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3.39 AVERAGE
3.39 AVERAGE
this was cringe. i wanted to like this book. i've always been interested in japan so when i read this book was set in japan i wanted to read it. but the way it was written made me cringe so many times. idk, i really didnt vibe with it, and it felt really weird, and the random sprinkles of japanese dialogue felt awkward, and it came at such random times too? if you're gonna use japanese dialogue in your book, do it right. also i hated the characters. overall this book really disappointed me which sucks bc i was really excited for it before i started reading and i thought the story sounded really interesting. oh well.
meh. quite an interesting concept but a mediocre to bad delivery
Review also published on my blog StudentSpyglass
Plot: ★★★★
Characters: ★★★
Readability: ★★★★★
Overall: ★★★★
Following the death of her mother, Katie is horrified to be sent off to Japan to live with her aunt – ‘the piece that never fit’. Thrust into a different culture, with only minimal Japanese and an aunt she barely knows, Katie’s life only gets more complicated when she starts to see pictures moving. Unsure whether to believe her eyes, or whether these are hallucinations caused by stress and grief, Katie tries to ignore it, but she can’t help feeling that the mysterious Tomohiro is somehow connected. Despite his cold reputation, Katie is drawn to Tomohiro, and as they grow closer the ink spirals further out of control.
Amanda Sun’s writing is wonderfully descriptive and evocative without feeling overdone or excessively wordy. Beautiful, graphic imagery will have you easily able to visualise Shizouka, leaving you feeling completely immersed in Katie’s world.
I loved Katie as a character; although reluctant to move to Japan, she threw herself into learning the language and customs, and didn’t give up her feisty nature. My only criticisms are both YA cliches related to the love interest: I felt she became too attached too quickly, and that she ditched her friends for him. This seemed particularly cruel particularly considering how willing her friends were to go out of their way for her. Tomohiro was a bad boy with a tortured past, which felt a bit cliche, but I did enjoy finding out more about him and seeing their relationship grow. Diane, Katie’s aunt was also a great character, though I’d have liked to see a little more of her.
Ink had a wonderfully unique premise, and I thoroughly enjoyed the occasional Japanese word, and the snippets of culture. One thing I will say about Ink is that it is definitely drama filled, with an additional side plot reminiscent of an action movie. Although, I found that side plot a little bit of a stretch, I couldn’t help getting engrossed as it progressed. If a unique premise and lots of drama sounds like your sort of thing, Ink is definitely worth a try.
Plot: ★★★★
Characters: ★★★
Readability: ★★★★★
Overall: ★★★★
Following the death of her mother, Katie is horrified to be sent off to Japan to live with her aunt – ‘the piece that never fit’. Thrust into a different culture, with only minimal Japanese and an aunt she barely knows, Katie’s life only gets more complicated when she starts to see pictures moving. Unsure whether to believe her eyes, or whether these are hallucinations caused by stress and grief, Katie tries to ignore it, but she can’t help feeling that the mysterious Tomohiro is somehow connected. Despite his cold reputation, Katie is drawn to Tomohiro, and as they grow closer the ink spirals further out of control.
Amanda Sun’s writing is wonderfully descriptive and evocative without feeling overdone or excessively wordy. Beautiful, graphic imagery will have you easily able to visualise Shizouka, leaving you feeling completely immersed in Katie’s world.
I loved Katie as a character; although reluctant to move to Japan, she threw herself into learning the language and customs, and didn’t give up her feisty nature. My only criticisms are both YA cliches related to the love interest: I felt she became too attached too quickly, and that she ditched her friends for him. This seemed particularly cruel particularly considering how willing her friends were to go out of their way for her. Tomohiro was a bad boy with a tortured past, which felt a bit cliche, but I did enjoy finding out more about him and seeing their relationship grow. Diane, Katie’s aunt was also a great character, though I’d have liked to see a little more of her.
Ink had a wonderfully unique premise, and I thoroughly enjoyed the occasional Japanese word, and the snippets of culture. One thing I will say about Ink is that it is definitely drama filled, with an additional side plot reminiscent of an action movie. Although, I found that side plot a little bit of a stretch, I couldn’t help getting engrossed as it progressed. If a unique premise and lots of drama sounds like your sort of thing, Ink is definitely worth a try.
Die deutsche Rezension findet ihr hier.
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After her mother’s death, 16-year-old Katie Greene has to move to her aunt – who happens to live in Japan. Everything there seems to be too much for her, especially the language which she does not get along with very well. When she meets Yuu Tomohiro, he changes her whole life again: a drawing he had made and she found actually moves. She did not imagine anything as it happens again later. What is all this about? Who is Tomohiro really? Hopefully, he is not actually that bad guy that everybody sees in him, who hurts his best friend badly and cheats on his girlfriend while impregnating the other girl … because slowly but surely Katie is falling in love with him.
You think it is strange that someone falls in love with a guy who seems to be a complete idiot? I agree with you, then, but it is still what happens in “Ink”. Katie instantly realizes that there is more to Tomohiro because she sees his true emotions in his eyes when he drops his guard for a moment. So, she simply cannot not stalk him – initially she planned to call him on his behaviour, but somehow got lost in the translation – and eventually she falls in love. How could it be any different? After all, Tomohiro is not a complete idiot; at least that is what the author wants us to believe.
