A year or so ago I made a post on the book Never Die. Where I celebrate it as a kickass and fun entry book into reading. The book is perfect for action anime fans who may want to read a bit. The book was self-published, and I tried doing my bit to give the author Rob J. Hayes some expositor. I did like the book as a fast-paced action story with memorable characters and a fun plot.
I later wrote another post on the second book in the series called Pawn’s Gambit. While the second book was more throughout, with a stronger premise, plot, and conclusion I still find myself remembering more about the first book. Both are good and worth a read. They are short and filled with action.
For the sake of consistency, I feel like I have to write about the last book Spirit of Vengeance.
The three books are all part of The Mortal Technique series. Meaning they take place in the same universe. You do not have to read the books in chronological order. However, I would recommend reading books one and two after each other since book 2 follows a character from the first book. You could read Spirit of Vengeance as a stand-alone, but Rob’s writing improves over time, so the jump backward might be jarring.
ENOUGH JAPPING! IS THE BOOK ANY GOOD?!?!
I am a meticulous reader. I like to plan my reading. I read in time blocks of an hour. Sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less. I am having a hard time binge-watching a series or binge-reading a book. Cliffhangers simply don’t work on me and I always find that I can put anything down no matter how exciting it might be. Spirit of Vengeance is the only book I feel like I had to finish. I simply could not put it down. The ending showdown is so creative and fun to read I simply had to keep reading in order to find out who lives and who dies. The entertainment value is very high.
The book is about a man named Haruto an immortal onmyoji and a poet named Guang. Both men are not exactly who they appear to be and the constant twists and turns in the story are well-written, and breathe new life into the story when there is no action. The mystic regarding almost every character is earned and everything is set up so well. The two men go on an adventure meeting an older woman named Yanmei and a young girl named Kira, and soon all of them are teaming up for an epic adventure.
The team primarily fights Yokai and Onryo (evil spirits). The book is filled with creative and scary creatures for our team to fight. The action scenes are super well-written and a lot of fun. It truly feels like an anime even more so than the first book. The book sets up the villains as very strong creatures almost impossible to beat.
The Bad stuff
It should be noted that the book is significantly longer than the other two. Which is not necessarily a problem, but it should be said.
It does feel like an anime, but this unfortunately also includes some elements that are a problem for anime too. Some villains and story arcs are introduced and completed a little too fast. Like with the old lady Yanmei and her brother. That storyline did little to contribute to the overall story. It was a cool moment, but it did sacrifice the story for coolness.
Another problem is that the book has too many characters who have a relationship with each other. If you follow the plot with one eye open you will figure out who each person is and what their story and relation with others are. Especially the identity of the main bad guy was clear very early on.
The last sequence with the dragon is also god-awful and is actually what keeps the book down for me. After an exhilarating end battle where many characters have been in action and showcased what they can do a giant dragon appears. There is simply too much action with little time to breathe. I did like how they had to defeat it in a different way than simply fighting it. However, I do not think it adds anything at all. On a personal level, I thought Haruto’s story would have been better if it ended another way.
Conclusion
Spirit of Vengeance manages to be a love letter-to-action anime while still having well-written characters with unique motivation and good characterization.
If you are a fan of Ninja Scroll, Blade of the Immortal and Sword of the Stranger then I guarantee you would like this book. If you constantly find yourself struggling with reading, try this book.