The Isle of the Gods by Amie Kaufman

Pages: 465

Publisher: Rock the Boat 

Released: 4th of May 2023 

Magic, romance, and slumbering gods clash in the start of a riveting fantasy series spanning gangsters' dens, forgotten temples, and the high seas from the New York Times bestselling author of the Illuminae Files and the Aurora Cycle.

Selly has salt water in her veins. So when her father leaves her high and dry in the port of Kirkpool, she has no intention of riding out the winter at home while he sails to adventure in the north seas. But any plans to follow him are dashed when a handsome stranger with tell-tale magician's marks on his arms commandeers her ship under cover of darkness: He is Prince Leander of Alinor, and he needs to cross the Crescent Sea without detection so he can complete a ritual on the sacred Isles of the Gods.

Selly has no desire to escort a spoiled prince anywhere, and no time for his entitled demands or his good looks. But what starts as a leisure cruise will lead to acts of treason and sheer terror on the high seas, bringing two countries to the brink of war, two strangers closer than they ever thought possible and two dangerous gods stirring from centuries of slumber...

What I Have to Say 

An beautiful fantasy tale with fantastic world building and description that makes you feel like you're actually on a boat, this book was a delight to read. I loved the characters, the world, the themes. It was really good. 

The themes of grief and personal growth were really interesting to read. The characters all had roles they had to grow into and bad habits they had to move on from. It gave it a coming of age style of narrative to the book, that really added a level of realism to the characters. 

This book was seriously almost perfect. The only thing that gave me pause was the fact that both queer characters were on the villain side. There was a hint that a third character was asexual, which would add some balance to it, but I wasn't sure. I'm hoping that in the next book one of the characters will switch sides, but I'm not sure if he will or not. All the characters were well rounded and didn't seem like tokens at all, but I'd like to see at least one LGBTQ+ character on the side of our heroes. 

Overall I enjoyed it and I'm really looking forward to the next book! 

4 stars 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Rock the Boat for providing me with this copy for review. 

Shadow of the Fox Blog Tour: Guest Post by Julie Kagawa

I am so happy to be part of the Shadow of the Fox blog tour. It is truly an honour to host Julie Kagawa, as she has been one of my favourite authors for so long. 

I also was able to request a piece that meant a lot to me, as I'm so fascinated by language, especially Japanese. So I hope you enjoy this post as much as I did. 

The Language of Shadow of the Fox 

Language was very important to me while writing Shadow of the Fox, especially the specific meaning of certain names.  For example, Yumeko, the kitsune protagonist of the story, has a very specific name. Yume is 'dream' in Japanese, so her name translates to dream child or child of dreams.  Tatsumi's demon possessed sword Kamigoroshi literally means 'godslayer,' and his family name  Kage (pronounced 'kah geh' not 'cage') is Japanese for 'shadow.'

Similarly, the families of Iwagoto are all named after the elements. The four Great Clans are the Hino, Mizu, Kaze and Tsuchi: Fire, Water, Wind and Earth.  The minor clans make up the Tsuki, Sora and Kage: Moon, Sky and Shadow, while the Imperial family is the Taiyo, the Sun clan.  The clans often reflect their families' element, with members of the Fire clan being seen as impulsive and hot tempered, the Earth clan as stubborn and immovable, and the Shadow clan as secretive and mysterious.

Even the names of the cities and buildings are important.  Chochin Machi, a small town that Yumeko and Tatsumi come across in their travels, means 'Lantern Town,' and is strung with thousands of red paper lanterns that light up the night.  The Shadow clan's home castle is Hakumei-jo, which means Twilight castle.  The Hayate shrine in the Wind district of the Imperial city means 'gale.' From the people to the towns to the forests and buildings, almost every named thing has a hidden meaning. And while most of them are not in the glossary at the back of the book, I took great care in all the names that went into Shadow of the Fox.  

Shadow of the Fox is available from any good book shop or online retailers. For my review of the book, go here. 

The Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 384 

Publisher: HQ Young Adult 

Released: 1st of November 2018 

One thousand years ago, the great Kami Dragon was summoned to grant a single terrible wish—and the land of Iwagoto was plunged into an age of darkness and chaos.

Now, for whoever holds the Scroll of a Thousand Prayers, a new wish will be granted. A new age is about to dawn.

Raised by monks in the isolated Silent Winds temple, Yumeko has trained all her life to hide her yokai nature. Half kitsune, half human, her skill with illusion is matched only by her penchant for mischief. Until the day her home is burned to the ground, her adoptive family is brutally slain and she is forced to flee for her life with the temple’s greatest treasure—one part of the ancient scroll.

There are many who would claim the dragon’s wish for their own. Kage Tatsumi, a mysterious samurai of the Shadow Clan, is one such hunter, under orders to retrieve the scroll…at any cost. Fate brings Kage and Yumeko together. With a promise to lead him to the scroll, an uneasy alliance is formed, offering Yumeko her best hope for survival. But he seeks what she has hidden away, and her deception could ultimately tear them both apart.

With an army of demons at her heels and the unlikeliest of allies at her side, Yumeko’s secrets are more than a matter of life or death. They are the key to the fate of the world itself. 

What I Have to Say 

This was basically an anime with the unique style and twists I've come to know and love from Julie Kagawa. Though without the actual animation bit, naturally. Kagawa has taken some of the stereotyped characters from Japanese anime and given them her own touch, managing to keep the characters that anime fans know while giving them a touch that is so specific to Kagawa's writing.

This book is everything I've ever wanted. Kagawa has brought in so many myths and creatures from Japan and brought them to life in a beautiful and vivid world. I love the epic quest style story and the twists and turns that used to create this story. It's so amazing how a simple fantasy structure can be so revitalised with a different type of mythology to draw from for inspiration. 

Yumeko is the sweetest. I love her so much. From the first page, I was drawn into her character, how she had the trickster side of the fox but there was also a side of her that was a sweet kind caring human girl that peeked out through her actions at some points during the book. I also love the fact that her strength is shown so much through tactics and tricks rather than outright fighting. It's become a bit of a problem with YA that all of the supposedly "strong" female characters are strong just because they can fight. It's great to see someone who's definitely a strong female character but who relies more on illusions and tricks as well as her knack for persuasion to get what she wants. 

Tatsumi is great as well, though maybe a little predictable that he's falling into a romance with Yumeko. And Okame! So many sarcastic comments about being a ronin (disgraced samurai) and his drinking and general roguish nature. I laughed out loud so much at some of the jokes in these books, especially some of Okame and Yumeko's lines. 

This was one of those books that I almost didn't want to pick up each day because it meant I was closer and closer to finishing it and having no more to read. I can't wait for the sequel. 

My thanks go to HQ for providing me with this copy for review.