Strike the Zither

    

Strike the Zither
By  Joan He

ISBN: 9781250258588
368 Pages
Available in Paperback, Hardcover, Audiobook, and Kindle
Trigger Warning: Violence and Death

Synopsis:

Orphaned at a young age, Zephyr took control of her fate by becoming the realm’s most powerful strategist, serving under a leader whose cause jeopardizes their survival in a war where one must betray or be betrayed.

When Zephyr is forced to infiltrate an enemy camp, she encounters the enigmatic Crow, the only strategist who has ever rivaled Zephyr’s talent. But mastermind though Crow may be, he is no match for Zephyr. She will defy the heavens to win and no one―neither human nor god―can stop her.

Featuring gorgeous map art and black-and-white portraits, Strike the Zither is the first book in Joan He's riveting Kingdom of Three duology that explores human greed and ambition in a war-torn world. Don't miss the epic conclusion in Sound the Gong!

My Thoughts:

Strike the Zither is the first part of a two part fantasy story based loosely on the well known and often adapted Chinese novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms (often shortened to Three Kingdoms - which is also the designation for era when the story takes place). There are omissions and distinct changes - most notably that most of the main cast is women, where in the original tale, all of the important players were men. The lead character Zephyr is based on Zhuge Liang, and her lordess Xin Ren is based on the hero Liu Bei. I've actually never had the opportunity to read Three Kingdoms, and in fact have only seen one adaptation - the Taiwanese drama K.O.3an Guo (part of the KO One franchise). And I watched that probably 10 years ago, so I don't remember the entire story. If you are familiar with the Three Kingdoms story, you will definitely see similarities in personas and certain happenings, but there are a lot of differences as well. Strike the Zither completely holds up as an independent story and will be just as enjoyable to readers who are not familiar with the Three Kingdoms story.

The main quartet of characters, like those seen in Three Kingdoms, is a trio of swornsisters and their military strategist. Each of these characters has unique personalities, are likable, and you can empathize with them and their motivations. The focal and secondary players of the story are clearly Zephyr and Xin Ren, so you get more background on them than on the other characters. Miasma, the villain of the story, is written to be perfectly detestable, though her strategist Crow is someone I couldn't decide if I loved or loathed.

The author paints a lovely picture of the scenery with her words (and provides a map in the index for context). She describes the action in vivid detail - which is sometimes quite violent, as to be expected in an epic story about war. Much of this story, however, was not what one would expect. Around halfway through, there is a bit of a twist - that I wouldn't dare spoil - and the narrative shifts drastically. As someone who dislikes when books are overly predictable, I absolutely relished the unexpected change.

I stumbled across Strike the Zither at the local library and the cover art is what drew me in first. I've been on a bit of a Xianxia drama binge lately, and this book looked like it would be right up my alley. If I'm being totally honest, the first couple of pages were a little overwhelming to me. It introduced several of characters very fast, and jumped right into the action; so it took a little while to get my bearings and remember who everyone was. It turns out that when you are reading a book instead of watching a show where you can learn faces, that much information up front can be a lot. Once I got a few more pages in, I was invested in the story and really didn't want to put it down. I finished this book in a week, but only because I was busy. This was the type of book that I could usually complete in one sitting.

Overall, Strike the Zither was a delightful read. As mentioned previously, it is the first of a two part series. It doesn't really end on a cliff hanger, but with an incomplete feeling and a bit of last minute suspense. I cannot wait to start the second half. I was really grateful that I did not discover this book before the library had both volumes.

Parent's Guide:

This book is has a lot going on, but isn't too complicated. It is a war epic so there is quite a bit of violence, sometimes graphic. I wouldn't advise this for younger or sensitive readers, but it has a good deal of entertainment value for more mature teens.

Cat+Gamer Vol 1-6

  

 

Cat_Gamer Vol 1-6 (Following stats on Vol 1 only)
By  Wataru Nadatani

ISBN: 9781506727417
192 Pages
Available in Paperback and on Kindle/ComiXology
Trigger Warning: soft Mental Health mentions, cartoon violence

Synopsis:

Riko, a twenty-nine-year-old office worker with an obsession for video games, finds her quiet life upended when she takes in a stray cat in this adorable manga series!

Her coworkers can’t quite figure her out—she never talks about her personal life, she never works overtime, and she never joins them for happy hour. Is she antisocial? Nope, she’s rushing home to play video games! One day, a stray cat is found in the office parking lot, and before Riko knows it, the cat has moved in with her! Having no experience with pets, Riko uses lessons drawn from video games to guide her in cat care, while her cute companion tries to understand her behavior through a cat's worldview.

My Thoughts:

I stumbled upon the first three volumes of Cat+Gamer at one of the county libraries affiliated with mine while I was wasting time waiting for my car to be repaired. I had never heard of it, but it had a cute cat on the cover and that's usually enough to sell me. Well, let me tell you - it did not disappoint. The story is about Riko, a 29-year-old socially reclusive office worker who lives on a daily schedule that is optimized to efficiently play and clear her adored video games. Riko has no outside of work friends and passes on social gatherings so that she can go straight home and game until bedtime.

Her life changes abruptly when a cat is found in the parking lot at work. The office asks for a volunteer to take it home and nobody else volunteers, so Riko impulsively agrees. She then panics when she realizes that she knows absolutely nothing about caring for a living creature and, in doing what she does best, she starts looking at the situation as though it was one of her video games.

