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Empress of All Seasons Hardcover – November 6, 2018
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Winter 2018-2019 Kids’ Indie Next List
In a palace of illusions, nothing is what it seems.
Each generation, a competition is held to find the next empress of Honoku. The rules are simple. Survive the palace’s enchanted seasonal rooms. Conquer Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. Marry the prince. All are eligible to compete—all except yōkai, supernatural monsters and spirits whom the human emperor is determined to enslave and destroy. Mari has spent a lifetime training to become empress. Winning should be easy. And it would be, if she weren't hiding a dangerous secret. Mari is a yōkai with the ability to transform into a terrifying monster. If discovered, her life will be forfeit. As she struggles to keep her true identity hidden, Mari’s fate collides with that of Taro, the prince who has no desire to inherit the imperial throne, and Akira, a half-human, half-yōkai outcast. Torn between duty and love, loyalty and betrayal, vengeance and forgiveness, the choices of Mari, Taro, and Akira will decide the fate of Honoku in this beautifully written, edge-of-your-seat YA fantasy.
- Reading age12 years and up
- Print length384 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Grade level7 - 9
- Dimensions5.5 x 1.26 x 8.25 inches
- PublisherClarion Books
- Publication dateNovember 6, 2018
- ISBN-100544530942
- ISBN-13978-0544530942
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"With rich mythology and elegant atmosphere, Empress of All Seasons will latch onto your imagination and sweep you along for a magical and dangerous ride."-- Joelle Charbonneau, New York Times best-selling author of The Testing Trilogy.
Jean's world building is incredible and reflects her Japanese heritage, from the richly described landscapes of the animal wives' home to the city of Honoku to the seasonal rooms. Action, romance, family, and self-discovery are all parts of Mari's journey...In a genre that is quick to make trilogies and quartets, this is laudable as a standalone that fully tells its story within a single volume."-- Booklist
"The author uses Japanese folklore elements to effectively craft an engaging story that also questions the power structures of heaven and earth, male and female, human and yokai. A narrative that will engage fans of the genre with a much-needed non-Western setting."-- Kirkus
About the Author
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
IN THE BEGINNING, dark water flooded the earth.
Kita, the Goddess of Land and Rice, built a staircase out of lightning and stepped down from the sky.
She dipped her nimble fingers into the black oceans and sculpted from the rocky depths the lands of Honoku. From her body, she made the terrain. Her eyelashes became forests, dense with trees. Her tears of joy became the oceans, rough with salt. Her breath became the desert, hot with sand. And with her fingernails, she created an impassable mountain range, one of extraordinary danger and height.
Delighted by her cleverness, she bragged to her fellow gods and goddesses.
Sugita, her brother, God of Children, Fortune, and Love, perpetually prone to jealousy, refused to be overshadowed. From the land, he gathered clay and molded figures.
The first were yokai.
Sugita's imagination ran wild, and he fashioned these spirits, monsters, and demons, these otherworldly creatures, with blue, white, and yellow skin. Some he fashioned with horns; some without. Some he locked forever in childhood. To others he gave two mouths or fifteen fingers, long necks, ten hundred eyes, or shriveled heads. The yokai were as limitless as the magic within them.
The second were human.
These he made in his own image, relatively uniform in appearance, with ten fingers and ten toes, each with a single mouth, and with hair upon their heads. Soon enough, Sugita recognized the weakness in his design. He had given yokai vast powers, whereas he had given the humans none. So he gifted the latter with a second language'curses that may be spoken or written to ward off the yokai, strip them of their powers. In this way, a balance might be established.
And to all'yokai and human alike'he bestowed a mortal heart.
Finally, he took the human that bore him the strongest resemblance and set him upon the most fertile land. He touched the human's brow with his thumb and drew a smudge between his eyebrows. All would know that he was favored by the gods and goddesses. So it was.
The human was called Emperor.
Sovereign. Blessed.
Ruler of the land.
CHAPTER 1
Mari
BREATHING IN THE DARK, and not her own.
Mari tilted her head. She couldn't see in the pitch-black, but she closed her eyes. It helped her focus. She knew this space well, this room with no windows and an almost airtight door. Sometimes the musty smell invaded her dreams, morphed them into nightmares. The Killing Room, and Mari was executioner.
She inhaled, holding the stale air in her lungs. There, in the right corner, two feet away, someone waited. Afraid.
Mari stepped forward, the floorboards creaking under her weight.
'P-p-please," a high-pitched male voice wailed.
'I'm not going to hurt you," she said, letting a note of reassurance enter her voice. Not yet, anyway. She probed the wall. Her fingers brushed against a wooden ledge, then paper pulled tight over a bamboo frame. Matches rested next to the lamp. She struck one and lit the cotton wick, illuminating the room in a soft glow. The scent of rapeseed oil crept through the air. When her eyes refocused, she saw that the man was dressed in hakama pants and a surcoat. Samurai garb. The uniform of the military elite.
