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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
medium-paced
Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Teen, and Colored Pages Book tour for the early copy of The Blood Phoenix!
The Blood Phoenix was the perfect follow up to Of Jade and Dragons. It was so lovely getting to be back in this world with my favorite characters Ying, Ye-Yang, and Ye-Kan. We also got to hear from a new POV👀
This book was full of allllll the (good) drama at every turn. All of the characters had to make hard choices at some point. Sometimes it worked out, other times it didn’t. But I think that’s what makes a good story- no character is perfect, and how they deal with adversity is so important.
I loved The Blood Phoenix and can’t wait to read more from Amber Chen🥹💗
The Blood Phoenix was the perfect follow up to Of Jade and Dragons. It was so lovely getting to be back in this world with my favorite characters Ying, Ye-Yang, and Ye-Kan. We also got to hear from a new POV👀
This book was full of allllll the (good) drama at every turn. All of the characters had to make hard choices at some point. Sometimes it worked out, other times it didn’t. But I think that’s what makes a good story- no character is perfect, and how they deal with adversity is so important.
I loved The Blood Phoenix and can’t wait to read more from Amber Chen🥹💗
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Blood Phoenix picks up 2 years after Of Jade And Dragon ends. Events force Ying to go back to Fei where she teams up with those from the Engineers Guild to save the empire.
Unfortunately, until the 50% mark I was kind of bored. I understand why the first part of the book was there, but it kind of felt like filler. The second half has a lot more action and political scheming, which is why this is a 3 and not a 2. That being said, even in the second half I felt like we were moving on from things very quickly. Something happens and then readers are immediately moved to the next thing without really giving the time to process it. The ending felt rushed and also left it open for future installments, which is interesting considering this is labeled as a duology.
I really enjoyed Nian's chapters and wish we could have spent more time with her. Watching her and Ye-kan's relationship form was really sweet. I would read an entire book on them! I also wish we could have spent more time with the pirates. They were really cool and instead I felt like they were just kind of there on the side to move the plot forward. Which isn't necessarily bad, but spending more time with them would have really enhanced the reading experience. I also HATED Ying and Ye-Yang's relationship. He is extremely toxic and I was never rooting for the two of them to get together.
Overall, I'm glad I read it to know what happens to the characters in this world, but I think the first installment could stand on its own if people don't mind an open-ended conclusion.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC for exchange for an honest review!
Unfortunately, until the 50% mark I was kind of bored. I understand why the first part of the book was there, but it kind of felt like filler. The second half has a lot more action and political scheming, which is why this is a 3 and not a 2. That being said, even in the second half I felt like we were moving on from things very quickly. Something happens and then readers are immediately moved to the next thing without really giving the time to process it. The ending felt rushed and also left it open for future installments, which is interesting considering this is labeled as a duology.
I really enjoyed Nian's chapters and wish we could have spent more time with her. Watching her and Ye-kan's relationship form was really sweet. I would read an entire book on them! I also wish we could have spent more time with the pirates. They were really cool and instead I felt like they were just kind of there on the side to move the plot forward. Which isn't necessarily bad, but spending more time with them would have really enhanced the reading experience. I also HATED Ying and Ye-Yang's relationship. He is extremely toxic and I was never rooting for the two of them to get together.
Overall, I'm glad I read it to know what happens to the characters in this world, but I think the first installment could stand on its own if people don't mind an open-ended conclusion.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC for exchange for an honest review!
It was great to be with these characters again in The Blood Phoenix. Despite a time skip and the ending of Of Jade And Dragons it doesn't take long to start seeing some familiar faces. Nian also returns as a pov character with more insight into court politics alongside Ye-kan (my favourite!). The drama between Nian/Ying/Ye-yang was not my favourite, but this gets resolved relatively quickly.
The world feels much larger in the sequel and we see Ying's engineering skills reach new heights which is as refreshing to see as the first. The Blood Phoenix was as interesting as the Engineering Guild in the previous book. A whole host of new characters and plenty of intrigue with pirate (!!!!) politics. The courtly intrigue, hidden agendas and betrayals really increase in this one!
