Wow! Soul of the Sword did not disappoint! I love the way Kagawa seamlessly integrates the world and brings it to life. It has such vibrant imagery. This book definitely escalated the tension of the first and brought it to a whole new level. Definitely recommend.

I received a copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest and fair review.

It is rare for a second book in a series to be just as good as the first. Ladies and gentlemen this is that book. All I can say is wow. Action, fantasy, love, going to defeat a demon. Kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time! Loved it! Can’t wait for the third book.

Loved, loved, loved this book - Julie is one of my all time favorite authors and this book was dynamite

As always, Kagawa has the ability to being fantasy worlds to life with characters that seems to leap off the pages. You immediately find yourself immersed in her worlds, into the stories and lives of the characters. It didn't take me long to find myself deep into this series, invested in the goals of the characters. Kagawa's writing feels akin to a Miyazaki film, lush and serene all in one.

This book directly picks up with our characters attempting to deliver the Demon Scroll to the Steel Feather Temple so I am not going to get into plot specific things.

Just as in the first book, it reads like your watching an anime. It plays out still with episodic happenings making this book compulsively good. What is happening next? How will they get out of this? Suffice to say that if you like the first book of this series, this book doesn't disappoint. It does fall into a bit of a middle book syndrome in setting up a lot of the conflict for the first book, but it didn't make the book unreadable.

I want to thank Inkyard Press and NetGalley for sending me an e-book arc for an honest review!

As much as I loved this book I loved the first book better. This book was engaging, incredible and the world is amazing. Really love this series.

I was really captivated by the characters and the world. I can not wait for the third book, this trilogy is going to be great!

I loved this sequel to Shadow of the fox so much and I can't wait for the night book in the trilogy. The wait is gonna be so hard.

The writing style was very similar to the first book in this series. A lot of action, the band of heroes constantly trying to save the world from evil demons, and extremely fascinating world building.

The world building gets all the stars, and more, in my review. It's a refreshing break from the overabundance of western medieval focused fantasy. And I already had a fascination with feudal Japan. Combine that with Japanese myths - demons, kitsune, and myriad other beings, plus Japanese words and culture, and I'm getting a very fantastical experience.

With all that, I couldn't give this five stars. The characters were too flat. They're a group of bravo save the world heroes. The book occasionally touched on the side character's pasts, but only offered a slight glimpse before moving on to the next immediate danger. I didn't have a chance to connect with any character. We're always just running from one crisis to the next.

To make things worse, the first like 60% of the book was just multiple fights, the heroes trudging along on their journey, more fights, descriptions of evil demons and how this one demon is so much stronger than all of them put together... I put this book down multiple times in favor of others. Until the last bit, I had to slog through one boring fight after another.

There were a lot of repetitive fights and flat characters. But I liked the Japanese myths and magical world and the tricksy fox-girl character. It's far from my favorite book, but it was certainly interesting and very Japanese.

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This sequel was everything I wanted it to be and so much more. I absolutely loved the way the characters were developed and how fast paced the plot was. The writing style was very engaging.

OH WOW this was such a great sequel! Julie did it again *not so shocked face* I literally love this series and would die for it

Title: Soul of the Sword
Author: Julie Kagawa
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Series: Shadow of the Fox
Book Number: Book 2
Genre: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Young Adult
Pages: 432
My Rating:
More Info: Goodreads, Amazon, Publisher
 

The Time of the Wish Approaches…
Yumeko the shapeshifter had one task: take her piece of the ancient and powerful scroll to the Steel Feather temple and prevent the summoning of the great Kami Dragon. But she has a new enemy now. The demon Hakaimono, has escaped and possessed the samurai she thought would protect her, Kage Tatsumi of the Shadow Clan.

* received an advanced copy of this book via the publisher and NetGalley

In Soul of the Sword, the second book in the Shadow of the Fox series, Kagawa continues the atmospheric story of Yumeko and Kage Tatsumi with a new journey filled with adventure, action packed Asian-inspired fantasy.

Once again, Julie Kagawa has delivered an enchanting blend of high fantasy and Japanese cultural and historical elements. I especially enjoyed the mythological aspects, the way this book packs even more tales of creatures and demons of legend into the mix.

