Kinslayer

Gr 8 Up—The first title in the steampunk dystopian series, Stormdancer (Thomas Dunne, 2012), introduced the world of the Shima Imperium, which is ruled by the power-hungry Shōgun Yorimoto. Yukiko and her father are sent to find a mythical griffin for the Shōgun, but end up assassinating him and starting a rebellion at the price of Yukiko's father's life. In Kinslayer, 16-year-old Yukiko's grief is causing her ability to communicate with animals to spin out of control, pushing her toward the brink of insanity. Kristoff fleshes out many of the side characters and uses multiple story lines to elaborate on the political mess left behind by the Shōgun's death. All of the characters are put through the wringer, and a twist at the end manages to leave the situation more dire than ever. Fans of the first book will be prepared for the florid, heavy prose and the long, dense passages, but others may be put off by the writing style. Recommended only where Stormdancer was popular.—Eliza Langhans, Hatfield Public Library, MA