And Break the Pretty Kings

Princess Mirae is destined to inherit a dark legacy: Her mother, Queen of the magical city of Seolla, is succumbing to madness, which has stemmed from her connection to the Inconstant Son, a mysterious entity trapped beneath Seolla who threatens to destroy the world. Now, with her mother’s health failing, Mirae must face a trial of the gods, who will decide if she’s worthy to follow in her mother’s footsteps as Queen. 

On the night of her trial, disaster strikes. When Mirae obtains the power of horomancy – controlling time – she unwittingly is trapped in a vision of the future. The Inconstant Son attacks the city during the chaos and kidnaps her brother, Minho, to turn him into a slave to govern his army of brainwashed soldiers. Mirae must save her brother, despite the premonition that she must let Minho die. Nevertheless, Mirae sets out on a journey with an unlikely group of companions while her unpredictable magic gives her terrifying visions of a future she must stop at any cost. 

After multiple meetings with the Inconstant Son, Mirae learns that Seolla – which only allows women to practice magic – has built their monarchy by branding the men who can do magic with a mark that represses their abilities. The man trapped beneath Seolla is not the Inconstant Son but instead his descendant, who has been trapped for centuries. This man – called the Netherking – wants to use Mirae’s brother to start a male-led revolution. In particular, he wants revenge on Mirae’s mother, who abandoned the Netherking’s beloved wife and daughter to an awful fate. As the story progresses, Mirae’s loyalties are tested as she finds it necessary to ally with the Netherking to get her brother back while also wanting to prevent him from destroying her kingdom. However, she tries to treat her enemies with grace. After stopping the Netherking’s plans, she gives his allies a new chance at life in Seolla despite their past wrongs.  

Mirae is a talented and promising young woman who always tries to find the bright side. For example, she professes, “There are two sides to every moon. . . depending on where you’re standing.” Even when she can’t see the path ahead, Mirae boldly forges her own. She is not solely good nor evil but understands both are part of life.   

Mirae, the rest of the supporting characters, and the story’s multiple villains all get their time to shine. The villains feature prominently in the story and have well-developed backstories, making the whole cast of characters seem less like villains and heroes and more like individuals trying to do what they think is right. This allows all of the characters to be compelling. 

From the beginning, many things are fated to be: The queens of Seolla go mad, men can’t practice magic, the kingdom of Josan is evil, and the Inconstant Son will ruin the world. However, the story’s events slowly convince Mirae that the destiny of her kingdom is not set in stone. She makes her own way forward, offering forgiveness to the misguided and defying the long-standing rivalry between Seolla and Josan. Her main concern is protecting those she loves, but she begins to see merit in uncovering the truth behind the Inconstant Son if it means bringing peace to both kingdoms.  

And Break the Pretty Kings is a very difficult read due to the intricate worldbuilding and endless unfamiliar terms. Almost every page references types of magic, types of people, and creatures of legend. Because of its complexities, the book is almost inaccessible to the average reader without a base knowledge of Korean folklore and culture. However, if you already have some knowledge, this book could be an enjoyable challenge as it blends fantasy with history in a unique way. Those who enjoy high fantasy stories with cultural ties and intricate worldbuilding will enjoy reading Mirae’s journey as she tries to change her fate.  

Sexual Content  

• None

Violence  

• Mirae’s mother is afflicted with madness, which causes her to attack her children. “Mirae lowered her damp palms, bidding the elements under her control to disperse. But they didn’t obey. Instead, the water roiled into a whirlpool of rage. . . As the droplets churned each other into chaos, Minho became nothing more than a flailing blur, fast running out of air. . . Mirae whirled towards the palanquin and saw a pale, skeletal arm reaching through the beaded curtains, stretching in Minho’s direction. A second later, her mother’s face pushed past the beads. . .The madness. It had taken hold of her mother, filling her mind with delusions once again. Turning her magic against those she loved. . . Mirae fell to her knees, gasping for air as her mother’s magic crushed her head and neck.” Mirae dispels the magic before she goes unconscious. 
• Mirae hears the oracles that attended her trial being murdered. “The sound of something whipping through the air, trailing a series of clacking noises behind it. Chattering teeth or guttural clicks deep in the throat. More wet slices. Chokes and gurgles. Then the screams of oracles being murdered.” 
• Mirae’s mother goes insane and attacks her husband. “Mirae shot one last look at her father. Her mother was sending more violet fireballs at him. . .” Mirae watched as “her father grabbed her face and kissed her, just as her clawlike hands raked red lines down his back, bloodying his blue robe like a smear of a sunset against a perfectly calm sky.”  
• Minho is kidnapped and drowned in a tub of magical water. “A wide stone room [was] lined with deep basins. Each was filled to the brim with black water. . . The guards lifted [Minho], fighting futilely against them, into one of the tubs. They submerged all but his head, which he kept above the water with all his strength. [They] grabbed Minho’s hair and shoved his head under. Mirae watched, horrified, as the dark water bubbled with air her brother could no longer breathe. Once the ripples stopped altogether and the black water fell still, Minho floated to the surface face-down.” Minho is unconscious until his rescue. 
• Mirae kills the Netherqueen. “Mirae lifted the sword over her head and struck the Netherqueen’s body with everything she had. As soon as the sword hit flesh, it glowed, slicing through the Netherqueen’s shoulder and lodging in her heart. Sparking, searing, smoking everything it touched except for Mirae’s hand.”   

