Soul of the Sword (Shadow of the Fox, #2)

by Julie Kagawa

[Quirky Cat]

Soul of the Sword is the second novel in Julie Kagawa's Shadow of the Fox Trilogy, and it hits just as hard as the first.

While her master lay dying, Yumeko swore an oath. She swore to protect her piece of a powerful scroll, no matter the cost. She swore to bring it to the Steel Feather temple, even though she didn't know the way.

In her defense, she truly did try to get there. Only, now she has other responsibilities and goals as well. Promises must be kept, and those include the unspoken promises made to friends and loved ones. Always.

Now Yumeko, along with her friends and allies, must protect the scroll, and try to find a way to stop a great and terrible demon that is raging across their country.

“All souls have a destiny. Some are simply brighter than others.”

Okay, if you loved Shadow of the Fox, then you're going to love the sequel. I have never read a sequel that felt so perfectly at home in comparison to the original. It so many of the same tones, threats, and so much more.

To be clear, I mean that as a compliment. All of the promises made with the ending of Shadow of the Fox were kept in Soul of the Sword. While also creating more promises along the way, because Kagawa is just that good of an author.

It's a relief, in a way. The conclusion of the last novel broke my heart. In a good way, mostly. So I was anxious to see how things would change after that. The characters and their goals did change, but in the most endearing ways possible.

Combine that with the direction the plot is taking, the worldbuilding, the complex cast of characters, and more, and it's really no surprise why I (along with so many others) fell in love with the series all over again.

There are a few surprises along the way, several of which revolve around the subplots of secondary characters. On that note, I adore the supporting cast of this series. They're so pure and perfect. I would kill for them, and totally read any spinoff about them, should one ever occur.

Okay, maybe I wouldn't kill for all of them. While I admit that Hakaimono is an interesting character, he's interesting in the way that all complex antagonists are. That is to say, I love to learn about it, and respect what is done, but will not be rooting for him.

I'll confess that I'm actually super behind on writing this review, and I have already read (and reviewed) Night of the Dragon. It was a whirlwind of a ride, much like the rest of this series. I strongly recommend it to anybody looking for a series that is richly detailed, and marvelously written.

Check out more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks