4.5
This book was a fantastic debut novel and hit so many marks for me. Let me start by saying there have been a lot of Asian mythology retellings recently and the more popular YA ones have all read really young which was a struggle for me. But this one, Last of the Talons had the perfect tone and pacing of a YA.

Based on Korean mythology, the story follows Lina our female main character. Lina is not a simple girl, she is the last of the Talons and is an assassin for the Blackbirds, killing and stealing for their notoriously evil leader. Forced into her situation by stealing a sacred tapestry as ordered by the Blackbirds, the story takes use from the human realm to the Dokkaebi (Korean goblin) realm where Lina makes a deal with the Dokkaebi emperor to try and kill him within 14 days if she want to free herself (and in turn save her sister in the human realm).

Things I loved:
- The enemies to lovers / royal court trope - the interactions between Rui and Lina was so entertaining!
- Lina as the MC, she was strong willed and determined to do anything to keep her last surviving family (her younger sister) safe from bloodshed - (however the flashbacks of what happened and the guilt felt a little repetitive which was where the 0.5 stars got lost.)
- Whilst the plot was predictable, it was such a fun read with no slow parts (apart from the first few chapters).
- The mystery and magic of the Dokkaebi realm and learning about how it came to be.

I cant wait for the next book and find out more.
If you liked Daughter of the moon Goddess and The Girl who fell beneath the sea then you will like this one!

Korean mythology grafted onto a skeleton of YA cliches and pointlessness, Last of the Talons is a disappointing read with frustratingly little to recommend it. Shin Lina is an assassin forced to work for a rival gang under threat of harm to her sister (safely distant from the narrative, the better to remain a plot object and not a character) who steals and destroys a tapestry belonging to the Dokkaebi Emperor, Haneul Rui. As punishment, Lina has fourteen days to kill Rui, despite her formulaic attraction to him and the Beauty and the Beast vibe author Sophie Kim arranges. The usual post-Hunger Games plot points arrive on cue - tons of food, beautiful clothes, the supremely talented fighter who enchants everyone she meets without evidence of a personality. Why does Rui want Lina to kill him? "I can't tell you (until the next book)". Much bragging about her murder skills while Lina only attempts to strike Rui twice, both basically on the spur of the moment, and repeated invocations of the pairs attractiveness while ignoring the truly fucked dynamic that extends to young teen Lina's sexual relationship with both an older assassin and Rui, who claims to be the functional equivalent of 20.

I love mythology and retelling. Especially ones from different cultures so I can compare and learn new things. This book helped me do that. Few dull points and lots of action I couldn't put this down.

🐍 ARC Review: Last of the Talons 🗡

✨5/5✨

Very minor spoilers below, if any.

One of the worst things about being an ARC reviewer is having no one to scream to. I want everyone to go add this to their to-be-read because of how good is a book this is. I've been in a book slump and Last of the Talons brought me right out with it's beautiful story and realistic characters.

Lina is such a complicated character and it makes SENSE. A huge pet peeve of mine is when characters who have been traumatized get through it without any repercussions. That's not Lina. She has a lot of scars, physically and mentally. It's what made me connect so strongly with her.

Rui, swoon. I was sold pretty much immediately. The second his character appeared I knew I was in deep with another book boyfriend. Rui stole right to the top of my favorites list. I really liked Rui because I couldn't predict his motivation and when it's explained, it makes sense why he's in so much pain. So much pain he bargains his life away so easily. He reminds me of Rhys in the best of ways.

The spice was there and I was here for it. I think it's acceptable for teens but definitely more in depth than most YA.

Finally, and arguably, my favorite part of the book is the mythology. The author has an opening note about how she never saw herself as a MC in books because of the lack of Korean representation. And her passion for this shows in the book. Rich with culture and language, the Pied Piper was a new myth that I LOVED learning about.

I'm hoping there's a book two so we can see about Lina's "special" development and see her revenge ARC. I'm so interested to see her "villan" come out and play.

Thank you Entangled Teen and Sophie Kim for the opportunity to read this ARC. My opinion is my own and is given freely.

Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for providing me with and ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Sadly, this book wasn't really my cup of tea which is weird considering it contains literally all my favorite tropes. My conclusion is that it lacked good execution.

The main problem I had with this book is that it was so hard to get through the first part. Not only was it boring but it also dragged on forever and if I struggle so much that early into the book I will consider dnf'ing it. The worldbuilding, while great in my opinion was too excessive. I gave this book a chance though and it did approve a little but not enough for me to wish to read it ever again.

