A sweeping fantasy about a girl with the special power to communicate with magical beasts and about the warring kingdom only she can save. This book is a series preceded by The Beast Player II Ohju and followed by The Beast Player IV: Conclusion

Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature Honor Book; 2020 Mildred L. Batchelder Honor Award.

Author is a Japanese writer who has won many awards.

Japan. Originally published in Japan as Kemono no Sōja by In English--Pushkin Press (London) in 2018. English translation by Cathy Hirano published in the United States by Godwin Books/Henry Holt in 2019.