Reviews with content warning for Grief - Heart of the Sun Warrior

Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Heart of the Sun Warrior by Sue Lynn Tan

65 reviews

booksthatburn's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective 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

5.0

HEART OF THE SUN WARRIOR picks up a little after DAUGTHER OF THE MOON GODDESS. Xingyin is back on the moon with her mother, but now neither of them is bound to stay. Xingyin is still the narrator, and her presentation is consistent with the first book. This wraps up the relationship triangle established in the first book between Xingyin, Liwei, and Wenzhi. It also establishes and resolves a new storyline, related to Xingin's mother and her parents' past. As the final book of the duology, it's self-contained enough for the main narrative to make sense if someone didn't read the first book, but the friendships, allies, and enemies who drive the story were almost all established earlier. It's very good at recapping when necessary in a way that feels very natural, but it'll definitely be more resonant to someone trying to remember what happened earlier, not someone who didn't read the first book at all.

The worldbuilding leans on things set up in the first book, expanding on a couple of new areas and spending much more on the moon and Xingyin's parents. Her mother is finally free to leave the moon and this makes way for opportunities long denied to her. It is immersive without getting bogged down in descriptions of each place. They have a distinctive character conveyed through Xingyin's reactions and worries, as well as the people in the various areas. It's not as travel-heavy as the first book, with a much more straightforward quest in a shorter timespan. The elixir of immortality is in play once again, and the quest, in this case, is to flee and not die from the king's wrath, while hopefully figuring out how to stop a plot against Xingyin's mother.

Xingyin is still torn between Liwei and Wenzhi, with both men making their interest clear but not pressuring her. Her complicated feelings are driven by events in the first book, and she's trying to sort out her thoughts and desires. They represent two different kinds of lives in addition to being different people, and she's strongly bonded to them. I like this better than a lot of love triangles, but I must admit that a part of me wishes this resolved like IRON WIDOW by Xiran Jay Zhao. It doesn't because Liwei and Wenzhi are not at all interested in each other, and so it remains a choice between people on Xingyin's part. Ultimately I like how it ends, I think it fits the characters and the narrative. Because they are immortal unless actively killed, this is very early in Xingyin's presumably long existence to come, and the ending is very aware of that. It helps to solidify the sense that this is one particularly important and eventful chapter in her life, but that this isn't the end by any stretch.

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deedireads's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.

TL;DR REVIEW:

Heart of the Sun Warrior is a fun, adventurous sequel to Daughter of the Moon Goddess. While it didn’t blow me away (mostly because the love triangle didn’t quite work for me), I did enjoy it.

For you if: You like an adventure, and/or want to read more fantasy based on Chinese mythology.

FULL REVIEW:

Heart of the Sun Warrior is the sequel to Daughter of the Moon Goddess and the conclusion of the Celestial Kingdom duology, a Chinese fantasy drama (epic fantasy rooted in Chinese mythology). Although it didn’t blow me away, I did enjoy it and the duology overall.

I won’t give spoilers for the first book, but suffice to say that this one picks up only a short time after that one ends. From there, a new adventure quickly begins. That’s one thing I liked about this duology: Each book feels like a complete story. This time around, Xingyin knows herself and her strengths better; she’s still headstrong, and she still rushes into situations a bit too quickly, but it was nice to get to know her as a more confident person.

One strength of this duology is the prose. Sue Lynn Tan writes gorgeous sentences, and these books are lush and cinematic. That matches up nicely with the kind of action-packed, something-for-everyone story. I also loved getting to know the legend of the Moon Goddess through this lens!

The reason this fell a bit short for me, however, is just that I don’t like love triangles. Sometimes I can be convinced, but I never quite got there on this one. I think it could have benefited from more character development for the secondary characters in the book; they’re all sort of flat except for Xingyin herself. Although part of this may also be my own inexperience and naive reactions to a more Eastern storytelling style.

Still, if you find yourself drawn to this one, I’d say definitely give it a shot!

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emolr's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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fifteenthjessica's review

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adventurous emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Fist of all, Sue Lynn Tan's prose is gorgeous! Descriptions of the opulence of the immortals are a delight, and I wish I used sticky notes to mark my favorite descriptions so I can draw them later. Action features a solid balance of memorable spectacle and realism that keeps it grounded and weighty while still heavily featuring magic.

I didn't like the plot as much as I liked the first one though. The love triangle (the one weak part in the first book because Xingyin's feelings for Wenzhi never held a candle to her feelings for Liwei) is overall stronger and more prominent, but also gets old eventually. Towards the end of the book, when Xingyin pondered her feelings for the male leads, my eyes would glaze over. The resolution makes sense and fits with the themes of the novel, but it was drawn out by Xingyin's stubbornness.

And I feel bad for Liwei who feels very much like he was strung along for a book and a half. In spite of these complaints, I would buy a low stakes sequel about Wenzhi and Xingyin's new relationship (or anything by Tan) in a heartbeat.

There were also some loose ends that left me feeling unsatsifed. The two sisters from the Golden Desert that stay on the moon in the beginning are probably a sequel hook, but the lack of confirmation about what happened to

the dead in Wugang's army in the end was disappointing. Especially after it was heavily implied that poor Yanming was added to the army. Also, the resurrection of Houyi felt too easy, and characters from that subplot like Tao and Zhiyi feel more like plot devices then characters, which is a pity, because this adds a lot of much needed depth to Wenzhi and the Celestial Empress that makes you really understand their more antagonistic decisions in the last book.

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katesbooknook's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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kumquats87's review

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adventurous hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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marleywrites's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

So. Much. Angst. My heart fractured so many times while reading this book. Every time Xingyin’s heart broke, mine did too. I felt her grief deep in my soul.

This book made me want to sing and cry at the same time.

The Wenzhi redemption arc- phew! I was rooting for him from the start!

I was feeling every emotional high and low like it was my own emotions at stake.

This story is now a forever favorite. The character arcs. The thrilling plot. The symbolism. The fantastic prose.

If Sue Lynn Tan writes it, I’m gonna read it.

Liwei working so hard to save Wenzhi for Xingyin… that’s love. I’m so proud of him for setting aside that pain he felt for her. And that Wenzhi and Xingyin will get another chance…. Yes, I cried. A lot.

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