Title: Soul of the Sword
Series: Shadow of the Fox #2
Series Reviews: Shadow of the Fox
Author: Julie Kagawa
Publication Date: June 18, 2019
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Format: NetGalley eARC

Okay, I’ve run out of words here on these pages. Where’s book three now, please?

Soul of the Sword takes all the things that were wonderful about Shadow of the Fox (the world, the anime-esque storytelling, the fun characters, the dark fantasy vibes) and really digs deeper for what was a rich, exciting experience.

Don’t worry: Okame is still great. It’s just that the other characters are also great now, too.

This felt like a second book, in all the right ways. While it was a bit slow to get started, especially since it’s been a while since I read the first one, it was easy enough to slip back into the world. And I have to say, I really enjoyed the journey.

❧ There’s still so much Japanese lore to explore in this world, but in this book, it becomes darker and more sinister, which I love.

And let’s be honest: the Japanese are really freaking good at having slightly terrifying, nightmare-inducing lore.

Some fun highlights of what you’ll get to see:

✿ Jubokki: man-eating tree that drains the blood (and life, since that’s sort of how it works) from its victims
✿ Sagari: grotesque horses’ heads that drop from trees and shriek at passersby
✿ Gashadokuro: A freaking ginormous skeleton formed from lots of freaking people dying not very nice deaths

As with Shadow of the Fox, the world was just superbly done, and I really looked forward to all the new elements that were presented. It’s such fun learning about and encountering new sorts of creatures. I mean, they weren’t all scary, either. Like the delightful Neko that Yumeko meets, who promptly tells her off, in proper cat-like fashion, for daring to be in her city.

❧ Hakaimono is absolutely brutal and I freaking love it.

Don’t get it twisted: this is not a guy I’d want to hang out with. Sure, I love villains, and occasionally would even glomp one, despite the threat of death. This is not one of those villains. I’d just enjoy watching him, from a safe distance away, maybe with a little popcorn. Well, considering the sight of blood makes me queasy, maybe the popcorn’s a bad idea. The important thing was the from a safe distance.

This isn’t a villain I’m prepared to root for, per se, but one I did enjoy. His motives were simple enough and easily understood. I mean, I’d be pretty pissed if I was super powerful and had been trapped in a sword for a thousand years. Heck, I’d be pissed even if I wasn’t super powerful and that happened. Talking swords are fun to own, not so much fun to be.

❧ Yumeko really starts to come into her own as a character and is slowly becoming the badass kitsune we all know she’s destined to be.

Not gonna lie: Yumeko’s character really bugged me in Shadow of the Fox, but I hung in there because it made sense for someone who was sheltered and raised in a temple. And here is the glorious payoff, guys! Now that she’s able to embrace her kitsune nature, we get to actually learn more about it.

The greatest thing about Yumeko in this book is that she stops being such a passive character and starts taking more initiative.

Does she still run off impulsively or do ill-advised things? Of course! But the little rebellions are more endearing in this book, as she stops leaning so much on others and learns to trust more in her own abilities.

❧ You’ll be happy to know that Okame is still his ever-charming self. Better yet, though, all the secondary characters seemed to have much more personality in this book.

Yes, even Daisuke, who felt a bit like a wet napkin to me in the first book. I rather enjoyed him here, and it’s obvious that his personality is changing. We actually get to know each of the characters better and get brief glimpses into their pasts, their regrets, etc. I personally love the supporting characters, so I really enjoyed the chance to spend more time with them.

❧ I don’t know yet where Hakaimono’s journey is going to take him, but I am 100% committed to seeing it through, because it’s already hinting that it’ll be a heck of a ride.

One that perhaps you should wear a helmet for, and maybe extra padding, but nevertheless. Without giving away any spoilers, we get to know a bit more about Hakaimono and his past and his goals first hand, since he’s a POV character. There’s also hints that being in a sword and subject to humans might have … *gasp* changed him! Which would be horrible, obviously. I’m super interested to see how this will play out, especially considering that ending!!!!

❧ We are all just pieces on a game board, and Lord Seigetsu is the hand that guides us. I have no idea what the game is, but you, good sir, have won my attention.

I’m sure you all remember Lord Seigetsu from the first book? No? Well, that’s okay, because I didn’t either, since I’m silly and didn’t re-read it before this released. For those in the same predicament I was, he’s the super suave, sexy, slightly sarcastic lord who saved Yumeko from Kazekira and warned her not to tell Tatsumi.

It was pretty obvious there that he was going to be some mysterious figure in the shadows pulling the strings. And surprise, he is! What’s his endgame? No idea. I’m sure book three will tell us.

His parts were a little confusing, and I’m still not sure who or what he is, so really, he left me with more questions than I had going in, which is a teensy bit frustrating.

But overall, what Lord Seigetsu represents is that something larger seems to be coming for these beloved characters. Something ominous. Most likely deadly. Probably not sunshine and rainbows. Sounds like fun, right?

❧ There’s a romance, which I can say nothing about due to spoilers, but I’m all about this ship, and I will go down with it if I have to.

This one was a surprise for me, because I didn’t catch any inkling of it in the first book that I recall. But from early on in this book, I definitely felt the sparks flying. I knew something had to be up, and it was, and now I’m a happy fangirl.

❧ The story is a little hard for me to follow in places, and it feels like a combination of several things.

Shifting POVs: This wasn’t as much of a problem for me in book one, but in book two, with so much happening and three different storylines basically unfolding separately, it was sometimes difficult for me to smoothly transition from one point of view (and thus one storyline) into another.

A lot of Japanese terms: Okay, I get it, this is sort of the point. And I watch anime, so really, it’s not like I’m not necessarily used to some of these terms. But there were times when it felt really dramatic or cartoonish (I’m looking at you, “nani”). Then were times where it just casually mentions a Japanese creature and then explains it like a Wikipedia entry. That bugs me because it feels so disingenuous because it’s from Yumeko’s perspective and, one, she doesn’t sound like that, and two, it’s obvious she’s telling the reader this instead of being a part of the story.

I’m bad at geography: The sort of bad where if you walk me outside, put a bag over my head, and turn me around five times, I’m now officially lost and will probably die of starvation ten yards from my house. There were a lot of places, which is great, but I have trouble remembering them. And I hate having to stop reading to consult a map to remember what this place is supposed to be. This is obviously a me problem more than a book problem, but the POV thing made it worse because everyone was in different locations and basically the whole book is traveling.

❧ Yumeko is the youngest and most inexperienced member of the group, having grown up in a temple and being so naive at times in this book that I want to shake her, and yet she seems convinced that her ideas are obviously the best.

Because what can a samurai, a ronin, a temple maiden, and a super ancient, wizened priest offer that a sheltered teenage kitsune can’t, hm?! This was the one thing that really held me back from loving Yumeko. Someone told her not to do something. She did it anyway. Because she knew better than them, basically, and realized they were wrong.

Her character also felt a bit inconsistent at times, which was confusing. She would sound so wise and mature and like she’s really taking off the more that she sees the world and understands its realities (both good and bad). But then, at the same time, she knew literally nothing about obvious things like love and relationships. At all. I understood that some of this would obviously be a result of growing up in a temple, but she felt a little too oblivious to everything going on around her. She also didn’t understand simple idioms, and I don’t know why? Surely the people at the temple used phrases like “head in the clouds,” especially with Yumeko around.

What’s your favorite anime trope or character type? Are you a sucker for sarcastic ronins like I am?