Book Review: Tsumiko and the Enslaved Fox by Forthright
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
“I don’t understand.” “Which part, miss?”
Tsumiko would have thought it obvious. “How can I inherit a person?”
So, this was a really interesting book. I'll start with saying that despite certain misgivings, I'm interested in finding out what happens next in this well-painted world.
Firstly, the heroine was a little tricky. She's this 20-year-old girl, right? Everyone assumes she's young-minded and naive, but she's inquisitive to the extreme and generally makes sound, thought-out decisions. There is still a certain amount of wide-eyed youth, but it's as if she's got what's called an "old soul"?
The antagonist/hero of the story is introduced as a very wizened, curmudgeonly fellow with an ethereal type of youthfulness in appearance. He's also a Fox in the Japanese-folklore type of way, so he's a trickster on top of everything else.
So, therein lies my scruple. He's too old for her, but it worked in Twilight, right? I thought we were going elsewhere with the romance for a while and I was a little shocked (clutching my pearls) when it started heading that direction. Story-wise, it made perfect sense, though.
This story is focuses on intimacy and trust and needing to rely on those you don't know yet while giving pieces of yourself away. It's pretty powerful when put that way, I think.
The shifters and their needs and how the folklore was weaved into the story was amazing and felt effortless to read. The old politics and magic were at odds with the modern-day world, but I think that's what made it so intriguing finding out what happened next and how people would cope.
The layers regarding most of the characters and how almost-broken they all were in different ways was really compelling, especially when they started to learn from each other and grow as people. I'm definitely interested to see what becomes of some side-characters we were given just a peek at.
I have too many thoughts about this book, but I'll leave it with saying that it reminded me of a romantic Anime or Manga. If you enjoy those, especially the ones with a little magic, this is definitely the book for you.
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