DNF 58%

I just couldn’t continue one - the plot was slow moving and Ren wasn’t as strong a MC i wanted her to be. I felt bad for her treatment and *expectation* she had for her brother - I felt she cared very little for what truly happened to him as long as she was able to escape the Reapers. This trait of hers really make me dislike her.

i was utterly spellbound when i started this novel.

in fact, the keeper of night reminds me why, after so many years, i continue to love YA fantasy: these stories can be a wondrous combination of escapism and ingenuity. this genre can draw me so wholly into a fantastical, other world and have me rooting for its devious, charming characters. i can get swept up in fast-paced banter and world-building and relive those coming-of-age moments that always seem to strike a chord. this novel evoked these things in me.

but somewhere after the halfway mark, my reading experienced dimmed.

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what's this novel about? well, lemme just give you a taste of its utterly intriguing premise...

ren scarborough, daughter of a british reaper father and japanese shinigami mother, exists at an intersection of death. her mixed heritage means she can wield dual powers of time-turning (reaper) and light-flaring (shinigami) - but has also drawn scorn, ridicule, and rejection time and again throughout ren's centuries-old life. she works unhappily as a soul-collector for the reapers and their death god, ankou, in england, the only bright spot being her endearing and soft-hearted half-brother, neven.

but when ren's shinigami powers explode - literally - and grievously wounds her tormentors, she is forced to flee england with neven at her side to seek solace on japan's shores. in her birthplace, among the shinigami of yomi, ren seeks desperately for the belonging she has been denied all her life. if she can vanquish the yokai (demons) tasked her by japan's death goddess, then she - along with neven and hiro, a charming newcomer - can finally claim a rightful place in death.

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off the bat, kylie lee baker's lush, evocative prose drew me in. drawing from british death lore and japanese mythology, she weaves a gorgeously dark tale with vivid metaphors and imagery. i love YA fantasy, don't get me wrong - but so many stories feel tired and overdone (particularly those featuring eurocentric characters and worlds).

i have never encountered a story like ren's. baker draws upon her own mixed heritage as a japanese, chinese, and irish person to really bring ren's nuances to life. i loved the interweaving of mythologies and overall themes of struggling to forge a place in which one's belonging is not decided by gatekeepers, in which one's identity is not of halves but a unique whole. i resonated with ren's desire to define herself on her own terms.

not to mention, ren is a morally grey character who must navigate contradictions, ambiguity, and complexity. and those always make for the most interesting stories, in my humble opinion!

i also LOVED neven's character. i felt such endearment for this sweet, animal-loving, squishy boi. which made it all the worse when i realized that ren was going to take out her trauma on him - though i absolutely empathize with ren, i didn't enjoy the repetitive way in which she'd lash out at neven (apparently being true to her "selfish/cruel/cold" inhuman-being nature?) and then demand his understanding and forgiveness (why would a selfish/cruel/cold inhuman being need either of these things?). this inconsistency didn't really work for me and felt hypocritical instead of morally grey.

another reason i didn't vibe too well with the latter half of the story is that i had a hard time believing how hard and fast ren fell for the love interest. she made decisions that spurned her brother in favour of this love interest, and that didn't feel totally believable for me. as such, the ending lacked the emotional poignance i was craving - and also felt a smidge rushed!

bottom line: i enjoyed this unique and dark story, and i implore folks to continue reading, writing, and publishing ownvoices stories like this one - besides the fact that we deserve representation, our stories also make for such rich, complex, funny, endearing, and enchanting narratives.



many thanks to netgalley and inkyard press for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“I no longer had to run from death, for I had become it”

Japanese Folklore, villain origin story and an amazing novel that will leave you desperate for the sequel!

In a play on Japanese folklore, Kylie Lee Baker writes a story follow Ren, a Reaper. Being half British and Half Japanese, she tackles the inability of being able to fit in into each of her cultures. After an incident, she must escape to her mother’s home town, followed close behind by Death itself. Will she be able to fulfill her tasks and find out why her mother had given her up? Or will she succumb to the mundane horror that is death?

This was wow. The writing was absolutely beautiful, the plot was so very unique. The only downside was that certain parts dragged a little, and didn’t keep my interest. Other than that, I was truly enthralled with the story and world Kylie Baker has created.

Did my heart shatter at that ending? Perhaps. But you will definitely find me in line for the sequel !!

(spoilers below !!!)

> i do believe that hiro and ren loved each other but they were too driven by their own greed that the love fell away :( hiro’s death was written so beautifully, despite the reader supposed to be hating him, i couldn’t help but be sad. “please ren, just hold me, i don’t want to be alone” THAT IS SOME DARKLING TYPE DEATH!

> it was so interesting reading the story and seeing ren’s character slowly morph into the “villain”/death?? it began with her willing to do anything for her brother but ended with her brother being trapped in the darkness BECAUSE of her?? wow.