As you can see, I am not a great fan of the book. It does have its good aspects, only they are not exactly numerous. There is the fact the story is set in Japan which is definitely something different and has the advantage of Japanese words leaking into the text. If you love the sound of Japanese as much as I do, you will be delighted and if you did not have much contact with the language in the past, you should not worry: there is a glossary at the end of the book. Still, Japan is only the setting in the end – this means that there is a bentou for lunch, that you wear slippers in school and that you can learn kendo – but the Japanese culture is never such a big part of the story that it could not take place anywhere else.
Then there is the idea. I do not know enough about Japanese mythology to say how close the author kept to it. Most of the names and terms were familiar, but that does not have to mean anything. Fact is, it has been a nice beginning to a new concept and unfortunately, it does not go further. As the story evolves we get to know a little bit more about the whole matter, but it is not much.
There is one thing to blame for that: everything is about Tomohiro. Of course he is linked to the supernatural part of “Ink”, but he knows less than others and so the knowledge is kept from the reader as well.
It is also in other respects a great disadvantage of the book. If there is something I very much dislike, then it is a boy becoming the centre of the protagonist’s whole life. I have already mentioned that Tomohiro is not the nicest guy, and besides that, Katie actually has enough to worry about: a foreign culture, the loss of her mother … to some extent, she deals with those topics, but the most prominent thing on her mind is always Yuu Tomohiro. It even gets so bad that she only really tackles her grief when he tells her to.
So, it is no wonder that she claims she cannot live without him anymore before half of the book is read. Quickly, there is talk of love, while you will have a hard time to feel any tension between them. It makes it even more unforgivable that the author later romanticizes sexual harassment. Already at the beginning our “hero” breaks off with his girlfriend rather coldly to protect her; never mind that he makes decisions for his partners without asking them; he also goes way too far when he brings Katie, without her knowing, into a so-called “love hotel” (where you can rent a room to have sex without being disturbed) and does not stop touching her even though she already said she does not want any of this. In the end, this is supposed to be a selfless act to help Katie – excuse me, but NO. There are borders, and abuse and harassment of any kind that are depicted as legitimate and worth striving for clearly cross these borders. Besides, it is not as if Tomohiro would have had no other possibilities of action.
The story leaves much to be desired, because the motivation for everything is Tomohiro. Nothing that happens is about Japan or Katie’s family or her well-being – it is always about her “loved one”. That does not only annoy me, it is also very boring especially when you would like to get to know more about the other aspects of the book. Consequently, this information is left behind. “Ink” is also very predictable to some extent. For example, this concerns both things of the past and the ending, which is why I do not feel the need to continue reading this series.
Additionally, the other characters are rather flat; at best they spill a secret or two and add some drama, and that is that.
“Ink” is not a completely bad novel; at least the setting and the main idea are nice. However, in the end this is not a fantasy story with romantic elements but a romance with fantasy elements. Still, even the romance is not able to satisfy, because it is mainly about the protagonist’s love interest, who crosses some borders that should not be crossed. That is not only boring, but also unacceptable.
___________________________
After her mother’s death, 16-year-old Katie Greene has to move to her aunt – who happens to live in Japan. Everything there seems to be too much for her, especially the language which she does not get along with very well. When she meets Yuu Tomohiro, he changes her whole life again: a drawing he had made and she found actually moves. She did not imagine anything as it happens again later. What is all this about? Who is Tomohiro really? Hopefully, he is not actually that bad guy that everybody sees in him, who hurts his best friend badly and cheats on his girlfriend while impregnating the other girl … because slowly but surely Katie is falling in love with him.
You think it is strange that someone falls in love with a guy who seems to be a complete idiot? I agree with you, then, but it is still what happens in “Ink”. Katie instantly realizes that there is more to Tomohiro because she sees his true emotions in his eyes when he drops his guard for a moment. So, she simply cannot not stalk him – initially she planned to call him on his behaviour, but somehow got lost in the translation – and eventually she falls in love. How could it be any different? After all, Tomohiro is not a complete idiot; at least that is what the author wants us to believe.
As you can see, I am not a great fan of the book. It does have its good aspects, only they are not exactly numerous. There is the fact the story is set in Japan which is definitely something different and has the advantage of Japanese words leaking into the text. If you love the sound of Japanese as much as I do, you will be delighted and if you did not have much contact with the language in the past, you should not worry: there is a glossary at the end of the book. Still, Japan is only the setting in the end – this means that there is a bentou for lunch, that you wear slippers in school and that you can learn kendo – but the Japanese culture is never such a big part of the story that it could not take place anywhere else.
Then there is the idea. I do not know enough about Japanese mythology to say how close the author kept to it. Most of the names and terms were familiar, but that does not have to mean anything. Fact is, it has been a nice beginning to a new concept and unfortunately, it does not go further. As the story evolves we get to know a little bit more about the whole matter, but it is not much.
There is one thing to blame for that: everything is about Tomohiro. Of course he is linked to the supernatural part of “Ink”, but he knows less than others and so the knowledge is kept from the reader as well.
It is also in other respects a great disadvantage of the book. If there is something I very much dislike, then it is a boy becoming the centre of the protagonist’s whole life. I have already mentioned that Tomohiro is not the nicest guy, and besides that, Katie actually has enough to worry about: a foreign culture, the loss of her mother … to some extent, she deals with those topics, but the most prominent thing on her mind is always Yuu Tomohiro. It even gets so bad that she only really tackles her grief when he tells her to.
