The Last Fallen Moon by Graci Kim

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The Last Fallen Moon by Graci Kim
Gifted Clans #2
Published by Rick Riordan Presents on June 7, 2022
Age Group & Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Mythology
Format: Physical
Source: Publisher

Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents the second book in Graci Kim's magical and mysterious Gifted Clans trilogy.

"Graci Kim does such an amazing job of blending Korean mythology into the modern world, I am now wondering how I ever lived without knowing all this cool information."--New York Times #1 best-selling author Rick Riordan

For Riley Oh, life as the Godrealm’s last fallen star is not all it’s cracked up to be. Her new divine heritage doesn’t even come with cool magical powers; half of her friends and family (including her parents) can’t remember her; and to top it all off, the entire Gom clan is mad at her for killing the Cave Bear Goddess and stripping away their healing abilities.

But when their anger boils over and a group of witches curse Riley’s home, she knows it’s up to her to restore magic back to her clan – even if it means sneaking into the Spiritrealm.

Luckily, Riley has some backup. Along with her sister, Hattie, Riley meets Dahl, a heaven-born boy with shockingly white hair and a fondness for toilets who might not be telling the whole truth about who he is. Together they’ll fight vicious monsters, discover dark underwater worlds, and race to save the land of the dead from a fate that no one could have foreseen.

And this time, Riley won’t let anything get in her way. Because she can’t shake the feeling that something terrible is coming their way – and the gifted community is going to need all the powers they can get.

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.

The Last Fallen Moon is a solid second book in the Gifted Clans trilogy, promising more to Riley’s story within a magical middle-grade adventure intertwined with Korean mythology. Honestly, I had a grand time with this one, but mostly, I just want to take Riley, pluck her up from the pages of the book, and give her a nice hug. I also want to protect her from whatever is coming for her in book three and just from the world in general because she’s really just trying her very best.

This book is a continuation of Riley’s story, set two months after The Last Fallen Star, which I adored and loved to pieces from the first page. It’s honestly one of my favorites of 2021. In The Last Fallen Moon, Riley’s trying to adjust to her life after finding out she’s the last fallen star and killing the Cave Bear Goddess. She’s gotten her sister Hattie back, but her family and friends no longer remember her, and the Gom clan is pretty piping mad at her for taking away their healing powers due to them no longer having a patron goddess. Oh, and she doesn’t have powers either as the last fallen star.

I’m not a hero. I’m a stain on my family and my community, like these bloody marks on our house.

Despite their lost memories, her family and friends continue to show her love and support, but more than ever, she feels like an outcast straddling two worlds and that she doesn’t deserve their love. Not when her home gets cursed. All she wants is to undo the damage she’s caused to everyone involved.

And so she hatches up a plan: she’ll find a new patron for the Gom clan and restore their powers, traveling to the Spiritrealm without anyone knowing so no one else can get hurt. It’ll be fine, no big deal. She’ll just slip in and out.

But everything that Riley thinks she knows about the afterlife is uphauled quickly the moment she steps into a realm Kim vividly brings to life and incorporates parts of the modern world with the afterlife. There are new characters and monsters introduced, all of which either hinder or guide Riley on her journey. Most notable is Dahl, a heaven-born boy who wants to see the Mortalrealm one day, is fascinated with toilets, and is just overall a fun and lovable being that added to the story.

Like the first novel, The Last Fallen Moon primarily explores Riley’s identity and sense of belonging with her family, friends, and community as she journeys through the Spiritrealm. As much as Riley wishes to do things alone (can we blame her, though), in true sister form, Hattie refuses to let her do things on her own and joins along, and I really love how we got to see the two of them interact in this sequel where they couldn’t in the first. I also loved the elements of family and friendship continued from the first and the small emotional moments throughout the book that packed a lot of power.

Overall, I enjoyed continuing Riley’s story and can’t wait to see how the trilogy will end! The Last Fallen Moon is a phenomenal sequel to Graci Kim’s stunning debut, with the right amount of pacing and a page-turning adventure for middle-grade readers.

About Graci Kim

Graci Kim is the bestselling author of The Last Fallen Star, book one in the Korean mythology-inspired middle grade adventure series. Called a “sparkling yarn” by Entertainment Weekly, the Gifted Clans trilogy has been optioned by the Disney Channel for a live-action television series and was a 2021 Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for “Best Middle Grade & Children’s Book.”

Graci is also one of the authors of The Cursed Carnival and Other Calamities short story collection, published by Rick Riordan Presents (Disney Hyperion), which became an instant New York Times bestseller. In a previous life, Graci was a diplomat for the New Zealand foreign service, a cooking show host, and once ran a business that turned children’s drawings into cuddly toys. She lives in New Zealand with her husband and daughter. You can find her sometimes on Twitter (@gracikim), more often on Instagram (@gracikimwrites), and always at her website (www.gracikim.com).

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June 19	Emmiepooh2
June 20	Bookwyrming Thoughts — HERE!
June 21	The Real World According To Sam
June 22	The Girl Who Reads
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June 24	BookBriefs
June 25	Ruei’s Reading Corner