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kackbratze's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
savvyrosereads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Rating: 4/5 stars
Based on the story of the moon goddess in Chinese mythology, this is the tale of Xingyin, daughter of the imprisoned moon goddess Chang’e, and her quest to free her mother.
This was the April pick for my book club and I didn’t finish it until May, so that probably says a lot. I should say up front that I LIKED this book—I thought the story was really engaging, the mythology was interesting, and I was mostly entertained while I was reading. I also really enjoyed the audiobook, which I switched to for the last couple hundred pages.
Unfortunately, I struggled with actually picking up the book because I had issues connecting with both the writing style and the characters. I felt like the style was pretty surface-level, moving through really important events too quickly and without enough depth or explanation. I also didn’t have a sense of the plot arc or where things were headed at any point, which makes it hard for me to feel grounded in a story. Finally, while I liked the characters, I felt like I never really got to KNOW them, except for perhaps the FMC Xingyin.
All in all, I’ll be giving the second book in this duo a try for sure, but I hope it irons out some of the things I struggled with in book one!
CW: Imprisonment; injury/death/violence/war
Based on the story of the moon goddess in Chinese mythology, this is the tale of Xingyin, daughter of the imprisoned moon goddess Chang’e, and her quest to free her mother.
This was the April pick for my book club and I didn’t finish it until May, so that probably says a lot. I should say up front that I LIKED this book—I thought the story was really engaging, the mythology was interesting, and I was mostly entertained while I was reading. I also really enjoyed the audiobook, which I switched to for the last couple hundred pages.
Unfortunately, I struggled with actually picking up the book because I had issues connecting with both the writing style and the characters. I felt like the style was pretty surface-level, moving through really important events too quickly and without enough depth or explanation. I also didn’t have a sense of the plot arc or where things were headed at any point, which makes it hard for me to feel grounded in a story. Finally, while I liked the characters, I felt like I never really got to KNOW them, except for perhaps the FMC Xingyin.
All in all, I’ll be giving the second book in this duo a try for sure, but I hope it irons out some of the things I struggled with in book one!
CW: Imprisonment; injury/death/violence/war
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Blood, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and War
mybookishlife2's review against another edition
4.0
There wer something’s a bit everywhere, but it’s her debut. I love the world, the mythology, the dragons, her fmc, it’s so good.
tehmichi's review against another edition
Slow. PAINFULLY SLOW.
There’s no age progression on the female lead so I have no idea how old she is when she has to flee from home.
I barely made it 40 pages in because it felt like there was no way the main character was going to get depth.
Beautiful prose though.
There’s no age progression on the female lead so I have no idea how old she is when she has to flee from home.
I barely made it 40 pages in because it felt like there was no way the main character was going to get depth.
Beautiful prose though.
syddo's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
sanrio_sammie's review against another edition
started reading a different book for book club and never went back to this one
isabelrose730's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
yeppenny's review against another edition
4.5
Inspired by Eastern folklore, this action packed, enchanting novel offers a fantastical world of immortals from different realms. Xingyin, the secret daughter of Chang'e the moon goddess, goes on a series of adventures to free her mother from magically-bound imprisonment and gets tangled up in love along the way.
Pros:
- The beautiful incorporation of real Eastern folklore.
- This novel builds a dreamy and exciting world.
- Clear main objective.
Potential improvements:
- The mc, Xingyin, does not have great character depth or development. She makes the same stubborn, immature mistakes over and over again in an effort to portray the "defiant" heroine. Ultimately, she gets propelled through the plot on the wings of good luck more than anything.
- The novel introduces the concept of each magical person having elemental inclinations, but this is not developed further.
Pros:
- The beautiful incorporation of real Eastern folklore.
- This novel builds a dreamy and exciting world.
- Clear main objective.
Potential improvements:
- The mc, Xingyin, does not have great character depth or development. She makes the same stubborn, immature mistakes over and over again in an effort to portray the "defiant" heroine. Ultimately, she gets propelled through the plot on the wings of good luck more than anything.
- The novel introduces the concept of each magical person having elemental inclinations, but this is not developed further.