The number of people who have told me “Dani this book is for you!” is quite a few, so I am glad I managed to get a copy through Net Galley. I was late in getting to it, but only because I was saving it like the best part of dessert to help me out of a reading slump. Personally, I have a strong background in Korean history and culture from years of K-dramas, and also Japanese history and culture as a Japanese interpreter. I wondered if this would detract from my experience and make things redundant- but I was happily shown that was not to be the case and rather that it probably elevated my reading experience. I love the connection to the authors’ actual grandparent’s memoir, and the inclusion of quotes from it throughout. Even if someone did not have the background that I do though, it is a book for anyone who has felt a loss of hope at the hands of those in power. A message I think a lot of people could appreciate hearing right now.

Overall, it is a beautiful tribute to those who fought for their freedoms and to Korean folklore, with a brilliant fantasy spin. Thank you for sharing your story with me and your other readers. Now to go tell all those people who told me it sounded like my kind of book to confirm that it was and to also get them to read it. ;)

An overall enjoyable book, I loved the fantasy aspects of it and the history behind the story and what it was inspired by.

While I had a good time with this story, it didn’t quite capture my heart, but although I didn’t really feel the romance and love between the main couple, I still liked Eunji’s and Seung’s story.

Two things I think really affected my enjoyment of the book. First is that there was a lot of telling and not enough showing. The second is that the story has a historical setting during a time Korea was under the occupation of the Japanese Empire, yet I didn’t feel like I was there.

I still quite liked the book, and think it’s a great YA story for anyone looking for a historical fantasy.

Thank you so much to Netgalley for the arc and sorry for the late review!

3.5 ⭐
The book's strongest plot point is the commentary on colonialism. I loved this idea of oppressors not being able to steal your dignity and your humanity, and think the story excelled at showing the hardships of oppressed people under colonialism. They covered difficult real life topics such as the "comfort women," abuses of power by the police, and the overall cruelty of dictatorial regimes very well. I think this would be a great book to introduce systems of oppression and colonialism to a young audience.

The romance plot was the weakest for me. We saw in the real life snippets of the authors grandparents a beautiful story of two people connecting, taking care of each and enduring the difficulties of their relationship. However, we didn't see any of than in Eunji and Swing's story. We saw them together in the first part of the book but never got to truly see them becoming real friends of falling in love. I'm Eunji's pov, she basically describes him as a welcome distraction and the company she was missing, that's it. How could they be falling in love but she didn't even know his dad was dying? How did they never discuss what happened they night they met the tiger? And after that, they just do a time jump and they're in different places until the final arc of the story.

I think this book had great potential but the story could have been developed better. This could still be great for the younger age range of YA or even upper middle grade students.

This was a beautifully written book inspired by a true love story. It’s a story of oppression, classism, and resilience. I liked how it was loosely based on a true story but added a magical touch to it. Both main characters were lovable in their own way and I loved a good forbidden romance. I think you could really feel how the authors were writing about their grandparents too. It was beautiful and sweet. I enjoyed it.
If you like YA magical realism with a historical fiction feel then I’d recommend it!

I loved the worldbuilding in this - the elemental spirits of Dragon, Tiger and Serpent were so interesting. The authors took their grandparents stories of occupied Korea and turned it into a beautiful story of love, loss and hope. The oppressive colonizers - the Dragon Kingdom, have suppressed the Tiger colonies for generations. Now the race is on to find the last tiger in existence before the Dragon Kingdom wipes them out. A young lowborn boy with dreams of getting his family out of poverty, and a highborn girl who dreams of escaping her marriage obligations secretly work together to help each other gain their dreams. But fate intervenes and both are thrown from their paths and must run. Will they find their way back to each other, and can they save the last tiger?

My favorite thing about this work was the intent. I loved that it was inspired by the authors’ grandparents’ story about growing up in Korea while it was occupied by Japan and how their relationship began. There were excerpts from their grandparents’ journals included at the beginning of each chapter, which I also appreciated. However, these excerpts weren’t incorporated well into the flow of the story, which made it feel disjointed and probably wouldn’t be appreciated by those who are here for the story/fantasy rather than some history.

But the telling of this story fell flat overall. I hate to say it, but the romance and love story just never developed into feeling emotionally compelling. There actually wasn’t really anything that felt emotionally compelling to me with this. The plot was straightforward and predictable, feeling familiar and somewhat bland. The characters were also relatively bland and forgettable, which was a major disappointment. The resolution was rushed and disappointing in its brevity.

Younger readers may enjoy this one, especially if they’re interested in fantasy and haven’t read anything focusing on colonialism before. I think this work would have been stronger if it had been kept a historical fiction rather than incorporating fantastical elements, and this read more like a first draft than a finished work. My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

One star for the stunning cover. This was a brilliant story, it was the perfect blend of colonialism, fantasy, classism and a little romance. The message was clear and the emotions were felt.
The pacing was very slow at the beginning and I almost dropped it (thank God I didn’t).

I liked Seung and Eunji, I liked how the author wrote their story, their struggles and hope. Although I didn’t really feel the romance between them, it gave more of friendship vibes. Jin is my favorite character, she was a complex character with a sad backstory.

