A review by linda_1410
Guardian: Zhen Hun (Novel) Vol. 1 by priest

adventurous lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

3.75 stars, rounded up

This was a lot of fun. I wasn't sure how I'd like this genre set in modern day, but I liked it. Priest makes it interesting and keeps the story flowing, and I like trying to figure out what exactly is going on before the story tells me. Some things were pretty obvious
such as Shen Wei being the Emissary, and Zhao having a more extensive past than what meets the eye at first
, but there are still plenty of other mysteries to figure out, though I have theories about those too. 

I liked Guo Chengchang immediately and wish he'd had a larger role in this first volume. I'd read a whole story of Guo and Daqing just doing random stuff, lol. I can't say I've warmed up to the romance aspect of the story. I hadn't read any blurbs and went into this with no idea who the romantic pairing would be, so it took me awhile to figure it out. It is what it is, I guess. There are still two more volumes for me to get on board with it, lol. (Is it my fault that during most of their interactions, I couldn't help but compare it to WangXian? Is it my fault they fell way short of the mark? No, no it's not. 😊)

The illustrations, while lovely, haven't really done much for me. They seem kind of random, like the illustrator couldn't figure out which moments were significant enough to merit them. And the moments I would have liked to see illustrations for didn't have them. 🤷🏻‍♀️