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A review by starkiwi
To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods by Molly X. Chang
5.0
A remarkable fantasy retelling of China’s history! It has the vibes of a typical romantasy novel but with a historical and cultural twist. Almost everyone is presented as a potential villain, including the main character; Ruying, and good and bad are explored as arbitrary concepts. This makes the reader question the morality of not only the fictional events of the story but also the historical ones it alludes to. Nonetheless, you still get very attached to the characters and story. I can’t wait to follow Ruying through whatever terrible, morally-conflicting things happen next!
Full Review:
This was a remarkable fantasy retelling of China’s history. It has the vibes of a typical dystopian fantasy novel but with a historical and cultural twist.
Of course, we have the childhood friend and strange, new boy love triangle, but everything else is very different. Ruying herself is not the typical main character. Her moral conflicts with the extremely hard choices she was required to make set her apart from other protagonists. Meanwhile also leaning into how almost everyone is presented as a potential villain. About halfway through I even began to wonder if she was on the wrong side of the story.
Similar to how the real world is, no side is actually ‘good’. This book (and I hope the rest of the series will do this as well) explores how good and bad are arbitrary concepts. Instead, everything is a muddled sort of grey. Yes, this means the book is a little dark. However, it provides an intrigue into the morality of not only the fictional events of the story but also the historical ones it alludes to.
I really enjoyed this aspect. Without it, I probably would have dismissed the book as another romantasy with a stereotypical love triangle. On the contrary, I was surprised by how much my brain latched onto this book. There were times when something would strike a bit of de-ja-vu in me and I would think “What does that remind me of?” This book. That’s what. Which for me is a good sign. I was subconsciously getting really attached to the characters and story.
Hence, I am actually quite excited about the sequel! There is no indication as to how this is going to end and I can’t wait to follow Ruying through whatever terrible, morally-conflicting things happen next.
Full Review:
This was a remarkable fantasy retelling of China’s history. It has the vibes of a typical dystopian fantasy novel but with a historical and cultural twist.
Of course, we have the childhood friend and strange, new boy love triangle, but everything else is very different. Ruying herself is not the typical main character. Her moral conflicts with the extremely hard choices she was required to make set her apart from other protagonists. Meanwhile also leaning into how almost everyone is presented as a potential villain. About halfway through I even began to wonder if she was on the wrong side of the story.
Similar to how the real world is, no side is actually ‘good’. This book (and I hope the rest of the series will do this as well) explores how good and bad are arbitrary concepts. Instead, everything is a muddled sort of grey. Yes, this means the book is a little dark. However, it provides an intrigue into the morality of not only the fictional events of the story but also the historical ones it alludes to.
I really enjoyed this aspect. Without it, I probably would have dismissed the book as another romantasy with a stereotypical love triangle. On the contrary, I was surprised by how much my brain latched onto this book. There were times when something would strike a bit of de-ja-vu in me and I would think “What does that remind me of?” This book. That’s what. Which for me is a good sign. I was subconsciously getting really attached to the characters and story.
Hence, I am actually quite excited about the sequel! There is no indication as to how this is going to end and I can’t wait to follow Ruying through whatever terrible, morally-conflicting things happen next.