This wasn't the type of book I normally enjoy. I usually don't enjoy novellas because they tend to not give the reader enough time to really connect with the characters. That said, Kathryn Sommerlot did a great job overcoming this challenge. Honestly, this would have been a lot better as a full length book but she did well in the space she had. I feel like if it had been longer, there would have been more opportunities for character and story development. She had a lot of good ideas. This story had real potential.

I am very on the fence about this book. On the one hand, it's decently written and has a f/f romance. I am a sucker for a f/f romance. On the other hand, I absolutely didnt like the characters so it was very hard for me to synchronize with the book. The plot really is no existent and kind of lacks depth. I think if it wasnt a novella, but a novel, it could've been more fleshed out, but alas.

I received this book courtesy of NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This short novella focuses on two young women, priestesses of life (breath) and water, who experience strong physical attraction while trying to prevent a terrible harm that one of them is in danger of. The decorations are Japan-esque, but not much more than decorations. The worldbuilding is limited. This could be forgiven if the plot, writing or characters were particularly strong, but none of the above rise above a basic level of okay-ness; the story has only the most obvious and obligatory turns, the characters are barely sketched, the writing mixes interesting turns of phrase with moments of prose that is almost confusing.

One saving grace should have been the romance between the young women protagonists, but here is what really disappointed me: there is not enough time or space for any romance to develop, all that is there is attraction, but even the physical attraction is undersold by the writing. This is due to two issues, for me: one is that we don't have any access to the POV of one of the characters, and the writing doesn't manage to give her much characterisation (and thus, reason for attraction) without it. The other is that the main sex scene didn't work for me. It is incongruent with the characterisation, far more adult and pornographic than is merited by the rest of the story, which establishes Chiasa as inexperienced, profoundly overwhelmed and shy. There's too much dialogue during, too. It made me roll my eyes rather than empathise with the characters.

I think this should have either been developed more fully into a longer novel with more subplots and plot twists or pared down into a shorter novellette; as it was, there was more length than substance, and yet not enough space for the characters' relationship to develop.

Ibuki is a nice enough read, well written with interesting characters and an even more interesting magical system. However it felt too short for the characters and the worldbuilding to develope to its full potential. I would have loved to read more about the function of the different shrines and how the whole system works. I am sure this could have made a real novel instead of a short story.

Nice fantasy novella with an unusual Asian setting. The writing could have been a bit more polished, but it was very enjoyable.

“Ibuki” is a novella long story set in a semi-alternative version of Imperial Japan. The magic in this world is elemental, and only few priests and priestess possess it. It reminded me a lot of various anime series that I watched years ago. The magic system is integrated seamlessly into the narrative and I liked the depictions of the life and everyday tasks that Chiasa had to do.

However, the story lacks depth, and the narrative is rather bland, once you look past trite metaphors and cliches. Even the big twist at the end of the story was obvious from ahead and made me only roll my eyes. There was almost no tension or suspense, and the ending didn’t surprise me at all.

“Ibuki” is a sweet story if you are okay with cliches and glaring plot holes. I did not find the relationship believable but it was not the worst I read in a short story.

I love Japanese culture and language and I studied it for some time years ago. It was lovely to read a story set in Japan, however, I did have issues with the writing.

In spite of my opinions on the writing, I am thankful to the publisher for giving me an opportunity to read and review “Ibuki”.

Rating: 2.75 stars

Very short and very quick but it was a nice read. I am trash for f/f romance and fantasy so it was so enjoyable. The couple is very sensual and there is so much fluff I loved it. I found the characters and their magic to be pretty interesting.

I enjoyed this novella a lot – the setting was beautiful, the characters were likable and the story had a good pace…. the only thing that was a bummer was that it was a novella… I think that took a bit away from describing certain things closer and it would have profited from being longer…

Well written and well paced novella. Refreshing to have a fantasy novel without tired tropes. I enjoyed the strong sensuality between the women. The story moves along quickly and the suspense will have you finishing this short read as fast as you can turn the pages. My only critisism is I wish it had been longer. I look forward to more from this author.

This book just wasn't as interesting as I had hoped it would be.

The characters were pretty bland. The setting, while interesting, was lost among the boring and bland characters and their interactions.

The plot seemed a little rushed, and I think that's because it's not only a short book but a standalone.
The characters, the main two, in particular, came across much younger than their actual ages. At one point the Chiasa's father mentions that he forgets that she's 24. And I was honestly shocked. I thought she was closer to 16. I don't pretend to know anything about Japanese culture, but the era the book is set in, all across the world women were "grown up" at a much younger age than they're considered to be now. But her reactions to things and the way she spoke made her seem much younger.
The romance, or attraction, between the two women, seemed really forced and rushed. That might have had a lot to do with the length of the book itself.

I feel like this book could have done better with being a little longer.

*~~*ARC kindly provided by the author to me in exchange for an honest review *~~*

What a lovely short novella set in Japan in times where Emperor’s are ruling. I really liked the touch of magic, the fantasy element of the story with the priestesses and their unique abilities in using magic.

The story follows the young woman Chiasa who is part of the Ibuki shrine, those gifted people who can heal with using their breath, who can take away pain but not give any life back.

The novella is full of events and the twist later in the story, when Chiasa’s life is in danger was a great mix. I loved how the story was build, right from the start there was the meeting of Chiase and Namika, a priestess from the seseragi shrine, who rule over the power of water.
The plot was full of suspense, but between the two young women there is a certain kind of bond, they feel attracted to each other even if it’s not that visible in the book, the underlining feelings were there.
The book follows Chiasa’s POV but in third person, the thoughts, the fears and the daily events are from her experience and most of the time Namika is as much as a secret to the reader as to Chiasa.

