Ten years have passed since the events of The Beast Player. Elin and Ialu are married, with a young son, living a quiet, peaceful life when one day Elin is called upon to investigate a matter of great urgency: the fearsome Toda are dying and nobody knows why.

As Elin investigates, she uncovers a deadly plot and a brewing invasion. Can she protect her homeland without allowing her beloved beasts to be used as weapons of war, or will she have to compromise her principles to save her family?

Reviews

More than a perfect sequel to The Beast Player… A victorious fantasy epic

Books and Bao

Praise for The Beast Player

A spine-tingling fantasy that should delight boys as well as girls

New Statesman

It’s everything a book should serve up to a child at this age – life, death, survival, love, dragons (or todas, in this case, serpents of Japanese folklore that carry men in battle), and, above all, perfect prose

iNews

Beautiful… this epic fantasy is a must for any reader interested in complex imaginary worlds. Uehashi creates worlds on a par with Tolkein’s in terms of attention to the most minuscule of details

Children's Books Ireland

Imaginative, immersive… A richly detailed coming-of-age fantasy epic

Kirkus Reviews

Gripping… a sophisticated, subtle tale… it all culminates in a climax that will have you turning the pages so fast your fingers will hardly be able to keep up… this is a book to treasure

BookTrust

Enthralling, epic storytelling at its best

The Alligator's Mouth

This is a 5 star for me, I just thought it was phenomenal… It’s such an amazing story, a story of politics and history and relationships and its got this beautiful animal human relationship

Elena Reads Books

This is storytelling at its best… The kind of book which defies age boundaries. It deserves a place on every bookshelf

Book Murmuration (blog)

Huge fun

Amanda Craig

Uehashi allows the reader insights into Elin’s consciousness throughout the novel so that her grief, friendships, moral dilemmas and empathy with the royal beast cub she rears make this both a captivating and contemplative fantasy novel

The School Librarian

A thrilling way to begin a voyage of discovery into the extraordinary realms of this master storyteller… Will satisfy even the most demanding fantasy lovers

South China Morning Post

Hirano is a gifted stylist… [and brings us] moments of lyrical beauty… The Beast Player, like its titular character, make[s] an unexpected music of its own

SCBWI Japan Translation Group

A colourful and nuanced fantasy. Nahoko Uehashi does an incredible job of fleshing out the world and the characters. Nothing is black and white, nor as simple as it may first appear. Heart-warming and gut wrenching

The Bookaneers

Can a book ever be as beautiful as it’s cover, when it’s cover looks like this one does? Yes. Yes it bloody can. Nahoko Uehashi has created an incredible world, with fascinating creatures & heart-stopping politics; as well as characters you can’t help but love & others you can’t help but hate. This book took me into another world & when I finished it I felt like I had forgotten about the real world; I was mesmerised by this story every time I picked it up & I’m aching for the rest of the series

Writing Wolves (blog)

IT’S AMAZING. Truly, wonderfully amazing

Books Femme (blog)

An extraordinary and unique tale of intrigue, danger and adventure. Something different for the Summer

Sue & Pakka's (blog)

[Nahoko Uehashi] has an extraordinary ability to create different fantasy worlds

Hans Christian Andersen Prize jury

The best Japanese fantasy tale in years

Kochi Shimbun newspaper

The world feels real, the character construction is exceptional, and the plot development is complex-all these make The Beast Player an excellent read

Nikkan Gendai