Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher & author for a chance to read an ARC of Woven Song.

Rating: 2.5 rounded up to 3 ⭐

Thank you to the author, publisher & Netgalley for an ARC of this book!

First off- this cover is gorgeous! Overall, this book would be a good fit for younger readers looking to dip their toes into fantasy books, especially those revolving around Asian mythology. I liked the interesting aspects of the Asian mythology weaved into this book which was done in an extremely accessible way. The writing is also fairly easy to follow & the plot is full of intriguing twists & turns.

My main critiques of this book are of the writing style which tends to heavily focus on 'telling' over 'showing'. Plot points/events alongside character ramifications often occur and are glossed over rapidly, giving a sense of whiplash. After a significant tragic event, the characters tend to cry and then move on in the next chapter/page without lingering or reflecting on the actual repercussions or their thoughts & emotions. There is also a few inconsistencies with the honorifics used. Another aspect which took me out of the book was the use of extremely modern slang in a historical setting such as 'punk'. Overall, I liked the main cast of characters, especially the mentor-mentee relationship between Yuki & Daisuke. However, I feel like their characters need to be more fleshed out & explored for me to become attached to them. There is decent character development in this book though and really cute found family.

This was a pretty interesting read. Loved the focus on Asian mythology and it was pretty atmospheric. Great writing though the characters could have been more fleshed out.

Dnf at 13%, chapter 6.

The goddess, Yuki, lives on the moon but she is drawn to the human connection, to feel the warmth of another person; but why was she banished to the moon? And how will she live as a mortal? And who is the dragon god, Ryu?

Bear in mind that I shelved this as ‘did not finished’; I was looking forward to reading this but it was just plain boring. I could not connect with the main character, or find the story fascinating at all.

Hopefully someone else will find this to be their next favorite read, but unfortunately it was a no from me.

Happy reading!♥️

I’ve been reading a lot of Asian inspired fantasies recently so I was excited to read this. Unfortunately this one was just not for me. The cover is very nice though.

As an Asian American I love reading books that have this specific kind of representation. This book was especially perfect to read during AAPI month!

Thank you to NetGalley, Rachael Krotec, and Victory for the chance to enjoy this advanced copy.

Overall rating: 2.5

Woven Song follows Kaguya-hime, the moon kami that falls to the mortal realm. She gets taken in, renamed Yuki, and is raised and trained in the dojo, where she becomes a skilled swordsman. After being accused of a murderous scandal and banished, she roams the world until she is invited back to her village where she encounters secrets, scandals, family, magic, and mystery.

I am once again on the fence. This book had a lot of good in it, from Asian and cultural mythology to soft, cozy fantasy. The interpersonal relationships between Yuki and the other characters was refreshing, and I loved the found family aspect within the novel. Furthermore, I found myself enjoying the characters. They all felt unique, and I loved the myriad of different voices, backgrounds, and perspectives that each had.

I made it through the book, but I did struggle at points. My biggest gripe was the writing. The writing style felt underdeveloped and off putting throughout the entirety of the novel. There felt like there was a lot of telling what was going on rather than showing. There were a multitude of rapid, minimally fleshed out conflicts. Most external conflicts felt like they had little foreshadowing or build up, and were resolved rather quickly (as in within a chapter or two). On top of that, the central plot points felt brushed over. The characters and history felt placed into the novel instead of explained. As a result, I found myself forgetting key details about important characters, and losing interest in the plot points. Another gripe was the pacing. I understand this is a cozy novel! However, some parts of the plot felt slow (not boring, just slow).

Honestly, the book just wasn’t for me. The writing felt juvenile, and I tend to gravitate towards high-stakes fantasy books. However, for younger readers, or readers interested in a cozy fantasy that features mythology, magic, and family, this book is perfect!

* I received an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely incredible! I adored following yuki and Daisuke and everything that came with their eventual bond. I loved the introduction of Ryu! I think the whole story was filled with mystery and intruige and I couldn't put it down

Another book that immediately attracted my attention due to its cover! The story wants to do a lot of things which is the major reason I had trouble with it. It attempts to discuss stories and draws on myths from multiple Asian cultures but it does so in an erratic manner. There were numerous instances when I thought the writing required a lot of improvement and where things were either omitted or not well explained.

This was my first Asian mythology style book. I did have a hard time with the pronunciation of the names at times, but overall a very good read. I enjoyed that the FMC was a very strong character from the beginning. This book made me feel a range of emotions, and I would recommend if You like to take emotional rollercoasters when reading. Which I do enjoy!

Thank you to Nib and Feather, LLC and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Rachael Krotec’s Woven Song is a young adult fantasy novel that follows Yuki, a woman who aims to restore her family’s dojo after being banished for reasons unclear to her and Ryu, the dragon god. After Yuki’s near-death experience in the spiritual realm, they work together to protect Gobe from Izanami who rules the land of the dead. Krotec intertwines Japanese and Chinese mythology to provide a new take on a heroine’s journey to save her home.

The cover of those book is stunning. It's what originally drew me in to reading the description, and then the journey continued from there. This book had me hooked from the start, and once I had time off work I could not put this down.

This book has so many elements I adored, with Found Family, Girls with Swords, Asian Mythology, Dragons, Will They Won't They? and Chronic Illness Representation.

This book I cludes so many elements, and tells a compelling story from the beginning to end. There was a point where I was suspicious because things were going to well for the characters, then when things did go wrong, they REALLY went wrong. With secret plots and schemes by the previous generation, that the children have to deal with the consequences off, with manipulation and the question, of is fate written for us or can we change it and decide for ourselves. That is a large part of this book. The story's told and predetermined about both the gods and the Mortals.
For me, this book has settled itself within my favourites. And something that I could see myself reading again one day. And should It ever get a physical release.... it will be quickly found amongst my shelves.

Unfortunately, I had to dnf this book.

From the beginning we are told that a high importance has been place on Japanese Honorifics and yet on the first page of the prologue we see “Mr Usagi-san”, there is also no consistency with the use of these honorifics where sometimes they are used to convey respect and on the next page that character is no longer referenced with the honorific. The whole thing therefore felt flat.

The book is also marketed as a fantasy novel however I think it’s better placed as a Young Adult book, the way that the characters speak to each other felt far too immature.

I did give the book a fair go but ultimately had to stop around chapter 3.

Thank you to NetGalley, Nib and Feather and Rachael Krotec for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Nib and Feather for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I think I'm learning my lesson to not judge a book by it's cover. The cover of Woven Song is stunning, but unfortunately I DNF this book at 35%. This book showed promise, but ultimately it did not follow through. I wanted to be interested in Yuki and Masato's story. I really did. I just could not get invested in the characters or the story overall because the writing lacked depth and development. I often felt like I was outside of the story instead of really in it, which is truly ironic given that the author's goodreads profile says she "delv[es] into the depth of human emotion." That did not come through in this book. Instead, the dialogue often feels stilted. As if it was originally written in another language and then machine translated to English, so some of the phrases and wording are just a little off. Except it wasn’t and this is the original English writing. Her choice to use italics for some of the character's inner dialogue also felt odd and random. I don't know why this bothers me so much, but every time it was used it grated on me. The only character that I do care about is Daisuke, but it wasn't enough for me to keep reading.

I also had questions about the plot. I won't get into them here because I recognize that some of these may be answered later on in the book. Unfortunately, I could not summon the will to keep going and find out.

A beautiful tale of loneliness, set against an Asian background.

Good pacing, plot, and relatable characters. This was a really good read that will touch anyone who has ever just wanted a friend and wanted somewhere to fit in.

There's plenty of false friendships and betrayal, as well. There's also themes of found family and loving people despite the betrayals and heartbreak they bring.

I really enjoyed this story line. It took a moment for me to understand the main character Yuki was the divine spirit in the beginning, but I think that was me more than the story. I enjoyed this main character who is caught between her divine life and mortal life, and finding out about love and loss. Of course there is a love triangle, found family and the question of fate and destiny as well as choosing your own path. This was an enjoyable book with a satisfying ending.

I want to thank NetGalley for the arc ereader and cannot wait for the book to be released! The cover is beautiful!

woven song has a very interesting premise, and i was really excited to pick it up. it was an entertaining read, and i enjoyed it as a light-hearted foray into japanese and chinese mythology. however, the writing felt a little bit juvenile; the characters felt flat, and i was unconvinced by their arcs and development because the author relies heavily on telling instead of showing. the message of the story was also not particularly unique, and i think that worked against the novel as a whole.

on a slightly more nitpicky level, i had some issues with the use of honorifics. there was a quick description of them at the beginning of the novel, which was immediately followed by the introduction of a character called “mr. usagi-san” (usually you would only use “mr.” or “san,” not both). the usage of the honorifics throughout the novel also felt inconsistent, and the way the characters speak with each other is largely informal, despite using honorifics like “sama.” although it seemed like the author had done her research on many aspects of japanese culture, it also felt like she had no formal experience with the language, which made some of the writing and interactions between characters seem very clumsy.

overall, it was a quick read that was decently enjoyable, and i could definitely see this being a popular middle-grade/young adult novel.

2.5/5
I was super excited by the premise of Woven Song when I requested it because I love discovering new novels centered around Asian mythology and folklore.

I thought the opening of the story was super compelling and at that point, I thought the whole book would be like the first chapter, quite mysterious and gripping. Unfortunately I couldn’t find myself as invested in the rest of the story.

Contrary to the start of the novel, the setting and characters felt quite flat, almost juvenile. And while I did enjoy the blending of the aspects of folklore, I would have to say that that was the brightest aspect of Woven Song for me.

DNF'd at chapter 23 (49%).

If you enjoy Japanese light novels and YA, this book may be up your alley more than mine. Woven Song is an Asian-inspired, and in particular Japanese shounen anime-inspired, story of an angry teenage girl with a sword, who was ostracized and exiled, returns to uncover the dark secret behind her banishment, finds out things that she didn't really want to know about the people around her, and in the process also uncovers her hidden identity as a kami.

I tend to be a very critical reader: my favorite books are the ones that force me to read between the lines and critique the messages the author is trying to send. Pacing and character development matter to me greatly.

I requested this ARC because I was hot off Babel and Iron Widow and was excited by the cover art and promise of another Asian-inspired fantasy. I was unfortunately left rather disappointed -- where Babel and Iron Widow had clear visions for themselves (the former a critique of colonization, the latter a feminist power fantasy), Woven Song meanders a bit between good themes, but never satisfyingly settles on one.

In my opinion, there are two ways the author could have approached this story: 1. a rich mythological fantasy that draws deeply on research into the subject culture and history (like Babel), or 2. a more loosely Asian-inspired fast-paced action-packed, plot-driven story (like Iron Widow). I believe the author intended to go with the latter. A few of the plot points, such as the fact that the protagonist is a teenage girl with a sword and white hair, <spoiler>the highly perceptive cat, and her meeting with the sealed Ryu</spoiler> gave me the sense that the author is a fan of Japanese anime and enjoys leaning into the shounen tropes. Occasionally the sentence structures also seem reminiscent of translated light novels -- technically correct, but odd when read aloud.

The story starts off too fast, then excruciatingly slow. We get four scenes back-to-back within the span of the prologue and first chapter: Kaguya-hime on the moon, Kaguya falling to the mortal realm and being adopted by a woman who happens to name her the same thing as her real name, her in a pile of bodies with the woman who adopted her in the last scene nowhere to be found, and Yuki coming home after being exiled. Presumably all four scenes are of the same protagonist, from different points of her life, but we have no idea how they connect or why they are important to the story that is to come. There is no hint of further development on any of these story points until a good 15 chapters later, 25% of the way through the book. Some of these scenes don't get any development until at least 75% through the book.

Even if the author only intended this story to be loosely based on Asian mythology, this story could have benefitted from more world-building with the myths, gods, and religious practices. Most gods are given one-paragraph introductions to describe their powers and their place in religion, then disappear for the next 20 chapters <spoiler>until they show up as a character in the plot</spoiler>.

If you enjoy YA novels, shounen anime, and don't mind a slow start to a book, maybe give this one a try.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author, Rachael Krotec, for the ARC copy.

I enjoyed this book overall, although it maybe got a little slow around 70% of the way in but I kept with it and ended up finishing.

The most consistent relationship seemed to be Yuki and Daisuke, while other characters seemed to only be there or gone when convenient for the story. I was pretty confused about the romance because it seemed like it was going to go one way, although I guess she doesn't mention it outright, but then another character was introduced and Yuki seems to do a 180 without a backwards glance (or mention).

I would have preferred for a little more background on Yuki. Why was she so unhappy in the prologue? The story just tells you she's lonely and this seems to be enough of a reason to leave her responsibilities behind.
But then, I was also confused if she was the same little girl as we meet in the first chapter because I don't think it mentions until later in the book what happens to her first mortal family. They just seemed to be glossed over and in fact she never even mentions them when talking about people she loved... Did they not treat her well? Were they not important?

I wish there had been a different ending, I'm not sure exactly how I would have liked it to go but I just wonder what happened to Daisuke and the dojo, after going through some troubling years. It sort of felt like he was an afterthought.

3.5⭐

Thank you to Nib and Feather, LLC and the author for the review copy, provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read the ARC of Woven Song by Rachael Krotec! I have been itching to dive into Asian mythology and I genuinely feel like this was a great novel for me to use to dip my toes in the water a little bit. I rated this book 4 out of 5 stars! I was impressed.

I found so much relatability with Yuki’s character. However, I wish we would have a deeper view of Yuki’s character at the beginning of the novel. I saw character developement, but I kept wanting more from Yuki for some reason! There were plot twists at the right times, allowing me to remain sucked into the material of the novel. Krotec’s writing is easy to read and flows perfectly so I was not counting the pages until I completed it. I got to the end and was sad to see the story go!