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spicycronereads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
This fantasy book is deeply steeped in Chinese mythology.
FMC Xingyin is the immortal daughter of the moon goddess and an mortal heroic archer. Her mother is trapped in the celestial territory of the moon due to having offended the emperor of the celestial realm. The novel is Xingyin’s quest to free her mother. It takes place over a traditional, four-part east Asian style storytelling structure, where you have the introduction, development, twist, and then conclusion. So the pacing was a little different from the western fantasy structure that I read more of. Things that I kept expecting to be parts of the quest that would take the duration of the novel and take us even into the second part of the duology were actually resolved fairly quickly. It was kind of refreshing from an angst point of view.
Themes of being the chosen one, found family, and self-love and sacrifice resonate across cultural differences in storytelling style. There are lots of mythical adversaries and action sequences to keep your interest piqued. There are interesting secondary characters. And seeing Xingyin develop into a bad*ss warrior is a lot of fun.
This is a fantasy romance and so we do have a love triangle between Xingyin, and two male characters, Liwei and Wenzhi. I usually hate a love triangle. But I didn’t mind it so much here. I’m still not certain it’s resolved. Especially after I went back and looked over my notes from the earlier part of the book and although it ends with what seems like a clear choice, I’m not convinced we’ve seen the last of the other suitor.
It did take quite a while before we got to anything even resembling a romance plot. And I have to admit it didn’t seem like a slow burn so much as a friendship that suddenly erupted into love. Maybe it’s because Xingyin was not picking up on the signs of the love interest, but for me, it kind of came out of left field. From then on there are many swoony moments, including Xingyin’s journey to self-love. 💖💖💖
Normally, in these reviews, I talk about diversity. But that’s a little bit complicated here. By the strictest definition of diversity, the novel is not all that diverse. The characters are all of one race and they are all cis gendered and hetero. They all even come from relatively high class stations. However, the novel does feature mythology and characters (written by an author who is) underrepresented in popular fantasy in the U.S. So while it does not meet the definition of diversity in the strictest sense of the word, it definitely ticks a lot of boxes in the spirit of diverse representation about which I am usually writing.
Oh, and did I mention there are dragons? There are dragons! They play a relatively small role, but they are there all the same.
Overall, it took me a little while to get into this, but once it picked up, I really was hooked. I will definitely be reading the next installment in the duology. And luckily it’s completed so I don’t have to wait! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 / 💖💖💖
FMC Xingyin is the immortal daughter of the moon goddess and an mortal heroic archer. Her mother is trapped in the celestial territory of the moon due to having offended the emperor of the celestial realm. The novel is Xingyin’s quest to free her mother. It takes place over a traditional, four-part east Asian style storytelling structure, where you have the introduction, development, twist, and then conclusion. So the pacing was a little different from the western fantasy structure that I read more of. Things that I kept expecting to be parts of the quest that would take the duration of the novel and take us even into the second part of the duology were actually resolved fairly quickly. It was kind of refreshing from an angst point of view.
Themes of being the chosen one, found family, and self-love and sacrifice resonate across cultural differences in storytelling style. There are lots of mythical adversaries and action sequences to keep your interest piqued. There are interesting secondary characters. And seeing Xingyin develop into a bad*ss warrior is a lot of fun.
This is a fantasy romance and so we do have a love triangle between Xingyin, and two male characters, Liwei and Wenzhi. I usually hate a love triangle. But I didn’t mind it so much here. I’m still not certain it’s resolved. Especially after I went back and looked over my notes from the earlier part of the book and although it ends with what seems like a clear choice, I’m not convinced we’ve seen the last of the other suitor.
