𝗧𝗶𝘁𝗹𝗲: The Floating World, book 1: The Floating World
𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿: Axie Oh @axieoh
𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁 + 𝗣𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁: Ebook, 368 pages by Hodderscape

★★★★

💌 First of all, I would like to thank @NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ebook in exchange for a honest review. I requested this ebook because I was in a "I want to read Asian-inspired fantasy" mood, and I wanted to discover Axie Oh's writing.

📖 The Floating World is the first book in a fantasy series in which we follow Ren, a young acrobat who travels from one village to the next and a magic-wielder, and Sunho, an ex-soldier who is on a mission to find Ren and to kill her.

☁️ I have been meaning to read one of Axie Oh's books for such a long time, and that moment has finally happened. I am not really familiar with the Korean legend of the Heavenly Maiden and the Woodcutter, so I cannot tell you if the blurb is accurate or not, but what I can say is that I really enjoyed this book. It took me a bit of time to get into the story as I was not familiar with Axie Oh's writing, the very different characters, and the worldbuilding, but once I finally figured everything out, I started to really enjoy the book and was swooped into this world.
Ren felt a bit childish at first, as opposed to Sunho, who gave me the impression that he was almost forced to grow up and be a man although they are the same age. Beneath the fights, there is a really sweet story, and I cannot wait to read The Demon and the Light, which will be out in October 2025!

This came out in May, and all I can say is that if you already love Axie Oh's writing, love creative, descriptive fantasy, and characters you can get behind, this is an easy pick.

I didn't LOVE IT as much as I thought I was going to, but I enjoyed it very much. I really like Axie Oh's writing, and while I wasn't super hooked by the way the plot develops (it's quite standard for the genre), the world and the characters were great. I'm interested in the next book.

3.5 stars.

After falling in love with Axie Oh’s The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, I was eager to dive into The Floating World—and it did not disappoint. This mesmerizing fantasy blends adventure, romance, and mythology into a beautifully crafted tale that feels both intimate and epic.

The Floating World by Axie Oh is a beautifully immersive fantasy that blends Korean mythology, mystery, and romance into an unforgettable journey. Following Ren, a daring acrobat, and Sunho, a mysterious ex-soldier with lost memories, the story slowly weaves their fates together through gripping secrets and high stakes. The dual perspectives deepen the connection to both characters, while the richly detailed world and unique mythology create a fresh and captivating backdrop.

Ren’s warmth and resilience shine through trauma, making her a truly refreshing heroine, and the slow-burning romance with shy Sunho adds a wholesome, heartfelt touch. The pacing is mostly engaging, with a thrilling finale that leaves you desperate for the sequel. Fans of lyrical, character-driven fantasy with emotional depth will find The Floating World utterly enchanting.

I really wanted to love this one. I went in with high expectations, totally ready to be swept away… but sadly, it didn’t quite hit the mark for me. 😔

The story had an intriguing premise, and I was genuinely interested in the world Axie Oh created. But the execution felt lacking. The lore and worldbuilding were just too thin for my taste—more of a sketch than a full picture—and often left me confused or wanting more depth and clarity.

What I did enjoy was the alternating POV between the two main characters (plus a few intriguing interludes from a third 👀). I liked how their stories started separately and slowly began to intertwine—it gave the narrative a nice structure. The romance was sweet in theory, but I struggled to feel the connection between Ren and Sunho. It was very “told” rather than “shown,” so the emotional payoff wasn’t quite there.

My favorite part? The mysterious elements surrounding the demons. That’s probably the one thing that would tempt me to pick up the sequel… but even so, I expected more overall.

What was really missing for me was depth—in the characters’ backstories, in the romance, and in the plot itself. Some key story choices felt too convenient, like characters just happened to be in the right place at the right time to move things along, without solid motivations behind their actions. It made the plot feel a little too neatly constructed instead of naturally unfolding.

I recognize the author’s imagination and appreciate the ambition of the world she’s building—but ultimately, this one left me wanting more.

I tried to get into this but just couldnt. I even tried audio but it just wasnt for me- nothing wrong with the way the book is written at all.

I think the world building was not effective for me. There are a lot of unnecessary scenes. It got better towards the end. It was hard for me to read because I felt really bored at first. really sorry but i tried.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher Hodderscape for the digital ARC, it has not affected my honest review.

