TL;DR Review – Japan-inspired world, a grimdark tone, and packed to the brim with bloody action. An absolutely epic read!
Synopsis:
One womb, one soul, two fates. One will rise. One will fall.
Shura and Jin are the last of a divine bloodline, operating at the bloodiest fringes of society where they wield might and magic against the demons they are sworn to destroy. For Shura, it’s the only way to restore honor to her lineage and claim her rightful place in the world. For Jin, it’s a matter of begrudging duty—and escaping the influence of the three kings vying for control of the continent.
In their pursuit of the sadistic cult behind the demons’ resurgence, the twins find themselves hunted by an ancient demon harboring a blood vendetta, and are forced to set aside past grudges and seek the kings’ alliance. When Shura discovers a chilling prophecy, she fears that even her newfound allies may not be enough to stem the rising tide of shadow.
Even the palest chance of victory will come at a brutal price. But the prophecy never foretold whose fate would settle the debt: Shura’s or her brother’s.
Full Review:
If the Demon Slayer anime series was written in a Western style and went full grimdark, the result would be mild and cheerful compared to ShadowBane.
This book is NOT for the faint of heart: it’s packed to the brim with insanely bloody action, with violence that leaps off the page, characters that stubbornly remain unlikable to the very end, and story progression that will shock you for how dark they can go.
And yet you will love every minute you spend ripping through this story!
ShadowBane follows twin siblings Shura and Jin, last of an ancient powerful bloodline that has hunted demons and protected the world. Only their family has been cast down in shame and they are wandering demon-hunters-for-hire barely eking out a living while bleeding and suffering on every hunt.
Shura is the planner, the level-headed one, who has dreams of a better, bigger life. Jin, however, cares only for the hunt, the thrill of the chase, and the excitement of watching demons die. At the beginning, he reads as either a sociopath or psychopath, but over the course of the book, we see some fascinating insights into his character that pulls him just out of the realm of “villain” and into “anti-hero”—albeit one that is willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Ultimately, though he’s much harder to like, he ends up being the more interesting of the pair because you never know what he’s going to do, but you always know he’ll have a good reason to do it.
Traveling with them is Wallace, former squire to a knight who has sworn to serve Jin and Shura in their hunting. He’s an oddly bright, optimistic character that stands out in this grim, dark world, especially when matched against Jin’s temperament. Through him, we get to explore a lot of the world and lore and history of the world.
The world is evocative of feudal Japan, and feels like it’s been ripped from the pages of Japanese history. Everything from the culture to the customs to the descriptions feels so real and genuine—if the author hasn’t lived in Japan, he’s done extensive research to make it seem as he has, which is no easy feat.
The story is very much about hunting demons—and there are always bigger, badder, harder-to-kill demons ripped out of Japanese folklore and myth—but at its core, it’s about the siblings and their dynamic. There is so much complexity and difficulty to their relationship that it can sometimes be hard to read, but that makes it all the more compelling because you want to know how they’ll move past some long-running dispute or issue and come back together to fight their true enemies.
ShadowBane was a pleasant surprise that kept me absolutely riveted all the way to the end. If you’re looking for a darker, bloodier, action-packed, Japan-inspired story, I can’t recommend ShadowBane highly enough.
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