It did take quite a while before we got to anything even resembling a romance plot. And I have to admit it didn’t seem like a slow burn so much as a friendship that suddenly erupted into love. Maybe it’s because Xingyin was not picking up on the signs of the love interest, but for me, it kind of came out of left field. From then on there are many swoony moments, including Xingyin’s journey to self-love. 💖💖💖
Normally, in these reviews, I talk about diversity. But that’s a little bit complicated here. By the strictest definition of diversity, the novel is not all that diverse. The characters are all of one race and they are all cis gendered and hetero. They all even come from relatively high class stations. However, the novel does feature mythology and characters (written by an author who is) underrepresented in popular fantasy in the U.S. So while it does not meet the definition of diversity in the strictest sense of the word, it definitely ticks a lot of boxes in the spirit of diverse representation about which I am usually writing.
Oh, and did I mention there are dragons? There are dragons! They play a relatively small role, but they are there all the same.
Overall, it took me a little while to get into this, but once it picked up, I really was hooked. I will definitely be reading the next installment in the duology. And luckily it’s completed so I don’t have to wait! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 / 💖💖💖
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism and Kidnapping
Moderate: Violence and War
Minor: Death of parent
k_fry's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
If I had to pick one word to describe this book it would be “lush”. Tan does an amazing job of bringing the glittering richness of the immortal realm to life without bogging down the story with extraneous description.
There were a couple of predictable plot points and character types, which I think is because it followed a similar tale to any major YA fantasy produced recently, but overall was done so well I didn’t mind. Even though some things have been done before, it felt fresh in this book because so much else was uniquely done.
There were a couple of predictable plot points and character types, which I think is because it followed a similar tale to any major YA fantasy produced recently, but overall was done so well I didn’t mind. Even though some things have been done before, it felt fresh in this book because so much else was uniquely done.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Blood, and Grief
Moderate: Alcohol, Confinement, Body shaming, Classism, and Kidnapping
Minor: Death of parent
hazel_oat's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
tense
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: War, Alcohol, Child death, Child abuse, Kidnapping, and Physical abuse
Minor: Self harm and Drug use
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
silverhill's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Torture, Bullying, and Violence
kaneebli's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
this book made me so angry
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
Moderate: Classism
Minor: Torture and Rape
rissaread's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
tense
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? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Gore
Moderate: Violence, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Kidnapping, and War
mikaylay's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Quotes: “Some scars are carved into our bones—a part of who we are, shaping what we become.” pg. 4
I appreciated the character growth, particularly with our primary female character. The style of writing was flowery but easy to read, and the vivid descriptions let me envision the surroundings, actions, and characters. I appreciated and loved the tenacity and dedication that Xingyin displayed in her efforts to liberate her mother, the Moon Goddess, from isolation. The romance was exciting and at times mysterious, but the back and forth in the love triangle every few seconds was a little tiresome and confusing. I liked how the author incorporated various elements of fairytales and mythology into this book, such as fox spirits and dragons, as it gave the book a fresh and distinct spin.
The plot twist surprised me and was really well thought out by the author. The battle scenes were enjoyable, but several were overly long or lacked depth. Overall, I appreciated this book's interpretation of the Moon Goddess story, Xingyin's character growth, and her desire to not only save her mother from seclusion, but also to achieve her goals in her own unique way.
I appreciated the character growth, particularly with our primary female character. The style of writing was flowery but easy to read, and the vivid descriptions let me envision the surroundings, actions, and characters. I appreciated and loved the tenacity and dedication that Xingyin displayed in her efforts to liberate her mother, the Moon Goddess, from isolation. The romance was exciting and at times mysterious, but the back and forth in the love triangle every few seconds was a little tiresome and confusing. I liked how the author incorporated various elements of fairytales and mythology into this book, such as fox spirits and dragons, as it gave the book a fresh and distinct spin.
The plot twist surprised me and was really well thought out by the author. The battle scenes were enjoyable, but several were overly long or lacked depth. Overall, I appreciated this book's interpretation of the Moon Goddess story, Xingyin's character growth, and her desire to not only save her mother from seclusion, but also to achieve her goals in her own unique way.
Content Warnings
Minor: Grief, Violence, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
melist6's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
slow-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? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Blood
Moderate: War, Murder, and Confinement
Minor: Sexual harassment and Kidnapping
ijustreallyliketrees's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and War
Moderate: Death
Minor: Sexual harassment