I liked how the magical part was woven into the storyline, how it was a normal thing to live with the power, how it was balanced and used for good by the several shrines, the supernatural abilities had their own uniqueness and is based on the element’s nature.

The story isn’t – as it is because of its length – overly detailed but enough to become an overview of the way the people live, the way how the society is structured and what it means to be a priestess and to have an Emperor as the ruler. It may contain a few inaccuracies but I didn’t see overly wrong aspects and with the magical touch of the story there are some bends in the display of realism right from the start. In fact the descriptions of the setting was pleasant and gave the needed insight without being to overwhelming while reading.

I was pretty entertained by this story, the novella had a great twist in its storyline, the events were captivating and Chiasa and Namika had a good chemistry. Their short intimate scenes are hot, very explicit and you wish to see more of them. The scenes are also full of sweetness and you can see there’s a bond between the girls.
Did I wish the book was longer? For sure, because it was a promising display of how this plot could be dealt with in a longer book, and maybe we reader get another story within this world or with the two women.

For now the book had a few flaws, though I was overall pretty entertained therefore I can without doubt recommend it. If you love magical, fantasy stories set in ancient Japan, with charming heroines you should pick this book up. 4 out of 5 stars for it.

Review originally posted on my blog with added content Mikku-chan / A world full of words

A very enjoyable and very short novella. It was a quick and easy read with some lovely east asian based fantasy world building. I enjoyed the magic and the mystery. Because it was so short it was hard to fully fall into the world and the story but I adored the romance between Chiasa and Namika.

While I really enjoyed this, as soon as I got into the story it ended. Extremely short, but would have been a great premise for a full book - what happens to her now? Who takes over? It was anticlimatic to say the least. The writing was good, very visual and descriptive about the culture and practices. The love scenes were brief but not excessive so I feel this would appeal to more people since it's not graphic. I'm just so disappointed! I feel like I read the first chapter (which by the way there are no chapters) and then poof! Where's the rest of my book?

A very solid read from a new-to-me author. I enjoyed the worldbuilding, it was very well-developed without overwhelming the reader with details. I liked the magic and the mystery of the plot. The characters were well-realised, and Chiasa's narration fit the story. The romance sweet, even if a bit rushed.
Honestly there's not much to tell. It was a very good novella, even if nothing really stood out to me.

3.5 ⭐️ for beautiful prose and a very sensual romance!

Ibuki is a sweet little novella set in a Japanese fantasy world. Here, there are four shrines, each dedicated to a different element, whose priests and priestesses have elemental skills.

Chiasa is an ibuki priestess - one who can heal with the power of her breath. We also meet a seseragi priestess named Namika, who can manipulate water. Their land is ruled by the emperor, who will soon be celebrating his 300th birthday, and they realise things aren't what they seem... DUN DUN DUN

I could suspend disbelief enough to accept that in this world, 300 isn't that unusual, but I don't believe that's the case. The trouble is that with a story so short, we don't get enough world building to understand why this is unusual or usual. Plus, I really wanted to know more about this world! I understood how Chiasa's gift worked, but not Namika's, which was a shame because I was really intrigued. I would also have loved to see what the earth and fire shrines were like. It would have been great to get to know the characters better as well - especially Chiasa's father. (view spoiler)

On to the good stuff though - the prose is just stunning. Lyrical, emotive, and beautiful. I can't fault it! The romance is simply gorgeous, and I was rooting for our protagonists. The setting is lovely and interesting, and the whole thing is very well paced.

Simply put, I really liked this, and any criticisms I have stem from it not being long enough.

This was short and sweet. I liked both of the characters

3.25 Stars. Not bad for a fantasy novella. Fantasy normally takes such world building that I think novellas can struggle being so short. Do I think this would have been better as a full length book? Absolutely, but Sommerlot did a better job than I expected.

I’m not going to go into a summery since this a quick read and I don’t want to spoil anything. I found the characters and their magic to be pretty interesting. There is a sweet romance that was actually a little steamy at times. The pace of the romance is quick due to this being a novella, but I didn’t really mind.

The main storyline is pretty predictable. There really wasn’t anything I didn’t see coming, but I was still entertained. Overall not a bad read if you are looking for something in the lesfic fantasy and romance department.

This was a short read that turned out to be very enjoyable. I really liked the setting and the world, and the characters were well written. Since this is a novella, the pacing is quite fast, but I didn't mind that at all.

Definitely recommending this if you're looking for a quick, fun read with some suspense and romance.

This was a nice little well-rounded fantasy romance.

The story kept at a good pace and we weren’t left hanging on any one thing for too long.

The characters were likable and strong and there was enough of a build between the women, to make the sexy times work for me…this is a fairly short story so we’re not talking a ton, but it was enough to satisfy my preferences to have some interactions beforehand.

The setting- glimpses of the world, and magic, were so interesting that I can’t deny wishing for a bit more on that front but as a novella this had a good balance. These little hints of this world, were also what caught my attention in the summary and was my main reason for choosing this story.

I think my only pause in the story was Chiasa’s doubts of her father over a stranger’s word. Especially when the few interactions we see of them afterwards, make it seem like they have a very good relationship and he comes across quite caring. It’s a small thing though, and not enough to ruin my enjoyment in an otherwise very good story.

I will be looking for more by this author.

Like her father before her, Chiasa is gifted with ibuki, the ability to heal with her breath. Her quiet life at their shrine is upended by an early morning visit from a water priestess. Namika comes bearing grave news: Chiasa's life is threatened by the emperor himself, who has been murdering ibuki priests to gain immortality. Uncertain whom to trust, the young women find themselves drawn together, their clandestine meetings to share intelligence quickly shifting into something else entirely. An enjoyable novella, with just enough world-building to support Chiasa's whirlwind emotional journey.