I could tell the point it was building up in establishing the characters, the world, the state of things, but even as I'm a fantasy reader who reads a lot of Jordan, Sanderson, and the like - I could tell that this had a bit of trouble finding its feet at times with the balance of moving the plot alongside the depiction. The opening chapter was very nice - that pulled me into the story from point one. Then it backtracks a bit to introduce the characters in the overarching story - Yukiko, the strong, female protagonist with a sharp wit and tongue, Masaru - who seems like a haphazard fatherly figure in Yukiko's life, and Akihiro, who seems like a lovable giant who tries to keep Masaru out of trouble initially. Kasami, Michi, among other characters pepper the world in which "Stormdancer" takes place - this world that combines steampunk technologies (Airships! Chainsaw Katanas! Armored suits that function for flesh, fight and sustenance!) with a government that rules with an iron fist, so to speak. There's much about the world that's oppressive and harmful to the people in Yukiko's realm. She's aware of it to an extent, certainly not aware to the role that she ultimately has to play.
There are many characters to get to know in this world, but Kristoff keeps them interesting to watch with nice bits of humor and insight on the tragedies and rigidity that Yukiko, who for the most part is the main character of this work, and the other characters reside under. The story doesn't truly "begin" until the hunt for the Thunder Tiger gets going. It's a key part of the secret ability that Yukiko has in this world, and once the arashitora shows up, is captured, and then by measure of events, caught within Yukiko's journey reluctantly, the story takes off from there.
I liked the chemistry between Buruu, the arashitora, and Yukiko for the most part. Buruu's a bit on the bold side with some interesting slants of sarcasm, but he's a more gentle beast than he's willing to admit. Yukiko herself takes a liking to the beast as well as the boy she ends up traveling with whom she met on the airship (Kin). I liked those three characters the most in this overarching story. Reminded me a little of Princess Mononoke in a way when they're traveling through the forest and the connection noted between Buruu and Yukiko. The journey they take and the discoveries they make about their ruler and ultimately his role in many oppressive tragedies have the characters reeling, especially Yukiko, finding that she has a very more serious task ahead of her than just returning the Thunder Tiger as requested.
There are definitely instances of romance and character interactions that steadily build upon themselves as the story goes forth, and it is potent in spurts. I don't know if I felt as intimately connected to that particular thread of the story on all counts, but for the story it sets itself as and the way it ultimately progresses to its final showdown, I was taken in for the long haul. I did feel for the characters as tragedy struck, because you can tell they were fighting for what they believed in and had their own solid motivations within and around each other. Ultimately, Kristoff's novel builds to a point in a much more expanded conflict, that sets the stage for things to come in the series. I think the ending was appropriate. I'll admit it left me wanting a little more closure in the story for the sake of taking this as a standalone entry in the series, but it was still very good.
I'm intrigued to see how events turn for the characters in this first book of "The Lotus War" series, and moments in this work really stuck with me as far as the level of taking pieces of the world and building it into something that held my attention and interest. I think those who like a smorgasbord of action, humor, character building, and interesting world elements would find something to like in this novel, though it may take a bit of wading through to find the sweet spot of where the story finds its flow.
Overall score: 3.5/5
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher St. Martin's Press/Thomas Dunne Books.
So the Book Gods have deemed me worthy of an ARC of this book. I have read it. So what do I say in response to it?
Bring on the second book, Kristoff. Bring. It. On.
Full review:
I do have to say, in the initial stages of this review that I liked "Stormdancer" on an overall note. Probably not from point one to final point in its entirety, but there's much about it that I came to enjoy, especially with reflecting on the journey in an overarching measure. It did feel like a journey of sorts - walking in the shoes of a multitude of colorful characters in their kingdom and progressing into an epic battle against a tyrant of a leader, with many crosspoints of plot between. I couldn't help but feel that, as I was reading this, it felt like watching an anime series. Starting off with a great battle scene, transitioning to sort of a slice of life scenario where you're getting to know the characters, world, and following several strong humored points, taking the progressive transition to the task at hand, and then ultimately leading into some of the more rich, epic battle artistry that suggests that there's more to the task, the oppression of this land, and to the character histories than meets the eye. (There's even a bathhouse scene! *cough*)
With the overarching setup, there are some strong points of resonance, and some that, well, aren't so strong.
