BOOKS | Review: Heart of the Sun Warrior by Sue Lynn Tan

Name: Heart of the Sun Warrior (The Celestial Kingdom duology #2)

Author: Sue Lynn Tan

Publisher: HarperVoyager

Date published: November 2022

Genre: Fiction, adult, fantasy, adventure, romance, mythology, retellings

Pages: 465

Rating: 4/5

This review contains moderate spoilers.

After winning her mother’s freedom from the Celestial Emperor, Xingyin thrives in the enchanting tranquility of her home. But her fragile peace is threatened by the discovery of a strange magic on the moon, and the unsettling changes in the Celestial Kingdom as the emperor tightens his grip on power.
While Xingyin is determined to keep clear of the rising danger, the discovery of a shocking truth spurs her into a perilous confrontation. Forced to flee her home once more, Xingyin and her companions venture to unexplored lands of the Immortal Realm, encountering legendary creatures and shrewd monarchs, beloved friends and bitter adversaries. With alliances shifting quicker than the tides, Xingyin has to overcome past grudges and enmities to forge a new path forward, seeking aid where she never imagined she would.
As an unspeakable terror sweeps across the realm, Xingyin must uncover the truth of her heart and claw her way through devastation - to rise against this evil before it destroys everything she holds dear, and the worlds she has grown to love... even if doing so demands the greatest price of all.

- From Goodreads.

I did enjoy this book, but there were a few things that meant I did not love it as much as Daughter of the Moon Goddess. Some of the events that set the plot of Heart of the Sun Warrior in motion did not seem that plausible to me, I could easily believe that the Celestial Emperor would use any excuse to punish Xingyin and her mother, but her mother's actions that lead to them being unjustly punished did seem a little out of character for her, a little more naive than I expected her to be since she was mostly quite a wise character.

I definitely still felt attached to the characters, I felt very emotional when they did, and felt their pain and worry and heartbreak, some parts of the story even made me cry.

Wenzhi was a character that I found a little more frustrating in this book. I still liked him and found the dynamic between him and Xingyin interesting, especially as they became allies, but there were a few times I did not enoy reading scenes with him in. Mostly it was because it seemed like he was not always listening when Xingyin told him what she wanted or he would push a little too much against her boundaries. He never went too far but it was enough to be annoying when it did happen.

I still really loved Liwei and worried for him, and wanted him and Xingyin to be able to work things and out and end the book at a good place together.

I also still loved Xingin's character, she struggled a lot and faced a lot of difficulties, but she still managed to be brave and tried to be kind and made the choice to be caring and take the better path even when it was not easy. I really liked that the author showed how difficult it was for her to be brave and keep going, to be heroic even when it was really hard and terrifying, even when she did not want to do something because she was scared, she did it anyway because she knew she needed to.

I did begin to miss the plot of the first book, the episodic storytelling style that slowly built to the more thrilling climax. This book in comparison had a more fast paced plot throughout, which was not really a fault of the book as it was a sequel that followed on from the first book, so it was propelled forward by the events of that book and could not slow back down. It was still well-plotted and the lovely writing style was still there, but the plot of the first book was just something I really enjoyed so I did miss it while I was reading this one.

I felt a bit conflicted about the ending, I was definitely happpy with some of it, I think the villain was defeated in a satisfying way and I was glad some of the characters I loved survived and found peace, but other parts of it were not as satisfying and I am still not sure how I feel about them. I was glad we saw Xingyin taking time to heal and recover at the end, as it felt realistic that she would be so effected by everything and even if I was not sure how I felt about how it all wrapped up, I was glad to see Xingyin finding happiness.

BOOKS | Review: Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan

Name: Daughter of the Moon Goddess (The Celestial Kingdom duology #1)

Author: Sue Lynn Tan

Publisher: HarperVoyager

Date published: January 2022

Genre: Fiction, adult, fantasy, romance, retellings, mythology, adventure

Pages: 512

Rating: 5/5

This review contains mild spoilers.

Growing up on the moon, Xingyin is accustomed to solitude, unaware that she is being hidden from the feared Celestial Emperor who exiled her mother for stealing his elixir of immortality. But when Xingyin’s magic flares and her existence is discovered, she is forced to flee her home, leaving her mother behind.
Alone, powerless, and afraid, she makes her way to the Celestial Kingdom, a land of wonder and secrets. Disguising her identity, she seizes an opportunity to learn alongside the emperor's son, mastering archery and magic, even as passion flames between her and the prince.
To save her mother, Xingyin embarks on a perilous quest, confronting legendary creatures and vicious enemies across the earth and skies. But when treachery looms and forbidden magic threatens the kingdom, she must challenge the ruthless Celestial Emperor for her dream - striking a dangerous bargain in which she is torn between losing all she loves or plunging the realm into chaos.

- From Goodreads.

I had a really enjoyable time reading this book. The writing style and pacing really fit with the retelling genre as it really felt like being told an old story from mythology. I liked how at first we were told smaller stories of the journey that Xingyin was on and then these smaller parts all started to build together towards a larger epic climax that was so exhilarating to read.

It was wonderful to follow Xingyin as the main character, she was so kind-hearted and thoughtful. I liked how she always tried to learn from every experience she went through and was aware of herself and both her her flaws and her strengths. She never wanted to hurt someone just because they had hurt her and I admired her strength and determination for getting through to the end.

The other characters were well written too, they were all interesting and multi-dimensional, Liwei was especially a favourite. He had a lot of heart and charm and I loved his relationship with Xingyin and how tender their feelings for each other were.

Captain Wenzhi was also an interesting character that was introduced a little later on. I do not usually like love triangles but I felt it was done well here because it was still focused on Xingyin and her story and what each person meant to her and it was always about her choices and what it would mean for her journey. I also liked how it resolved, it was a surprising twist but it worked well and still gave the characters plenty of depth.

The plot in general had quite a few surprises and was exciting to read. The action scenes were all gripping and the emotional ones really had me feeling for the characters. I felt very immersed in the world and there were a lot of beautiful descriptions of some really incredible places.

Overall, I had a really lovely time reading this book, it made me feel nostalgic for reading myths when I was younger and I really felt connected to the characters. I will definitely be reading the sequel and more from the author in general.