This book is the second in the Shadow of the Fox trilogy and is best read in order.
Yumeko has been successful in keeping her portion of the Dragon Scroll safe so far, but her friend Tatsumi has been taken over by the evil Hakaimono, who is bent on destruction and revenge. The diabolical Lord Genno is after all fragments of the Scroll, and he will stop at nothing to obtain it. Lady Hanshou and another mysterious man are also after the entire Scroll,

Overall, I couldn’t be happier with the way Soul of the Sword turned out; it was everything I wanted in a sequel and more

Soul of the Sword was one of my most anticipated books of the year and it did not disappoint (but its predecessor is still my favorite!). It picks up right where it left off and pushes the overarching story forward – Kitsune shapeshifter Yumeko still has her part of the ancient scroll to protect and along with her friends, has to continue her journey towards the Steel Feather temple for protection in order to prevent the summoning of the great Kami Dragon. In only two books, Yumeko has already grown a lot from the playful trickster we first met in the monastery to a Kitsune truly coming into her own abilities. I loved watching that and seeing the friendships she made in the first book strengthen more. The stakes are even higher this time around, especially with the circumstances surrounding Tatsumi (trying to be vague here but man did I miss Tatsumi a lot!). I'm very much looking forward to finding out how this trilogy ends! Is it March 2020 yet?

I absolutely adored this book. I love the writing and pacing in this book. It reads very much like a fairy tale... in which there is a crazy amount of blood and gore. But the writing was so beautiful I often forgot about the fact that it was being used to describe monsters and decapitations.

The author's writing really brings these characters to life. They jump off the page and it is impossible not to love them.

I read this book over the course of several days- it took me longer than average to finish it. But that's mainly because the writing was so beautiful I wanted to savor it and I didn't want it to end.

I can't wait for Book 3!!!

Review from the beginning of the video through the three minute and 5 second mark. I loved this installment in the series and I'm very much looking forward to the conclusion. I wasn't expecting to get so much of the villain's perspective which was a pleasant surprise. This series reminds me so much of anime which I adore!

Description
One thousand years ago, a wish was made and a sword of rage and lightning was forged. Kamigoroshi. The Godslayer. A weapon powerful enough to seal away the formidable demon Hakaimono.

Now he has broken free.

Kitsune shapeshifter Yumeko has one task: to take her piece of the ancient and powerful Scroll of a Thousand Prayers to the Steel Feather temple in order to prevent the summoning of the Harbinger of Change, the great Kami Dragon who will grant one wish to whomever holds the scroll. But she has a new enemy now, more dangerous than any she has yet faced. The demon Hakaimono is free at last, and he has possessed the very person Yumeko trusted to protect her from the evil at her heels, Kage Tatsumi of the Shadow Clan.

Hakaimono has only one goal: to break the curse of the sword and set himself free to rain chaos and destruction over the land forevermore. To do so, he will need the scroll. And Yumeko is the only one standing in his way.

My Thoughts:
This second book from the Shadow of the Fox series suffers because it is the middle child. Like many middle of the series books, this one is given the difficult job of engaging the reader and keeping the reader invested in the series even if the job of a middle book, in the scheme of things, is to take the reader through the building action (think back to school when teachers gave out the story arc worksheet with setting, conflict, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution).

To keep readers, most of the fantasy series take care of that by putting the main characters on a quest so that the second, or middle books just become a mini story arc in the middle of the journey (J.R.R. Tolkien mentored authors on how to do this ). Others may switch the point of view so that the there is a side story as different characters need to do something and then meet up with the protagonist at the final battle (like the Throne of Glass series).

So what about this series? Kagawa is an experienced series writer so I know she can do it. This second book, though, fell short and I am trying to figure out why that is. She has the quest thing down (gather the scrolls, save the world from turning into hell on earth). That in itself, though, is not enough to keep the momentum going. Going back to Tolkien and the Lord of the Rings series -- the intention from the beginning was to destroy the ONE ring which is why they needed to go towards Mordor and cast the ring into the Cracks of Doom.

Like the Throne of Glass series, this can prove tricky because the power of the item (the ONE ring, the wyrdkeys) is a temptation for the heroes/heroines because it could possibly give them just enough power to get what they want. However, it always comes at a price.

The issue I had with the Soul of the Sword was in the nonsensical rationale to bring the one piece of the scroll directly into the hands of the enemy who actually had the other two pieces. I know it cannot be destroyed, but the time for the reawakening of the dragon is so close that destroying the scroll and waiting it out for the return would seem more rational than basically going towards the enemy with the scroll.

I think the other thing that made this book go so slow is that there was no other sacrifice or other love interest that would give the impression that the heroine might abandon the quest. Without that, it felt like, as a reader, that I was just slogging through to get to the inevitable end of the book (getting to Tatsumi in order to help get Hakaimono back into the sword).

Finally, I think the trick of the author at the end is not worthy of someone with her experience. In other words, after all that, to just say (in jist) oh now we have a common enemy so let's play nice for now to go after this new enemy and we shall fight again another day (or at the end of the next book) is not enough to keep readers invested for another year before book 3 comes out. Perhaps once this series is over the books as a whole will be more binge worthy. I can see that. At this point, though, it is just not memorable enough for me to calendar a reminder that I am supposed to be waiting for the next installment.

