The Demon and the Light coming October 21st, 2025 from Feiwel & Friends; 400 pages
Content Warning: Violence, death, needles/syringes, child soldiers, child abuse, brief mention of suicidal ideation
About the Author: “Axie Oh is the New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, XOXO and ASAP, The Floating World duology, and the Rebel Seoul series. Born in New York City and raised in New Jersey, she studied Korean history and creative writing as an undergrad at the University of California San Diego and holds an MFA in Writing for Young People from Lesley University. Her passions include K-pop, anime, stationery supplies, and milk tea, and she currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada, with her dogs, Toro and Leila” (Bio from author’s website).
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In the sequel to Axie Oh’s The Floating World, Ren and Sunho face their greatest challenge yet. They may have defeated the General, but the Floating World and the Underworld are still under threat from the neighboring Volmaran empire. To Ren, that’s nothing compared to losing Sunho to the monstrous power within him. As the demon, he doesn’t even recognize her, and that hurts her more than anything. However, Ren’s kingdom, as well as her life, is still under threat, and she must take control of her power and her past in order to save Sunho and defend her worlds.
The Demon and the Light was the perfect conclusion to what has been Axie Oh’s best series to date. It’s no secret that I am a big fan of Axie Oh, and when I reviewed The Floating World back in April, I knew she had found something special with Ren and Sunho. By giving us different points of view, we really get an insight to what each character is internally struggling with. One of my favorite parts of their relationship is that, even when Sunho was afraid he would hurt Ren, there was never that moment of miscommunication and heartbreak as a result of one character trying to protect the other. Ren just has such faith in the people closest to her, and it really enhances the story by providing intricate relationships built on trust. Oh really expanded on Ren’s character in this sequel as well, particularly in the second half of the book. I loved how she grew by learning from her ancestors and finally getting closure ten years after the death of her mom. There were such beautiful parallels between her and Sunho’s story, her mother and her lover’s story, and that of the first celestial maiden and the woodcutter. Axie Oh never fails to make her books feel like folklore. I truly think she’s crafting stories that nobody else is, and The Floating World duology is my favorite one yet.
The Demon and the Light releases on October 21st, 2025.
Pine Reads Review would like to thank NetGalley and Feiwel & Friends for sending us an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Any quotes are taken from an advanced copy and may be subject to change before final publication.
Sam Yanis, Pine Reads Review Lead Writer