Drugs and Alcohol  

• None 

Language  

• None 

Supernatural  

• Three types of magic exist and are mentioned frequently. They are known as Sacred Bone Magic. Sacred Bone Daughters are women in Seolla who are blessed by a magical lineage. 
• The first type of magic is the ability to control the elements (earth, air, fire, and water). This magic is called Jade Witchery, which can be used to summon fire or manipulate the earth. For example, Mirae throws a fireball while training. “Mirae raised a hand to the heavens. . . A small, white-hot orb appeared in her palm; before its sharp heat could blister her skin, Mirae lobbed it with all her strength at her opponent.” 
• Mirae witnesses someone using Jade Witchery to repair destruction in the palace’s courtyard. “Mirae heard the sound of the grass rustling as it righted itself and the ground rumbling as it stitched itself back together. It would be long before the field looked exactly as it had before, heeding the will of a powerful Jade Witch.”  

• The second type of magic is illusory, called Ma-eum Magic. Mirae describes it as “the ability to trick an opponent into sensing something that wasn’t actually there.” Mirae uses this magic to change her appearance when she’s in the Josan kingdom so she can’t be recognized. It is used many times in the story to alter a character’s physical appearance, such as making them smell like perfume or altering their facial features. 
• A general enchantment type of magic is also mentioned frequently, such as when Mirae enchanted a turtle to fly and talk, but the incident is not described. 
• The third type of magic is called Horomancy, the ability to manipulate time. Mirae describes it: “Of the three magic systems, which exemplified the virtues of cunning, craftsmanship, and foresight, horomancy was the most enigmatic power. Mirae had never seen it used, though she knew that was for good reason. The rules of time were rigid, dangerous things to manipulate.”   
• Hongbin, Mirae’s younger brother, thinks a visitor to the palace is a “gumiho,” a Korean creature of legend similar to a nine-tailed fox. He previously thought the visitor was a dokkaebi, the Korean name for demons. 
• There are three powerful relics called the Sacred Bone Relics that correspond to the ancestors of the different branches of magic. They are the dagger of the Silver Star (representing Ma-eum magic), the seong-suk – a stone – of the Deep Deceiver (representing Jade Witchery), and the black bell of the Unnamed Dragon (representing Horomancy). Mirae chooses the black bell to guard her reign. 
• After picking the bell, Mirae switches to another time period where she sees her brother, whose face looks “like he’d battled monsters and knew that the world held many, many things to fear.” She realizes she has used Horomancy to travel into the future. Several times, she switches time periods, which works like visions of the future that guide her on her journey. 
• Mirae switches time and sees a festival in the spirit world where people dance and sing in animal masks.  
• Mirae’s mother gifts a magical necklace with 12 beads depicting the 12 horoscope animals. Each bead contains a different power, which Mirae uses. For example, she uses an ox bead to gain strength. “She picked up the ox bead and put it on her tongue. The powers of the bead made her stumble back almost immediately with vertigo, trembles, goosebumps, and a crashing headache all at once. But the symptoms faded in seconds. As the bead warmed on her tongue, Mirae felt its power swell within her, roping around her muscles and making them bulge. Just then, the door to the room she was hiding in flew open, and Mirae reacted on instinct; she punched her opponent right in the chest with all the strength of an ox, throwing him through the door and into the wall behind him.” 
• Mirae and her companions encounter a gwisin, the evil spirit of a woman who has suffered. This gwisin, the haggard moon gwisin, is described as having “hair dark and long enough to blend in with the spaces between trees. There was a starry paleness to her sleeveless knee-length dress, which wasn’t long enough to hide the fact that she didn’t have any legs – nor did she have a face. . . Gwisin lingered because they, or someone they loved, had been wronged. . . according to legend, the haggard moon gwisin [was] abandoned by a friend, left to die alone and in pain, and subsequently drowned anyone who showed her any kindness, before they had the chance to betray her too.” 
• Mirae summons a dragon with Sacred Bone Magic. 

Spiritual Content  

• The book frequently references mudang, the name for Korean shamans. These women are known for performing rituals in which gods possess them. When Mirae and her companions are traveling, she pretends to be one of these shamans, triggering her “switching” power instead of actually becoming possessed. 
• The book also references “gods” or praying to the gods, but no gods are named in particular.  
• Mirae’s family are known as the “gods-touched” guardians of Seolla. The gods are beings that are respected, and are often mentioned in the context of fate and destiny, such as “I could only do something like that with permission from the gods” or “I hope the gods are on our side.”