This book is absolutely epic. Standalone fantasies are often hit or miss (they require such careful world-building and character development in ONE bound book), but this was a big win for me. It’s an extremely slow-burn, deep dive into the dynamics of the Matsuda family who have the ability to command and wield water. We journey along the perspectives of young Mamoru, his mother Misaki, and his father Takeru. With Misaki’s prominent voice, we bear witness to her past as an experienced fighter throughout the book, providing context when their village is attacked in the present day. There is great loss in this book, but the execution is brilliant. The fight scenes, alone, can extend into multiple chapters, but aren’t boring at all. Wang’s martial arts background bleeds through the pages, as well as her ability to write believable stories about empires, the perpetuation of generational oppression, and how they can subsequently crumble when the oppressed rise up to meet them.

My only complaint is that there is no longer a series to continue on the story of our Theonites. I would gladly read several more volumes to learn more about how the actions in this novel impact the rest of our beloved character’s stories. People have compared this book to Avatar: the Last Airbender and honestly, yeah - it’s like AtLA on steroids designed for adults. I cannot recommend this one highly enough. Wang has quickly become an author that I’ll keep up with to snatch up any future releases.