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MY ⭐️ RATING: 4.5/5
Format: Kindle eBook
BOOK DESCRIPTION
China, 184 CE
An empire will shatter.
Dark clouds loom over the Han dynasty. The Yellow Turbans, simple folks turned rebels, threaten the power in place with their sheer numbers and burning anger. Among them, Liao Hua, a young peasant boy, becomes the symbol of the uprising’s vengeful spirit.
But what should have been a short revolt turns into a bloody war for survival. As untrained farmers face the full might of the empire, Liao Hua forges himself a will of iron and vows to do whatever it takes to become the greatest warrior of his time. However, when his path crosses that of the bearded warrior, he understands ambition won’t be enough to come out on top.
An age of chaos is beginning. Men will fall, warlords rise, and warriors clash, but only the strongest will leave their names to be praised for the centuries.
MY REVIEW
Undead Samurai was the first novel I read by Pinson Wu, and that was such a treat to read, that it made me make sure to add more of his stuff to my ever growing TBR. Yellow Sky Revolt is a little more grounded in realism, but this was still fantastic, if you are wanting asian historical fiction that’ll put you into the same feelings that Shogun does, this is a great place to start. Wu uses the chronicler style of story-telling for Liao who is telling how he became to be the symbol of an uprising. This has slowly become one of my favorite styles, because of Name of the Wind by Rothfuss and Empire of Silence by Ruocchio.
With that being said, this is nothing like those stories at all, since this is based in ancient China. One thing is for sure though, I can’t tell you enough about how great Wu’s writing is, this is the kind of stuff that just flows off the page effortlessly. Which in turn makes the world building even more fantastic with how immersive it is, Wu makes you feel as if you are there with Liao. I love the fact that there was no true “hero” of the story, just compelling morally grey characters who are defending “their side.” What makes this such a great read is just how fierce and unflinchingly detailed this story is.
“Somehow, the word “war” gave me an entirely different feeling than “battle.” I found it dangerous, far from the ideal of heroism and courage I could picture finding in battles. It’s funny how two very similar words in their meaning can create contrasting impressions.”
Liao went through a lot in his childhood, loss of family & friends to making new alliances and friendships along the way. Wu did a fantastic job with the development of Liao since the story starts off telling of his early childhood as a 6 year old to him at 13 when it finishes, some of the most informative years for a child. The beauty of this is that along with Liao, there are many other characters that we meet throughout, that Wu also does a great job of either making you like or hate, or if you hated, grew to like later on which is just masterful writing.
I’m definitely excited to continue with this series because Baptiste was able to capture the essence of the time, have a great story, with great characters. A very unforgettable experience that I can’t wait to see what is in store for the rest of Liao’s future.
Wolfmantula.com 