Jay Kristoff has a talent for rich description - he can pull the core of detail through the lens he writes through, and I'm a detail oriented reader myself - so this made me very happy to hear initially. I was very surprised to see a YA work aiming for this kind of epic dystopian fantasy adventure with a blend of interesting, dissimilar elements. But I'll readily admit to something as I'm writing this that might surprise some people - I wasn't enamored completely for the first 120-some pages of this book.
Before you start saying "Gods Take the Wheel!" - hear me out. I did like parts of the initial segment of the story, but I felt it could've been streamlined in the prose much better than it was - to move from point to point without being hampered by the hyperfocus to detail. I could tell the point it was building up in establishing the characters, the world, the state of things, but even as I'm a fantasy reader who reads a lot of Jordan, Sanderson, and the like - I could tell that this had a bit of trouble finding its feet at times with the balance of moving the plot alongside the depiction. The opening chapter was very nice - that pulled me into the story from point one. Then it backtracks a bit to introduce the characters in the overarching story - Yukiko, the strong, female protagonist with a sharp wit and tongue, Masaru - who seems like a haphazard fatherly figure in Yukiko's life, and Akihiro, who seems like a lovable giant who tries to keep Masaru out of trouble initially. Kasami, Michi, among other characters pepper the world in which "Stormdancer" takes place - this world that combines steampunk technologies (Airships! Chainsaw Katanas! Armored suits that function for flesh, fight and sustenance!) with a government that rules with an iron fist, so to speak. There's much about the world that's oppressive and harmful to the people in Yukiko's realm. She's aware of it to an extent, certainly not aware to the role that she ultimately has to play.
There are many characters to get to know in this world, but Kristoff keeps them interesting to watch with nice bits of humor and insight on the tragedies and rigidity that Yukiko, who for the most part is the main character of this work, and the other characters reside under. The story doesn't truly "begin" until the hunt for the Thunder Tiger gets going. It's a key part of the secret ability that Yukiko has in this world, and once the arashitora shows up, is captured, and then by measure of events, caught within Yukiko's journey reluctantly, the story takes off from there.
I liked the chemistry between Buruu, the arashitora, and Yukiko for the most part. Buruu's a bit on the bold side with some interesting slants of sarcasm, but he's a more gentle beast than he's willing to admit. Yukiko herself takes a liking to the beast as well as the boy she ends up traveling with whom she met on the airship (Kin). I liked those three characters the most in this overarching story. Reminded me a little of Princess Mononoke in a way when they're traveling through the forest and the connection noted between Buruu and Yukiko. The journey they take and the discoveries they make about their ruler and ultimately his role in many oppressive tragedies have the characters reeling, especially Yukiko, finding that she has a very more serious task ahead of her than just returning the Thunder Tiger as requested.
There are definitely instances of romance and character interactions that steadily build upon themselves as the story goes forth, and it is potent in spurts. I don't know if I felt as intimately connected to that particular thread of the story on all counts, but for the story it sets itself as and the way it ultimately progresses to its final showdown, I was taken in for the long haul. I did feel for the characters as tragedy struck, because you can tell they were fighting for what they believed in and had their own solid motivations within and around each other. Ultimately, Kristoff's novel builds to a point in a much more expanded conflict, that sets the stage for things to come in the series. I think the ending was appropriate. I'll admit it left me wanting a little more closure in the story for the sake of taking this as a standalone entry in the series, but it was still very good.
