Book Review: The House of Shi

Reviewed by Jaylynn Korrell

A complex journey through history, magic, and the mythical destiny of a 12-year old boy

When David is sent to the United States for his own safety, he isn’t exactly thrilled about it. He has to stay with his grandfather while his mother continues her search for his father in Peru. Regardless of where he is, David takes matters into his own hands to figure out and master his new magical gifts as an amaru, an ancient Peruvian dragon.

But he gets sidetracked when a mysterious and gorgeous floating head by the name of Natalia appears in his home. Following her on a journey through the Land of Eternal Dusk is going to change his life forever and hopefully bring him closer to his destiny—but it won’t come without a fight.

This overarching story offers just a glimpse into all that happens in this intricately layered second book in The World Beyond trilogy. Amaia S. Li captures readers’ attention with imaginative storytelling and a unique way of bringing the past and present together in this continuation of David’s story.

Just like how David feels—never knowing what to expect in the Land of Eternal Dusk—readers should get comfortable curiously wandering through this narrative. Li is a master at turning things on their heads, of making you question how real the current reality is. Not only are characters shapeshifting from human forms to animal-like creatures, characters who we thought as lost forever could still be found and trustworthy friends toe the line of foes. Nothing is what it seems; you’ll be flipping these pages hastily, desperate to see how the next conundrum will unfold.

The Land of Eternal Dusk is riddled with versatile landscapes and mythical creatures. Besides the fact that David is following a floating head, he comes face to face with a variety of human-like people in various forms and also comes across some seriously interesting landscapes, like the House of Shi and the abode of the Moon Goddess. 

There are so many layers to Li’s worldbuilding; each destination David reaches proves more impressive than the last. While I was glad the book was always moving forward, I was admittedly bummed to leave a few of the magical settings. The quests are nearly never-ending, and this results in a few plot twists that feel repetitive in their execution.

The contrast between the mother and son’s journeys is perhaps the most captivating aspect of The House of Shi. While David is figuring out how to control his new amarustatus, his mother is weaving in and out of her own reality, trying to piece together who stole a magical jewel from the university where she works. Li balances these two narratives effectively, while also weaving in plenty of Peruvian mythology. 

In the end, it’s Anna’s story that gripped me the tightest. While trying to figure out what this magic jewel really is and then attempting to recover it, she finds that she has a closer connection to the stone than she thought. A past lover by the name of Victor plays a hand in this crime, and the story of their past relationship is one that brings a welcome new dimension to the story.

She nearly eloped with Victor when she was only 16. While an exchange student in Peru, she began seeing the oldest son of her host family but decided not to marry him in the end. This heartbreak left a lasting effect on Victor, who is then lost to dark magic. Their rollercoaster relationship raises the stakes of Anna’s already compelling story. 

There is so much to uncover in this story, and each layer contributes to an ending that satisfies but leaves us wanting more. Luckily, the conclusion of The World Beyond trilogy is coming up next.

Thank you for reading Jaylynn Korrell’s book review of The House of Shi by Amaia S. Li! If you liked what you read, please spend some more time with us at the links below.

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