I forgot to leave a review for this, but I really enjoyed it! It's been out for ages, so I won't say much more than I need to for my star rating. <3

This was an interesting read! Miuko is a bit of a chaotic character and I really liked how she interacted with the other characters and stayed true to herself, even when it was most difficult, but the story just…dragged. I really liked learning about the different types of creatures in the world. Geiki was especially fun and charming, and I was really happy they had each others backs! I think what I didn’t like was how close to the ‘ending’ we always were only to be thrown for another loop, constantly there but not really. If it had been more exciting, I wouldn’t have minded. That said, I do think it’s a rich world and everything has relevance

Rating : 3 out of 5
Blurbs :
In the realm of Awara, where gods, monsters, and humans exist side by side, Miuko is an ordinary girl resigned to a safe, if uneventful, existence as an innkeeper’s daughter.

But when Miuko is cursed and begins to transform into a demon with a deadly touch, she embarks on a quest to reverse the curse and return to her normal life. Aided by a thieving magpie spirit and continuously thwarted by a demon prince, Miuko must outfox tricksters, escape demon hunters, and negotiate with feral gods if she wants to make it home again.

With her transformation comes power and freedom she never even dreamed of, and she’ll have to decide if saving her soul is worth trying to cram herself back into an ordinary life that no longer fits her… and perhaps never did.

Thoughts :
A solid three stars, not my favorite but this is pretty okay for a YA fantasy book. Thanks Netgalley for the early copy!

A fun younger YA book that I can recommend to lots of teens. It's about finding yourself and coming into your own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was good, but not excellent. I liked the main character but it felt a little forced. Was a fine read, but probably wouldn't purchase it for myself!

This one was so good! It was whimsical and magical and kept me wanting to continue reading. This was a great YA fantasy. I also loved the cover. Been loving asian literature and this was a great one.

Sadly, this just didn't work for me :( I think people who loved Daughter of the Moon Goddess or Spirited Away will love this - I find the mythology really interesting, and the vibes, but the way the story unfolded was confusing and lost my interest a few times.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for giving me access to the advanced copy of this book to read.

Absolutely loved this. The characters are all well developed and delightful, and the worldbuilding is excellent -- as expected from Traci Chee. A fantasy series starter that has me excited for the sequel, and is definitely readable by younger middle grade audiences as well. I loved the storyline of the main character becoming a demon and the exploration of what her society views demonic. I adored her side character friend -- a young bird demon boy whose name I can't remember now. Read this months and months ago at this point and it is still very clear in my mind (other than names, which are my downfall), which always means points from me!

whimsical af! way funnier than i expected, especially having read chee’s last novel we are not free. glad to see she’s got some range.

This one just didn’t work for me. I couldn’t connect with the main character and I didn’t understand why she made the decisions that she did, but I am not the target audience for this book. If you enjoy young YA and like epic fantasy adventures, then you may enjoy this one.

Thank you NetGalley and Clarion Books for this digital arc in exchange for my honest review which is not affiliated with any brand.

3.5 stars! The fairytale like quality of this story coupled with a main character who is easy to root for and like (especially for being her stubborn, loud self) heavily contributed to my enjoyment. I could totally see this being made into an anime - it would be quite fun to watch!

In the realm of Awara, where gods, monsters, and humans exist side by side, Miuko is an ordinary girl resigned to a safe, if uneventful, existence as an innkeeper’s daughter. But when Miuko is cursed and begins to transform into a demon with a deadly touch, she embarks on a quest to reverse the curse and return to her normal life. Aided by a thieving magpie spirit and continuously thwarted by a demon prince, Miuko must outfox tricksters, escape demon hunters, and negotiate with feral gods if she wants to make it home again. But with her transformation comes power and freedom she never even dreamed of, and she’ll have to decide if saving her soul is worth trying to cram herself back into an ordinary life that no longer fits her… and perhaps never did.

This book is sweeping in its scope. Melding Japanese culture with fantasy, this book creates a completely different and realistic world. World-building is flawless and Chee provides characters to love, hate, and cheer for. At its core, this story is simply about Miuko, a girl, trying to find herself in a world that doesn't want her to be who she is. Her culture expects her to be quiet, obedient, and selfless. Instead, she is loud, clumsy, shy, socially awkward, and outspoken. Despite its core message, it is filled with demons, monsters, gods, time travel, war, friendship, and plenty of action.

This is a slow-building book so it is going to take a while to get into the story. But once it picks up, you won't want to put it down!

Thank you to Netgalley and Clarion Books for sending me a copy of this book! All opinions are my own!

I absolutely adored this feminist Japanese fantasy, and I think any female fantasy lover needs to read it right now! Miuko is such a fun character, and right from the start, I fell in love with her. It was so easy to root for her and to connect with her story, and I saw so much of myself in her. Her friendships were all so wholesome, and I loved watching her fight for what she knew to be right. She didn't necessarily set out to change the world, but she was so good at doing so just by being herself, and I think that's such a powerful message.

