Review: The Legacy of Yangchen, by F.C. Yee
by
Stuart Holland
Wow. FC Yee really went all out on the final of his 4 book run in the Chronicles of the Avatar series. This book really defied my expectations. Yangchen’s brutal internal struggle to do good in the face of suffocating bureaucracy, which does evil not only directly and intentionally, but also by constraining any positive actor’s capacity to improve things through an endless slog of busywork, is quite something to behold. She is visibly fraying as the story goes on, and that is portrayed starkly and realistically.
Kavik’s arc didn’t punch quite as hard, but his genuine concern when we see his point of view, combined with all of the other characters’ (understandable) inability to trust him, was its own kind of heartwrenching.
Chaisee is a capable villain and does a great job of being threatening without being a bender herself, something that’s difficult in a world where magic powers like that can definitely tip the scale.
The misdirect that’s core to this book’s story is not a huge surprise, but that doesn’t detract from its effectiveness. I think the reader is intended to see that payoff coming. At the same time, it doesn’t feel like the information necessary for it to be a misdirection is artificially withheld from the reader (which is something that can really drag down a book’s story).
Overall I’ve been very impressed by this series. It feels like the Avatar and Korra TV shows in a way that’s hard to pin down. Yee is clearly a fan and clearly talented as well.