> is there any info about the sequel yet ?? because i’d love to see more of neven!! despite everything he was the only one who TRULY loved ren from the start. he deserves the world <3

HOLY SHIT!!! Yes! This is what I want!

I’m gutted that life prevented me from getting to this ARC before now because this… this is phenomenal.

That ending…ooof. I NEED THE SEQUEL NOW!

Ok,ok, here’s the review.

This book is dark, it’s graphic, the MC is often intolerable (which if you know me, I love a flawed and unlikeable MC). She is written to be this way, not unlikeable because she’s so perfect but somehow doesn’t know it, but genuinely a bit psychotic, self absorbed and infuriatingly stubborn. Granted she is this way because of trauma, but Ren is awful and damnit, I love her for it.

I also love a book where people get what they deserve but also LOVE when someone else pays the price.

This book is teeming with Japanese folklore but also has created this story that feels so new! I’m obsessed. It’s gruesome but AMAZING!

Keeper of the Night follows Ren, a biracial English/Japanese Reaper of Souls. The English are Reapers and the Japanese a Shinimagi. Due to values of racial purity and procreation laws, Ren is disavowed by her father in favour of her younger ‘pure blood’ half brother, Neven. Despite this set up for a siblings at odds story Ren and Neven are thick as thieves and when Ren has an outburst due to harassment that results her needing to flea for her life, Neven goes with her as she seeks out her mother in Japan.

Things obviously don’t go as planned and Ren goes on a quest to prove her worth in which she runs away from everything she is and will give up anything to achieve her goal. In this book we watch Ren struggle to decide how much of herself she is willing to give up, including her hopes, dreams and relationships.

There were a few small plot holes that left me a little irritated but the overall experience made up for it.

4.5 stars rounded to 5 stars.

This deals with grim reapers, and the rolls they may play in the deaths of humans. Half British Reaper, half Japanese Shinigami, Ren Scarborough has been collecting souls in the London streets for centuries. Expected to obey the harsh hierarchy of the Reapers who despise her, Ren conceals her emotions and avoids her tormentors as best she can. She is eventually forced to flee with her brother to Japan, but does not find acceptance there either.

Overall found this to be rather grim.

Absolutely fantastic book! I love Japanese myth and folklore stories and this was just so good! The cover is so cool, the story amazing. I can’t wait for book two!!!! The pacing for this book was really good and it held my attention. I was at the edge of my seat!!

(Note: Physical copy of this book was bought and the review is partially based on that).

The concept of The Keeper of Night is what kept me hooked on the read. I love the idea of the Reapers, and the society they live in was instantly compelling to me. The author also beautifully integrated Japanese mythology into the narrative, and that kept me interested. The magic system of the Reapers was equally fascinating to me - I loved the way that they could manipulate time. It felt ethereal and it was utilized creatively.

I think that the book's pace slowed down slightly around 40% of the way through, and that led to a slight slump in interest for me. Ren's character growth felt like it was stagnating, and though it picked up again, this dulled my overall enjoyment slightly. I think Ren also had the "main character problem" where she sometimes makes egregiously awful decisions for the sake of plot development; though I understand that many of them help to underscore the novel's themes, they also serve to make Ren a less appealing character.

Overall, though, The Keeper of Night was a solid debut, and I'm looking forward to the sequel!

Baker brings to life Japanese mythology in a fantastic debut. The Keeper of Night is just dark enough that it has a great atmosphere but is still accessible for all readers. I adore the way each Yokai is brought to life within the story, the traditional folklore is so vivid throughout and creates a truly unique and engaging atmosphere.

This is a story with no strict hero character, which is perfect for lovers of villain story lines or morally grey characters. Side characters themselves struggle with this concept throughout the boo. The character development is heavily reliant on these themes, leading to a shocking finale that will leave any reader wanting the sequel immediately.

The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker is a fantasy/horror novel set during the Victorian era. Ren has been raised as a Reaper in England although she is also half Shinigami. Ren's heritage leads to a negative quality of life for her, so one night when the bullying may be a life-or-death incident, Ren decides to journey to Japan to see if she can find acceptance there. Her fully English brother joins her on her expedition, and adventure ensues. I loved the writing of this story and found Ren to be a captivating protagonist. The mythology is so rich and the world-building is intense. This book did get a little too creepy for me, personally, at times, but I loved it. I'm looking forward to Baker's next book!

The Keeper of Night is a dark fantasy full of intriguing characters and a compelling story line.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own.

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Collins for an eARC and an advanced audio book in exchange for an honest review.