'Gods and goddesses," he said, mouth lifting into a sneer, 'I thought you were one of them. Why, you're no taller than a sapling! What happened, little girl, did you lose your mommy?"
Mari regretted her paltry effort to comfort him. That's what you get for being nice. Men. They always underestimated her.
Opposite the man, a variety of weapons leaned in the corner: a sickle and chain, a bow and arrow, a nunchaku . . . Mari gestured toward them. "Choose.' She liked to give the men a fighting chance. I'm sporting that way.
The samurai huffed. "You don't know what you ask, little girl. I trained at the Palace of Illusions with the shogun himself."
Mari clenched her teeth. This was growing tedious. "I said, choose your weapon."
The samurai strolled to the corner. He rifled through the weapons and selected a katana and a wakizashi.
Predictable. The long and short swords were samurai weapons. Her opponent brandished them, sharp-edged steel blades glittering in the lamplight.
Mari sauntered to the corner and quickly chose her own instrument. Always the same. The naginata. The reaping sword was a long bamboo pole culminating in a wicked curved blade. Thought to be a woman's weapon, none of her opponents ever selected it. It was the only weapon Mari knew how to wield. "If you train on all weapons, you will master none," her mother always said.
Mari stamped the naginata on the ground. Dust billowed around the hem of her navy kimono. "I'm very sorry, but from this moment, you're dead," she said, unsheathing the blade.
The samurai laughed, the sound robust and biting.
Mari cut his chortle short. She dipped into a crouch, letting the pole end of the naginata swing out in an arc, clipping the back of the samurai's knees.
He collapsed with a loud thud. Mari winced. The big ones always fall the hardest.
'that was a mistake," he said, clambering to his feet. He crossed the swords in front of him, a dangerous glint in his eye.
At least he's taking me seriously now. 'No," Mari corrected. 'that was intentional."
The samurai rushed her, and she followed suit. The blade end of her naginata clashed against his big sword. Sparks flew.
The samurai jabbed with the smaller sword, and Mari dodged. A hairsbreadth from being impaled. That was too close. Her pulse quickened with fear and excitement. This samurai is well-trained. Before the samurai could pull back, Mari began twisting the naginata, catching both of his weapons in the windmill. Forced to let go, the samurai dropped his swords, which scattered to the ground, a few feet away. Well-trained, but not as well-trained as I.
She couldn't allow him time to take a breath, to reach for his weapons. End this. She snap-kicked, her right foot connecting with his abdomen. The samurai grunted and doubled over. He clutched his stomach as he tipped to the ground.
She stood over him, breath ragged, victory sealed. Warmth radiated through her body. She felt the beast rise within her, felt her brown eyes dissolve into twin black abysses. Her hands flexed as muscles spasmed and bones popped. Her fingernails grew into black pointed talons. The skin on the back of her hands bloomed with leathery, charcoal-colored scales as tough and thick as a rhinoceros hide. She ignored the agony of transformation. She had trained herself to shut it out.
The samurai stared, horror-struck.
She knew she looked hideous'still part human, but with the eyes and hands of a monster. She brought her face close to the samurai's, and when she spoke, her voice came out as a rasp. "You were right after all. I am one of them."
Product details
- Publisher : Clarion Books (November 6, 2018)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 384 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0544530942
- ISBN-13 : 978-0544530942
- Reading age : 12 years and up
- Grade level : 7 - 9
- Item Weight : 1.1 pounds
- Dimensions : 5.5 x 1.26 x 8.25 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #1,544,156 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #2,375 in Teen & Young Adult Fantasy Romance
- #3,583 in Teen & Young Adult Sword & Sorcery Fantasy
- #48,554 in Teen & Young Adult Literature & Fiction
- Customer Reviews:
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About the author

Emiko Jean ist eine vom unabhängigen Buchhandel in den USA als Indie Next Pick ausgezeichnete Jugendbuchautorin. Sie lebt in Washington State mit ihrem Mann und ihren Kindern (liebreizende Zwillinge). Und, ja, sie liebt den Regen dort.
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The world-building was rich and fun. Some of it was based directly off Japanese folklore, particularly the yokai. In this world, yokai and humans were created, but Sugita, a god, made one human in his image and deemed him to be emperor. In the present time, the emperor hates yokai because he blames one for his wife's death, and enslaves them all with a collar that suppresses their power. The collars were created by the prince, one of our POV characters, who regrets how they were used. According to the myths of the world, the first emperor found his wife when she failed to be killed by the elements, and thus the seasonal rooms were created at the palace, each with its own beauties and dangers.