Overall, a good conclusion to the duology which potentially leaves the door open to return to this world. (It kind of doesn't feel like a duology with that ending) I feel this duology really shines when it comes to the well rounded and complex characters, I think the first is my favourite but this was still a very enjoyable read.
Thanks to Netgalley & Random House for this arc.
The world feels much larger in the sequel and we see Ying's engineering skills reach new heights which is as refreshing to see as the first. The Blood Phoenix was as interesting as the Engineering Guild in the previous book. A whole host of new characters and plenty of intrigue with pirate (!!!!) politics. The courtly intrigue, hidden agendas and betrayals really increase in this one!
Overall, a good conclusion to the duology which potentially leaves the door open to return to this world. (It kind of doesn't feel like a duology with that ending) I feel this duology really shines when it comes to the well rounded and complex characters, I think the first is my favourite but this was still a very enjoyable read.
Thanks to Netgalley & Random House for this arc.
I would like to sue for emotional damage over that ending.
I flew through The Blood Phoenix (after a brief pause to flip through Of Jade and Dragons to remind myself of who Ye-Yang and Ye-Kan were since it’s been a hot minute) and I loved every second of it. Especially the seconds where tears were pouring down my cheeks.
This was a well-done ending to the duology and I am excited to see what Amber Chen has in store next. Thank you to the publisher for the review copy!
I flew through The Blood Phoenix (after a brief pause to flip through Of Jade and Dragons to remind myself of who Ye-Yang and Ye-Kan were since it’s been a hot minute) and I loved every second of it. Especially the seconds where tears were pouring down my cheeks.
This was a well-done ending to the duology and I am excited to see what Amber Chen has in store next. Thank you to the publisher for the review copy!
adventurous
challenging
emotional
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
What a great end to this duology! Book one was more dark academia and book two leaned more into the world conflict/adventure story. The second book expanded the universe (and POV's!) and gave us many battles. (And Pirates!)
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an eARC of this book!
Slight spoiler:
I really like it when a story is left just open ended enough that it feels like an HEA but there could still be more written. I would absolutely read a spinoff series.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an eARC of this book!
Slight spoiler:
I really like it when a story is left just open ended enough that it feels like an HEA but there could still be more written. I would absolutely read a spinoff series.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I had to take a minute to process this book. It is very different from the first with the tone and pacing. this book does add her sister's POV and does bounce between the 2 quite a bit and does jump into the future. I enjoyed Nian's view of the city and the politics and her friendships with those around her. To me it just isn't the same as the fast paced engineering school, academy setting. The story turns into a more action adventure story line which isn't bad it's just wasn't 100% expected.
Ying's character is complex. it was interesting reading her train of thought and loved the love/hate relationship of Ye-Yang and her. the world is expanded on and you learn more about the political.dilemna of everything. The chain of events had me sitting rereading some parts trying to figure out if I actually read it correctly and I love the surprises and twists this story brings. so sad the story is over and would have loved more about this world.
thank you NetGalley and vikings books for young Readers for the opportunity to read this book!
Ying's character is complex. it was interesting reading her train of thought and loved the love/hate relationship of Ye-Yang and her. the world is expanded on and you learn more about the political.dilemna of everything. The chain of events had me sitting rereading some parts trying to figure out if I actually read it correctly and I love the surprises and twists this story brings. so sad the story is over and would have loved more about this world.
thank you NetGalley and vikings books for young Readers for the opportunity to read this book!
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Thank to you PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | Viking Books for Young Readers and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this title to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I was excited to read the conclusion to this story. Of Jade and Dragons was my first foray into Asian folklore and it hooked me from the start. I loved the characters and their story. I loved the action. It was great to read the conclusion of their story with this title.