Nothing could go wrong here, right?

 

What follows is a hilarious mix of adorable cat stories and assorted video game comparisons. Every time the cat - now named Musubi - does something new, it is compared to a behavior that Riko recognizes from her gaming experiences. At one point she inadvertently makes a friend, in the form of the shopkeeper at the local pet supply store, whom Riko sees as a great and knowledgeable master. Around volume four, the shopkeeper comes over for a pet play date and suggests that Riko get a second cat to give Musubi a companion. So in comes Soboro, and with her a whole new set of pet experiences.

The art work in these graphic novels is cute and elements of story are relatable to cat owners. Like when Riko shares a photo of Musubi online, which goes somewhat viral, and inspires her to start a social media account for her pet - something many a pet owner is familiar with. This actually leads to funny moments, where coworkers follow the account without realizing that the cats belong to Riko. Other references may be lost on those who aren't familiar with particular games, but the writer did an awesome job of breaking down those references so they would be understood my most readers. Overall, it's a very reader friendly series of books.

I loved all six of the currently available volumes of Cat+Gamer. There are two more volumes out in Japanese, but they have yet to be released in English. Volume seven of the manga is due to be released soon. It is currently available for preorder and will be released on February 25, 2025. The final volume recently got an English release date of August 26, 2025, and is now available for preorder as well. I can't wait.

Parent's Guide:

This book is rated 11+ but is appealing to younger kids due to the fun and relatable content. Cat+Gamer was the category winner of Excelsior Award Blue 2023. The books on the Blue shortlist have been designated as suitable for children aged 11+ (or Key Stage 3 in schools). Cat+Gamer was also the Overall winner of the 2023 Award. Learn more about the Excelsior Awards here.

January/February Reading List

This month's reading list is 2 months in one, because I am posting late in the month. The books included are a combination of titles chosen to clear review backlogs and TBR lists, reading challenge books, and one that I am hosting a Buddy Read (book club style read-along) for on TheStoryGraph. (You can find me on there as @paperbackgoddess) 

This is what my current reading list looks like:

Cat+Gamer vol. 6 by Wataru Nadatani
Strike the Zither by Joan He
Sound the Gong by Joan He
As You Wish: Inconceivable Takes From the Making of The Princess Bride by Cary Elwes (Buddy Read book. We are starting Feb 1st if anyone wants to join!)
The Princess Bride by William Goldman
The Remarried Empress graphic novel series by Alphatart
Reading 5X5 x2: Duets by B. Morris Allen (Editor)
Tangle of Time by Gin Westcott
Alice Au Pays Des Merveilles by Lewis Carroll

and maybe
Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

I will hopefully get around to posting some past reviews that never made it up as well. I still have quite a backlog to post. I was never able to get the reviews off of my lost laptop, despite recovering the harddrive. Everything I have tried will not read the data. But I am trying to rewrite what ones I can. So check back repeatedly. (I also mention new posts on FB and Insta.)

And, as always, I am open to and love discussion, so I invite you to grab a book and read along!

Happy New Year!!

It's 2025. Time to make (and probably break) resolutions, and to see what the future holds. Many people are anxious, which I completely understand, but we can't let that anxiety stop us from being us.

My last year was a rough one. I got in a pretty bad accident in the summer, which resulted in a week long hospital stay, 5 procedures, and ongoing physical therapy on my hand and arm. But I'm ready for some normalcy. So back to the book cave. ^.^

While I have tried to post occasionally on Facebook or Instagram - mostly stories, quite a bit of time has passed since my last post on here (plus a lot has changed since this blog started in 2011), so I'm going to do a bit of a re-introduction for anyone just recently finding their way here, due to things like Threads or Bluesky.

"Who is PaperbackGoddess?" you may be wondering. I am just a normal, book loving nerd. My kids are mostly grown now, with the youngest being 16. I still enjoy sewing and crafting. I make silly things that I sell on my Etsy store. I still love anime, but now it shares screen time with assorted Asian dramas (mostly Taiwanese). I haven't gotten to do nearly as much cosplay since the move to upstate NY in 2022, but I am hoping to change that this year, because I miss it. I also miss planning and organizing events, but it's probably for the best that I stepped back from most of those due to the physical strain that caused. I am still an ordained Priestess, and I hope to start booking weddings again when I no longer look like I got punched in the face with a truck. As I have always said, there is no greater feeling than being able to unite two people who are deeply in love. 

In what spare time I have - which has been a lot lately since I have been unable to work - I read. I love reading. Reading a book is an escape, an exploration, a trip that you don't have to leave home for. I have so many books - mostly in boxes since I don't have enough shelves. I am active on PaperbackSwap and have a giant wish list. If you join there, add me as a referral and it will add you to my friends list! I am also active on Goodreads and TheStoryGraph, where I am currently hosting a Buddy Read and participating in about 11 reading challenges. You can see the challenges I am participating in on my profile. Join in with me!

My favorite genres to read are historical fiction, fantasy, and regency romance, but I read all kinds of things - from mysteries and ChickLit to new age and metaphysics books.

My reviews cover many different types of books. So if you have been looking for a new read, hopefully I can suggest something that suits your tastes. I promise to do my best to avoid spoilers.

As always, I am excited for the opportunity to share my literary experiences with others and to hear other people's opinions and have great discussions on the books that we read. So stop in any time and please feel free to interact!