m.l. wang – GoodeyReads

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 631 pages
Author: M.L. Wang
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: February 19th, 2019
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

On a mountainside at the edge of the Kaigenese Empire live the most powerful fighters in the world, warriors capable of raising the sea and wielding blades of ice. For centuries, the fighters of the Kusanagi Peninsula have held the Empire’s enemies at bay, earning their treacherous spit of land the name ‘The Sword of Kaigen.’

Born into Kusanagi’s legendary Matsuda family, fourteen-year-old Mamoru has always know his purpose: to master his family’s fighting techniques and defend his homeland. But when an outsider arrives and pulls back the curtain on Kaigen’s alleged age of peace, Mamoru ralizes that he might not have much time before he has to become the fighter he was bred to be. Even worse, the empire he was born to defend might stand on a foundation of lies.

Misaki told herself that she left the passions of her youth behind when she married into the Matsuda house. Determined to be a good housewife and mother, she hid away her sword, along with everything from her days as a fighter in a faraway country. But with her son asking questions about the outside world, the threat of invasion looming on the horizon, and her frigid husband grating on her nerves, Misaki finds the fighter in her clawing its way back to the surface.

When the winds of war reach their peninsula, will the Matsuda family have the strength to defend their empire? Or will they tear each other apart before the true enemies ever reach their shores?

THIS BOOK TORE ME UP.

I was not expecting the devastation this book brought me. OHMYGOODNESS. I can’t even speak to it as well as I want to because it would spoil things and I need y’all to go read this book and then come find me so we can cry together.

This also had one of the best character arc chapters I have ever read (IYKYK). The fighting and emotion and being at your absolute lowest that brought this character to finally shape up and DO SOMETHING. I will constantly be coming back to this scene.

And I loved loved loved Misaki. This book really showcased the strength of being a woman and mother. The way so many themes were tackled were hard hitting and raw. I could not put this book down. I thought the writing and pacing was incredible. This book made me think, cry, rage and contemplate all the things.

Hands down a new favorite in the fantasy genre for me.

Overall audience notes:

Fantasy
Language: mild
Romance: this isn’t a romance book but there are some discussions around sex
Violence: high
Content Warnings: miscarriage, suicide, war themes, loss of loved ones, graphic deaths/violence, attempted murder of a baby, r*pe, post partum depression

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 430 pages
Author: M.L. Wang
Publisher: Del Rey
Release Date: October 29th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Magic has made the city of Tiran an industrial utopia, but magic has a cost—and the collectors have come calling.

An orphan since the age of four, Sciona has always had more to prove than her fellow students. For twenty years, she has devoted every waking moment to the study of magic, fueled by a mad desire to achieve the impossible: to be the first woman ever admitted to the High Magistry. When she finally claws her way up the ranks to become a highmage, however, she finds that her challenges have just begun. Her new colleagues will stop at nothing to let her know she is unwelcome, beginning with giving her a janitor instead of a qualified lab assistant.

What neither Sciona nor her peers realize is that her taciturn assistant was once more than a janitor; before he mopped floors for the mages, Thomil was a nomadic hunter from beyond Tiran’s magical barrier. Ten years have passed since he survived the perilous crossing that killed his family. But working for a highmage, he sees the opportunity to finally understand the forces that decimated his tribe, drove him from his homeland, and keep the Tiranish in power.

Through their fractious relationship, mage and outsider uncover an ancient secret that could change the course of magic forever—if it doesn’t get them killed first. Sciona has defined her life by the pursuit of truth, but how much is one truth worth with the fate of civilization in the balance?

A standalone dark academia brimming with mystery, tragedy, and the damning echoes of the past. For fans of Leigh Bardugo, V. E. Schwab, and Fullmetal Alchemist.

(Content warnings for gore, sexual assault, and suicidal ideation)

FANTASTIC READ.

This had one of the coolest magic systems I’ve come across recently. I loved that it was coding based and how it worked. I really enjoyed Sciona as a main character. She’s exactly the type of lead I would expect in this type of book. A strong female who is trying to make a name for herself and prove her worth while also having to come to terms with her biases and facts that have been in front of her. The themes are complex and heavy hitting and made me think (even better my husband had just read this so we had a lot of good discussions).

It is not a romantic type book at all!! Just need to state because I do usually pick up romance based fantasy books. This one did not need a romantic plot at all. The characters were incredible. I loved getting Tiran’s POV too and seeing where he came from and how he and Sciona found ways to work together and ultimately begin the reconstruction of land.

A compelling read and I now want to go read other books by this author!

Overall audience notes: