Title: Empress of all Seasons
Author: Emiko Jean
Pages: 389
Publisher: Gollancz
Release Date: 8th November 2018
Blurb from Goodreads:
In a deadly tournament to become empress, any may enter but only one will survive,
and one competitor doesn't just plan to win, she's going to steal the Emperor's fortune. . .
In each generation, a competition is held to find the next empress of Honoku. The rules
are simple. Survive the palace's enchanted seasonal rooms. Conquer Winter, Spring,
Summer and Fall, and you can marry the prince. All are eligible to compete - all except
yokai, supernatural monsters and spirits whom the human emperor is determined to
enslave and destroy.
Mari has spent a lifetime training to become empress. Winning should be easy. And it
would be, if she weren't hiding a dangerous secret. Mari is a yokai with the ability to
transform into a terrifying monster. If discovered, her life will be forfeit. As she struggles
to keep her true identity hidden, Mari's fate collides with that of Taro, the prince who has
no desire to inherit the imperial throne, and Akira, a half-human, half-yokai outcast.
Torn between duty and love, loyalty and betrayal, vengeance and forgiveness, the choices
of Mari, Taro and Akira will decide the fate of Honoku.
My Review:
*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Thanks to Orion Publishing Group and NetGalley*
Every generation the empress of Honoku is chosen through a competition - to win
the prince, the girls must survive the four enchanted seasonal rooms in the palace.
The competition is open to all except the supernatural creatures called the yokai,
who are enslaved by the emperor.
Mira has trained for years to become the next empress, but she has a secret that
could ruin her chance of marrying the prince - Mira is a yokai with the ability to
turn into a terrible monster.
The blurb of Empress of all Seasons really intrigued me.
Mira and Taro were interesting characters, but I wasn't that fond of Akira or the
Weapons Master (who I found particularly annoying).
The setting was interesting and I liked the idea of seasonal rooms and the yokai,
especially the Animal Wives.
I wasn't a big fan of the romance - it seemed a bit rushed to me but I can see why the
two of them would be so drawn to each other.
Up until two thirds of the way through this was a 3.5 star read, but then everything
fell apart - there was some odd wording and some conversations that were a bit jarring.
The plot was good overall, but the competition didn't last as long as I thought it would.
There were a couple of times where I thought that things that happened were convenient.
For example, I was really surprised that the emperor didn't have all the girls tested to check
that they weren't yokai seeing as he was so anti-yokai.
I'm disappointed that I didn't enjoy this more. I feel like it didn't quite live up to its potential.
Overall this was an enjoyable read.
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