Harper Collins
My review
5 plus
Amazing story.
None of the kindlings is male, some are nonbinary, and during the war, they were all enemies. They used to kill each other. Now, under the same code, the way of the sword, they will fight together to protect a village. Following the code, honor, tranquility, and compassion. Bringing peace with blood and violence.
It is a story told with multiple points of view and present tense, second person like a dungeon master bringing us closer to a new world.
We need to pay attention to the title of each chapter to know who the "you do..." refers to, but the author made all the warriors different and filled with personality, and soon this doesn't slow us down.
It is overall a slow read, emotional, sad, and a great homage to movies, historical fiction, historical dramas, and anime that fans like me will love. The author was inspired by the iconic movie The Seven Samurai. I was inspired by Kenshin Himura and Hitokiro Battōsai and as a former Kendoka, I loved their classic way of doing good for those who can't. Kendo is about finding an honest family as well.
By having so many characters and points of view we can see many versions of the trauma (pos war) of being so young and taught to be a warrior of death, on top of that, they are special and their magic is supposed to kill them young. They all deal with the trauma differently which brought me close to all of them and love all of them and fear for all of them. Congratulations on this unique modernization of such an iconic genre.
The balance is good with a bit of romance and quick/subtle sex scenes but full of passion. These moments of love and camaraderie help with their reminiscence of pain, loss, and violence.
Thank you for the opportunity to read this eARC NetGalley and Publish.
Official site with all the store links here.