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birdlines 's review for:
The Sword of Kaigen
by M.L. Wang
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
“You learn over time that the world isn’t broken. It’s just… got more pieces to it than you thought. They all fit together, just maybe not the way you pictured when you were young.”
This. Book. It made me want to tear my hair out. It made me weep openly in a field. It made me shout angrily at an empty room.
The characters arcs are *chefs kiss*. This book is an alternate futures sci-fantasy with heavy Japanese inspiration with a focus on the military, the spiritual beliefs and the family life of the people in this world. There’s magic, there’s sword fighting, and there’s a mountain full of grief. Pull your pants up if you want to get into this book because it’s a tough ride from page one all the way through to page 630.
We follow the story and perspectives of both fourteen year old Mamoru, and his mother Misaki. Occasionally we go back in time to her youth and explore how and why she ended up here, in this place at this time.
In a mountain village detached from the rest of the empire, the Matsuda line breeds and trains warriors with the powers of the gods in their veins. As young Mamoru, son of Takeru & Misaki Matsuda grows up in this peaceful and isolated place, learning to fight and master The Whispering Blade, he tries to figure out his place in the world.
Takayabi is steeped in lore and tradition, and there are very clear expectations of him. But his foundations are rocked to the core when he meets an outsider and the possibility comes to light that much of what he believes may be a lie.
I can’t get over the depth and breadth of storytelling that went into this book, it’s a masterclass in showing the different sides of inherent culture.
Thanks M. L. Wang for once again breaking my heart and patching it up again, for giving me the adult version of Avatar meets Mulan that I didn’t know I needed, and for making me hate, forgive and love individual characters all in the space of a book.
This. Book. It made me want to tear my hair out. It made me weep openly in a field. It made me shout angrily at an empty room.
The characters arcs are *chefs kiss*. This book is an alternate futures sci-fantasy with heavy Japanese inspiration with a focus on the military, the spiritual beliefs and the family life of the people in this world. There’s magic, there’s sword fighting, and there’s a mountain full of grief. Pull your pants up if you want to get into this book because it’s a tough ride from page one all the way through to page 630.
We follow the story and perspectives of both fourteen year old Mamoru, and his mother Misaki. Occasionally we go back in time to her youth and explore how and why she ended up here, in this place at this time.
In a mountain village detached from the rest of the empire, the Matsuda line breeds and trains warriors with the powers of the gods in their veins. As young Mamoru, son of Takeru & Misaki Matsuda grows up in this peaceful and isolated place, learning to fight and master The Whispering Blade, he tries to figure out his place in the world.
Takayabi is steeped in lore and tradition, and there are very clear expectations of him. But his foundations are rocked to the core when he meets an outsider and the possibility comes to light that much of what he believes may be a lie.
I can’t get over the depth and breadth of storytelling that went into this book, it’s a masterclass in showing the different sides of inherent culture.
Thanks M. L. Wang for once again breaking my heart and patching it up again, for giving me the adult version of Avatar meets Mulan that I didn’t know I needed, and for making me hate, forgive and love individual characters all in the space of a book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Grief, War, Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Child death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Violence, War