I completely lost myself inside this steampunk samurai world. I loved Yukiko and thought she showed the perfect amount of vulnerability, naïveté, and fierceness. She is a fantastic female protagonist. The setting is bleak, in a realm called Shima, which seems based on feudal Japan, which is dominated by a cruel Shogun and run by the robotical Lotus Guild. The world is dark, the poor are many and options are few. Yukiko has lost so much and only has her father left. When they are ordered to embark on a quest to find an Ashiratora (thunder tiger) for the Shogun they encouter more than they bargained for.

I can't wait for the next book!