TW: violence, blood, murder, injury, death, child abuse, references to suicidal ideation, grief

The Under World is a land of permanent darkness and above it is the Floating World, but Sunho has never seen the light. A former soldier with no memory before two years ago, Sunho works as a sword for hire to make ends meet. He knows only one thing: that he has a brother out there somewhere. When Sunho is offered the chance to earn the score of a lifetime, he jumps at the chance to escape the Under World, especially if it means an enormous chest of coins. The mission: hunt down a girl who wields silver light, but he’ll be going up against hundreds of like minded mercenaries. Far to the east, acrobat Ren travels alongside her adopted family telling stories and performing for numerous villages. Long ago she came from the Floating World but she remembers very little except her mother died and she has a power she has to keep hidden. Her cheerful and peaceful life is broken when an almost human demon attacks a village festival, killing one of her family and grievously wounding another. In a moment of terror, Ren lets loose a devastating blast of silver light that destroys the demon. Determined to save her uncle from his deadly wounds, Ren sets off across the mountains to find a cure- back to the land she fled ten years ago while wearing her acrobat’s mask. Soon enough she collides with Sunho, but he doesn’t realise that the same girl he’s hunting is the one he’s growing closer to, even as a hundred more mercenaries seek her. Travelling to the Floating World, Ren and Sunho come to realise that their pasts are more interconnected than they could have ever known.

This was a fast paced and original YA, written by the brilliant author who did ‘The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea’. I really liked how Sunho and Ren are the complete opposite of each other- she is cheerful while he’s a bit darker and more serious- and how those differences made their relationship work and grow. I loved the fact that Sunho doesn’t realise the girl he’s hunting is right in front of him wearing a mask and the way they get closer despite Ren knowing he’s a threat to her. I do wish we’d gotten some more development for the character of Jaeil because I was so intrigued by the tiny chapters of perspective that we got from him (maybe in the sequel?) I knew nothing about the Korean folktale of the Celestial Maidens before reading this, the atmosphere and tension are great and I loved the descriptions of the world. I wish we had seen more from the child soldier armies and the impact of the Under World/Floating World but I think there’s parts of this one that moved too quickly.

Axie Oh´s world-building sweeps me off my feet every time.
I loved learning about this unique and imaginative world. Oh´s stories have an almost studio ghibli feel to them, an almost adorable feel, they don´t shy away from darker tones and adventures.
I can´t wait to see more of this world and these characters.

I SO SO wanted to love this, much liked I have very much enjoyed all other Axie Oh books but this one sadly wasn't for me :(

I'll start by saying if you have played FF7 or know the story...you will see A LOT of similarities, which honestly I'm okay with! I love final fantasy. I just think there was a lot lacking here, I need more from the lore and world building and I reaaaaally needed more from our 2 main characters. They seemed very flat and 2dimensional so I struggled to care about their individual plights.

Unchanged: Axie Oh has a great imagination and IS a good writer. This book: not the best execution.

Sunho’s a grumpy amnesiac mercenary living in a land of endless night, just trying to survive. Ren’s a sunshiney acrobat with secret powers and a tragic past. When fate throws them together (unaware he’s literally been hired to hunt her down), things get real—slow-burn feelings, mysterious histories, and big questions about power, greed, and who gets to control the light.

The story has heart and some surprisingly thoughtful takes on capitalism, military control, and societal greed. I loved the idea of the Floating World and the hidden cost of magic. That said, I wished for more vivid worldbuilding—the setting felt a bit fuzzy—and the writing skewed really young. The characters are supposed to be seventeen but often read more like middle-grade kids, which made the tone feel off at times.

Still, if you’re in the mood for a sweet, simple YA fantasy with found family feels, hidden magic, and a hint of romance, this one might light your way.

This book was really cute with a dash of whimsy. The world building was interesting, although I wish it was fleshed out a bit more. I think the author has the answers but just the way it was presented left me a bit confused. The characters were pretty well defined and I really liked them together and apart. However, there is a real case of (near) insta love. I was into it because I liked them both and liked their dynamic, but I think if a bit more time was spent on getting to know each other, the intense feelings would be easier to understand.

