easterlilly's review against another edition
adventurous
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? It's complicated
4.25
cmerk's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
tense
fast-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
4.75
An incredible duplicity that has your heart wrenched back and forth as the characters battle demons, external and internal. The story is gorgeously written with Xingyin being a strong, honest, and brave protagonist. She never shied from the difficult task even when she wanted to. She was clear about her morals and ethics and who was worth fighting for in her life. This book and duology will stay with me for a long time.
<spoilers>
As much as I absolutely believe in the love between Wenzhi and Xingyin I could never quiet the hope that Xingyin and Liwei would find a way back together. That being said I think Wenzhi’s love for Xingyin was more absolute in the way that his life meant nothing without, he was willing to give up everything, where Liwei didn’t want to live without her but couldn’t give up his life to do so. He had an obligation and a form of love to his duty that he was never going to be able to skip out on. I wish we could’ve had more romantic scenes between them before the end but that’s okay. Wow Wugang was set up from the start to be the final evil. The author had me believing it would the Celestial Emperor. I think the story did not flow as nicely as the first but the overall message and evil was just as good to me. Ahhh one of my all time favorite fantasy romances for sure.
<spoilers>
As much as I absolutely believe in the love between Wenzhi and Xingyin I could never quiet the hope that Xingyin and Liwei would find a way back together. That being said I think Wenzhi’s love for Xingyin was more absolute in the way that his life meant nothing without, he was willing to give up everything, where Liwei didn’t want to live without her but couldn’t give up his life to do so. He had an obligation and a form of love to his duty that he was never going to be able to skip out on. I wish we could’ve had more romantic scenes between them before the end but that’s okay. Wow Wugang was set up from the start to be the final evil. The author had me believing it would the Celestial Emperor. I think the story did not flow as nicely as the first but the overall message and evil was just as good to me. Ahhh one of my all time favorite fantasy romances for sure.
abstar's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
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
4.25
flowerranger's review against another edition
5.0
Sue Lynn Tan’s Celestial Kingdom duology has taken a place among my favourite books. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Natalie Naudus and IMO she’s the best audiobook narrator in the world, her voice acting was a perfect fit for Daughter of the Moon Goddess and Heart of the Sun Warrior and I highly recommend that you give her audiobooks a try. I will be getting physical copies, too, because the cover art is beautiful.
As for this book:
This was such a vividly beautiful journey, a positively emotional rollercoaster and an arrangement of wisdoms that should not be ignored. Sue Lynn Tan has written the perfect finale to the duology. I did not expect for her to finish the book this way but I am glad she did, I was hoping for this.
As for this book:
This was such a vividly beautiful journey, a positively emotional rollercoaster and an arrangement of wisdoms that should not be ignored. Sue Lynn Tan has written the perfect finale to the duology. I did not expect for her to finish the book this way but I am glad she did, I was hoping for this.
salty_bitch's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
3.5
I got so tired of the two love interests in this book. The constant back and forth became boring real quick, especially since neither were actually a good fit; backstabber and future king.
busystressedbutbookblessed's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
avrel's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75