I adored the worldbuilding and how fantastical each part of it is. The way that Miuko takes things in stride but also revels in it all just makes it that much more beautiful. Her personal journey is so paralleled by the physical journey she takes throughout the world, and that made both of them even more meaningful.

If you're a fantasy lover, definitely check this one out!

I love the fantasy aspect of this book and the theme. It was enthralling and it captivated me. It was, witty, and funny but also had it's dark moments. This was a great read. Took a bit to get into, but when I did, I had to find out what happened.

A THOUSAND STEPS INTO NIGHT was a delightful book to switch to at the start of what could have been a reading slump. Dare I say it was even charming? Right from the beginning I found myself smirking at Miuko's wry sense of humor. How else is a girl--and a clumsy, loud one at that--supposed to deal with the ridiculous imposition of gender-based roles in a patriarchal society?

Miuko isn't demure, dainty, or delicate. Neither is she fastidious or keen at bookkeeping, which would be good skills to have as an innkeeper's daughter. But she is stubborn, kind, and caring, despite her alleged shortcomings. She tries to conform herself to society's expectations. But it's those same problematic personality traits others frown at that serve her well when dealing with demons, tricksters, and gods. As Miuko travels far and wide to to stop her transformation into a demon (and save the world from a demon, of course), she realizes that despite the dangers she finally feels free.

As Miuko recognizes deeper into her journey, being a demon in the spirit world is similar to being a woman back home. No one trusts a demon or a woman. Both are assigned traits and roles to which neither want to conform. Others always judge them based on what society says they should be or do rather than by who they actually are. Basically there is an order to life and one should stay in one's lane. But our dear Miuko tears down those walls.

There is also some non-binary gender and trans inclusion represented in a few secondary/tertiary characters. The brief history of the diversity of genders in this story mirrors ours in that recorded history recognized more than two genders. However, recent culture reduced those genders down to male, female, and hei, or "neither male nor female." I appreciated the gender inclusivity and its matter-of-fact presentation by the characters.

I don't really know anything about Japanese mythology, so I can't comment on that (large) aspect of the story. However, the descriptions of the various levels of gods and other mystical creatures reminded me a lot of characters from Hayao Miyazaki's/Studio Ghibli's films. They were really fun to imagine in my head, especially the feral forest god. This is also a great book if you like talking animal companions. Though, technically the main companion, Geiki, is a magpie trickster who spends most of his time in the book in human form. I enjoyed his innocent, quirky humor that served as a nice balance to Miuko's seriousness.

Another aspect I liked was the lack of romance. While I appreciate a little (and sometimes a lot) of romance in my fantasy reads, it was refreshing to see its absence. My only critique is that despite the relatively fast pace of the book, sometimes it still felt like it took a while for the plot to move along. I know that doesn't make sense, but that's how I felt. Regardless, overall I enjoyed A THOUSAND STEPS INTO NIGHT. The writing is succinct, yet emotive, and Miuko is an admirable main character. This is a story about self discovery, honesty with oneself, and having the courage to break the mold and forge one's own path.

Currently taking a break from this book but might try it again later. It just didn’t catch and maintain my interest.

I've been meaning to check out Traci Chee's other series for far too long and when I saw this I just had to give it a go because it sounded wonderful!

The first thing I'll say is that the world building was brilliant, I truly found myself immersed in the world as I was reading and I was living for all the supernatural creatures from Japanese folklore that kept popping up! I'm always such a sucker for mythology, especially if it's Japanese or Chinese, as well as demons etc and this book has all of that and more! I seriously loved how it was all woven in and it had me excited to keep reading. I also loved the big quest vibes going on and it kind of reminded me a little bit of Julie Kagawa's Shadow of The Fox in that regard.

I also really loved Muiko as a character, I thought she was strong and I loved that she kept on being herself despite what anyone else had to say as well as the feminist messages that come through within the book from her. There's also a lot of humour throughout as well as some other interesting characters which kept it fun!

This is an adventure and while I enjoyed it for the most part I did find it kind of dragging in some places. I'm not sure how I feel about the pace, at times it felt like it was well paced but at others I struggled to keep my attention on the book and keep reading. I don't want to stress that the world building is rich but I don't feel it impacted the pace or anything, I think it's more me personally that found things a little repetitive and a little bit eh in parts and struggled to focus on it!

This YA fantasy took my breath away. I was enchanted by the cover and immensely grateful to receive an ARC. From the cover to the story inside, I couldn't put it down. 10/10 Def recommend >.<

-Great fantasy
-Engaging and hard to put down
-Loved the Devil aspect of it
-Was a bit slow at times for me.