Man, this is my third two-star ARC with a super intriguing premise I've read in the past week or so. I cannot can't a break, can I?

Anyway, this started out perfectly well, with the mysterious setup behind Shadow's backstory and the state of the book's world when it began. But the more I read, that interest gradually devolved to confusion and boredom to the point I was falling asleep.

Even though the worldbuilding held much promise, the expansion on those details were simultaneously overexplained and not really explained, whatsoever? It just felt like Suh was hype focused on somethings but rushed through others. Like, it was said the Last Soldier fell asleep a thousand years ago and woke up as Shadow about a year before the book started. But then it's also explained Shadow was reincarnated? So, which is it? Her part in Scarlet's sister's killing isn't really explained, either, specifically if it was before she fell asleep or in recent times. It really didn't help that we never got any details about Scarlet and her sister's relationship. Besides the fact they were sisters, it's never explained why Scarlet was so obsessed with getting revenge for her sister's death. There were also other miscellaneous details that never were fully detailed, like dead zones, 'remades,' Bone Soldiers, the relationship between Shadow and her father, it was just so many pages of the narrative telling us things, expecting us to care, but never really telling us things at all. It was just so numbingly frustrating.

It is because this lack of showing depth that made the characters so weak and stiff. Shadow doesn't have much going for her, and we never really learn anything about her due to her memories never being properly restored. Scarlet is mean, spoiled, and aggressive to Shadow throughout 70% of the book til she kisses her??? There were only bare bone romance vibes between them; that kiss came out of nowhere. The side characters are primarily useless and boring, with most of their motivations, again, not really being laid out clearly. I just didn't care about anyone.

All in all, I'm kinda sad this disappointed me. I just really hate when books don't live up to their good premises.

The Last Soldier of Nava started off strong, with an intriguing premise. A thousand years ago, the city of Nava flourished in the land now known as Ik-Song. It was ruled by the Bearer of the Moon and the Bringer of the Dawn, light and dark keeping one another in balance. Until the Moon Bearer grew power hungry, creating a dangerous weapon known as the Soldier. The City fell and the Dawn Bringer was lost.

In the present day, we follow Shadow, a young woman with shadow magic who awakens with the memory of having killed a Saint, the Desert Rose, in her previous life as the Soldier. She is captured by Scarlet, also known as the Keeper, a woman who is both royalty within Ik-Song and the Desert Rose’s sister. Scarlet’s focus is on finding her sister’s killer and, recognising Shadow’s power (but not her identity), she plans to use Shadow to help her enact vengeance. For Shadow, she hopes that being in the palace will bring her closer to the Moon Bearer, the father who created her and whose ongoing need for power is having a detrimental effect on the land. While navigating court politics and an impending war, Shadow and Scarlet grow closer, and it becomes increasingly hard for Shadow to maintain the secret of her identity.

While I loved the premise, and the lore and mythology laid out at the start, unfortunately, the execution ended up falling a little flat for me. I liked the descriptive writing but I think this book would have benefitted from being longer because there’s a lot of things that we’re told but don’t really see. For example, at some point it’s stated that Shadow considers Aspis a friend; yet all we’ve seen is Aspis’ involvement in Shadow’s initial capture and then Shadow joining some of Aspis’ training sessions at the palace.

We’re thrown straight into the world, without much initial scene setting. At times, it can work really well being thrown straight into the action; however, at some point, more information is needed to paint a clearer picture of the world. In this case, “remades” are often referenced, as are the “deadzones” but I don’t remember the former ever being properly explained and the latter is only referenced in passing, yet is supposedly an important, adverse side effect of the decline in the land. Another example is when Scarlet is talking about her stag and says that they met in their childhoods and are now too weak to part - there’s no explanation as to what that means and what would happen if they did part. Or maybe she just meant they’re emotionally too weak to part 🤷‍♀️.

I think if the book had been longer, it would also have allowed for the side characters to be better fleshed out. As it was, I didn’t feel a connection to any of them. And while enemies to lovers is one of my favourite tropes, I didn’t feel the chemistry between Shadow and Scarlet, and so the shift to lovers felt like it came out of left field.

So, overall, the book felt like it had a lot of promise but I was left wanting more. More world building, more character development, more tension.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC of this book.

3.5 stars.
I am new to Korean mythology and found this to be a beautiful and interesting introduction. I liked the writing style as it flowed nicely and the descriptions of the surroundings, as well as the story’s being told, were beautifully done.
My only criticism was that the plot was a little weak, I found myself a bit lost at times at what the plot actually was and what was happening.
However, overall I did enjoy it and would recommend it to someone.

If you think this is going to be your average fantasy book, you’d be dead wrong.

The Last Soldier of Nava, to my surprise and delight, surpassed all my expectations. And this is me coming off — somewhat recently — the Mistborn trilogy, so that should tell you how impressed I am. But let’s not fall into comparisons here. The Last Soldier of Nava is very much telling its own story.

