For the biggest part of Kokoro I felt like I was missing a lot of it. It is of course my own fault for not realizing it was a sequel before getting the book, but still this is one of these books I would certainly not recommend reading as a stand-alone as you will probably feel as lost as I did.

It's presented as a combination of Japanese folklore and science-fiction, and at times it felt like I was reading a manga (without the pictures), but the story moved incredibly fast and was at times a bit overwhelming. Due to this, I never really got invested with the characters, either on Higo or on Earth. If I had liked Kokoro better, I would have certainly checked out Kojiki too, as I would have like to see how it all started, but as it stands, I'm rather hesitant and think I'm going to pass.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

A bit of a mixed bag.  At its best it's a unique Japanese flavored fantasy.

I was so excited when I got the netgalley approval email for this one. I find Japanese culture and Mythology fascinating and love seeing it in YA books. However, rather disappointed to say this book was not for me. I barely made it 14%. I found it extremely confusing and far too much going on, it was impossible to remember who all the characters were and their powers and everything was all little too much. 

So unfortuna rely, not going to be giving a full review as I couldn't finish the book. But thank you anyway Netgalley for the approval.

 

 

http://angelswithattitudebookreviews-joelle.blogspot.com/2013/06/kojiki-by-keith-yatsuhashi-book-blast.html

(Book provided by the author through ARR #1181 in the Making Connections group, in exchange for an honest review.)

"Kojiki" is, in my opinion, quite a visual story, and would be just as suited if turned into a movie. The author wrote vidi descriptions that allowed me to picture whatever was going on clearly enough—and there was a lot going on. You may not like the story as much as I did if you're not into action-packed plots; if you are, though, then go ahead.

The story may be more geared toward a younger audience, or at least one who is familiar with anime and some of their most popular themes, such as battles between spirits to save the world. However, there's no dumbing-down here, as it also deals with deeper themes (treason, lost love, trust issues, being torn between saving or killing a friend...). I appreciate when books go that road, and don't remain stuck to surface feelings and plots, the way things too often are in such works.

There are a couple of things here I'm not too sure about. For instance, Keiko is quickly thrown into the action—she doesn't spend a third of the book looking for the gate, or getting into the swing of things; part of me was glad about that, while another part thought it may have been a little too abrupt. There are also several characters and points of view to follow; this isn't a problem for me, but, again, I found those just a tad bit heavy to get into at first (which means that readers who are less familiar than I am with POV switches might have a harder time here). Another thing that may detract readers is the use of Japanese language. Someone like me, who speaks just enough of it to understand the (quite basic) vocabulary and sentence structures used here, won't feel lost; on the other hand, I can imagine that someone who doesn't speak the language may not always guess what those words are about (sometimes the context or dialogue provides an explanation... and sometimes not).

On the other hand, I think the whole mythology unfolding in the book should be easy to understand: spirits linked to elements (water, air, nature, earth...), fighting with their guardians (lesser spirits tied to the same elements) to prevent the world from being destroyed. Pretty basic at first sight, except that what could have been your good old black and white morality undergoes a few twists here. While the battle is fought above Japan, the spirits involved aren't only Japanese, and hint at different cultures—in other words, they're not anchored in one time and one place, and truly represent something bigger and older than that. At the same time, much like in legends, those spirits have to contend with their personalities and feelings, and aren't mere concepts: in that regard, they feel like real people, and have depths as characters (which isn't so easy to achieve when you're dealing with what are basically Gods). Perhaps the only character I didn't really get was Lon-Shan; maybe he would have deserved more screen time?

My conclusion: get this book if you're at ease with 3rd person narration with several points of view, enjoy vivid descriptions of scenes and battles, want to get a clear visual of what's happpening, and enjoy diving into plots that involve powerful beings who nevertheless have to deal with human-like problems. If you're into anime on top of it, you'll likely enjoy it even more.