Next, the characters. Shin Lina is our main character and she is supposed to be a ruthless assassin, only I didn't buy that even for a second. I truly hated this character because she bored me to death. There were just so many things about her that didn't make sense and were inconsistent and that made me so angry. She was also a gang member but we only ever learn about only four members of the said gang and that's just ridiculous.
The other characters weren't any better to be honest. They all fell flat for me.

The romance couldn't fix my enjoyment of this book since I already disliked both main characters and didn't feel any chemistry between them, but maybe it's just me. I really looked forward to this book and it pains me immensely that it didn't really live up to my expectations where it mattered.

What I liked about this books though is the last 10% of it and the action that unfolds. That improved my opinion of everything. The elements of Korean mythology were also interesting and it was a unique approach to a retelling.

Although, this turned out to be just average for me I would recommend everyone who enjoys the enemies-to-lovers and knife to throat tropes to give this book a try and see for themselves if it's something they're gonna enjoy and love.

I am so glad that I was able to read this book as an arc through NetGalley. This book absolutely blew me away. I expected to like it but it exceeded my expectations. The setting was great and I loved the mythology mixed in there. This is definitely a great read for fantasy lovers.

Lina was my absolute favorite. I loved seeing her work her way through her grief and her will to push forward for her sister. I enjoyed her witty banter with Rui. She was an absolute pleasure as a female lead. I also enjoyed seeing pieces of her past. I do wish the transitions were a bit better. I was confused at first until I got used to the flashbacks.

I liked Rui a lot too. He tried to have this cocky persona and maybe that was real, but he never gave me an icky feeling towards the female lead like some male leads do in other enemies to lovers books. I liked seeing how he handled his own grief in a different way from Lina and how they moved to understand each other.

I enjoyed the plot. The idea of this emperor feeling so much pain that he proposes a game with an assassin to kill him was very interesting. I do kind of wish Lina was able to take more action in the game even though there was more going on. It didn't feel too high stakes for me despite her wanting to get back to save her sister.

Overall, I am definitely purchasing a copy for my shelf and definitely recommend it for fantasy lovers and for those that like the enemies-to-lovers trope. I am already super excited to read the next book when it eventually comes out and any other titles by this author.

This review is scheduled to go live on 9/1/22 on my blog, Goodreads, Amazon, and TikTok

A fast, easy and engaging read in the vein of young adult fantasy. Although not a particular stand-out, and the plotting and characterisations could have done with more polishing, it's a solid enough debut.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. I would rate this as a 3.5/5.
The Last of the Talons has a good hook. I was interested in the protagonist right away, and intrigued by the idea of an assassin who also happened to have a severe leg injury. That weakness in particular stood out, and how she had to overcome pain in order to pull off her heist. Where I am disappointed is that she really felt flat to me. Lina is supposed to be the best assassin in the kingdom and a very good thrift. Yet, she’s been starving and working for the rival gang whom she hates? Why is she not stealing food or weapons? Why has she been basically a murder slave for a year instead of slipping away to rescue her sister, something she plans to do instead of save her evil gang boss at one point?
There are a lot of issues like this that bothered me while reading. More development of her skills or entrapment may have helped, or perhaps she shouldn’t be the best assassin or their, which would make the bargain of needing to kill the Emperor a higher stakes issue.
With that in mind, Lina’s characterization left more to be desired. She is clearly supposed to be a Strong Female Character but she doesn’t seem dynamic enough to keep my interest. The other female characters also have a very one-dimensional fate as well: the twins are the seductive temptress trope, the rival female gang leader femme fatale (also sleeping with the gang boss), and Hana is haughty and aloof. A bit more time developing their personalities (and the men’s) would have made this story so much better.
I was excited to read a Korean Fantasy, but what I got was just another Fae King and his court that is lightly repackaged. It doesn’t feel particularly special, but it could be.
A minor annoyance for me was that Ruis’s horse was described as a stallion twice, but also a mare with feminine pronouns. I felt irrationally crazy over this, I’ll admit.
I think the major ideas of this book are really good and with a little more characterization and world building it would be so much better.

i loved this book. i enjoyed myself the entire time.

everything that was promised in marketing — enemies to lovers, knife to throat, who did this to you, etc— happened and it hits me so much i might have slightly went insane.

lina and rui gave me judecardan vibes if judecardan ever learned how to communicate. it's them and it's a reason why i fell for them.

aside from the romance, the family aspect of the book made me tear up a bunch of times. i can write a novel how beautiful and heartbreaking the dynamics are.

however, the book is far from perfect. lina made so many mistakes that did not make sense. it is as if it was done to push the plot, taking me out from the book.

excluding that, i love the story and i cannot wait for the sequel

This YA fantasy from author Sophie Kim was an action-packed adventure!