So, it is no wonder that she claims she cannot live without him anymore before half of the book is read. Quickly, there is talk of love, while you will have a hard time to feel any tension between them. It makes it even more unforgivable that the author later romanticizes sexual harassment. Already at the beginning our “hero” breaks off with his girlfriend rather coldly to protect her; never mind that he makes decisions for his partners without asking them; he also goes way too far when he brings Katie, without her knowing, into a so-called “love hotel” (where you can rent a room to have sex without being disturbed) and does not stop touching her even though she already said she does not want any of this. In the end, this is supposed to be a selfless act to help Katie – excuse me, but NO. There are borders, and abuse and harassment of any kind that are depicted as legitimate and worth striving for clearly cross these borders. Besides, it is not as if Tomohiro would have had no other possibilities of action.
The story leaves much to be desired, because the motivation for everything is Tomohiro. Nothing that happens is about Japan or Katie’s family or her well-being – it is always about her “loved one”. That does not only annoy me, it is also very boring especially when you would like to get to know more about the other aspects of the book. Consequently, this information is left behind. “Ink” is also very predictable to some extent. For example, this concerns both things of the past and the ending, which is why I do not feel the need to continue reading this series.
Additionally, the other characters are rather flat; at best they spill a secret or two and add some drama, and that is that.
“Ink” is not a completely bad novel; at least the setting and the main idea are nice. However, in the end this is not a fantasy story with romantic elements but a romance with fantasy elements. Still, even the romance is not able to satisfy, because it is mainly about the protagonist’s love interest, who crosses some borders that should not be crossed. That is not only boring, but also unacceptable.
A personal connection
Ink wasn't on my radar at all until I attended the Harlequin Teen breakfast during BEA. Instead of a panel discussion, the breakfast was set up as a round-robin. There was an empty spot at each of the tables where the authors rotated through one at a time. Amanda Sun was the first author to visit our table, and everything she said made me want to read and love her debut novel. She talked about her book's art themes that are based on Japan's rich artistic traditions. She discussed living in Japan in high school, visiting to do research and wanting her book to be as authentic as possible. All elements that are important to me when reading a book that takes place in a different country. She also purposefully chose to begin her story after its protagonist Katie has been in Japan for a few weeks, because she didn't want the story to be all about Katie's transition from America to her new Japanese school.
The other tidbit of information that Ms. Sun imparted, which made my experience reading Ink better, was that she's written an ebook prequel to her novel. Shadow is FREE and available now. It tells the back story of Katie's journey to Japan, from her mother's funeral to her first day of school. Though this wasn't necessary to get to know Katie, I valued the greater connection I gained with her and her grief.
However, what's best about Shadow is that Katie's perspective is alternated with Tomohiro's viewpoint. Because Ink is written entirely from Katie's POV, the novella provides valuable information about the boy whose drawings take on a life of their own - the nature of his nightmares, what happened in his relationship with his ex-girlfriend and why he believes he's connected to Katie. Although it is not essential to understanding Ink, the story helped me know both characters better. And because I'd been inside of Tomo's head, I never saw him as a mysterious bad boy, but instead as a guy who's lost and tortured and dealing with a scary ability spiraling out of his control. I hope we get more of this series written from Tomo's viewpoint.
_______________________________________________________________________
The ink
Ink combines Japan's rich traditions of paper arts and animation with Japanese mythology and history to create an enchanting story that is magical, thrilling and romantic.
Ink is about a boy whose drawings come to life and the girl who discovers his secret. It's realizing that tragedy changes you and not being afraid to live your life even when it looks different than before. It's finding a home and friends in unexpected places. It's danger and betrayal, being part of something bigger than yourself and finding your own path in life even when it scares you.
I love books that take place in different countries in the world, especially when it is clear that the author knows the place she's depicting. Amanda Sun brought Japan to life for me in Ink. Both the daily lives of students - their school slippers, infrared phones and confessions - to their recreational activities, catch phrases and spiritual beliefs. I ate up every single bit of the Japanese culture in this story. I could picture it all as Ms. Sun drew it with her words and now I want to visit even more. Although the book is in English (thankfully), the characters' conversations even felt like they'd been written in Japanese first and then translated to English for the book. What I mean, is that the cadence read differently to me when Katie spoke in Japanese versus English, making the story feel more authentic. There are also a lot of Japanese words and phrases interspersed throughout, giving the book even more of an authentic flair. If you're worried, there is a glossary at the end, but I didn't use it.
Where Ink is weakest is in the beginning. Even knowing Katie and Tomohiro's backstory in the prequel, Katie latches onto Tomo a little too quickly. While I believe in instant attraction, the immediately high level of Katie's interest in Tomo and desire to figure him out, seemed overly sudden. However, I actually like how their romance develops throughout this story as a whole. If you have trouble with the start of their story, I urge you to keep reading. The second half is much stronger. I was personally so invested in reading about daily life in Japan in the beginning, and the thrilling evolution of Tomo's talent throughout the rest of the story that the slow start did not throw off my experience with the book.
I am sad to see so many mixed reviews of Ink, and I hope that you'll give it a chance. By the end of the novel, I was completely captivated by a world where ink flows like blood and drawings come to life in beautiful and frightening ways. I am eager to find out the next part of Katie and Tomohiro's story.