That being said love the angel/demon dynamic and can’t wait for the next book.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

DNF on page 186.

This book was a disaster and I'm really annoyed that's the case because I adore "The girl who fell beneath the sea"- another book by this author.

Unfortunately, although the plot of "The floating world" is intriguing, it's also incredibly underdeveloped and I could not engage with it no matter how hard I tried. Nothing about it felt gripping and it was all just... boring. I'm also incredibly confused about the world building in this book. How is that even possible that I'm literally halfway through this book and I genuinely can't say anything about the way this world works except that there is a Floating World, which we don't know much about. Oh, there's also the Underworld about which are know even less. Apparently there is also the Normal world? I swear there were barely any (if any at all) descriptions of these worlds.

Moreover, this book has incredibly shallow and flat characters about whom I can't say anything more than SHE is pretty and has light powers and HE likes swords and really wants to find his brother. I don't even remember the names of the main characters, that's how easy to forget they were.

I'm not even gonna talk about the disastrous insta-love in this book. It was just awful.

This book fell flat. So flat. Flatter than the Queen of the Floating world fell on her face after being pushed off the floating world (what was that about too like...).

Eh, I wish I didn't waste almost 3 hours on trying to read this.

Thank you Netgalley, publisher Hodder and author for granting me an early copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I usually do not like fast-paced books. I stand corrected, I ate this up and it left very few crumbs. I loved the vibes this whole book had, both lore wise with the story of the celestial maiden and how her descendants passed down the throne of the Floating World. I loved the whole concept behind the Under World (loved the map and hoping we we'll have another one with the Floating World in book 2) and how the Under World operate different from the rest.

Character wise I loved both protagonists, I adored Ren and how she decided to face her problems head-on. How she looked at things even the most small. But I must say that my favorite is probably our Sunho. I was waiting his chapter POVS like a desert wanderer seeks out water while traveling throughout the desert. I loved his concept, his loyalty, even how he like Ren was someone that went straight in against his fears to uncover the truth. How him not having memories from 2 years prior did not make him forsake his original soul/personality. I won't even talk about his love for his brother as I could honestly start crying.

After that ILLEGAL ENDING, because yes miss Axie Oh that was illegal. I need book 2. And thank gosh we are getting the second/ending book in this duology in the same year, now that's a celestial news I shall cherish.

4.25/4.5⭐️but I may change it to 5 who knows.

Thank you, NetGalley and Hodder&Stoughton for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First of all, I have no experience with Final Fantasy or the tale of the Celestial Maidens, so my review is entirely unbiased, concerning that.

When I read The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, I fell in love with it. It was a huge highlight and when I saw this new novel by Axie Oh, I obviously had to read it as well.
Unfortunately, it was a big disappointment.

The book was confusing. We have a total of three POVs and multiple different settings. It took me some time to figure out where every character was and what they were doing. Unfortunately, as the characters travelled a bit, this kept happening. At some point, I stopped paying attention. They were somewhere doing something and if they ended up being somewhere else entirely? Must’ve travelled there somehow.
Another problem was the world building. There were barely any explanations or descriptions. What does this world look like? What’s the Underworld? What does the Floating World look like? How big is everything? How do you get there? Sometimes we’d get random crumbs that didn’t fit together at all and it was so frustrating. All of this could’ve been solved, simply by adding descriptions. Tell me what everything looks like! Tell me what landscapes they’re travelling through!

The plot itself was nothing special either. From the very beginning, we basically knew everything and just had to wait for the characters to figure it out as well. Even though they already knew quite a few things as well. There were no surprises, no tension. What we did get, were multiple scenes in between bigger plot points that just seemed entirely random. Little episodes of characters doing things that were probably supposed to be challenges for them, but ended up being weird side quests with no relation to the plot.

As for the characters - just flat. I didn’t care about any of them at all. I couldn’t even describe what they were like, because I felt like they had no personality.

What I loved especially about TGWFBTS was the gorgeous, fairytale-like writing. We didn’t get anything like that in this book. Not just the missing descriptions and characterisations, but this book was severely lacking emotions. I couldn’t empathise with anyone. At the beginning, there is a scene that’s supposed to be quite tragic and in fact kicks off a big part of the plot and I just couldn’t have cared less. I might’ve even been slightly glad about seeing less of certain characters.