Last of the Talons is the story of Lina, an assassin sent to murder an emperor to protect her sister. Lina is a seemingly fearless bad-ass who is grounded by her love and loyalty to her family. I enjoyed reading about her trials, and Rui was such an amazing counterbalance to Lina, I loved them together!

Also the whole realm of the Dokkaebi was so unique, I really liked how it was fleshed out.

I really enjoyed this YA fantasy!

I saw this book first in one instagram account which talk about YA books. But, for me this book feels like a MG book...
Okay,
first thing first, I am really in love with the book cover. What a stunning illustration!!!
To be honest, I am not a person who hooked with korean culture, and, this book makes me falling in love with korean myth. I really love Lina character, I love her development. But, somehow, I can guess the twist.
Afterall, Last of The Talons is such a good book. I think I'm gonna preorder mine. (I MEAN LOOK AT THE COVER!!)

I’d like to thank Entangled Publishing, LLC and NetGalley for giving me an e-arc. I am giving this review voluntarily as well as honestly.

Last of the Talons had me absolutely hooked. I was constantly wondering what would happen next and I had to force myself to put it down. When I wasn’t reading it, I would be thinking about all the possibilities of how things would turn out. I read this book at any moment I could spare, there was times where I was reading it on my thirty minute lunch break.

The main character, Shin Lina, is an absolute boss. She’s strong, both mentally and physically. She’s a character I found myself constantly rooting for, no matter the situation she was in. Despite her strong personality, she’s not so strong that she doesn’t have weaknesses. Oh boy, she has them, but it was interesting to watch her overcome them and struggle with herself.

For the all things that I had predicted, there was double amount of twists I didn’t see coming. Sophie Kim did an an amazing job at surprising me and the fact that the things that happened wasn’t out of the realm of possibility. The storyline and lore really interested me. I’m not very familiar with Korean mythology, but this book makes me want to read up on it.

I highly recommend this book if you’re into fantasy and strong female leads. The romance in this book isn’t the main focus, but it definitely isn’t lacking. I’m not going to spoil anything, but the romance interest, I absolutely love him. I’m so excited to see what’s coming next with the next book in this series.

I was so super excited to have been approved for this book. The cover is gorgeous, and the blurb really drew me in. While it wasn’t a horrible read, I’m not sure I’ll read it again; it needs just a little more structuring of the plot!

I received an earc of this book, all opinions are my own.

Not for me. At all. So, here’s my thoughts.

What I liked:
The cover was awesome. Loved that. I also thought the overall synopsis had promise and was interesting. The ideas were great.

What I didn’t like:
The execution of those ideas. There was a SEVERE lack of dialogue. So much description. Even though there was a lot of that, the worldbuilding wasn’t really there and I never felt immersed.

The main character was so immature. She was a bit whiny and I felt like the fact that she smoked and that was an issue throughout the book (talked about in lots of scenes) was like a child playing grown up. Put her up against immortals and she became even more young/childlike. Which resulted in the romance really not working.

There was also a lack of positive or healthy relationships. No good friendships or romance chemistry. The best relationships were done in flashbacks that were confusing me as to why they were needed. It took up A LOT of the book and served very few purposes other than to make me wish for different characters/romance in the present.

Overall, it was a good storyline but extremely bad execution.

Last of the Talons is perfect for those who enjoy middle grade adventure books. Perfect for anyone who enjoys enemies to lovers !!

Ohhh boy this book was good. Like, real, real good in ways I did not expect it to be. Packed with adventure, beautiful world building, and some of the most human characters I've read in a long while, this book is a brilliant read.