I'm intrigued to see how events turn for the characters in this first book of "The Lotus War" series, and moments in this work really stuck with me as far as the level of taking pieces of the world and building it into something that held my attention and interest. I think those who like a smorgasbord of action, humor, character building, and interesting world elements would find something to like in this novel, though it may take a bit of wading through to find the sweet spot of where the story finds its flow.
Overall score: 3.5/5
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher St. Martin's Press/Thomas Dunne Books.
Don't waste your time!
I don't even remember how this book got on my to-read list, but when I re-read the description, I was leery... Japanese steampunk? Sounds great! Female protagonist? Sign me up! STORMDANCER does not deliver, at all-- the appropriative use of Japanese language and culture is pretty gross, and the character building simply falls flat.
I don't even remember how this book got on my to-read list, but when I re-read the description, I was leery... Japanese steampunk? Sounds great! Female protagonist? Sign me up! STORMDANCER does not deliver, at all-- the appropriative use of Japanese language and culture is pretty gross, and the character building simply falls flat.
This was a really interesting mix of Japanese samurai and steampunk. The feel of the world and the story was fascinating.
I was a little leary, as I am not usually a huge fan of Young Adult literature, but this managed to have a Young Adult character, without feeling all teen angsty.
I particularly liked the way the combat and the bond the main character had with other creatures was described.
This is well worth a read. It starts a little slow but right around the 65 page mark I was sold.
I was a little leary, as I am not usually a huge fan of Young Adult literature, but this managed to have a Young Adult character, without feeling all teen angsty.
I particularly liked the way the combat and the bond the main character had with other creatures was described.
This is well worth a read. It starts a little slow but right around the 65 page mark I was sold.
Read it as if it's a movie and you don't care about Japanese culture and language being portrayed even somewhat accurately, and you may enjoy this book.
If this book were to be made into a movie I believe that it could be visually stunning and unique. And if the plot was re-worked a bit (and the Japanese language/culture issues taken care of), I think it would be a box office hit. Quite honestly, it seems as though that was the intention of the author as he wrote it. Because it does not work well as a book.
Personally, I'm not a big fan of the steampunk genre to begin with, but I thought I'd give this book a shot because of the cool-sounding fantasy elements. Unfortunately the bits of fantasy I got were overshadowed by the overall depressing tone and the stuuupid infatuation with the boy with green eyes. Oh, and the weird mix of English and Japanese terms in a way that did not heighten the fantasy element at all. I mean, I get that "punk" genres make room for being creative with slang words and social relationships, so I can handle his misuse of the word "hai." But when it came to Yukiko translating words for Buruu, both in English and in Japanese, it really took me out of the story. Which language are they speaking, man!
I also found myself sighing fairly often when yet another used-up trope or obvious plot mechanism entered the story and I realized that basically any somewhat competent screenwriter could write the beats of this story in their sleep. I pretty much skimmed through the last half of the book just to get it over with. I don't feel like I missed out on much.
The relationship between Yukiko and Buruu developed far too quickly, and while their tandem action scenes were super cool they were disappointingly short. And sometimes completely pointless in terms of plot, character-building, relationships, world-building - anything that would make the scene more than just a cool action sequence.
That being said, the steampunk world that relies on a single resource, while a little obvious a parallel to the real world, was very well thought out and clearly conveyed. I did not enjoy reading 5 chapters of almost pure world-building before getting any real action out of the story. But I do appreciate the detail with which Kristoff imagined it. Points for him there.
That is all.
If this book were to be made into a movie I believe that it could be visually stunning and unique. And if the plot was re-worked a bit (and the Japanese language/culture issues taken care of), I think it would be a box office hit. Quite honestly, it seems as though that was the intention of the author as he wrote it. Because it does not work well as a book.