I truly wanted to love this book.

I really enjoyed this one. Axie Oh's writing is beautiful and there is a lot of creativity here, a lot of amazing and unique ideas wrapped into an exciting story with likeable characters. I loved the world building, with every part of the world our characters travel to beautifully crafted. Ren is a great protagonist even though she definitely falls into some trope traps, but I always like performing artists as protagonists so maybe that's why I'm quite fond of her. I also enjoyed Sunho, the second protagonist with a pov, so he was also quite a typical YA love interest in many ways. Still, their relationship was cute, and the side characters were all likeable enough to be at least mildly interested in what was happening to them, too.

There were some issues though that took away from my enjoyment of the book. The pacing is rather uneven, which added to the fact that the objectively high stakes of the story didn't feel very high for long periods of time. The story kind of lost me here and there.
The whole book is also definitely situated more in the younger YA bracket, and while this is obviously not a criticism and doesn't influence my star rating, it's just personally something that I've outgrown. Both Ren and Sunho read very young and naive, which didn't really fit with what we're told their lives have been up to now (even just the parts they remember). They feel younger on page than they are supposed to be.

Still, all in all this is an imaginative story full of heart that I definitely recommend to YA readers, and I might be checking out the sequel.

𝙙𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙖𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙮, 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛𝙛 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙗𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙝𝙚𝙧. 𝙝𝙚’𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙖 𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙚𝙧. 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙨 𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙨𝙨, 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙪𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢?

first off thanks to miss axie and hodderscape for sending me an arc through netgalley! this does not affect my thoughts about the book in any way. out now!

i have been waiting for this book since 2023, and ahhh im so freaking happy its finally here and the sequel also releases this year?!? THE BOOKISH GODS LOVE ME <333

the floating world takes us through this lush studio ghibli-esque world that is soo gorgeous, i could vividly imagine each scene and location. taking us on a wild journey is our two main characters ren and sunho, one which is filled with twists, action, friendship and love. the writing is beautiful as always, quick to immerse you into this marvelous story.

ᯓ★ ren
ahhh i love her soo very much!! she’s this absolute ray of sunshine and does the brave thing despite not wanting to. her journey, her backstory and her character growth ahhhh. also um why was her mom’s story soo freaking sad?? like why

ᯓ★ sunho
this boy needs to stop being so cute. like wdym he looks at her like she hung up the moon and would do anything to keep her safe, when his whole mission was to find her???? and the small snippets we would see of his past memories and the grand reveal at the end AHHH I AM NOT OK. MISS AXIE WHY WOULD YOU?!?!?!

ᯓ★ them!!!!
miss axie is the absolute best at writing the softest, most wholesome love stories. its the kind that makes you stronger and keeps you safe in a world that's all against you. ren and sunho went from being unlikely allies to friends to lovers and ahhshddgadcdkkkkd what i wont do to see their happy ending!!

anyways, GO READ THE BOOK!!!!

This was a really enjoyable YA fantasy read. The world was enchanting, and the plot moved at a really comfortable, natural pace. The action scenes were engaging and never dry, whilst the characters were all unique, distinguishable individuals with depth. The character dynamics were beautiful and felt real, and the found family trope was seamlessly weaved into character development. Everything that happened was meaningful and progressed the plot forward, and the romance between Ren and Sunho was innocent, wholesome, and subtle. Ren is definitely one of my new favourite FMCs - she was funny, kind, selfless, and brave, as well as entertaining. At the beginning, the multi-POV was a little hard to follow, but you get used to it the more you read on. I'd definitely recommend this to fantasy readers, especially if you like fantasy inspired by East Asian mythology.

This would've been a solid 4 star read if it weren't for the first third of the book.

Once the two main characters meet, the story gets going, there isn't a dull moment and you want to keep reading, but until then... I almost DNFed this. The first 100+ pages were so incredibly boring. We got different perspectives and we got to meet different characters, which is great, but absolutely nothing happened for over 100 pages. It was bad. But then it was great. Now I would read the sequel immediately if it was out.