The story felt more like a historical fantasy than a romantasy. Overall if you love to read history mixed with fantasy then this is for you

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Group for this Arc

The real highlight of this book for me was the beautiful setting Julia was able to create. It feels vibrate and magical. The pacing gets a little slow in the middle but picks back up towards the end

I was super excited for this book because it was based on the author's grandparents love story! It was also super cool that the authors are brother and sister. This fantasy book is also based on the time around World War 2 when Japan occupied a few countries in Asia, including Korea for anyone who's interested in reading books about that time period.

It pique my interest at first how the Dragon kingdom took over the Tiger colony but the kids from affluent Tiger colony can enter this sought-after Dragon academy. The book also depicts how poor the Tiger people are during this time. And it also shows how the Dragon colonization sets the Tiger people for failure. It shows that the Dragon government doesn't want Tiger people to be successful.

The FMC in this book comes from the affluent family and was set to marry someone from the Dragon kingdom. In the midst of all of this, she offers to tutor the MMC who comes from a poor Tiger family for the academy entrance exam in return of him taking her out once in a while. She's not allowed to be outside her family home unsupervised.

The story gets more interesting with a teenager rebel group who's trying to overthrow the Dragon kingdom. There's also a group of Dragon police that's been torturing the village people. There's also some magical elements with interesting backstory and power.

I wish the adventure sets out earlier in the book. The first half of the book was spent building the world, the magic system, the characters and the history. The adventure of our main characters didn't start until the second half of the book. I feel like I needed to read more of their adventure, it was too short in my opinion.

I'm not an avid fantasy reader but I've seen other reviewers mention that this book should have been duology. The first book could tell the history between the Dragon and Tiger people. Then the second book should details the adventure of the main characters.

Overall, it was a pretty enjoyable book. If you understand the inspiration of the story, it's more meaningful.

Wow; I fully admit that I read The Last Tiger due solely to the premise of the authors’ grandparents’ love story during a tragic part of Korea’s past. But I had not anticipated the fantasy aspect to be so intriguing. Allow me a small recap: MMC Seung lives a life of oppression and occupation when the Dragonfolk take of the Tiger colonies. I chance meeting pushes him and Eunji, a well-off Tiger family heiress who’s family is in support of the Dragon occupation. With the promise of exchanging skills (sneaking out and being average for Eunji and training to learn magic for Seung) the two form a bond over one year in anticipation for a pivotal moment of their lives.

While there is a budding romance and TLT is inspired by a real-life love story, I didn’t consider it the main focus. I loved Seung’s personal challenge the most; his struggle to escape poverty and the mindset that comes with that level of trauma. The chance to change his people’s world by rescuing the last tiger (hehe) spirit felt like an epic tale of chance and courage. I absolutely enjoyed his chapters as it felt like I was cheering and hoping for him to continue to make it. For Eunji, however, I did think she kept a bit of selfishness throughout the entire story. She’s constantly fighting internally against what’s expected of her and when she does decide to rebel, it seems she falls right back into the mindset of “if I achieve X, then they will respect me”. It kind of took her until the very end to realize that the goalpost is always moving and she cannot have the future she wants without willing to break down her very foundation.

The fantasy aspect of TLT is incredibly well done and was my absolute favorite part; the introduction of ki, an intrinsic magic within those granted by spiritual beings, is the perfect representation of wealth/money/power. With the blessing of ki, people are more welcomed into society and even gain more notoriety. But the second level of fantasy is the introduction to Korean folklore like the gumiho and dokkaebi. These creatures of fairytales hold roles and push parts of the plot along so it felt like an easter egg to bridge the gap between a modern fantasy to generational folklore tales that have been passed down. A delightful read that left me feeling light and proud.

Thank you to Julia and Brad Riew and Penguin for providing a review copy.

firstly, thank you to the publisher for an arc.

what a beautiful love-letter from two siblings to their grandparents, revolving around their family and cultural history.

at its core, the last tiger is a fictionalized magical realism retelling of authors julia riew and brad riew’s grandparents and their daunting love-story while living in a japanese colonized korea.

the last tiger focuses upon many important but sensitive topics such as colonialism, ethnic cleansing, sexual abuse (comfort women), and classism in a respectful and informative way, while still emphasizing the suffering experienced by koreans under japanese rule.

the authors included actual quotes from both grandparents, which i thought was beautiful touch.

A remarkable debut young adult fantasy novel that delighted me with ancient traditions, survival of the fittest, and magical powers. I look forward to their next book.

I felt the beginning of the book was a little slow for me, but to be fair it was necessary for the development of the storyline. Once the speed picked up, I got fully engrossed in the story and stayed up to 4 am to finish the book.

How the authors presented the differences in the class standings of Seung and Eunji allow readers to have a better understanding of two different classes with each having their own set of troubles. The descriptive narration takes the reader to a world of poverty, wealth, traditions, and hope for a new future.

The ending leaves a lot of room for a second book, and I am hoping to see what happened to Jin and Kenzo.