Love Triangle Factor: MILD: There is the hint that one could be coming at one point in the story, but it never goes in that direction. I don't foresee this other person being a romantic threat in the future.
Cliffhanger Scale: LOW: The first chapter of book 2 was in the back of my ARC and it made me excited to continue the story, but I felt good about where this one ended.
Ink wasn't on my radar at all until I attended the Harlequin Teen breakfast during BEA. Instead of a panel discussion, the breakfast was set up as a round-robin. There was an empty spot at each of the tables where the authors rotated through one at a time. Amanda Sun was the first author to visit our table, and everything she said made me want to read and love her debut novel. She talked about her book's art themes that are based on Japan's rich artistic traditions. She discussed living in Japan in high school, visiting to do research and wanting her book to be as authentic as possible. All elements that are important to me when reading a book that takes place in a different country. She also purposefully chose to begin her story after its protagonist Katie has been in Japan for a few weeks, because she didn't want the story to be all about Katie's transition from America to her new Japanese school.
The other tidbit of information that Ms. Sun imparted, which made my experience reading Ink better, was that she's written an ebook prequel to her novel. Shadow is FREE and available now. It tells the back story of Katie's journey to Japan, from her mother's funeral to her first day of school. Though this wasn't necessary to get to know Katie, I valued the greater connection I gained with her and her grief.
However, what's best about Shadow is that Katie's perspective is alternated with Tomohiro's viewpoint. Because Ink is written entirely from Katie's POV, the novella provides valuable information about the boy whose drawings take on a life of their own - the nature of his nightmares, what happened in his relationship with his ex-girlfriend and why he believes he's connected to Katie. Although it is not essential to understanding Ink, the story helped me know both characters better. And because I'd been inside of Tomo's head, I never saw him as a mysterious bad boy, but instead as a guy who's lost and tortured and dealing with a scary ability spiraling out of his control. I hope we get more of this series written from Tomo's viewpoint.
_______________________________________________________________________
The ink
Ink combines Japan's rich traditions of paper arts and animation with Japanese mythology and history to create an enchanting story that is magical, thrilling and romantic.
Ink is about a boy whose drawings come to life and the girl who discovers his secret. It's realizing that tragedy changes you and not being afraid to live your life even when it looks different than before. It's finding a home and friends in unexpected places. It's danger and betrayal, being part of something bigger than yourself and finding your own path in life even when it scares you.
I love books that take place in different countries in the world, especially when it is clear that the author knows the place she's depicting. Amanda Sun brought Japan to life for me in Ink. Both the daily lives of students - their school slippers, infrared phones and confessions - to their recreational activities, catch phrases and spiritual beliefs. I ate up every single bit of the Japanese culture in this story. I could picture it all as Ms. Sun drew it with her words and now I want to visit even more. Although the book is in English (thankfully), the characters' conversations even felt like they'd been written in Japanese first and then translated to English for the book. What I mean, is that the cadence read differently to me when Katie spoke in Japanese versus English, making the story feel more authentic. There are also a lot of Japanese words and phrases interspersed throughout, giving the book even more of an authentic flair. If you're worried, there is a glossary at the end, but I didn't use it.
Where Ink is weakest is in the beginning. Even knowing Katie and Tomohiro's backstory in the prequel, Katie latches onto Tomo a little too quickly. While I believe in instant attraction, the immediately high level of Katie's interest in Tomo and desire to figure him out, seemed overly sudden. However, I actually like how their romance develops throughout this story as a whole. If you have trouble with the start of their story, I urge you to keep reading. The second half is much stronger. I was personally so invested in reading about daily life in Japan in the beginning, and the thrilling evolution of Tomo's talent throughout the rest of the story that the slow start did not throw off my experience with the book.
I am sad to see so many mixed reviews of Ink, and I hope that you'll give it a chance. By the end of the novel, I was completely captivated by a world where ink flows like blood and drawings come to life in beautiful and frightening ways. I am eager to find out the next part of Katie and Tomohiro's story.
Love Triangle Factor: MILD: There is the hint that one could be coming at one point in the story, but it never goes in that direction. I don't foresee this other person being a romantic threat in the future.
Cliffhanger Scale: LOW: The first chapter of book 2 was in the back of my ARC and it made me excited to continue the story, but I felt good about where this one ended.
I want to thank Harlequin Teen for providing me with an ARC of this book to read and give an honest review. Receiving this book for free has in no way influenced my opinion or review.
I will be honest and say that before I went to BEA and received a copy of this book at the Harlequin Teen Blogger breakfast, I had not heard of it. I had no idea what it was about. When Amanda Sun sat at our table and explained it to us, I just thought it sounded odd. However, I'm not one to pass up what seems like it might be totally intriguing, so I dove into this head first to see what it was about.
Blurb from Goodreads:
On the heels of a family tragedy, the last thing Katie Greene wants to do is move halfway across the world. Stuck with her aunt in Shizuoka, Japan, Katie feels lost. Alone. She doesn’t know the language, she can barely hold a pair of chopsticks, and she can’t seem to get the hang of taking her shoes off whenever she enters a building.
Then there’s gorgeous but aloof Tomohiro, star of the school’s kendo team. How did he really get the scar on his arm? Katie isn’t prepared for the answer. But when she sees the things he draws start moving, there’s no denying the truth: Tomo has a connection to the ancient gods of Japan, and being near Katie is causing his abilities to spiral out of control. If the wrong people notice, they'll both be targets.
