Reviews tagging 'War'

Heart of the Sun Warrior by Sue Lynn Tan

72 reviews

aims122's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, War, and Violence

Moderate: Murder and Child death

Minor: Gaslighting and Death of parent

In the first book, Daughter of the Moon Goddess, Xingyin went through a lot and there's a lot of references back to things that happened in the first book. Namely to a betrayal, abduction and imprisonment by someone whom she trusted. This is referenced quite a bit throughout the book, especially in the beginning.

bookwormabby54's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional slow-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Death, and Blood

Moderate: Vomit, War, and Child death

moon_peach's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad 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? Yes

5.0

I loved this book more than the original. I understand why some might be unhappy but I was hooked and on the edge of my seat on every page.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and War

sofiadanielle's review against another edition

adventurous emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

Hmmm. I think the first book in the duology is stronger, as many have said in their reviews. I do agree with the critiques of pacing for scenes of heightened action, of course; I felt this too while reading the first book, and have likened this to be Sue Lynn Tan’s writing style. 

I feel conflicted about the last 50 pages, though I think I maybe agree with the decisions made, even if I had ‘hoped’ for something else. 

My qualms aside, I deeply loved the universe and characters created in this story. Will absolutely be getting Tales of the Celestial Kingdom upon release, to finally lay this series to rest. I loved starting my reading year with this storyline :)

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Content Warnings

Moderate: War, Death of parent, and Violence

boodles100'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
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I loved the plot. Lost stars for repetitive writing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, War, and Violence

Moderate: Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Child death, and Infidelity

hello_lovely13'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
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Unfortunately, this did not live up to the hype of the first book for me. The first half of the book was caught in the loop of problem-solution, problem-solution, which made the pacing of the story dissatisfying. At the halfway mark, I had no clue as to how the book was going to end, or even the direction it was going. The third quarter of the book was much better in regards to the pacing, but I felt that the resolution to the main conflict happened too quickly.

The death of Prince Yanming DESTROYED me. I could not stop crying. The death of Wenzhi, however, left me disappointed. I was very glad that it turned out that his character wasn’t gone for good. I wanted him and Xingyin to end up together after all. Also, for the first half of the book, the inclusion on Houyi being alive came out of nowhere, and though I’m happy he and Chang’e are reunited, I’m not sure the inclusion added enough interest for me.

The last 50 pages were fantastic. Overall, it was entertaining (I was constantly stressed and wanting to know what happened next), but the pacing left something to be desired and the chemistry between characters wasn’t as strong as in the first book. I will admit, I usually hate fighting scenes (I usually find them boring), but this duology has nailed every single one! I’m always interested and hanging on every word! I’m a bit disappointed with this book, but I’m also happy in some ways.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Grief, and Violence

Moderate: Blood and War

Minor: Death of parent

shellbell_04's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad 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

It’s a beautiful continuation of the first book with so much detail that made me feel like I was along side the characters

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Child death, and War

Minor: Sexual assault

tiffanyfreads'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
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

I adored the first book and I feel the same about the sequel. I kept reading cause I just needed to know what happened. 

I’m soooo happy with the ending like ahhhhhh I can’t wait for the extended epilogue coming out really soon to see even more of my favs

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Violence, Murder, and Death

Moderate: Child death, War, and Blood

claragweny'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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

As much as I loved Daughter of the Monon Goddess I am devastated by Heart of the Sun Warrior. The story is so immersive and I found myself laughing, crying, gasping, and swooning while listening to the audiobook. I love everything I've heard from Natalie Naudis and this was no exception. 

I am such a Wenzhi fan so when he died I had to stop the audiobook and send a little prayer that he would be resurrected a la Houyi. While I would have loved to have seen Xingyin and Wenzhi fall in love again I was so happy with how their story ended. It truly filled me with such hope and joy for them.

Overall, this was an amazing conclusion to my favorite series/duology I've read this year if not of all time. I would recommend this book (and duology) to anyone who loves epic fantasy, romance, or stories inspired by mythology. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, War, and Child death

taroroot's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, and Child death

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and War