A review by reading_rhapsody
The Sword of Kaigen by M.L. Wang

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective 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

5.0

 

Man, this book took me on an emotional rollercoaster, but I have to admit, I was a little disappointed. People kept comparing The Sword of Kaigen to The Poppy War and Avatar: The Last Airbender, so I went in with preconceptions that kind of ruined the experience for me. I wish I had gone into it completely blind.

That said, this book is the first fiction novel that actually made me tear up. Chapter 27 is hands down my favorite chapter I’ve ever read. The way it was executed was pure perfection—chef’s kiss! The emotional intensity of that chapter had me in a chokehold.

I was left with so many emotions because of the incredible character development, especially with Misaki and her husband, Takeru. Their relationship had my jaw on the floor. I also loved the worldbuilding and the elemental power system, though it wasn’t entirely new to me.

What really stood out for me was the relationships between the characters. That was my favorite part of the book. I’m so sad that M.L. Wang has discontinued the Theonite universe because there are still so many questions I have and things I want to explore in that world. The Sword of Kaigen is easily one of my favorite books of the year.

This book delivered the character development I had hoped for in The Poppy War and, in my opinion, did a much better job with it. Wang also handled the war aspects well without making them overly graphic like The Poppy War. Even though I rated it 5 stars, The Sword of Kaigen did lack some action elements I expected, especially compared to The Poppy War. But overall, it was more aligned with what I prefer.

I'm still bummed there won’t be any more books in this universe though!