Shadow of The Fox Review

Hello, all!

I love me a good fantasy novel, but I've never really read any that had a Japanese influence, so I knew I had to get my hands on a copy of Shadow of The Fox by Julie Kagawa. Huge thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin Teen for the copy!

Pub Date: 10-2-18 by
Harlequin Teen
YA - Fantasy
The story follows Yumeko, a young girl who has lived a sheltered life raised by monks in the Silent Wind temple, who has trained her whole life to hide her yokai abilities. Half-human, half-kitsune (fox), Yumeko has a knack for mischief and bending the rules, but all that changes when her temple gets attacked by demons and burned down and her adoptive family slain. Before his death, her Master tasks Yumeko with protecting part of the ancient Dragon Scroll, which when put together with the other pieces will summon the great Kami Dragon who will grant one person's wish.

While fleeing from the only home she's ever known, Yumeko runs into Kage Tatsumi, a dangerous samurai of the mysterious Shadow Clan. What she doesn't know is that Tatsumi has been sent to her temple to retrieve the very scroll she's smuggling, by any means necessary. Yumeko enlists the protection of the samurai in exchange for "helping" him find the scroll. An uneasy alliance forms between the two, and the longer they are together, the more complicated their relationship becomes. As underlying feelings begin to grow between the two, the deception and secrets both are hiding threaten to tear them apart.

It initially took me a bit to get into the groove of this story, but once I did I read the entire thing in one day. I really enjoyed the atmosphere and world that Kagawa created; it gave me total anime vibes and I loved it. I could almost picture it as Avatar: The Last Airbender mixed with some Studio Ghibli. Yumeko is such a nice main character because you can tell she's so naive, and hasn't seen much of the world or how cruel people can be, but she seems to always see the hope and good in things. I also liked the group of companions Yumeko and Tatsumi end up with. Okame was probably my favorite, his sarcasm and wit was just the right amount of comedic lightheartedness the book needed. And the ending! Holy cow, talk about action packed. I can't wait to see where the story and characters go from here.

If you're a fan of anime or fantasy, I'd definitely recommend checking this one out.

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