While the kick off of this novel was a little slow going, by about 30% I was absolutely hooked. The way in which Lina's story unfolds is unique, with flashbacks showing her past in such a unique and well-utilized way. Sometimes backtracking can be a little odious to the plot, but Kim wove Lina's past in so beautifully, it was peak storytelling. As far as the characters go, I think Kim did an incredible job writing diverse, emotional people who you cannot help but sympathize with and love. Lina was such an interesting character whose flaws and past make her intriguing. Rui was of the same kind, someone with layers you cannot wait to unwrap and see what you're going to get next. And the ending set up a next book beautifully, in a way that made this plot feel wrapped up, but the next story is definitely one I cannot wait to read.

I honestly don't have any complaints about this book, outside of the fact that multiple times a female horse is referred to as a stallion instead of a mare. That is my singular complaint on this book.

Highly recommend, cannot say it enough!

Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Teen for granting me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed reading this book! Especially considering that it is a debut novel... I say this with complete candor, I was really impressed. I binged it in (mostly) one sitting.

Two things first drew me to it: first, the cover (is it not beautiful?), and second, the Korean aspect. I'm Korean American myself, and for the most part, I found the integration of Korean mythology and phrases smooth. However, I fear that many will find some of the words jarring and perhaps like total nonsense. Korean is not exactly the most legible when romanized. I think the Korean words used can at times benefit from additional English description.

I liked the characters, especially the protagonist. Lina feels realistic to me. Intrinsically, she is a girl struggling to survive, weighed down by grief, responsibility, and--- this I found particularly intriguing--- addiction. The way these three are tied are really well done and definitely poked at my own emotions. I liked Rui, too. Really, I don't think there's much to dislike about him. He's just equally understanding as he is fun!

I definitely have my own reservations. It felt a bit strange that Rui was so understanding of her or forward in spending time with her from the start. As a king, I couldn't help but think that he had better things to do. I also understand that he wanted to give her full reign of assassination, but when he found out she had gone to the river to get the berries, he should've stepped in. At that point it endangered his whole court. I also find it strange the Lina really did believe that the rebellion was only 3 people... was she not part of a gang herself, fully knowledgeable of what it takes?

Despite my criticisms, I did like the book. I would give it 3.5/5 stars. I applaud Sophie Kim for writing a rich, beautiful world and an engrossing journey! I look forward to anything more she will write in the future

It's been a long time since I stayed up till 2 AM to finish a book, but you bet I did for The Last of the Talons by Sophie Kim.

I'm OBSSESSED. THIS is how you do enemies to lovers. THIS is how you write morally gray characters. THIS is everything I needed and more.

I'm not sure what I loved more: the witty banter, strong female MC, portrayal of coping with immense grief and trauma, action and adventure, Korean mythology and lore, steamy romantic tension, touch-her-and-I'll-kill-you love interest, beautiful worldbuilding, or heartbreaking backstory...

It's not without its small flaws of pacing, suddenly convenient magic, or harping a few things into the ground; but nevertheless, I could not put this book down.

This seriously has it all, and I'm hooked. It's not even out yet, but I'm already very patiently awaiting the next book so I can dive back into the world of the Dokkaebi.

Thank you to Entangled Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this book! I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Last of the Talons was absolutely amazing from beginning to end. I loved the Korean mythology and how Lina was a tenacious fighter who did everything she could to protect her younger sister from harm. I liked how each chapter featured snippets of what happened that resulted in Lina being the last of the Talons and how she was forced to work for the enemy. Rui and Lina's relationship was also another highlight to the story, and I loved the underlying theme of revenge. Thank you NetGalley for an ARC, I cannot wait to read the sequel.

***Received an advance copy via NetGalley and the publisher for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This well crafted story, “Last of the Talons”, by first time author Sophie Kim was a pleasure to read. Offering a peek of another lands myths and beliefs blended with action, guilt, loss, revenge, and a dash of romance.
The strong female heroine, Shin Lina finds herself adopted into the Talon gang when she and her baby sister were tragically orphaned then turned out of their home when she is fourteen. She manages to get her little sister to a school in the mountains and away from the life in the city while she trains as a skilled assassin for her gang, becoming the Reaper of Sunpo.
Tragedy strikes again four years later when she is forced to work for a brutal master of the rival gang who destroyed her gang. She must steal a jeweled tapestry from a temple to protect her sister’s life, only to come to the attention of a vengeful immortal and be whisked to his realm.
She will need to bargain with her life and survive no matter what she needs to do to win back her freedom to return to her realm before her time in either realm runs out. Of course while trying to win her freedom and survive she will need to keep reminding herself not to fall for her fascinating captor.

I recommend this story if you like action, plots within plots, a little romance, and a telling of myths.