The Sword of Kaigen: A Theonite War Story Paperback – 13 February 2019

Enjoyed every page of this book, it is a great standalone book. Anyone thinking of picking it up, don't think, it will be worth it.

This is everything I wanted in a fantasy. The world building is perfect, the magic system is the dream of any fan of elemental magic and kenjutsu. The action sequences are the best I have come across in a long time. This book is a dream of any weeb. Give me 10 more books setup in this world and I will religiously devour it.Its easy to tell a fantastical story through the eyes of an over powered main character. What if this happens to be a mother of four children? Will she take up arms if it means that she will endanger her family?Calling the oppression and sexism shown in the book relatable will be an understatement. It is something that still happens in certain places. Where bloodline and loyalty stands above all, even above your own dreams and the one you chose to love.This is how fantasy should become. A story of not just how the good guy beat the bad guy and all the obstacles he faced to get there. But how in the backdrop of this war, there are lives at stake, and its not just a game of who is stronger or who rules.I dont think I can read any other fantasy book without having this one in mind. The bar is now set too high.

Good magic system, pleasant read, a great detailing of characters and their very human needs and reactions, the plot is a little too heavy on action, lots of blood and gore.

Thought it spends too much time to set up a sequel that's been put on hold, it's still a very satisfying standalone. Misaki is a well-developed and refreshing character to follow.

While it's set in the Theonite universe, this is a standalone novel. The magic system - manipulating water/fire/wind - is well-written - but the author allows you to familiarise yourself with the world, rather than explaining every detail. As much as I enjoyed Mamoru's point of view chapters, I'd wait to get to Misaki's to understand more about her past as well as a bit more about what the larger world looks like. Colonialism, propaganda, revisionism of history, the brutality of war, familial relationships - so much is explored in this book. The battle scenes can get quite violent - for younger readers, and sensitive readers - but it makes them feel more real, painful, not glamorous in the way movies often depict them. There is some sadness too. Altogether, I felt like I went on a journey of sorts.

The plot was fantastic, with a steady pace it kept me engaged. The action sequences was on point, it hooked me with anticipation. M.L.Wang took the basic idea of elemental magic and created something more fascinating and engrossing.This is highly a character driven book whose actions propelled the plot, which inturn affected the arc of the characters.

The book builds an interesting world that is unique in how it uses the powers but it still jaise them grounded in some sort of reality.

This opened up a whole immersive new world with strong Asian influences at centre... The character development and their interactions were so lifelike and relatable even with or without that deep rooted sense of tradition lurking in the background. The part I loved the most was the subtleties: the questioning of how much of the truth do we ever get from the rulers, are we relevant in their political gambles, how new traditions start by accepting differences/changes (modernization), how problematic notions (chauvinism, oppressive patriarchy, overzealous patriotism) can be unlearnt at any age, any time if there is a will to simply learn and be a better person.Also, this has hands-down the best descriptions of fights I've ever read in *any* novel.I do hope there's a sequel to this because I'd love to know how things play out later in the war.