Mari, the main character and a yokai, is the most engaging of the POVs, in my opinion. We see her life before the contest, giving us a good idea of her motivation in winning the contest, even though she knows nothing about the prince and doesn't *really* want to marry him. Her type of yokai, Animal Wives, marry human men and steal their fortunes. They also hope to get pregnant with a girl, to become the next generation of Animal Wives (boy babies are sent down the river for a fate that is never clarified in the book). The Animal Wives have deemed Mari too ugly to find a husband the normal way, so her mother trained her to win her way to Empress of All Seasons.
What is intriguing is that both of the male POVs are introduced as lovers, not fighters. Akira knows nothing of battle, and probably has the most interesting family history and powers. Taro is the prince, trained to fight, but preferring to invent. Taro also has no intention of ruling and plans to escape (until he meets Mari, of course) before the contest. Yet during the course of the book, they change positions. Taro and Akira both take on the warrior role, wanting to fight more than Mari ever wanted to.
One of my biggest complaints about the book, and probably the main thing that kept it from being 5 stars, is the dramatic emotional and personality shifts the characters take on, often with very little catalyst. Taro's instalove is probably the most dramatic I've ever seen, and I'm not sure when Mari falls in love with him, only she's suddenly saying she did. Taro also swings wildly in the other direction, hating Mari and all yokai based on minimal evidence that she is responsible for his dad's death (Taro doesn't seem to have much affection for his dad, either, making the swing feel even more dramatic) Akira barely gets any training at all, and he goes from lover to ultra-warrior.
I also wish there had a little bit more time spent in each of the rooms, so that we could really feel the season of them. Each room dramatically cut down the number of contestants, but it didn't seem to matter since we only got to know 4 of them at all. The pacing of the novel was brisk, which made it a thrilling read, but it also meant that we had a bad sense of how long anything was taking and felt a little shorted on such things as how long the contest lasted or how long Akira was in training. I don't know if I would have asked for this to be a multiple series book (it could have easily been cut from the point where the season rooms were over and left the aftermath of the contest for a 2nd book), but there was certainly enough material that was sped through that could have made it two books. On the other hand, I appreciate a standalone YA fantasy! And the end might have felt rushed for some, but I felt the mythological way it was presented was kind of perfect for the story.
One final thing that I really liked about the novel was the development of women taking on their own power. Mari and other characters go from feeling like they needed male characters to feel complete (never mind that that feeling is a little rushed for Mari) to realizing that they have their own strengths and don't need those men after all.
Overall, I enjoyed this book, despite a few quibbles.
Recommended for fans of: Japanese folklore and mythology, The Selection and/or Hunger Games, weather magic, standalone fantasy novels, instalove, multiple POVs, brisk pacing, mechanical birds
“The rules were simple: Survive the Rooms. Conquer the Seasons. Win the prince.”
A book that had blown me away, right off the bat. The premise alone, who doesn’t want to know those enchanted seasonal rooms? and yōkai, supernatural being that has to be enslaved by the emperor, then thrown a bit of the town between duty love, loyalty, and betrayal, vengeance, and forgiveness. I sense enemies to lovers trope, and gods and goddesses I am nothing but a drooling patsy when it comes to my favorite kind of trope. And It did not disappoint me.
“Funny how love can drive you to hate.”
That was just the premise. Let’s talk about how wonderful the prologue is, it is ensnaring, words flow eloquently, the story itself reveals of what had happened then, it builds up as the novel begins, done in such anticipating capacity, my words won’t do any justice over it. It’s ineffable. You’d just have a hard time trying to put it down.
A rich and very atmospheric book, from the senses that we see and feel. It has described the setting really well, from Mari’s hometown and the City, the travel farther. Filled with mythology and cultures, growing wild with the new ones you meet too, cursed below creatures up to the mightiest gods and goddesses that casts upon curses, are mesmerizing to read. I am magnetized by it all.
It has a reminiscent of The Hunger Games, but Empress of All Seasons surely brought something unique of a perspective in. It is enticing to read the how of these Seasons are and for the competitors, not to mention the traditionally rich and vibrant setting, thrown in there definitely something to watch out for. Possibly clutch your heart with then.
“You must take this leap. The jump always makes the fall worth it.”
I am not overselling things, there are some weak centers in the characters shift, I don’t really mind. I enjoyed the “how” the love growing amongst characters to be something natural especially in the depth of again family, duty, honor, and morals. And as it is set in an era of then filled with rich cultures and influences. It was complicated yet not truly. I adore these characters altogether, they make a pretty great team and opponents I suppose hehe.
And lastly ending was something I really love! It hits me well and struck me as empowering too. I’ll leave it to that. And if you’re really curious it is something for you to find out. It’s worth the time, money, effort, and reading! Totally recommend it for everyone!
Of course, given with the precaution of these; Trigger Warnings: systematic oppression; slavery, forced adoption, childhood abandonment.










