A Thousand Steps into Night

By: Traci Chee

Narrated by: Grace Rolek

Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's Summary

From New York Times best-selling author and National Book Award finalist Traci Chee comes a Japanese-influenced fantasy brimming with demons, adventure, and plans gone awry.

In the realm of Awara, where gods, monsters, and humans exist side by side, Miuko is an ordinary girl resigned to a safe, if uneventful, existence as an innkeeper’s daughter.

But when Miuko is cursed and begins to transform into a demon with a deadly touch, she embarks on a quest to reverse the curse and return to her normal life. Aided by a thieving magpie spirit and continuously thwarted by a demon prince, Miuko must outfox tricksters, escape demon hunters, and negotiate with feral gods if she wants to make it home again.

With her transformation comes power and freedom she never even dreamed of, and she’ll have to decide if saving her soul is worth trying to cram herself back into an ordinary life that no longer fits her… and perhaps never did.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio. 

©2022 Traci Chee (P)2022 HarperCollins Publishers

entirely entertaining

listened on our commute to work/school
1 hrs round trip
the story is very well written an d the narrator is over the top with voice changes and enunciation ♡

This is a feminist story and that is a GOOD thing

This was an AMAZING and epic tale filled with spirits, demons, gods, deities, and unconventional heroes.

The “feminist ideals” that other reviewers, I’m assuming bitter men, were complaining about were simply: diversity, inclusion, and a fairly accurate depiction of what it’s like to live as a woman in a patriarchal society.

Because god forbid a story be told from something other than a man’s perspective, amirite?

Overall this book takes you on an incredible and colorful journey through narrow twists and turns, both backwards and forwards, and many ups and downs.

Alls well that ends well. But is it ever truly the end? Or is there another journey just beyond the horizon?

This story might just feed your own wanderlust for travel and adventure. So enjoy, and make the best of your time!

Modern Indictment of Ancient Gender Roles

Did the protagonist whine about the gender strictures of her ancient Asian culture in every chapter? This story is most definitely an anachronistic indictment of ancient societal gender roles and expectations. And there was the boy character who decided one day that he was actually a girl and ran off to join a monastery that was tolerant of non-binary genders. I came for the story of demons and gods and a world teeming with both good and malevolent spirits, but had to sit through a sermon on millennial ideals of gender equality. In the end everybody realized it was stupid to enforce gender roles and they all lived happily ever after in a world where even the wise and eternal spirits of nature knew it was best to declare their preferred gender pronouns when meeting new people.

A woman’s place

“I think you’ve folded yourself into the shape others have expected of you.”
This was a long series of scenes demonstrating over and over again the unfortunate place for women in society. In every village, with every interaction, Miuko is ignored, mistreated, or underestimated. Miuko comes across other daughters, mothers, and women all helpless and victimized. This heavy-handed moralizing detracted from the fantasy story, which was engaging and fun. My favorite parts involved the escapades of Geiki, the bird-boy and his trickster ways.

Miuko is “too adventurous for girls, too opinionated for boys.”
Although there are countless scenes where men leer and make threats like “let’s see what else that mouth can do,” there aren’t any actual details of abuse and most perilous encounters either fade to black or are easily foiled by Miuko and her companions, making this fit for teen listeners.

“lugubrious”
The author’s favorite word. While the “women’s place” themes fade in the second half,
allowing the story to take precedence, the “lugubrious” bombs continue throughout.

Lots of fun

I really enjoyed this book. The story has more twists and turns than California’s route 101. The heroine takes a licking, makes a new friend and perseveres through wondrous adventures.

Cool Japanese mythology

I loved the Japanese mythology and all the different spirits. Geiki and the monkey spirits were the best! Miuko irritated me at times with her indecision and there was way way too much commentary on gender inequality. I got the picture after the first four or five times. No need to keep bringing it up. Cut that down and it would have been a great story

Good read — couple of story parts that felt were missing

A good read! There were parts I caught myself no longer paying attention as it felt boring or unimportant, or was confused because of the lack of explanation. Especially in part two with the main “twist” in the plot. Regardless, I liked how this book wasn’t just a big love story where she ended in the enemies to lovers trope, and it focuses on feminism. The voice actor was perfect for this! Overall, worth a read.

Adventurous

A very enjoyable and delightfully, entertaining reading of the story. Enjoyed very much the portrayal of the characters all of them. I recommend this book to others.

A multi-level story

The voice of this book sounds as though it was meant to be read aloud, and the story can be read as a simple adventure story, a feminist parable, or a modern take on Japanese mythology. Or all at once.

The narrator did a great job making the characters distinct and imparting their speech with their personalities. But I had a problem with some of her mispronunciations of words -- such a thing tends to draw me out of a story. The most egregious was her pronouncing "hearth" as though it rhymed with "Earth", which I found jarring.

Couldn't finish

Much as I enjoy fantasy, this story just couldn't keep my interest. Narrator voice also got to me.

Captivating Story With a Rich Cast of Characters

Loved following along on this incredible journey, with its complex and rich characters. Narration was done beautifully, and the story was captivating as well as shocking.

it was a cool story

the story was cool but I think the person reading it kinda killed it for me.
not as much action in it as I thought there was going to be.