Katie never wanted to move to Japan—now she may not make it out of the country alive.
I will say that I am a slave for a gorgeous cover. And, yes, those covers often lead me to pick up a book and read it. So, while I had no idea if I would like the premise of this story, I was certainly pulled in by it's beautiful cover. It's so simple. I particularly love the cherry blossoms that are drawn on the cover. And the way the ink is dripping off the page is only a slight foretelling of what this story promises to give.
Katie is out of place in Japan. She has moved there after her mother's death to live with her aunt until her custody can be decided. And, while she seems to really not be happy with her placement there when we first meet her, she has definitely changed her mind by the end. I think my favorite thing about Katie is that she seems to be afraid of nothing. If she wants to find out more about something, she will go out of her way to do so. At the same time, the consequences of being like these can have detrimental if not life threatening effects. Yet, Katie seems to be willing to take these risks in an effort to find out who she really is and what she really wants. She is very relatable and I easily connected with her. She is also well thought out and developed and it's easy to see her growth throughout this book.
Tomohiro is the mysterious boy who draws Katie's attention. As much as he tells her to stay away from him, she just cannot seem to keep from being around him. He initially comes off as a jerk, a hot head who is totally taken with himself. He is inexplicably drawn to Katie and their connection is only heightened when they are near each other. We slowly come to find that Tomo has a soft side, and a secret. A secret to which Katie is linked. I truly loved his character. He was enchanting while still being snarky and totally brooding. It was a great mix that kept me intrigued about him throughout the entire book. One thing that really drew me to him was that he had this old soul quality to him, not your typical teenage angst ridden type of guy at all.Overall he is a very complex character that you can only really understand if you read the story.
The secondary characters are also quite awesome. Katie's friends Tanaka and Yuki care about her, despite her being a bit of an outcast as the American ex-pat who is still learning Japanese. They encourage her to make friends and be friends and come out and play.
And the bad guys, well, they are just that. The Japanese mafia seems like a scary bunch for sure. I don't know much about Japanese culture at all, aside from perhaps some understanding of food and a few cultural things my father taught me when he was traveling a lot to that country. So it was nice to see how Sun portrayed the bad.
The romance was not really a pull for me in this story. While it was there and I can see where many think it may have fallen short, I feel like the underlying connection that Katie and Tomo had was what really drew them to each other. And, while it seemed to progress fast, I don't think it was because there was insta-love. I think it was the draw of the ink that really had Katie and Tomo attaching themselves to each other.
Having spoken a bit with Amanda, I know that she spent some time in Japan growing up. So it was easy for me to understand how she incorporated the culture into the book. Something I really loved was that she never assumed the reader would know what she was talking about. So, while she might introduce a Japanese saying or some sort of object, she always came back to explain what it was in some way and you were never lost. And the way she introduces Japanese mythology into the story is great. I knew nothing of the Kami or any types of G-ds associated with Japan before I read this book, so it was a nice introduction. She seamlessly blends the history with the story so you are not spending the entire time wondering what is going on or only learning about the historical background. Her attention to detail is astounding. You can see the ink spilling off the pages of this book as you read it, very apropos for the story line!
And Sun's writing is very good. It really is easy to read and flows right off the page. She easily integrates sarcasm, humor, romance and action which keep the plot and story line moving at a quick pace. I was never once bored or felt as if I just needed to get through a page or two to get to something good. The story was always tumbling forward.
All in all I really enjoyed this book so much more than I thought I would. Because I have no Japanese background, I wan't sure that I would like what the book had to offer. But I loved learning about the Japanese mythology and culture through the eyes of an American girl. Being shown the country and it's distinct nuances through the eyes of someone who herself was learning the same. Sun creates an intriguing tale of the supernatural that will draw you in and capture you with it's multi-cultural elements and stunning descriptions.
4/5 fist pumps
I will be honest and say that before I went to BEA and received a copy of this book at the Harlequin Teen Blogger breakfast, I had not heard of it. I had no idea what it was about. When Amanda Sun sat at our table and explained it to us, I just thought it sounded odd. However, I'm not one to pass up what seems like it might be totally intriguing, so I dove into this head first to see what it was about.
Blurb from Goodreads:
On the heels of a family tragedy, the last thing Katie Greene wants to do is move halfway across the world. Stuck with her aunt in Shizuoka, Japan, Katie feels lost. Alone. She doesn’t know the language, she can barely hold a pair of chopsticks, and she can’t seem to get the hang of taking her shoes off whenever she enters a building.
Then there’s gorgeous but aloof Tomohiro, star of the school’s kendo team. How did he really get the scar on his arm? Katie isn’t prepared for the answer. But when she sees the things he draws start moving, there’s no denying the truth: Tomo has a connection to the ancient gods of Japan, and being near Katie is causing his abilities to spiral out of control. If the wrong people notice, they'll both be targets.
Katie never wanted to move to Japan—now she may not make it out of the country alive.
I will say that I am a slave for a gorgeous cover. And, yes, those covers often lead me to pick up a book and read it. So, while I had no idea if I would like the premise of this story, I was certainly pulled in by it's beautiful cover. It's so simple. I particularly love the cherry blossoms that are drawn on the cover. And the way the ink is dripping off the page is only a slight foretelling of what this story promises to give.
