The Keeper of Night Review

 

The Keeper of Night   

By: Kylie Lee Baker 

Released: October 12th, 2021

Pages: 400

My Rating: 4/5 

Goodreads Synopsis: 

Half British Reaper, half Japanese Shinigami, Ren Scarborough has been collecting souls in the London streets for centuries. Expected to obey the harsh hierarchy of the Reapers who despise her, Ren conceals her emotions and avoids her tormentors as best she can.  

When her failure to control her Shinigami abilities drives Ren out of London, she flees to Japan to seek the acceptance she's never gotten from her fellow Reapers. Accompanied by her younger brother, the only being on earth to care for her, Ren enters the Japanese underworld to serve the Goddess of Death... only to learn that here, too, she must prove herself worthy. Determined to earn respect, Ren accepts an impossible task - find and eliminate three dangerous Yokai demons - and learns how far she'll go to claim her place at Death's side. 

My Review:

Okay, Ren, I see you. This is the villain origin story I didn't know I needed! Think Circe but make it dark and angsty. This book delivers such a heartbreaking tale but also touches on a fair amount of Japanese folklore and omg is it actually terrifying. This book is dark and moody and everything I did not know I needed. 

Ren, the main character, is someone who you feel sorry for but also want to grab by the shoulders and shake to knock some sense into her. I felt so torn on whether to feel bad for her or roll my eyes at somethings she said. Overall I enjoyed the development of her and even though we take some villainous turns, I thought she was a well written character. Her brother, Neven, is someone that you just want to be best friends with. I found myself wanting to just give him a hug at so many moments throughout this book. And the part with the nine tailed fox... I felt his essence in my core. 

If you are looking for an action packed folklore read do not think twice before picking this one up. There is going to be a second book in the series and I cannot wait to pick that one up too. I am invested in this series and the characters and need to know what the heck is going on and where a certain someone is... Have you read this one? What did you think of it?!

 

Signing off, 

Molly