Wrath of the Talon by Sophie Kim

This post contains affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase using that link, a small commission is made from the sale. There are no additional costs to you.

Wrath of the Talon by Sophie Kim
Talon #2
Published by Entangled: Teen on April 2, 2024
Age Group & Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Representation: Korean protagonist and main cast
Format: ARC, eBook
Source: Publisher

Everyone thinks the Reaper of Sunpo—eighteen-year-old assassin Shin Lina—is dead. The only ones who know the truth are her cherished little sister and Haneul Rui, the icily gorgeous Dokkaebi Emperor, who she was sent to kill…and kissed instead.

Now, with the potent Imugi venom surging in her veins, Lina’s returned to right all wrongs. Already her body is changing, growing stronger, stealthier, and more agile, with serpentine scales she can call at will. She is living vengeance, seeking retribution for the massacre of the Talons. She’ll become the sword who cuts down the rival Blackbloods gang, along with their ruthless crime-lord leader. And when she is through, she will take the kingdom as her own.

But there is a mysterious side to Lina’s growing power, a dark voice inside her that whispers and guides her as she slips through the shadows of Sunpo’s streets. One that warns her not to trust the Dokkaebi, especially Rui.

Because if her destiny isn’t to love him…it must be to destroy him.

A copy of the book was provided for review purposes - thank you! Receiving a copy does not guarantee a positive review and therefore does not affect the opinion or content of the review.

Trigger & Content Warnings: violence, murder, snakes, death of a loved one, drug abuse, addiction, blood and gore, PTSD, mind control/possession, panic attacks

It’s been so long since I read Last of the Talons that when I first picked up Wrath of the Talon, my one remaining brain cell probably exited as it tried to remember what happened and slow jogged (and pulled out notes) because the recap that we get is pretty vague. We get tossed right into the book pretty much.

But this sequel and second book to the Talon trilogy is dark, and Sophie Kim does not hold back. I loved it (mostly), and it was glorious because while mostly everyone else thinks Shin Lina is dead after freeing the leader of the Blackbloods from the realm of the Dokkaebi (Gyeulcheon), she’s very much not dead. And she’s out for blood and vengeance for the death of the Talons.

She’s not alone, though. Throughout Wrath of the Talon, Lina’s fighting a darker voice (named The Voice) inside of her: she’s simply wanting vengeance for the Talons and to cut down the Blackbloods slowly and painfully one at a time so Konrarnd Kalmin knows the exact pain she felt when he took everything away from her. But The Voice? It doesn’t want to take back Sunpo — it wants to take all Three Kingdoms, and it’ll be using Lina to accomplish that goal.

The writing style takes on a much darker tone with The Voice around, and there’s a lot of inner monologue between Lina and The Voice as they’re gathering allies and plotting to take back Sunpo from the Blackbloods, so there’re new characters as well! I absolutely love Iseul and Seojin, and I think they were refreshing to the story as most of this book is driven by The Voice in possession of Lina. I do feel like the inner monologue made the book feel long in some parts while not actually dragging along. This is more of a personal preference though, because The Voice is a vital part of the story. Lina’s also undergoing a physical transformation due to the Imugi poison mixing in her blood, so there’s a lot of duality and contrast throughout, and I loved seeing this.

I think there’s a lot more development, too — I felt like in Last of the Talons we got told Lina being the Reaper of Sunpo was ruthless, grim and violent constantly, but here we finally get shown. This may partially be in part due to The Voice, and the fact there’s so much more opportunity than assassination attempts on a certain Dokkaebi.

Wrath of the Talon also has the addition of interludes from other characters, and I feel like this elevated the book in so many ways that we wouldn’t get otherwise! Honestly, I kind of now wish we got some interludes from Rui and his circle in Last of the Talons. We got to see what was happening back in Gyeulcheon, and how they can prevent The Voice from accomplishing what it really wants as Rui and his circle realize Lina isn’t really herself. We also get to see the creation of Gyeulcheon, and more history between the Dokkaebi and the Imugi and why they harbor such an intense hate for each other. This was such a solid writing choice, and I loved it.

Like the first novel, there’s a lot of setup, but I think this was a strong sequel overall (perhaps even stronger than its predecessor), and I’m happy I gave Wrath of the Talon a go — there are no regrets. I’m absolutely gutted by the ending and excited to see what Sophie Kim brings in the third book!

About Sophie Kim

Sophie Kim has a penchant for writing stories that feature mythology, monsters, mystery, and magic. Her work includes young adult novels such as the Talons Series and books on the adult spectrum such as The God and the Gumiho.

Website | Instagram | Goodreads