Review: Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa (Book 1)
- Book Junk Hammy
- Jul 26, 2019
- 5 min read
Updated: Aug 5, 2019
"It is very hard to be human, little fox.
Even the humans themselves don't do a great job of it."
Many years back, the very first book written by Julie Kagawa that I stumbled upon, was The Iron Fey series, and I’m excited when I found out that the author will be working on a new series that incorporates heavily on Japanese mythology! Being a fan of Japanese culture myself, I was looking forward to the book, and was excited to know how Kagawa would deliver the story, and as expected, she did not disappoint with her latest trilogy. While reading this book, it reminded me of anime, manga and Japanese pop culture as a whole. So, those who are familiar with anime and Japanese mythology, and pop culture, this book is for you 😊
Without further ado, here’s the synopsis of the story:
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.
The Plot:
The story opens with Yumeko, a half breed (kitsune (fox) and human) who lives and grew up in Silent Winds Temple all her life, was suddenly entrusted with the duty to deliver a piece of the Scroll of a Thousand Prayers to the Steel Feather Temple. Only problem was, to get to the Steel Feather Temple, she will need to meet Master Jiro from Hayate Shrine first, who knows the exact location of the temple. After watching her home crumbled to pieces by demons, Yumeko was forced to flee into the forest where she was saved by a shinobi, Kage Tatsumi from the Shadow Clan who is on a mission to retrieve the Dragon Scroll as well. To make sure that she delivers the Dragon Scroll safely, she made a deal with Tatsumi. They agreed to a deal and together, they embarked on a journey to Kin Heigen Toshi, the Capital City of Iwagoto, in search of Master Jiro at Hayate Shrine, all the while making sure the Dragon Scroll does not fall into the wrong hands, including Tatsumi who is after the scroll, too. As they travelled to Kin Heigen Toshi, they will meet interesting comrades and will go through various obstacles along the way. The story is told from alternating point of views between Yumeko and Kage Tatsumi. The pacing of the story was just nice, not too fast nor is it too slow as we were slowly introduced to the world and its characters. There are plenty of action scenes to keep you going as well!
The Characters:
I love Yumeko’s character. She is a naïve, sweet and innocent girl who has been sheltered by the monks and is curious at everything! I like how she is naïve, but is able to protect herself and others. Kage Tatsumi is your brooding, dark and mysterious character, due to his upbringings. I often found myself hoping that Tatsumi would one day find love and experience what it feels like to be loved. Tatsumi was the chosen one to bear a katana named Kamigoroshi. He was trained to close off his emotions due to the dangers from the demonslayer, Hakaimono, who is trapped in the katana, from possessing him. Okame is a ronin (master-less samurai) and is your cheerful and witty character who is the mood-lifter of the group who often makes jokes and sarcastic remarks. I often laugh out loud when it came to his dialogues. Despite all the supernatural shortcomings, Okame will brace himself for the worse without cowering. All in all, I enjoy their character development as the story progresses because each of them has their own special trait and it’s those traits that make me crave for more.
The Relationship between Yumeko and Tatsumi:
I have to say, I just love the chemistry between Yumeko and Tatsumi! It’s a slow burn romance, but it’s still so sweet and I just can’t get enough of them. As the story progresses, he started to feel and care for Yumeko, considering how he is not allowed to feel any emotions.
The World-building:
Shadow of the Fox is set in fantasy-inspired Feudal Japan and is based heavily on Japanese history and folklore. The world building is phenomenal and rich, which will introduce readers to several yokai/ ayakashi (demon) throughout the book such as the Kamaitachi, a.k.a The Sickle Weasels, that is well-known in Japanese folklore. The towns and forest described by the author, such as the Chochin Machi town (Lantern town) felt vivid, that I couldn’t help wishing that I'm physically in the town itself. The world building is such that it is divided between clans – Water, Fire, Earth, Sky, Moon, Shadow and Sun, with the Sun Clan rules the entire Empire of Iwagoto. While there are many clans introduced, the only clans the author explored on was the Shadow Clan and Sun Clan. Maybe in the second and third book, the other clans will be explored.
Overall, Shadow of the Fox is a fun and thrilling read, and I thoroughly enjoyed the book. The Japanese mythology, culture and historical aspects are so immersive and fascinating that it was difficult for me to put the book down. There are a number of Japanese terms, but the author did a good job in explaining them, so you don’t have to worry about getting lost or confused with those terms. While this book, being the first in the trilogy sets up an intriguing premise, there will definitely be a lot more going in the second and third book, which means, more action and a deeper backstory! Yay! Kudos to Julie Kagawa for this amazing book :)
Rating: 4.5/5
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
Details of the book can be found on Goodreads:
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