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fourclarkes's review against another edition
5.0
Read for ByoB
Great Read!
Leaving her home, Lucy is brought to a Malaysia to be with her uncle. Her home in America was devastated by Red Death and she lost both her parents to the plague that was wiping out the population. When she arrives, Malaysia seems untouched by the plague and rich and flourishing. She doesn't understand her purpose there but she is about to find out.
The Chosen have been waiting for Lucy, except she is not really what they were expecting. She is the Rabbit and not really taking the news seriously. Li Sheng, their leader and Tiger, is tasked with training the somewhat reluctant new recruit. He is warned away from the girl who gets his blood flowing, but the warning is getting harder and harder to abide by. The tension between Lucy and Sheng was palpable, their interactions believable and they had this strong magnetic attraction to each other.
We meet some of the other Chosen and become immediately interested in their stories as well. The Chosen have a goal and they are trying to stop the Plague God who it the one who released Red Death. But not all of the Chosen work for the same side, while there is supposed to be balance between good and evil, the evil is tricky. To stop a God that they don't even have all answers about is going to be difficult. Old threats become new threats, unnoticed threats become big threats and I don't think we are even done uncovering the layers to overall story.
This book was really well written. I found myself completely immersed in their world wanting to know more and trying to figure out who was who. The concept was refreshing, the story was engaging, and I cannot wait for the next book to come out. I was even saddened when I finished because I wanted more. It is amazing to me that this is the author's debut release and she really came out with a bang.
Great Read!
Leaving her home, Lucy is brought to a Malaysia to be with her uncle. Her home in America was devastated by Red Death and she lost both her parents to the plague that was wiping out the population. When she arrives, Malaysia seems untouched by the plague and rich and flourishing. She doesn't understand her purpose there but she is about to find out.
The Chosen have been waiting for Lucy, except she is not really what they were expecting. She is the Rabbit and not really taking the news seriously. Li Sheng, their leader and Tiger, is tasked with training the somewhat reluctant new recruit. He is warned away from the girl who gets his blood flowing, but the warning is getting harder and harder to abide by. The tension between Lucy and Sheng was palpable, their interactions believable and they had this strong magnetic attraction to each other.
We meet some of the other Chosen and become immediately interested in their stories as well. The Chosen have a goal and they are trying to stop the Plague God who it the one who released Red Death. But not all of the Chosen work for the same side, while there is supposed to be balance between good and evil, the evil is tricky. To stop a God that they don't even have all answers about is going to be difficult. Old threats become new threats, unnoticed threats become big threats and I don't think we are even done uncovering the layers to overall story.
This book was really well written. I found myself completely immersed in their world wanting to know more and trying to figure out who was who. The concept was refreshing, the story was engaging, and I cannot wait for the next book to come out. I was even saddened when I finished because I wanted more. It is amazing to me that this is the author's debut release and she really came out with a bang.
jackiehorne's review against another edition
I really wanted to like this book. A paranormal romance based on the Chinese Zodiac, rather than European mythology? Sign me up! And I really thought the idea of a "rabbit" spirit animal (embodied in our heroine, British-Chinese Lucy) showing the "tiger" spirit animal (embodied in Sheng, local Malaysian alpha male) that violence is not the only way to reach one's goals was a great one. But there is little to no character development here, just a lot of insta-lust between Lucy and Sheng. And when I say a lot, I mean A LOT. To the point of there being very little plot, or even any strong sense of danger in the first half of the book. I just couldn't bring myself to read any further despite the potential for better things...
valsbookcorner's review against another edition
5.0
This is her debut book, so really didn't know what to expect in this book. Once I started I just couldn't put this book down. I was rooting for the characters and falling in love with Lucy and Sheng. I was absolutely captivated and it ended up being one of those nights for me. You know, started reading it as I was making dinner for the fam, waiting for things to boil. Begrudingly put it down to finish dinner, eat, put the kids to bed. Then proceeded to ignore the man as I pick the book back up and next thing I know it's 2 am and I finished the book. It's definitely a must read for everyone that loves a good romance and paranormal.
bunnerz's review against another edition
3.0
While the world was unique with the concept of Chinese Zodiac guardians that chose certain humans to host them with special powers and other hints of Chinese mythology, the overall world building and story-line were rather lacking, and the narration was very dry with a lot of telling rather than showing.
The introduction set up the world as a dystopian place with a horrible plague pandemic and a lack of contact with strangers, yet everyone seemed to be in quite the bubble in Malaysia, running around acting like normal superheroes. The main protagonists were pretty much an insta-lust to insta-love relationship, and I did not feel like I connected well with them. Most of the villains were one-dimensionally evil.
It was an okay read and good for the slow-burn relationship, but I'm passing on the rest of the series.
P.S. As a pet bunny owner, I was not a fan of the FMC Lucy catching her rabbit spirit repeatedly by the ears. Please don't do this with real rabbits - you will severely injure them that way. Ears of any animal are not meant to support their body weight.
The introduction set up the world as a dystopian place with a horrible plague pandemic and a lack of contact with strangers, yet everyone seemed to be in quite the bubble in Malaysia, running around acting like normal superheroes. The main protagonists were pretty much an insta-lust to insta-love relationship, and I did not feel like I connected well with them. Most of the villains were one-dimensionally evil.
It was an okay read and good for the slow-burn relationship, but I'm passing on the rest of the series.