This book picks up two years after the first one ends. Ying and Ye-yang are thrown into each other's paths when the mysterious Blood Phoenix pirates attack her new home. She returns to the capital to help secure the palace. She is reunited with her old friends, her sister, and even her brother.
This book is told from the dual POVS of Ying and her sister, Nian. Nian has been promised to the High Commander in marriage. But she doesn't know his past with her sister. Nor does she know him. I liked how she took on a more active role in this book, coming to the aide of so many of the characters and coming into her own romance at the same time. It was lovely to watch that bloom.
Ying continues to struggle with her relationship with Ye-yang. They parted on bad terms and she doesn't think she can forgive him for anything that occurred all those years ago. But she also can't help feeling a pull to him and they slowly rekindle the friendship they had in the first book.
It's hard to review this book without giving away things that happened in the first book as well and spoiling the story to this one. The book has a lot of action and continues to build on the steampunk aspect that was at the forefront of the first book. Ying rejoins her guild friends to help create a vessel to put the pirates out of business.
Chen infuses great action and a nice amount of humor in this book. But she also tackles some hard things like the death of parents and friends. The characters mourn the loss of people but ultimately create strong bonds between them and come together in order to combat the evil that lurks in their mist.
The world building continued to be fun. I loved the water world part of this series. That was something we didn't get much of in the first book. And Chen paces the book perfectly.
If you haven't picked up this series, I highly recommend it. I loved all the new characters she introduced as well as how great it was to reconnect to the characters I already knew. I think Nian was my favorite. Getting to know her more in this book was fantastic and definitely changed my view of her from the first book. And I can see where Chen might write more in this world.
If you're looking for a fantasy steampunk with the back set of great folklore, try this series out!
I was excited to read the conclusion to this story. Of Jade and Dragons was my first foray into Asian folklore and it hooked me from the start. I loved the characters and their story. I loved the action. It was great to read the conclusion of their story with this title.
This book picks up two years after the first one ends. Ying and Ye-yang are thrown into each other's paths when the mysterious Blood Phoenix pirates attack her new home. She returns to the capital to help secure the palace. She is reunited with her old friends, her sister, and even her brother.
This book is told from the dual POVS of Ying and her sister, Nian. Nian has been promised to the High Commander in marriage. But she doesn't know his past with her sister. Nor does she know him. I liked how she took on a more active role in this book, coming to the aide of so many of the characters and coming into her own romance at the same time. It was lovely to watch that bloom.
Ying continues to struggle with her relationship with Ye-yang. They parted on bad terms and she doesn't think she can forgive him for anything that occurred all those years ago. But she also can't help feeling a pull to him and they slowly rekindle the friendship they had in the first book.
It's hard to review this book without giving away things that happened in the first book as well and spoiling the story to this one. The book has a lot of action and continues to build on the steampunk aspect that was at the forefront of the first book. Ying rejoins her guild friends to help create a vessel to put the pirates out of business.
Chen infuses great action and a nice amount of humor in this book. But she also tackles some hard things like the death of parents and friends. The characters mourn the loss of people but ultimately create strong bonds between them and come together in order to combat the evil that lurks in their mist.
The world building continued to be fun. I loved the water world part of this series. That was something we didn't get much of in the first book. And Chen paces the book perfectly.
If you haven't picked up this series, I highly recommend it. I loved all the new characters she introduced as well as how great it was to reconnect to the characters I already knew. I think Nian was my favorite. Getting to know her more in this book was fantastic and definitely changed my view of her from the first book. And I can see where Chen might write more in this world.
If you're looking for a fantasy steampunk with the back set of great folklore, try this series out!
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy
The Blood Phoenix by Amber Chen is a third person dual-POV YA fantasy sequel to Of Jade and Dragons. Ying, Nian, and Ye-yang’s story continues as we pick up two years after where we left off: Nian and Ye-yang are engaged and Ying and Ye-yang are still pining for each other but Ying won’t let the engagement be broken. But pirates are right around the corner and Ying still hasn’t gotten vengeance for her father’s murder.