But let me tell you what this is about:
In this story we follow Ren, a 17 year-old troupe performer travelling with her found family. Everything is fine until there is a demon attack during one of their perfomances. One of her uncles dies in the attack and the other is injured and poisoned trying to protect her. Then, when faced against the monster, Ren releases a blast of silver light and kills it. Determined to save her injured uncle, Ren sets off for the mountains, where the creature came from and where she herself fled from ten years ago, to find a cure.

However, now that she let her light out, there are people coming for her. Enter Sunho, a 17 year-old sword-for-hire from the Underworld who, unlike the rest of the mercenaries sent by the general of the army to kill Ren, has been sent to protect her and bring her back to the captain of the army. Ren and Sunho meet along the journey, without him realizing who she is. As the two grow closer, their priorities start to change and Sunho - who doesn't remeber anything from before 2 years ago - starts to get some of his memories back.

And there are weird experiments going on, greedy people who want power for themselves, friendships are built and so on. The plot is good. The characters are good. The relationships are good. The stakes are high. And Sunho is a lost boy who is fiercely determined and loyal but also a soft, sweet cinnamon roll and all I want is for him to be safe and happy.

“But that’s why you are, don’t you see? Because you still fight when you’re afraid. You choose the path that is darkest, with the most brambles and thorns, because it is the right one.
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♟️Rating: 4/5⭐
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Thank you Netgalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review!

I have been waiting for this duology for years! I fell in love with The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, so I knew I had to check this out. Growing up, I was more into Kingdom Hearts rather than Final Fantasy and would frequently watch gameplays of it. But nonetheless, I was still swept away by Ms Axie’s rich and vibrant world-building, which made me feel nostalgic with her simple prose.

One of Ms Axie’s strengths in writing is her use of simple prose instead of overly verbose prose, which makes me feel as though I’m watching a Studio Ghibli film. It gives the book itself room to ‘breathe’ and pushes the book to find ways to ‘show, not tell’. At times, Ms Axie also knows how to subtly transition into the darker themes in this book while balancing the ‘heartwarming’ aspect of it. Like how Hayao Miyazaki said ‘Ma’ is an important part of storytelling; Ms Axie does it amazingly here.

I enjoyed how this book wove in various Korean cultural references together with the steampunk worldbuilding. The worldbuilding doesn't feel very overbearing or sparse, which is fitting for a YA fantasy novel.

The characters are amazingly written, and they feel believable. Ren is written as someone who is very optimistic with a hint of rebellious nature inside her – fitting for a teenager. Ren’s somewhat sheltered upbringing might have made her unaware of certain problems in her world, but it was never written in a way where Ren is overwhelmingly clueless or hotheaded, which I greatly appreciate. Nonetheless, it was also fitting of her and the plot, even though I might disagree with her actions at times. Sunho is Ren’s counterpart, and I appreciate how Ms Axie made his voice prominent throughout this book even though he’s pretty quiet in the beginning. (Not going to lie, Sunho reminded me of Link from Zelda, while Ren reminded me of Princess Zelda.) Their relationship reminded me of Haku and Chihiro, starting out slowly to bloom into something more. It also allowed space for the readers to get to know more about the characters themselves before diving into their relationship. (We rejoice in no insta-love)
My only small critique is the pacing of the novel. It started out slowly at first before rushing through the last 30% of the book. I would have liked more tension and buildup instead to make the plot less predictable. Moreover, I would also appreciate it more if we had more POVs of the side characters, especially Jaeil (I don’t care what anyone says about him 😁).

All in all, I really enjoyed this novel, and Ms Axie always rekindles my love for YA fantasy now that I’m slowly moving away from it. Now that I think about it, this novel really does feel like playing an RPG (the non-gacha ones), and it does remind me of the times when I used to watch RPG walkthroughs (because games are so darn expensive) as well as my daily recital of watching Studio Ghibli movies. I highly recommend checking out this book, and I can’t wait for the sequel.

PS: I listened to the Hana-bi album by Joe Hisaishi while reading this book, and it captured the vibes of this book so well!

I loved reading this book, the world building was amazing and I really enjoyed the storyline. I felt the pacing of the book was great and it kept me gripped. The characters were created with a great dimension to them and I loved the interactions and the developments.
I love reading books by Axie Oh as I love her writing style, the stories created are full of lavish descriptions and imagination. I can't wait to read book 2.