This book follows Ren who is a reaper in London England and she collects the souls of the debt. However, she is also half Japanese. Her Shinigami Powers are beginning to be harder to control each day so she decides to flee to Japan in hopes that she will be accepted by other shinigami and start a new life there. Upon her arrival to Japan, she meets the goddess of death who says in exchange for killing at three Yokai (Demons) she will allow rent to be a shinigami in her realm.

This book is littered with Japanese culture history and references. I absolutely love the mythology stories told and the connection to makes the characters. I absolutely loved that the character Ren is very morally gray. She rarely does the right thing and her experiences of being a mixed breed really clouds her judgement. The back-and-forth she has with her brother who has grown up a very privilege life is a good reflection of what our society is at times.

There is also a love interest and although I wasn’t completely invested in the romance, it was still an enjoyable element to read.

I was hooked from the first chapter, the book slow down a little bit and then really picked up after the 50% mark. The ending was expected, yet not. I really like the way the author went with the ending and I am very excited to read a book to.

If you love Japanese culture, anime history mythology and more I think you’ll thoroughly enjoy the story.

This book is darker than I expected. Main character is more of an antihero than hero but it was fascinating to read.

This book was so good! I loved the world building and character development that took place throughout the novel. I haven’t read a fantasy book that had me hooked in awhile. This is my first book by this author but I am definitely interested in any book they come out with now. I highly recommend this book to anyone who’s a fan of YA fantasy.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC.

A lovely story with just enough newness brought to a classic Japanese tale that I couldn't put it down.

Ren Scarborough lives and works in London - as a Reaper, collecting souls at the moment of death. But she's never been accepted there, because she's only half Reaper. Her mother was a Shinigami. She's managed to make a life despite being an outsider, but when bullies hurt her and she reacts, exploding a light and blinding them, she knows she has to leave before she's killed by the High Reapers for her actions. With only her brother, Neven, with her she leaves for Japan to try to find acceptance there.

I loved the premise and the elements of Japanese mythology that were included in the book. It's truly original, and the only similar book I could think of was [Grave Mercy], but the comparison is superficial. [The Keeper of Night] is much darker and descriptively violent. Ren has always felt like, and been treated like, and outsider and she's angry about it. Her brother, Neven, was my favorite character: a soft heart, despite being a Reaper, and someone who truly loves his sister, though she can be cold and calculating. The love interest was a little forced, but the author does a good job of creating tension of should she or should she not trust him.

A dark fantasy novel that kept me hooked from beginning to the end. This Japanese folklore has many terrifying and gripping elements.

Half British Reaper, half Japanese Shinigami, Ren Scarborough has been collecting souls in the London streets for centuries. Expected to obey the harsh hierarchy of the Reapers who despise her, Ren conceals her emotions and avoids her tormentors as best she can.
When her failure to control her Shinigami abilities drives Ren out of London, she flees to Japan to seek the acceptance she’s never gotten from her fellow Reapers. Accompanied by her younger brother, the only being on earth to care for her, Ren enters the Japanese underworld to serve the Goddess of Death…

Once Ren begins her journey of trying to prove herself to the Goddess of Death, you get a full view of just how far Ren is willing to go. With a morally gray MC, terrifying monsters and a story that will keep you engrossed. I cannot wait for the sequel!!!

Thank you Netgalley and Inkyard Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The first in a duology, The Keeper of the Night, was a highly interesting read in that it delved into the mythology and legends of an area of the world I'm not very familiar with. There were elements I'd come across before, but most was brand new. I did feel the protagonist was a bit back-n-forth with her thought process, falling in the morally-grey area quite a bit, but that fits with someone who's experienced a duality in their background and for someone who's considered a young adult who's still figuring out their life.

I felt there was a big build-up and then the plot just sprinted to the cliffhanger, so I was little startled with some of the first book's ending but I'm hoping that the second one will help with that eventually.

All in all, a great intro to a new fantastical world, with a character who you're not quite sure is good or evil -- a good way to keep the audience engaged and the reader guessing.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Loved this book. The world was fascinating and I was just immediately drawn in and loved the adventure.

An entertaining read for both those liking fantasy as well as Asian/Japanese culture. I liked the biracial story line, the treatment of how it complicated family relationships and the struggle the main character endured to accommodate not only what was expected of her but what she expected of herself. I think this is an appropriate read for a YA collection as well as for adults.

A dark fantasy novel, filled with monsters and violence galore.
The idea of Reapers and their powers sucked me in, however, the story did seem to drag for me at times. This may be one I need to pick up and read again to really grasp everything as the details of stopping and starting time and the collection of souls did confuse me a bit.
The family dynamic and racism towards Ren made me angry - which I imagine was the intention - but I was hoping for more depth into that end of the story. How is she possibly the only mixed race reaper to ever is exist in all of history? Why is her dad such a dick? etc.
We may have to wait and see what the next title in the series has to offer and if all our questions are answered.