The Last Fallen Star by Graci Kim Series: Gifted Clans #1
Published by Rick Riordan Presents on 2021 May 04
Genres: Mythology, Fantasy
Format: E-book
Source: Purchased
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Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents Graci Kim's thrilling debut, now in paperback, about an adopted Korean-American girl who discovers her heritage and her magic on a perilous journey to save her witch clan family.
"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
Riley Oh can't wait to see her sister get initiated into the Gom clan, a powerful lineage of Korean healing witches their family has belonged to for generations. Her sister, Hattie, will earn her Gi bracelet and finally be able to cast spells without adult supervision. Although Riley is desperate to follow in her sister's footsteps when she herself turns thirteen, she's a saram--a person without magic. Riley was adopted, and despite having memorized every healing spell she's ever heard, she often feels like the odd one out in her family and the gifted community.
Then Hattie gets an idea: what if the two of them could cast a spell that would allow Riley to share Hattie's magic? Their sleuthing reveals a promising incantation in the family's old spell book, and the sisters decide to perform it at Hattie's initiation ceremony. If it works, no one will ever treat Riley as an outsider again. It's a perfect plan!Until it isn't. When the sisters attempt to violate the laws of the Godrealm, Hattie's life ends up hanging in the balance, and to save her Riley has to fulfill an impossible task: find the last fallen star. But what even is the star, and how can she find it?
As Riley embarks on her search, she finds herself meeting fantastic creatures and collaborating with her worst enemies. And when she uncovers secrets that challenge everything she has been taught to believe, Riley must decide what it means to be a witch, what it means to be family, and what it really means to belong.
The heavens must be conspiring to provide me lots of venues to explore the Korean culture because I came across the Last Fallen Star when most of my K-drama picks this year bored me to tears which led me to DNF a lot of them. Thankfully, this book came into existence, hence, my study of the Korean culture was not hindered.
Reading the Last Fallen Star made me feel all sorts of cute and giggly feelings because beyond all the Korean Mythology elements, it’s a heartwarming tale about family. Riley Oh, our protagonist, is a human child who was adopted by the Ohs’, a gifted family belonging to the Gom Clan. Usually, what happens next is that an adopted child gets sidelined particularly if that child is an epitome of all things that bespoke of “being different” or “outcast.” Well, Riley Oh, really felt like an outcast having been surrounded by people who can magically heal an ailing person. But despite Riley’s feelings of insecurities/ inadequacies, her adoptive parents as well as her gifted older sister love her very much. It is this kind of positive and no-drama relationship that really made me stuck with the Last Fallen Star. Mr. and Mrs. Oh are the best parents a child could have, and Hattie is the coolest sister a younger sibling could ask for.
The plot, the pop culture references, and the Korean lore were all interesting but it was really the Oh family relationship that really drove the plot. The storm can be devastating, and the roads can be tough but these can all be won as long as you have a solid support from the people who matter the most. This is the heart and my takeaway from the Last Fallen Star. This would really make a good reading material for kids especially when they’re about to dip their toes on values formation and having their first foray into the importance of family.
So what would this mean for me? Well, off to the next book. <3