Of the two POVs, I found myself preferring Nian’s. This go around, Nian is moving through the world as an engaged young woman who has finally realized her fiancee does not love her and now she’s falling in love with his brother. She has responsibilities put on her as Ye-yang’s fiancee, responsibilities that should belong to his wife, and she fulfills them all while coming to terms with her new feelings and the romance between her sister and fiancee. There is a ton of emotional maturity in her arc and also vulnerability. It’s not the main storyline, but it does carry much of the emotional depth.
Technically, the term ‘silkpunk’ was not created to describe ‘steampunk-style ideas in an East Asian-inspired world,’ but that is what the term has come to mean for many people (Ken Liu has admitted to basically creating the term to draw a box around his own book and that he doesn’t consider the term to be synonymous with Asian-inspired fantasy). In terms of the popular definition, I think the worldbuilding really hits and does contain some aspects of what Ken Liu uses to describe silkpunk in his own words, namely the way the technology borrows from the natural world, such as ships being inspired by whales. Regardless of where you sit in how this term should be used, I think it is a strong YA representation of what it could be.
Ying and Ye-yang are still having a lot of issues, namely because Ying doesn’t feel like she can trust him. Of all the characters, he’s perhaps the most frustrating but he also is responsible for a lot of the plot and how certain things in the world are moving. I totally understand why Ying struggles with her feelings for him and I probably would as well if I was in her shoes, especially if I felt like every time I let someone in, it seemed like something new comes up that feels like I was lied to or tricked.
I would recommend this to fans of YA fantasy inspired by Chinese history and readers of YA looking for engineering characters and creative technology
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
After thoroughly enjoying the first book in this duology, I had high hopes for the sequel. Unfortunately, it fell flat in some areas. While the sequel did retain some of the elements I loved from the first book, such as the intricate world-building and the steampunk flair, it struggled to deliver a satisfying continuation of the story.
The pacing felt uneven at times and the story didn’t really hit its stride until the last 30% or so. The ending left a lot to be desired due to its ambiguity and open-endedness, which left some loose ends and not enough closure to feel satisfying. That said, the author does a great job at crafting immersive settings. The expansion of the steampunk elements and character dynamics added depth to the story. Overall, it was a decent read, just not the conclusion I was hoping for.
Thank you to Viking and Netgalley for the ARC!
adventurous
dark
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
I'm not entirely sure this was as good as the first in the series. That said, it was still excellent. The first book was one of my top reads, and while I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel, it didn't grip me in the same way.
I love the romance in this. It's complicated and messy and slow. It involves brothers and sisters (not incestuously, of course) in complex relationships filled with murder, lack of trust, political manoeuvres, protection, betrayal, and all sorts of complications. But the love is there and some of them feel that it's worth fighting for, and that shines throughout the book.
The introduction of Nian's PoV was really interesting. I'm torn on how to feel about it. I loved seeing everything from Ying's perspective and it added a different dimension to see things from a different viewpoint. However, I also spent the time away from Ying just wanting to get back to her.
I'm not sure how to feel about the ending either, especially knowing it is a duology and not a trilogy. I like how some things were wrapped up, but there were definitely other things that I felt could have been resolved more clearly. I think it's still open for a third book as there are still some unanswered questions.
I love the romance in this. It's complicated and messy and slow. It involves brothers and sisters (not incestuously, of course) in complex relationships filled with murder, lack of trust, political manoeuvres, protection, betrayal, and all sorts of complications. But the love is there and some of them feel that it's worth fighting for, and that shines throughout the book.
The introduction of Nian's PoV was really interesting. I'm torn on how to feel about it. I loved seeing everything from Ying's perspective and it added a different dimension to see things from a different viewpoint. However, I also spent the time away from Ying just wanting to get back to her.
I'm not sure how to feel about the ending either, especially knowing it is a duology and not a trilogy. I like how some things were wrapped up, but there were definitely other things that I felt could have been resolved more clearly. I think it's still open for a third book as there are still some unanswered questions.