Prophecy is kind of a bundle of problems, but almost all of those problems can be directly attributed to the ultra-simplified writing style. Holy crap this writing is bad. It's a rough sketch without shading or detail, a skeleton without innards or flesh. The bare bones of a story are here, with all the basic things that you need to get a plot from start to finish - this event happens, this character does x, this character feels y, this event takes x amount of time - but without any of the meat that gives a story depth, and makes it feel lifelike. It's a wordy outline. 
 And it doesn't work. Like at all. 
 The key factor here is telling: this book TELLS us everything. Directly, simply, and in no uncertain terms, we're told who characters are, what they feel, what they want. There's no room for subtle or showing anything, shit just HAPPENS and you need to know about it so that we can MOVE ON to the next THING. 
 People feared Kira. 
 They called her the Demon Slayer to her face and much worse behind her back. It didn't matter that she was a first cousin to the crown prince or that she'd saved his life from a demon attack. Ten years was long enough for most to forget what really happened and instead to believe the rumors that began soon after. 
 BAM, Kira's backstory and social status, DONE. FIRST LINES IN THE BOOK. 
 Kira beamed at the gentle monk from Kaya. He was one of Kira's favorite temple companions. Whatever she needed, Brother Insu always tried to provide. 
 Good to know, because we've literally never seen or heard of this character before. Thanks for not wasting time showing them interact or speak even once before this! 
 Kira liked her uncle, sensing his sharp intelligence and his aura of power. He was a mix of her aunt's assertiveness coupled with her mother's kindness. But once in a while, she sensed a cold ruthlessness in him. She didn't necessarily think it was a bad thing. After all, he was ruler of the largest kingdom in the peninsula. And it was clear that Taejo already idolized their uncle. 
 If she were to be completely honest, some of her uneasiness stemmed from jealousy. She felt supplanted by Eojin in Taejo's affections and she didn't like it. 
 BAM, all the stuff you might have learned about Kira's uncle and her feelings about him through interaction, explained to you in two paragraphs. NEXT. 
 "King Eojin is a good man, but he is set in his ways and immovable once his decision is made. When I arrived, I explained to the king the mission you and your friends must embark upon. But he refused to let me speak with any of you, for it is a long and treacherous route back into enemy territory for such youngsters, and not a one among you has yet to see twenty years." 
 "That wasn't his decision to make," Kira said. 
 "I agree," he said. He bowed in thanks as Seung set out a fur rug for the monk to sit on. "But remember the king's tragic history. He doesn't want to lose any more of his family." 
 But remember the king's tragic history. 
 But remember the king's tragic history. 
 BUT REMEMBER THE KING'S TRAGIC BACKSTORY. 
 It's like reading a book made of note to selves. NOTE TO SELF: REMEMBER THE KING'S TRAGIC BACKSTORY. EDIT IN DEMONSTRATIVE CHARACTERIZATION LATER. 
 NOTE TO SELF: KIRA IS JEALOUS OF EOJIN, FEELS SUPPLANTED IN TAEJO'S AFFECTIONS. SHOW THIS!! 
 NOTE TO SELF: INSU IS KIRA'S FAVORITE MONK. ADD SCENE OF THEM TALKING. 
 The strange, kind of disjointedly direct writing undermines the story on every axis. Like, okay, the characterization isn't great, but I could still theoretically get by if the book had a really interesting, detailed plot, or an engaging world. But those facets are just as thinly developed. The plot is a totally boilerplate fantasy Chosen One MacGuffin plot, and without any atmosphere or developed mythology or mystery to dress it up, the rote, naked utility of a MacGuffin plot is even more apparent. Like, why are there three items that have to be collected by the Dragon Musado? Well, because there are three books. These things aren't imbued with any particular significance or meaning, it's just like "The prophecy says three. NEXT." 
 And while it's always nice to see even a stock fantasy story set somewhere that isn't pseudo-medival-Europe, the world-building details are just as sparse as everything else here. 
 So, swing and a miss on the characters, plot, relationships, and world, but the nail in the coffin is the unexpected girlhate. I was really disappointed to find so few women in this book, and almost no meaningful relationships. Instead we get yet another Strong Female Protagonist(TM) surrounded by men, who loudly derides girly things and the women who like them. 
 Inside, Kira faltered as she caught the mocking glances and sneers of the queen's court ladies. It was as if she'd stumbled into a beautiful flower garden filled with poisonous snakes. Kira was good at ignoring them, but still their contempt burned her. At her approach, one by one they flicked open their fans before their faces--a wall as fragile as butterfly wings and yet completely insurmountable. 
 How she hated them. 
 Kira let out a frustrated groan. She didn't want to think this way. She was a soldier, not a simpering court lady. 
 I thought at first that maybe Kira's opinions about the court ladies would be challenged, but nope, they all literally throw themselves off a cliff later in the book, so there's never any opportunity. Actually, come to think of it, almost every single significant female character throws herself off a cliff eventually. 
 The queen, Kira's mother, and the exposition goddesses are arguably positive influences, but they get no development, and less screen time than any one of Kira's six named male traveling companions. They're more plot devices than actual characters, even by Prophecy's lax standards. 
 So basically we've got Kira, a textbook Exceptional Woman, complete with a hefty handbag of internalized misogyny. Tres disappointing. . 
 There are other things that bothered me, that didn't make sense, but if I were to examine them each individually, I suspect it would all come back to the sparseness of the writing. My confusion over the origins of Kira's tiger spirit, the awkward tracking of time, Kira's emotional whiplash re: her douchey fiancee, all come back to a general absence of development of anything. 
 I was really hoping to enjoy this one, but like every single aspect was a complete miss for me. I hate to say it, but I probably won't be following up with the rest of the series. 
 ONE AND A HALF STARS 
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