The Sword of Kaigen: A Theonite War Story

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Wang asks the reader to give a little extra effort get the most out of the story, and it feels like an achievement once you understand the slang terms for certain relatives, the various types of elemental powers, the religious customs, and many other nuances. Mamoru is a 14 year-old boy living on the Kusanagi peninsula, where his family–the Matsudas–and several others uphold the honor of protecting the Kaigenese Empire. But The Sword of Kaigen is a deeper work as well, with the characterization and the action each complementing the other. If Joan of Theonitegives us the first bumbling first steps into our magic system, the protagonists of The Sword of Kaigenare masters of it.

But the funny thing about power is that no matter what you think it is, or how much you think you have, it’s the people above and all around you who get the final say. Nadamui a town on one of the farthest southern islands of Shirojima, meaning ‘Hill of Tears’ in the local dialect.I just think that *this* portion of the story could have really nailed it out of the park if it had been told all on its own. It's a secondary world high fantasy with a world that I at first thought was modelled on 1500s-1600s Japan, but it soon becomes clear that the world is actually quite modern, but the characters purposefully live a very traditional lifestyle. Fa-Kiyea reverent address for God, Kiye, in the Yammanka religion of Falleya, meaning literally ‘Father Kiye’ (sometimes used as a mild oath). Without her this would have been a great book with some very cool fight scenes (I’m still in awe over the Matsuda brother’s Ice Dragon) and a good solid base for a later series. But a new student, Kwang Chul-hee, transfers from outside of the province and informs Mamoru that most of what he and his friends are being taught in school is propaganda.

It seemed that the flashbacks, and the last chapter of the book, were really just designed to highlight this tie-in. I did not realise that there was a handy glossary in the back until a friend mentioned it, and by that point I was a fair way through the book already.

She grew up far from her current home, and has lived a life that is very contrary to the strict, traditional lifestyle she’s led since marrying into the Matsuda legacy. This directory includes all the characters mentioned by name in Planet Adyn, Orbit, and The Sword of Kaigen. So, as much as I’d love to dive back into the trenches with our book-review bretheren and sisteren, I’ve come to some kind of peace (Perhaps even, a troubled one? There are chaotic billows of guilt, repression, secret, self-hatred, and motherhood behind her façade of Kaigenese traditional model housewife.

Nagi a mythical deity from the Donkili, the founding male ancestor in Namindugu, conflated with God, Kiye, in Ryuhon Falleya.

If you want a fresher example of my YA writing (also with lots of martial arts), you can check out my new portal fantasy series, The Volta Academy Chronicles, publishing under my YA pen name, Maya Lin Wang. So, yes, it’s a stand-alone story (at least for now), but the world this tale fills has been around for some time. It has everything you want in an epic fantasy – cool swords, cool powers, stiff-upper-lipped aristocrats, ancient sword skills, evil empires, plucky villages, heart-wrenching tragedy, slow-burn romance, awesome men, mighty women, massive fight scenes, and BABIES. Summary: The story begins with Mamoru, a teenager who lives in a remote mountain village and training to be a warrior beginning to learn that some of what he has previously believed about his country may be untrue. If something isn’t working for you, it is 100% your prerogative to set it aside and work on something else that inspires and motivates you!