Ling Taishi realized that the boy was the worst of all possible outcomes when she watched him perform in a gladiatorial arena. The teenage dirtbag was over-indulged. The boy can barely hold his own against underfed foot soldiers without having his hand held.
The Eternal Khan died while wandering around in a drunken state. The prophecy of the great hero was thrown into disarray by the army patrol. The people of the nomadic nation were forced into indentured slavery and their armies were dismantled. The legendary Salminde, the Viperstrike, is still looking for a new Khan to unite theKatuia and bring them back to their former glory.
There is a new martial arts fantasy called The Art of Prophecy. What follows is an incredible feat of worldbuilding and narrative weaving that weaves together to create an expansive and engaging story that is very similar to other series. The Art of Prophecy is a tale of a master and student and a revenge quest. With clear characters and a plot that doesn't meander as intersect with the story at key breaking points, this book is a fantastic example of wuxia-style story telling.
There is a genre of historical fantasy that has developed in China and Eastern Asia. While definitely speculative in nature, it is typically more grounded and focuses on martial artists who have pushed their abilities to the very limits of human possibility and beyond through their training. The Warring States period of China is where the stories are usually located. WUIX is a great example of a tiger. There is a lot of the same style, but also gods, demons, ghosts, reincarnation, or any number of more mythic elements. Iron Widow and the Legend of the Ten Rings are examples of books that are popular in the west.
The Untamed and Word of Honor, which were originally webnovels, are both experiencing a cultural moment for English-speaking people. The Art of Prophecy is available for those who didn't get on the train.
The characters stand tall in the first book of a trilogy. The dirtbag that I like the most is Ling Taishi. TaiShi is a past-middle-aged, handicapped, once-in-a- generation war artist who does not fuck around and offers no excuses for who she is. It is rare in Western fiction to see an older lady take on the role of a martial artist. TaiShi has to be one of my new favorite fantasy characters because it is not as many as I would like to see. She occupies the kind of constantly annoyed mentor space that makes her similar to a character in The Last Skywalker, someone who knows they're too old for this bullshit and takes it on anyways.
There is her student as well. It's hard to not feel bad for the boy-hero, who is such a heart-wrenching vision of innocence. Yes, the person is talented. Yes, it's also a pathetic. You want to tell him he can try again tomorrow, because he is such a dummy. His development throughout the book is nuanced and clear, and by the end of it all he's really earned his place as Ling TaiShi's martial arts inheritor, making an incredibly satisfying ending to the first of what will be a fantastic series.
I am in love with one of the characters we have. A deep sense of duty and a code of honor make her all the more dangerous because she has very little left to lose. Even though our main characters are arguably her nemesis, she never comes across as a villain. She goes from being a leader to a wanderer and then becomes a Savior over the course of the book.
Even though I am waxing poetic about the characters, they are well developed and have a lot of heart and fervor that they whip off the pages. As the book weaves in and out of the plot, it provides context and builds up the structures of the massive epic before the war starts. It is a feat to read through a book that combines so many elements of eastern and western stories, giving readers the scope of modern epics.
I didn't think this book was put downable. Flitting in between fights and daring escapes, I never wondered when I would get to that character I really liked or what happened in the last chapter. This is a book that Chu is showing off in. I would have to take off my leg to get the whole trilogy. An absolutely fantastic start to a series that has already been optioned for TV, so please imagine me as my favorite murder mom and no-holds-barred bad guy, Ling Taishi.
There are many wonderful themes in this book. Acts of faith are not always right. There is a reward for ambition. Hope is reborn. These are universal themes that are heartbreaking when families are found and brought back to life. Ambitious is a delicate word for the enormity of The Art of Prophecy, but I think in the absence of something more sweeping, 'ambitious' is about as apt a description as I can find.
Every part of the book becomes more and more clear, from the politics to the prophecy, as Ling TaiShi and Salminde travel across its breadth. In this book, distance becomes interwoven scales of armor, creating a legendary piece that ripples across every page, preparing the reader for the next desperate fight between martial arts masters.
The Art of Prophecy is going on sale.
Do you want to know more about io9. House of the Dragon and Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, as well as what's next for the DC Universe on film and TV, can be found on this page.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
