Reviews with content warning for Grief - Heart of the Sun Warrior (B&N Exclusive Edition)

Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Heart of the Sun Warrior (B&N Exclusive Edition) by Sue Lynn Tan

40 reviews

midnight_rose_reads's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad tense 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

3.75

I enjoyed Heart of the Sun Warrior, the second book in the Celestial Kingdoms series. But it was not a 5 star read, unfortunately, like the first book Daughter of the Moon Goddess was. There were moments that dragged (despite this book being less pages than the first), and at times didn’t feel nearly as compelling as its predecessor. Perhaps this could have been a hundred pages shorter and would have retained the energy the first one had. All in all I would still recommend this duology if you’re looking for descriptive writing and lush world-building.

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idesofmarch's review against another edition

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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

5.0

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awkwardimagination's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional inspiring sad tense 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

4.75

This book was so much more emotional than the first. It felt faster, probably due to it's shorter time frame than the plot of the first book, stretching years. And it actually made me cry, like actual tears wear shed during the last 100 pages. This was not where I thought the romantic plot would go, but I am not upset about it. The ending, filled with grief and pain, was amazing, but I do feel slightly unsatisfied with how it finished. I know there may be another book coming, so hopefully, what I would've liked from this ending is there. Xingyin continues to be my favourite protagonist ever, I honestly love her, and I highly doubt I will respect and love another character as much as her.

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dragongirl271's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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haley_reads_books's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Unlike the first book, this was not an effortless read for me, but it was still filled with just as much magic. The plot twists with Xingyin‘s romances are what saved this story for me. If she had ended up

Spoiler

marrying and becoming empress

, I think the book would have felt like a waste, but as it is, I really am glad I pushed through to the end when I was struggling to continue. I loved the maturity this book brought to Xingyin‘s character, and I am so glad she found her happiness in the end. I also want to mention one of my favorite parts about Tan’s writing: the way she describes everything wish so much care and attention to detail. There is so much life and color in each page and that really is what made me adore this duology.

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foreverinastory's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I love this duology so much! It’s just so lovely, and Natalie Naudus’s narration is perfect for it! I have loved listening to these books and being swept away to the Celestial Kingdom.

Without any spoilers, Heart of the Sun Warrior has the same charm as Daughter of the Moon Goddess. We see Xingyin continue to grow as a person and I love her character so much. She’s so easy to relate to and root for. We get to see Xingyin start to figure and decide what and who she wants in her life. I really liked the message that just because you love someone, doesn’t mean you need to sacrifice your every happiness for them. The ending turned out even better than what I had hoped for! Highly recommend this duology for lovers of mythology, legends and epic fantasy worlds!

CWs: Death, grief, war, violence, child death, blood, murder, fire/fire injury, injury/injury detail, death of parent, alcohol consumption (wine).

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hq_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional slow-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? No

3.5

I enjoyed this book although I had to take a reading break from it as I wasn’t excited by the plot. I hate to say that as I absolutely loved Daughter of the Moon Goddess! As such my rating is reflected in this but please note that I am a mood reader and unfortunately that means my ratings can seem inconsistent!

Once I picked it back up, I really enjoyed it again. The love triangle between Xingyin, Lewei and Wenzhi added some excitement amongst the action.

I love the writing style, it’s like reading a fairytale. But where this style falls down I think is capturing those moments of love, anguish or tension and drawing them out to keep the reader feeling that emotion. This series is my first time reading Chinese mythology and I absolutely love the lore so I will definitely look for more.

I will definitely read more of Sue Lynn Tan’s work in the future!

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daniellekat's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No

2.75

I struggled with this. I really enjoyed Moon Goddess especially since I'm not a huge fan of high fantasy, but the lack of character development really killed this for me. If I thought Xingyin was annoying in the first book, she was unbearable in this one. The characters all lacked substance, leading me to not care about their individual outcomes. While I generally enjoyed the weird pacing (some parts were so slow while others were super quick), the writing felt much more repetitive than Moon Goddess. Overall, the plot was fine and I would still read more of Tan's work, but this left me feeling disappointed.

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