Katie is out of place in Japan. She has moved there after her mother's death to live with her aunt until her custody can be decided. And, while she seems to really not be happy with her placement there when we first meet her, she has definitely changed her mind by the end. I think my favorite thing about Katie is that she seems to be afraid of nothing. If she wants to find out more about something, she will go out of her way to do so. At the same time, the consequences of being like these can have detrimental if not life threatening effects. Yet, Katie seems to be willing to take these risks in an effort to find out who she really is and what she really wants. She is very relatable and I easily connected with her. She is also well thought out and developed and it's easy to see her growth throughout this book.
Tomohiro is the mysterious boy who draws Katie's attention. As much as he tells her to stay away from him, she just cannot seem to keep from being around him. He initially comes off as a jerk, a hot head who is totally taken with himself. He is inexplicably drawn to Katie and their connection is only heightened when they are near each other. We slowly come to find that Tomo has a soft side, and a secret. A secret to which Katie is linked. I truly loved his character. He was enchanting while still being snarky and totally brooding. It was a great mix that kept me intrigued about him throughout the entire book. One thing that really drew me to him was that he had this old soul quality to him, not your typical teenage angst ridden type of guy at all.Overall he is a very complex character that you can only really understand if you read the story.
The secondary characters are also quite awesome. Katie's friends Tanaka and Yuki care about her, despite her being a bit of an outcast as the American ex-pat who is still learning Japanese. They encourage her to make friends and be friends and come out and play.
And the bad guys, well, they are just that. The Japanese mafia seems like a scary bunch for sure. I don't know much about Japanese culture at all, aside from perhaps some understanding of food and a few cultural things my father taught me when he was traveling a lot to that country. So it was nice to see how Sun portrayed the bad.
The romance was not really a pull for me in this story. While it was there and I can see where many think it may have fallen short, I feel like the underlying connection that Katie and Tomo had was what really drew them to each other. And, while it seemed to progress fast, I don't think it was because there was insta-love. I think it was the draw of the ink that really had Katie and Tomo attaching themselves to each other.
Having spoken a bit with Amanda, I know that she spent some time in Japan growing up. So it was easy for me to understand how she incorporated the culture into the book. Something I really loved was that she never assumed the reader would know what she was talking about. So, while she might introduce a Japanese saying or some sort of object, she always came back to explain what it was in some way and you were never lost. And the way she introduces Japanese mythology into the story is great. I knew nothing of the Kami or any types of G-ds associated with Japan before I read this book, so it was a nice introduction. She seamlessly blends the history with the story so you are not spending the entire time wondering what is going on or only learning about the historical background. Her attention to detail is astounding. You can see the ink spilling off the pages of this book as you read it, very apropos for the story line!
And Sun's writing is very good. It really is easy to read and flows right off the page. She easily integrates sarcasm, humor, romance and action which keep the plot and story line moving at a quick pace. I was never once bored or felt as if I just needed to get through a page or two to get to something good. The story was always tumbling forward.
All in all I really enjoyed this book so much more than I thought I would. Because I have no Japanese background, I wan't sure that I would like what the book had to offer. But I loved learning about the Japanese mythology and culture through the eyes of an American girl. Being shown the country and it's distinct nuances through the eyes of someone who herself was learning the same. Sun creates an intriguing tale of the supernatural that will draw you in and capture you with it's multi-cultural elements and stunning descriptions.
4/5 fist pumps
Plot/Setting:
After the death of her mom Katie Greene moves to Japan to live with her Aunt Diane who is a English teacher. All Katie wants is to go live with her Grandparents in Canada and escape Japan. However, all chances of returning to normalcy vanishes when she witnesses Yuuto Tomohiro break up with his girlfriend and sees one of his drawings moves.
Ink is Amanda Sun's debut novel and a start to a new series called the 'Paper Gods'. It was an amazing book and I highly recommend it. The author steps out of a North American/or fictional setting and takes reader to a whole new country, writes about it culture, foods and the hardship Katie faces with language barriers and cultural differences. Readers are able to leave there comfort zone and embrace something new. I cannot think of one other book that focuses on someone from North America going to Japan.
This paranormal-romance debut is unlike others in that Amanda Sun has skipped the norm (vampires, werewolves etc;) and brought to light Japanese mythology which I haven't seen present before in recent YA novels. This makes Ink stand out from others recently released in that genre.
The book is fast paste and easy to understand. There is a Japanese glossary in the back to translate the Japanese words.
The plot is well done and flows nicely throughout the book. However, I felt that there could of been more action involved.
Characters:
YA needs more asian boys :D Man...Tohomohiro is so sexy. Ever since I found out this novel was being released, thanks to Goodreads, I had been patiently awaiting it release date because a) I am moving to Japan this fall for University and b) sexy asian boy as the main love interest ^_^
Katie: Katie is very much a brave, determined, curious and headstrong character. She is the type that runs towards danger without thinking it through. Also given with all her hardships (mother death, moving to foreign country, learning a new language) she does pretty well and does not give up. I did not find myself, as a reader, annoyed with Katie at all. I personally envied her and found her quite enjoyable as a protagonist. However, during the Love Hotel scene I wanted to shake her and say "connect the dots".
