Smoke in the Sun

Now that I'm done crying, I can officially mark this book as read and another all time fave. The first book was fierce, adventurous, hopeful. This one was pure yearning, at times desolation, and so cathartic.

Good to read

Loved it as much as Flame in the Mist! This book is the kind you want to read slow and sink into every word. That's how it's been with every book by Ahdieh and this one is the same. It's different from the first by including stories of other characters, but I loved it as it added depth to the characters and the story. From beautiful prose to an intriguing plot, this book kept me spellbound! I love the story of Mariko and the journey she goes on in both books, but Ahdieh's writing had me also caring about all of the other characters just as much. The insights from Mariko were so honest and in line with what a lot of people at her age think and feel! I can't wait to read Ahdieh's next book!

Smoke in the Sun picks up (assumingly, since I read Flame in the Mist way too long ago) where we left off in Flame in the Mist. Okami has been imprisoned and Mariko is at the mercy of her brother, Roku, the emperor, and Raiden, her once betrothed. Things are pretty chaotic and complicated to say the least.I remember struggling a lot with Flame in the Mist. I read it as an ARC with no glossary or other guide to help along my reading. Of course even with a guide this time, every time I went to look up a italicized word, it wasn't there and I soon stopped looking up anything because it was a waste of reading time. So I guess you could say the cultural shock was a reading impediment for me.There's also the multiple points of view to contend with as well, and since it's third person, I felt like this made it harder to grasp who was talking. And the other thing I struggled with on that note was all the names! Oh, my goodness I forgot how many characters were in this one! There were so many names and then there were the names that those people went by, so multiple names on top of multiple names! It was definitely confusing. I would've done better with a character guide like some books do where they group the names into families or clans or whatnot to help you keep track of everyone. Had I that...I think I would've done better at following along. Since my reading habits changed, I read in spurts so while I may vaguely remember a character on day 1 of reading, but day 3 I might completely forget who he or she is! A character guide is definitely something I would've done better with than a glossary! Lol.So onto the story now that I hashed out my points on how I struggled with this one. I felt like I was able to follow the story along best when I was in Mariko or Okami's point of view. Everyone else just left me confused and wondering who they were and who they were talking with. But the goal for Mariko and Okami was always clear; rescue the other one. Okami is taken prisoner by Roku and Raiden and Mariko's fate relied heavily on her acting skills. She must play the victim and fall back into her earlier role that she fought so hard to leave behind in Flame in the Mist.While I struggled heavily with this one, I will say that I always enjoyed Mariko and Okami's relationship. It was such a sweet, tentative kind of romance. They were definitely the reason why I kept forging through this one!The ending felt a bit rushed to me when all was said and done. And then of course, there was the fact that I still wasn't 100% sure of what had happened to lead things into the chaotic mess that was running amok around the kingdom. Lots of things were happening and I can't be clear on the cause. I had my suspicions in the end and I am pretty sure it was mostly right, but yeah. This book totally messed with my mind...and not necessarily in a good way. I impress again that more than anything I would've been happier with a character guide! It was hard to remember which character point of views I was reading that were from heroes or enemies or somewhere in between. You almost didn't know who to root for if you weren't in Mariko or Okami's point of view.I will say that I was happy with how it ended despite multiple states of confusion throughout this book. While I did struggle with this one, it in way deters me from ever reading Renee's books again as I adored her first duology and I am pretty positive I am going to love her vampire one as well when that releases next month. So don't let me addled mind and slightly unhappy review deter you from giving this re-imagined Mulan retelling a try if it sparks an interest for you!Overall Rating 3/5 stars

This was a really good finish to the duology. I kinda think there were a few writer easy ways out for a few things, but I honestly felt like we got to know the characters a bit more and saw how they changed based on the choices they made in the first book. I just kinda wished one character was a bit less manipulative than she had been, but I can see why she did all that she had done and I liked the way her story ended. I am not going to say more as I don't want to put too many spoilers here.

This book is definitely worth while. It is the sequel to A flame in the mist. I definitely recommend reading the first book and immediately reading the sequel. There are a few twist in the first book that could be confusing. Regardless, Smoke in the sun is a wonderful sequel to the tale of Mariko and Okami. I would definitely recommend this duology to any reader especially those who enjoy young adult.

I really liked the first book of this series, The Flame in the Mist. However this 2nd book was very different in alot of ways, the plot seemed VERY THICK with characters, so much so that it almost came across to me that the author was over encumbered by them. Attempting to give so many of them depth ...and yet other random one offs so shallow.. that by the end... I was left scatching my head about them. Our main love couple is still there, however there is alot more going on around them. The ending and last 1/4 of the book felt VERY rushed..almost slapped together compared to her other works. All in all it is for sure worth the buy if you read the firdt book. However dont look for the same kind of story from the previous one. Buy the paper back. Do not go for the hard back. Not worth the money for it. The art is only on the slip cover.

Set in ancient Japan this story is filled with magic and brave samurai, and strong women I found this a compelling read and well researched. It is about a corrupt emperor and the palace intrigues that overturn his evil. Others mentioned it was hard to follow the plot,. I disagree. It is complex and set in another culture but I found it easy and fascinating.