SPORTOCHICK’S MUSINGS: 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.

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The Last Tiger
Debut Book
by Julia Riew; Brad Riew

Pub Date Jul 29, 2025
PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | Kokila

DESCRIPTION

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Inspired by true stories from the authors’ grandparents’ lives during one of the darkest periods in Korean history, The Last Tiger is a debut young adult fantasy novel about the power of love to give voice to a silenced people.

The gorgeous first edition hardcover features: a metallic foil cover, illustrated endpapers, custom designed edges, and stunning foil stamped case.

In a colonized land where tigers are being hunted to extinction and ancient magic stirs, two star-crossed teens—Lee Seung, a servant yearning for freedom, and Choi Eunji, a noble girl defying tradition—join forces to try and reshape their respective fates.

But their relationship evolves from begrudging accomplices to bitter adversaries as they soon find themselves on opposite sides of a battle over the last tiger, a symbol of their people’s lost freedom and key to the liberation of their country. As the ties between Seung and Eunji are complicated by their conflicting loyalties, tensions rise—especially when a charming princeling of the empire begins to rival for Eunji’s affection.

In this friends-to-enemies-to-lovers story of forbidden romance, antagonists turned allies, oppression and liberation, neither Seung nor Eunji can abandon their mission—or each other. And as they embark on separate quests to find the elusive creature, each must also find the power within themselves to make their own destiny.

REVIEW

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.

I give it 5 STARS.

I received this book for free from Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | Kokila in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

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