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A review by ajira
Ebony Gate by Ken Bebelle, Julia Vee
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Just realized I hadn’t published my review here, and book 2 is almost out already so here goes! I absolutely loved this book. Emiko Soong is our weary albeit stab-happy, double sword wielding reluctant hero who's trying to just get on with her life after the trauma of losing herself to her work as a Blade for her clan, despite being kept in the dark about her Talent in a world that values Talents over almost anything.
Although she's done her best to keep to herself after distancing herself from her family, she builds connections with her new community in San Francisco, looking out for folks as they look out for her. When a death god calls in a favor that her mom owed, she steps in to fulfill the blood debt and recover the stolen Ebony Gate or forfeit her soul in its stead.
Emiko's many layered traumas, dissonance about them and everyone’s reluctance to see her as anything but the Butcher of Beijing are a double edged sword that cuts in all ways. Her exhaustion comes through in so much of her self-doubt, even as her innate and trained badassness never lets her just give up.
I really enjoyed the incorporation of various East Asian myths as well as the magical system with eight dragon clans whose members had varying Talents… AND this 2 day action-filled adventure took place around San Francisco and the Bay Area (my US hometown) which was lovely and immediately made me want to go back to all the landmarks mentioned! Bao, the magical foo lion sidekick was also a fave and I want to see all the artist renderings there are of him. Reading this book definitely made me want to get swords! STAT.
This story reminded me of how hard it is to leave family business/drama, especially when it’s a big family. You can get dragged back into that mess before you know what’s what. It’s action filled, with interesting and funny characters and a hidden layer that just piqued my interest consistently. I’m eager to read the next installments and find out if the hoard remains protected. Special shoutout to the city’s magic sentience which I’m also eager to see more of! I can't wait for book 2!
Thank you to B2 Weird for including me on the tour, and to Tor Books and the authors for a finished copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
Although she's done her best to keep to herself after distancing herself from her family, she builds connections with her new community in San Francisco, looking out for folks as they look out for her. When a death god calls in a favor that her mom owed, she steps in to fulfill the blood debt and recover the stolen Ebony Gate or forfeit her soul in its stead.
Emiko's many layered traumas, dissonance about them and everyone’s reluctance to see her as anything but the Butcher of Beijing are a double edged sword that cuts in all ways. Her exhaustion comes through in so much of her self-doubt, even as her innate and trained badassness never lets her just give up.
I really enjoyed the incorporation of various East Asian myths as well as the magical system with eight dragon clans whose members had varying Talents… AND this 2 day action-filled adventure took place around San Francisco and the Bay Area (my US hometown) which was lovely and immediately made me want to go back to all the landmarks mentioned! Bao, the magical foo lion sidekick was also a fave and I want to see all the artist renderings there are of him. Reading this book definitely made me want to get swords! STAT.
This story reminded me of how hard it is to leave family business/drama, especially when it’s a big family. You can get dragged back into that mess before you know what’s what. It’s action filled, with interesting and funny characters and a hidden layer that just piqued my interest consistently. I’m eager to read the next installments and find out if the hoard remains protected. Special shoutout to the city’s magic sentience which I’m also eager to see more of! I can't wait for book 2!
Thank you to B2 Weird for including me on the tour, and to Tor Books and the authors for a finished copy of this book. All opinions are my own.