Tomohiro: ^_^ He has got the whole "I'm in pain", bad-boy, confident and modest thing going on and I liked it. I really felt a lot of sympathy towards his character and there were times when I wanted to hug him, shake him and say 'your awesome' and then there were moments when I wanted to beat the crap out of him. However, Tomohiro always puts others above himself and that is enviable quality. However, I think he needs to be a bit more selfish and realize he is super awesome.
Also bonus...my best friend (she is japanese) is in a relationship with a guy and for the life of me I could never remember his name. However, thanks to Ink I can since the first part of his, first name, is Tomo :D
Jun: I am conflicted at who I like more...Jun or Tomohiro.
Yuki, Tanaka, Diane: the side characters were the best. Yuki and Tanaka cracked me up. Diane tries so hard to make Katie fit into her life in Japan. She also pushes Katie to cross new boundaries (learn a new language) and helps Katie develop into a better person :D
Yakuza: I hope we learn more about them in the next book ^_^
Artwork:
This a paperback book...and it has the most awesome artwork both on the cover and inside the book. Readers will be delighted to find flip art ^_^ I really wanted there to be more of that and hope the second book will have it as well.
I am actually excited to see what the second book will look like.
Also the book contains Q&A with the artists, the author , discussion questions and a sneak peak at Book #2. BTW when is book #2 coming out. I do not think I can wait a whole year haha !!
Overall:
This is definitely a book that everyone should be on the lookout for. I finished this a week ago and I am still replaying it in my head.
The Author gets points for bringing something new to the paranormal romance genre, stepping outside of YA normal boundaries and making the readers starve to death as they read about all the delicious foods they are missing out on.
Things I did not like: could of been more action, a little more physical descriptions of the characters and some of the places around them
Thing I loved: all the characters, flip art, storyline, the japanese glossary, cover and the japanese mythology.
This book definitely deserves 5 stars :D
After the death of her mom Katie Greene moves to Japan to live with her Aunt Diane who is a English teacher. All Katie wants is to go live with her Grandparents in Canada and escape Japan. However, all chances of returning to normalcy vanishes when she witnesses Yuuto Tomohiro break up with his girlfriend and sees one of his drawings moves.
Ink is Amanda Sun's debut novel and a start to a new series called the 'Paper Gods'. It was an amazing book and I highly recommend it. The author steps out of a North American/or fictional setting and takes reader to a whole new country, writes about it culture, foods and the hardship Katie faces with language barriers and cultural differences. Readers are able to leave there comfort zone and embrace something new. I cannot think of one other book that focuses on someone from North America going to Japan.
This paranormal-romance debut is unlike others in that Amanda Sun has skipped the norm (vampires, werewolves etc;) and brought to light Japanese mythology which I haven't seen present before in recent YA novels. This makes Ink stand out from others recently released in that genre.
The book is fast paste and easy to understand. There is a Japanese glossary in the back to translate the Japanese words.
The plot is well done and flows nicely throughout the book. However, I felt that there could of been more action involved.
Characters:
YA needs more asian boys :D Man...Tohomohiro is so sexy. Ever since I found out this novel was being released, thanks to Goodreads, I had been patiently awaiting it release date because a) I am moving to Japan this fall for University and b) sexy asian boy as the main love interest ^_^
Katie: Katie is very much a brave, determined, curious and headstrong character. She is the type that runs towards danger without thinking it through. Also given with all her hardships (mother death, moving to foreign country, learning a new language) she does pretty well and does not give up. I did not find myself, as a reader, annoyed with Katie at all. I personally envied her and found her quite enjoyable as a protagonist. However, during the Love Hotel scene I wanted to shake her and say "connect the dots".
Tomohiro: ^_^ He has got the whole "I'm in pain", bad-boy, confident and modest thing going on and I liked it. I really felt a lot of sympathy towards his character and there were times when I wanted to hug him, shake him and say 'your awesome' and then there were moments when I wanted to beat the crap out of him. However, Tomohiro always puts others above himself and that is enviable quality. However, I think he needs to be a bit more selfish and realize he is super awesome.
Also bonus...my best friend (she is japanese) is in a relationship with a guy and for the life of me I could never remember his name. However, thanks to Ink I can since the first part of his, first name, is Tomo :D
Jun: I am conflicted at who I like more...Jun or Tomohiro.
Yuki, Tanaka, Diane: the side characters were the best. Yuki and Tanaka cracked me up. Diane tries so hard to make Katie fit into her life in Japan. She also pushes Katie to cross new boundaries (learn a new language) and helps Katie develop into a better person :D
Yakuza: I hope we learn more about them in the next book ^_^
Artwork:
This a paperback book...and it has the most awesome artwork both on the cover and inside the book. Readers will be delighted to find flip art ^_^ I really wanted there to be more of that and hope the second book will have it as well.
I am actually excited to see what the second book will look like.
Also the book contains Q&A with the artists, the author , discussion questions and a sneak peak at Book #2. BTW when is book #2 coming out. I do not think I can wait a whole year haha !!
Overall:
This is definitely a book that everyone should be on the lookout for. I finished this a week ago and I am still replaying it in my head.
The Author gets points for bringing something new to the paranormal romance genre, stepping outside of YA normal boundaries and making the readers starve to death as they read about all the delicious foods they are missing out on.
Things I did not like: could of been more action, a little more physical descriptions of the characters and some of the places around them
Thing I loved: all the characters, flip art, storyline, the japanese glossary, cover and the japanese mythology.