An advanced digital copy provided by Net Galley and the publishers for an honest

Four and a half stars: Kagawa continues to spin an incredible story with detailed world building, unforgettable characters and plenty of action.

Yumeko is torn. She knows that she must continue her quest to deliver the piece fo the ancient and powerful Dragon Scroll to the Steel Feather Temple to save the world from the Kami Dragon. Yet, she longs to pursue Tatsumi who was is now possessed by Hakaimono, the demon that used to reside in his sword. She fears that if she doesn’t get to Tatsumi soon, his soul will be lost to the demon, but on the other hand, if she doesn’t get the scroll to the temple, the world could plunge into darkness. To make matters worse, the demon, Hakaimono, has joined forces with the evil Master of Demons. Yumeko must hurry, but as always there are many dangers in her path. Will Yumeko and her companions succeed or die trying?
What I Liked:
*I was more than eager to dive back into the complex world created by Ms. Kagawa to catch up with the ragtag gang who are trying to save the world. Needless to say, this second volume didn’t disappoint. It was riveting.
*I am still astounded by Kagawa’s outstanding world building. If you have never read anything by Julie Kagawa, you need to in order to experience her brilliant world building. This book takes you deeper into the world of Iwagoto. Prepare for more magic, demons and ghosts as well as intriguing places such as The Shadow Castle. I can’t get enough of Kagawa’s world building.
*I loved seeing this ragtag group of misfit characters who were thrown together in book one, continue to travel and work together. I am thrilled to see them grow and transform. Yumeko especially learns to wield her fox powers with more skill. She is becoming more competent. It was exciting to see her save her companions more than once. Reika is the one tasked with trying to keep the group together and focused, she is constantly looking after Yumeko. I love her and spirit guardian Chu. Okame, the war dog, provides plenty of comedy relief along the way. He appears all gruff and tough on the outside, but he is really a softie. Finally, Daisuke, the noble, who is skilled with a sword, is the protector of the group. I like seeing him get out of his element. This little band of heroes has stolen my heart.
*Then there is Hakaimono, the demon released from the sword. At first, I didn’t like being in his head, seeing him try and torture trapped Tatsumi, but there is so much more to Hakaimono than meets the eye. He has layers and layers. It was interesting to see new sides to both Hakiamono and Tatsumi. I can’t wait to see them evolve more in the final book. I am intrigued!
*For those of you who like action, there is plenty of it in this one. Prepare for battles and more battles. There is rarely a quiet moment in the book!
*I was surprised by the development of another romance in the book. It was unexpected, yet brilliant. I can’t wait for more.
*The book builds and builds to a thrilling climax before culminating into an ending of sorts. Yes, it ends on a little cliffhanger, but it wasn’t an urgent one. I am more than eager to see how it all goes down in book three.
And The Not So Much:
*The story line is complex, and it grows even more intricate this time around. It took me awhile to immerse back into the story as it has been a year since I read book one. I was drowning early on, and I was desperate for more recap. I wish there had been just a tiny bit more recap to help me regain my footing.
*The character, Seigetsu, and his companion Taksu are an enigma to me. I am still not sure of their purpose and I want to know more about their roles in everything. I especially want more information on how they came together and more on Taksu’s visions.
*I missed Tatsumi in this book. His voice is buried beneath Hakaimono. I am hoping for more of him in the final book. I did like getting beneath Tatsumi’s layers a bit and learning more about what made him tick.
* For those of you who are not fans of blood and violence, stay away from this series, it can be quite gruesome at times.

Soul of the Sword is every bit as captivating as the first book. I love the detailed world building, the complex characters and the intricate plot. Ms. Kagawa is a master story teller. If you have not yet experienced her master story telling, I urge you to check out this series. It is outstanding. Now to hang on until the release of book three!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review.
Posted@Rainy Day Ramblings.

Although I must admit that I enjoyed the first in this series more, the setting was as rich and engaging as ever. The character dynamics were on point as well.

This book was incredibly boring and I kind of lost interest about halfway through the book. I don't know, I think I've just lost interest in and care for this series. which is disappointed because I was definitely excited when I first jumped into it. Hopefully eventually, I'll be in a mood to pick it back up again and give it another try.

Soul of the Sword was such an awesome sequel! High action-high drama everything I wanted it to be! I'm a little sad about waiting for the next one but it will be so worth it!

Although I really enjoyed the first book in this series, I felt that the pace of this book was much slower. Hakaimono's pov really did not sit well with me and very much dragged the story. This felt like a middle book that is there to just fill in the middle of a series.
The later chapters, the ones with the actual plot, all of the suspense and action were what I was missing the whole 3/4 of the way through. I will continue with this series, but I am hoping the next installment will have better pacing.