P.S. As a pet bunny owner, I was not a fan of the FMC Lucy catching her rabbit spirit repeatedly by the ears. Please don't do this with real rabbits - you will severely injure them that way. Ears of any animal are not meant to support their body weight.
morebookspleaseblog's review
5.0
As a huge fan of mythology, this book was right up my alley! I won't proclaim that I know a lot about Chinese mythology, but I was definitely interested in the folklore and tradition of the culture and the stories. As Chinese zodiac signs and animals are important to the culture... it is equally as important to this story. Sheng is a natural born leader... one would have to be since he's the Tiger. Through a series of unfortunate events, he meets Lucy... hoping she would be the Dragon. Only problem is she's not, she the Rabbit. While a horrible disease is slowly taking over the world, there is a divide between the 12 Chinese zodiac animals...shaping up to be good vs. evil. As Sheng works hard to put Lucy on his side, Snake is doing his best to undermine him. Lucy holds a deep secret that even she is not aware of, but she had a great time finding it out! I look forward to reading more!
nikkisbooknook's review against another edition
4.0
This was a novel take on the supernatural world. Rather than the usual shifters, we have animal spirits from the Chinese Zodiac, hosted within humans.
We join the action in the aftermath of the red death, which decimated the worlds population. Lucy is a survivor from the USA, who sets off to live with her remaining relative. On her arrival she is met by a mysterious driver, who grabs her attention. We later find out that this was not her intended driver but the enigmatic Sheng.
Sheng, host of the tiger spirit, meets Lucy to gain her loyalty and induct the spirit she carries, the Dragon, into his Kongsi. However, his plans come adrift when he realises that Lucy carries not the Dragon but the...rabbit!
Sheng make a great alpha. It is so nice to have a hero who does not fit the stereotypical hero/shifter mould. He is alpha to the core, but carried a sense of vulnerability and a sparking sense of humour. Lucy, to timid and submissive, but with an inner core of strength that even she does not reckon she possesses. When they join forces they become an unique and well balances force of nature, one that I totally fell in love with.
This was a cleverly crafted and unique story and all the characters were fully fledged and involved in the story in their own way. I'm gonna love reading about Mei!!!
I cannot wait for the others in the series!
***I was given an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review****
We join the action in the aftermath of the red death, which decimated the worlds population. Lucy is a survivor from the USA, who sets off to live with her remaining relative. On her arrival she is met by a mysterious driver, who grabs her attention. We later find out that this was not her intended driver but the enigmatic Sheng.
Sheng, host of the tiger spirit, meets Lucy to gain her loyalty and induct the spirit she carries, the Dragon, into his Kongsi. However, his plans come adrift when he realises that Lucy carries not the Dragon but the...rabbit!
Sheng make a great alpha. It is so nice to have a hero who does not fit the stereotypical hero/shifter mould. He is alpha to the core, but carried a sense of vulnerability and a sparking sense of humour. Lucy, to timid and submissive, but with an inner core of strength that even she does not reckon she possesses. When they join forces they become an unique and well balances force of nature, one that I totally fell in love with.
This was a cleverly crafted and unique story and all the characters were fully fledged and involved in the story in their own way. I'm gonna love reading about Mei!!!
I cannot wait for the others in the series!
***I was given an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review****
suleika's review
5.0
5 stars and more... ARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review *This is no way influenced my review
LOVED it!!! I'm going to start by saying that Li Sheng has made it into my Top 10 book boyfriends, I am very picky when reading and many times the hero does not make a good book boyfriend but Li Sheng has definitely made it. He is perfect! He is a strong character and he was very good to Lucy, our heroine. He is protective of her and very patient.
The story is super awesome. There is a lot going on and I have to say that this is a very different take on shifters )if they are actually shifters). I really liked the Asian background and all the descriptions, it was like I was there. The story has a lot of action and some awesome fights, you won''t be bored for one second. And the romance part in the story was perfect! It was not a rushed, fall in love right away (insta-love) kind of thing, it was at a good pace, didn't feel slow, just right.
I also have to say that all the characters were super cool and likable and I fell in love with quite a few and cannot wait to see if we will have more stories with some of them as main characters.
Lucy was the perfect heroine, she was not a weak character even though she didn't quite have the strongest of the animals.
I really liked the descriptions of the transformations, the author takes you into the mind of the character and shows you what they can see and what is happening to them while they are changing, it was really cool.
This is really an awesome story and I will definitely recommend to all my friends.
LOVED it!!! I'm going to start by saying that Li Sheng has made it into my Top 10 book boyfriends, I am very picky when reading and many times the hero does not make a good book boyfriend but Li Sheng has definitely made it. He is perfect! He is a strong character and he was very good to Lucy, our heroine. He is protective of her and very patient.
The story is super awesome. There is a lot going on and I have to say that this is a very different take on shifters )if they are actually shifters). I really liked the Asian background and all the descriptions, it was like I was there. The story has a lot of action and some awesome fights, you won''t be bored for one second. And the romance part in the story was perfect! It was not a rushed, fall in love right away (insta-love) kind of thing, it was at a good pace, didn't feel slow, just right.
I also have to say that all the characters were super cool and likable and I fell in love with quite a few and cannot wait to see if we will have more stories with some of them as main characters.
Lucy was the perfect heroine, she was not a weak character even though she didn't quite have the strongest of the animals.
I really liked the descriptions of the transformations, the author takes you into the mind of the character and shows you what they can see and what is happening to them while they are changing, it was really cool.
This is really an awesome story and I will definitely recommend to all my friends.
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