This book definitely deserves 5 stars :D
Loved reading this book again, I love this world and these characters, and I can't wait to continue on!
*First Read August 16th, 2013*
Oh, this was a very interesting book, because it's only the second time that I've read about Japanese religious figures, and yeah, combined with ink, and creating, really good! Can't wait for more!
*First Read August 16th, 2013*
Oh, this was a very interesting book, because it's only the second time that I've read about Japanese religious figures, and yeah, combined with ink, and creating, really good! Can't wait for more!
This review was originally posted at Paperback Princess
Ink by Amanda Sun was actually quite a disappointing read for me. It wasn't terrible, the writing wasn't bad, but the story was just plain disappointing. The story had amazing potential but alas Ink just fell flat for me. I didn't enjoy it as much as others, but it could have also been because of my high expectations.
Katie Greene has recently moved to her Aunty's home in Japan when her Mother passed away. In a strange land, with no friends and no knowledge of the language…can life get any worse for teenager Katie Greene? Tomo is the school's Kendo team star, local unobtainable bad boy with attitude but an artist behind the scenes. Something tragic and scary stopped him from drawing in public. Can Katie break through Tomo's barriers?
After reading the above paragraph can we all guess where this story is going? If you can't, then you mustn't have read YA novels lately because this seems to be the recipe that Authors are following lately. An outcasted good girl, and the local bad boy and then their forbidden love. I'm really baffled that Amanda Sun went the route that she did with this story. The surrounding elements behind Ink is just brilliant, and so I'm not quite sure why Amanda Sun wrote the story how she did. The strong elements of set in Japan, moving sketches that come to life and become dangerous with Japanese mythology thrown into the mix, how can you seriously go wrong, but Amanda took the elements she created and then went back to the normal recipe of YA novels, so despite having interesting and original elements, the story of Ink went back to just being another YA book with unoriginal story lines and characters.
However, I still liked some parts of Ink, most especially Amanda Sun's description of Japanese life, explaining the connections to Japanese mythology, although I had wished she had touched on this a bit more, and she may very well do in the sequel. Amanda Sun's knowledge of Japan and the lifestyle in Japan is astounding and I really enjoyed getting lost in the surrounding that she created.
Ink by Amanda Sun is a well loved idea, but the story itself and the characters fell disappointingly flat for me. I was looking forward to reading Ink and maybe my high expectation was to blame for my disappointment but after reading the book description, what I expected from Ink is totally what I didn't get out of it, not even close. However, Amanda's writing is good, beautiful even, but the plot line was just bland considering the elements she had to work with, she could have done so much more with this story. I will still be picking up the novella and sequel, just to give this series another chance, because like I said, I love the idea behind this novel, and I am hoping that the execution and story itself gets better.
Disclaimer: This book was provided free by the Author/Publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Ink by Amanda Sun was actually quite a disappointing read for me. It wasn't terrible, the writing wasn't bad, but the story was just plain disappointing. The story had amazing potential but alas Ink just fell flat for me. I didn't enjoy it as much as others, but it could have also been because of my high expectations.
Katie Greene has recently moved to her Aunty's home in Japan when her Mother passed away. In a strange land, with no friends and no knowledge of the language…can life get any worse for teenager Katie Greene? Tomo is the school's Kendo team star, local unobtainable bad boy with attitude but an artist behind the scenes. Something tragic and scary stopped him from drawing in public. Can Katie break through Tomo's barriers?
After reading the above paragraph can we all guess where this story is going? If you can't, then you mustn't have read YA novels lately because this seems to be the recipe that Authors are following lately. An outcasted good girl, and the local bad boy and then their forbidden love. I'm really baffled that Amanda Sun went the route that she did with this story. The surrounding elements behind Ink is just brilliant, and so I'm not quite sure why Amanda Sun wrote the story how she did. The strong elements of set in Japan, moving sketches that come to life and become dangerous with Japanese mythology thrown into the mix, how can you seriously go wrong, but Amanda took the elements she created and then went back to the normal recipe of YA novels, so despite having interesting and original elements, the story of Ink went back to just being another YA book with unoriginal story lines and characters.
However, I still liked some parts of Ink, most especially Amanda Sun's description of Japanese life, explaining the connections to Japanese mythology, although I had wished she had touched on this a bit more, and she may very well do in the sequel. Amanda Sun's knowledge of Japan and the lifestyle in Japan is astounding and I really enjoyed getting lost in the surrounding that she created.
Ink by Amanda Sun is a well loved idea, but the story itself and the characters fell disappointingly flat for me. I was looking forward to reading Ink and maybe my high expectation was to blame for my disappointment but after reading the book description, what I expected from Ink is totally what I didn't get out of it, not even close. However, Amanda's writing is good, beautiful even, but the plot line was just bland considering the elements she had to work with, she could have done so much more with this story. I will still be picking up the novella and sequel, just to give this series another chance, because like I said, I love the idea behind this novel, and I am hoping that the execution and story itself gets better.
Disclaimer: This book was provided free by the Author/Publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I enjoyed it much more than I have many of the YA fantasy romance books I've come across. I probably would have loved it in middle school, although it wasn't particularly subtle so I don't see myself rereading it. It was neat that much of the lore stemmed from Japanese mythology, and the emphasis on Japanese culture throughout the story added a layer of interest.