Personally, I'm not a big fan of the steampunk genre to begin with, but I thought I'd give this book a shot because of the cool-sounding fantasy elements. Unfortunately the bits of fantasy I got were overshadowed by the overall depressing tone and the stuuupid infatuation with the boy with green eyes. Oh, and the weird mix of English and Japanese terms in a way that did not heighten the fantasy element at all. I mean, I get that "punk" genres make room for being creative with slang words and social relationships, so I can handle his misuse of the word "hai." But when it came to Yukiko translating words for Buruu, both in English and in Japanese, it really took me out of the story. Which language are they speaking, man!
I also found myself sighing fairly often when yet another used-up trope or obvious plot mechanism entered the story and I realized that basically any somewhat competent screenwriter could write the beats of this story in their sleep. I pretty much skimmed through the last half of the book just to get it over with. I don't feel like I missed out on much.
The relationship between Yukiko and Buruu developed far too quickly, and while their tandem action scenes were super cool they were disappointingly short. And sometimes completely pointless in terms of plot, character-building, relationships, world-building - anything that would make the scene more than just a cool action sequence.
That being said, the steampunk world that relies on a single resource, while a little obvious a parallel to the real world, was very well thought out and clearly conveyed. I did not enjoy reading 5 chapters of almost pure world-building before getting any real action out of the story. But I do appreciate the detail with which Kristoff imagined it. Points for him there.
That is all.
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The good: In theory, I should've loved this. It's steampunk Japan with magical beasts and the evil mechanical Guild.
The bad: Redundancy of words, explanations, descriptions, and lazily researched terms. Nothing happens for looong stretches of time, and that time is not wisely used on stuff like, you know, proper characterization. There is some effort spent on characters' interactions, but it just felt off - like a stage play where everyone is overacting.
The ugly: It is boring. Every female is described in terms of beauty. There are endless shifts in POV (a huge pet peeve of mine).
Final verdict: DNF at page 300.
This is a 1500+ pages series. It is not as good as [b:Eon & Eona|21850224|Eon & Eona, a Duology Series|Alison Goodman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1396729845s/21850224.jpg|41121372], of which it strongly reminds me because of the setting. And I didn't like Eona that much to begin with! Soo... Ain't nobody got time for that!
The bad: Redundancy of words, explanations, descriptions, and lazily researched terms. Nothing happens for looong stretches of time, and that time is not wisely used on stuff like, you know, proper characterization. There is some effort spent on characters' interactions, but it just felt off - like a stage play where everyone is overacting.
The ugly: It is boring. Every female is described in terms of beauty. There are endless shifts in POV (a huge pet peeve of mine).
Final verdict: DNF at page 300.
This is a 1500+ pages series. It is not as good as [b:Eon & Eona|21850224|Eon & Eona, a Duology Series|Alison Goodman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1396729845s/21850224.jpg|41121372], of which it strongly reminds me because of the setting. And I didn't like Eona that much to begin with! Soo... Ain't nobody got time for that!
Well, this was a huge disappointment. I was really excited about this book, because I've been in love with Japan and its culture and history since I was 12 and seeing it in a YA novel mixed with steam punk sounded AWESOME! But instead it was a lot of misuse and poorly done research of Japan and it's history/culture/language. The application of the language and culture just felt very awkward, sometimes lazy, and frequently just not correct. It didn't really feel like Kristoff worked very hard, and he name drops a ton of words with Japanese origins (like weapon names or clothing) but he doesn't always explain what it is, so most people would be like wtf?? Even I had to flip to the back for the glossary a few times like "what are you talking about?". And man, geishas and prostitutes are mentioned so often. I get it, geisha/prostitutes because it's based on Japanese culture. You're sooooo clever. Stop. Just stop.
I did really like Buruu, the Arashitora. His character was literally the best part of the whole novel. I also liked the idea of the bond between Yukiko and Buruu and I feel like this book had SO MUCH POTENTIAL if the use of Japanese culture had been used with more respect and more research.
I did really like Buruu, the Arashitora. His character was literally the best part of the whole novel. I also liked the idea of the bond between Yukiko and Buruu and I feel like this book had SO MUCH POTENTIAL if the use of Japanese culture had been used with more respect and more research.