The Beast Warrior Review

by Nahoko Uehashi, Cathy Hirano (Translation)

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.

Print Length: 496 pages

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Special thanks to NetGalley and Henry Holt and Co. for providing me with an eARC.

This book is currently available for pre-order and will be released July 28, 2020.

Ten years after the fateful clash between two opposing sides of the Divine Kingdom of Lyoza, Elin lives a peaceful life with her family. She tries to stay as far away from her past as possible—the girl who communicated with creatures and befriended a Royal Beast wants no part in the power struggles of humans. But when Elin is called upon to investigate a mysterious illness that’s stricken the Toda, she uncovers a startling plot—one that could threaten everything she holds dear.

In this thrilling sequel to The Beast Player, Elin must confront her destiny and the dire warnings of history. Is a final battle between the Toda and the Royal Beasts inevitable? Or will it mean destruction for all? (Goodreads)

This book was a highly anticipated sequel that I couldn’t wait to pick up after reading the first book. I felt so lucky and very grateful to be allowed access to the eARC, and let me tell you, this series has earned a special place in my heart for so many reasons. Let’s explore these:

The Beast Warrior follows its predecessor’s steps in by continuing to portray important life lessons that in some ways, have an eerie relevance to current times. From the effects of raising wild animals in captivity to the importance of history and how easily it can be forgotten and altered by time. These are invaluable lessons and the way they are portrayed in this book is brutal and honest. The way it illustrates the importance of maintaining the natural balance of the world is unparalleled.

This book may seem long-winded for some, but with a complex story so rare for young adults, this can be easily confused. The main conflict is not one easily resolved, with all the possible solutions having flaws and varying rewards. The book shows the complexity of national politics understandably, something very difficult to do. And with a beautifully in-depth description, it’s easy to get lost in the world created by the author. 

I’m prepared to recommend this book to anyone and everyone as I think it’s not only a good read but an important one.

Subjective Rating

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Objective Rating

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Final Rating

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Advertisement

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out /  Change )

Connecting to %s