We are introduced to the world through the legend of Nava and the dragons, and our main character (MC) is a girl who was the Soldier said to have drowned the world in darkness. When she wakes up years later, she finds that she’s killed a Saint, and flees into hiding. I do love an MC with memory issues, and in this case, Shadow, our MC, is just as clueless as we are, which also serves to help us learn about the world we’ve been dropped into. As the Soldier, she may have carried out many horrible acts, but I never felt for a moment that she was unsympathetic, and in fact, it was the opposite.

It’s largely the same for the rest of the cast. Our other leading lady sharing the spotlight is Scarlet, the sister of the saint that the Soldier killed. Under the shell of her sharp and composed exterior hides a shining diamond with many facets and secrets to be discovered. Honestly, I would go so far as to say I like her character even more than Shadow. There’s something about how utterly driven she is, and the grief that haunts her every decision. The complexity of their characters also provides a solid foundation for their interactions and relationship. I enjoyed the way their relationship developed over time, despite all the circumstances surrounding it. The way they match each other so well, in both power and personality, is just chefs kiss. If you’re still not convinced by this point, the well-written wlw should be enough to seal the deal! Not only that but as I mentioned earlier, the spotlight is very much on the women and their relationship. The men, two in particular, are given room to develop and are shown to have depth, but they never hog the attention or push too much into the story.

Something else I appreciate is how intricately woven the character moments are with the plot. Neither could exist without the other, and each one informs the other, like two dragons twisting in the air, driving one another onwards. Yejin Suh buries her plot hooks like grenades into the ground, just waiting to be stepped on. Each explosion is strangely gentle, a quiet punch to the gut. There’s a moment in the Stronghold where Shadow is shown a secret and urgh my gut TWISTED at that reveal.

The world of this book spans wide in a way reminiscent of epic fantasy, with a scale that matches it, or as much as a (currently) standalone novel can achieve. The Deadzones especially are so interesting to me!!! I have so many parts of this novel bookmarked simply because of how much there is to dive into: the implications of certain reveals, the parallels I keep finding throughout the book, the foreshadowing for later events, and the parts that were recontextualised upon my reread. The only issue for me is that the ending didn’t really wrap up the plot and with the number of questions I had about what would happen in the world going forward, it felt like there was going to be a sequel. Still, I enjoyed the writing of the last chapter, and especially the last paragraph. This book is bursting at the seams with themes and subtext and layers and I’m desperately holding myself back from saying too much for fear of spoiling too much so all I can say is READ IT!!!!

If you’re a fan of Shadow and Bone or the Mistborn trilogy, or just looking for a fantasy book you can happily fall in love with, then pick up a copy of The Last Soldier of Nava when it comes out in June. The preorder is currently available as well!

This is very rich and beautiful story that for many I believe will be a huge favourite.

Unfortunately for me I just didn’t connect to the characters or the story. I struggled to finish this, purely because I didn’t have the urge to find out what was happening or how this ended.
I don’t believe that was anything to do with the author, I just don’t think this was for me that’s all. However I do appreciate how well written it was and how easily the author made this come to life in my head.

At first, I expected something like a blend of "The Last Airbender" and Studio Ghibli’s "Nausicaä," but while it wasn’t quite that, I still really enjoyed it. "The Last Soldier of Nava" delivers a richly detailed world built around Korean mythology, with Shadow as a fierce heroine at its center. The slow-burning romance adds emotional depth, and the immersive world-building and character development elevate the story into a powerful meditation on tradition, identity, and change.

DNF at 45%

I’m sorry, but I’m not really connecting with the story at the moment. The characters are well-written, but overall I can’t bring myself to be interested in the plot.
I’ll probably try to pick it up again later.

Nonetheless, I want to thank the author, the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

One of my most anticipated reads!!!! Amazing characters and incredible world building. So glad I got to read it early!

The Last Soldier of Nava is such a beautifully written story. Suh has painted such a vivid tale that picturing the book’s setting felt effortless. I wasn’t previously knowledgeable about Korean mythology, so I genuinely loved the opportunity to become more familiar with it.
The way the story unfolds requires us to slowly unravel the mystery, which I mostly enjoyed - though at times, I felt a little lost within the plot. The twists and turns remained shocking throughout, and I found the slow-burn romance between our two FMCs hauntingly beautiful.

I’m excited to see where this story goes!

Thank you so much to HarperCollins UK for the ARC via NetGalley and for giving me the opportunity to share my honest thoughts on this book.

Omg The Last Soldier of Nava by Yejin Suh is so so good. I couldn't stop reading this book for a bit. The characters are so well built and the storyline was so well constructed.

Yejin quickly became a autobuy author for me, this was an amazing book!
I loved everything about it.

Well that book was a solid 5 stars god!! I don't wanna spoil that book on anyone but I did live reading it through the past week , but the characters were stunning and I am more excited for other books written by yejin suh