Unique magic, wonderful story line. It's a story about oppression and the Japanese annexing Korea and the horrible ways the population was treated. The "soul" style magic based on ki was unique and interesting. The dual pov was great leaning about the 2 different classes and the different ways of them being treated and their different lifestyles. I didn't like the modern slang within it, I believe this is suppose to mimic the early 1900s? But overall good story and I absolutely loved the running headers of their grandparents life story.

I had high hopes for this one (especially since I’m in my YA Asian fantasy) and I wasn’t disappointed.

If you know Korean history (especially with Japan) it can be very interesting to read it.

I will totally be recommending it to libraries because it’s a must read for young readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

This is a beautiful retelling that is also mixed with mythology - it's the story of star crossed lovers who are on opposite sides with the sole purpose of finding the last tiger.

The last tiger is a fictional story based off of the author's grandparents who fought for their love through colonized Korea. Each chapter is personalized and beautiful with how it starts off with quotes from letters that the grandparents wrote to one another. It was beautiful and captivating on it's own but it didn't really tie into the story itself - so aside from the beauty I am a bit confused as to what was the point. I really found myself wishing it was a different story entirely - a true captivating and enchanting love story and then a mythological retelling but keeping each separated.l

The cover for this book is stunning - the colors, the face, it's all just enchanting. The pacing is beautiful and keeps you engaged throughout the entire book and the root of the story - the mythology portion is incredibly well written and enjoyable to read.

I truly recommend this one to anyone needing an escape - this book would be enough to provide that and is still heartwarming when it comes down to it.

The Last Tiger was a gripping read! I read it in a day, People who love Legend by Marie Lu would love this back, I found both POVs to be propulsive AND engaging. I highly recommend this book

The Last Tiger is a fantastical retelling of the occupation of Korea by Japan. Seung represents the everyday people who refused to be crushed by the occupation even though everything, including their food, language, culture, and identity had been taken from them or made illegal. Eunji, on the other hand, is from one of the families that assimilated to the occupying force’s culture, even changing their name to show their submission. Both hope to do well on the upcoming exam, but for vastly different reasons, for Seung, it’ll be a means to lift his family hopefully out of poverty, while Eunji just wants approval from her family. Through events, each will come to see the other side, their place in the world and where they want to be, as well as who they want to be when history is written.

The Last Tiger is an engrossing story that sheds light on true history that many probably are not aware of. For fans of Pachinko that enjoy a fantasy twist.

I got this book as an arc (incredibly greatful) but didn't get to it before the publish date as I had so many other arcs to finish. I had placed a hold for this book months before I even requested for the arc, got it a few days after it was published and finished it in two days! I loved this book and the characters. An amazing debut novel

The Last Tiger arrives with a rare kind of intimacy. A YA historical fantasy spun from the threads of the forbidden love of the authors' grandparents. Each chapter opens with their grandparents' actual words allowing fragments of lived history to slip under your skin before the fiction begins. These quotes are small, steady flames guiding you through a world where tigers carry the heart of a nation and Korean folklore prowls in the shadow of Japanese occupation.

It’s an extraordinary premise: mythological creatures pacing alongside colonial oppression and a magical landscape interlaced with a nation’s grief, resilience and defiance. You can feel the intent in the way history and fantasy both coexist and sharpen one another. The political tensions of Korea and Japan during WWII are thoughtfully woven in, and the parallels drawn between this imagined world and the real one are both thought provoking and instructive.

And yet, for all that potential, the execution falters. The roots of this story run deep but its branches never fully leaf. The politics and magic are more suggested than constructed leaving the world hazy at its edges. The characters rarely step beyond their outlines. Too often the prose reached for my heart by telling me how to feel instead of trusting me to feel it on my own.

The Last Tiger is a striking debut of history, magic and mythology that doesn't quite land for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Young Readers Group and the author for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you so much to the authors, Netgalley, and Penguin Teen for a copy of the eARC!

When my social media algorithm first showed me The Last Tiger as an upcoming YA release, I kept it on my radar as a BIPOC fantasy read. But the moment I learned that the book was inspired by the love story of the authors' grandparents, I knew that I wanted to prioritize this book as a 2025 read.

The story is told through the dual perspectives of Seung and Eunji. Seung is from the lower class, dreaming of taking an esteemed exam to bring himself and his family out of poverty. Eunji is from the upper class, longing to escape the confines of her home and social background. A chance encounter leads Seung and Eunji to become friends, and through the next several months, their lives take them down a path where they each strive to take control of their destinies.

For a simplistic fantasy world, the strength of this book lies in the growth of the main characters. Seung and Eunji's polar personalities made for an intriguing relationship dynamic, allowing their character development to shine once the two are apart and interacting with the primary supporting characters. The history and politics were also seamlessly integrated into the main plot, sharing equal progress alongside the narrative's various relationships.

I did wish there were a few chapters dedicated to the year when Seung and Eunji led their separate lives. I wanted to see more of their hardships shown rather than told through a couple of chapters. To me, it was off-page development that I would've genuinely enjoyed seeing unfold since it definitely would've added more to the yearning between Seung and Eunji.

Other than that, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it to anyone seeking to read a BIPOC YA fantasy derived from unique real-life experiences.