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Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao
4.0
Xifeng grew up knowing she was destined to be the Empress of Feng Lu. Under the instruction of her strict aunt Guma, she learned that the only way to achieve greatness is to sacrifice the man she loves and embrace the darkness within her. So when she runs away from her childhood village with her lover, Wei, her real intention is to rise through the ranks of the Imperial palace and take what was promised to her by fate.
I was so, so conflicted on how to rate this book. For the first half of it, I found it tiresome, too slowly paced, and redundant, but then it picked up and I was hooked. YA novels routinely get dark, but so few of them shy away from presenting an actually problematic, morally gray protagonist. That wasn't the case with Forest of a Thousand Lanterns. All of the main characters were so complex and layered—there was Xifeng, who came from an abusive household and had to make so many sacrifices for her position, whom the reader rooted for even while she quite literally ate the hearts of her enemies. There was Wei, who was kind and loving to Xifeng but also had a bad temper and treated her like a possession. Empress Lihua, who was gentle and only ever longed for a daughter but emotionally manipulated her ladies in waiting because of it. The reader even sympathized with Lady Sun and the struggles that came with being a woman in Feng Lu while still hating her guts. The sometimes indistinguishable flaws and strengths of every character made them, and by extension, the story, feel very real.
This was only accentuated by the gorgeous descriptions of Feng Lu. From the clothes the characters wore to the settings each scene took place in, so many details were described with care and eloquence. I only wish Feng Lu's mythological system had been explored more, and that the different kingdoms would have been better developed. The worldbuilding was rich and full wherever Xifeng went, but I had trouble imagining an entire world beyond, even with the inclusion of ambassadors and foreign politics.
Furthermore, Forest of a Thousand Lanterns certainly wasn't wasted as a retelling. It is my firm belief that retellings should always explore something new about the original story, which this book definitely accomplished. Humanizing the Evil Queen without turning her into some poor misunderstood baby? Check. Exploring the negative relationships that develop between women in a world where they're constantly pitted against each other? Check again. Denying the fairy tale notion that everyone is either good or evil? Taken care of.
If you're alright with slower paced books and are sick of mindless fairy tale retellings, I would absolutely recommend Forest of a Thousand Lanterns. It's bound to have the morally gray, heart-eating, slaying (get it?) protagonist you've always wanted.
I was so, so conflicted on how to rate this book. For the first half of it, I found it tiresome, too slowly paced, and redundant, but then it picked up and I was hooked. YA novels routinely get dark, but so few of them shy away from presenting an actually problematic, morally gray protagonist. That wasn't the case with Forest of a Thousand Lanterns. All of the main characters were so complex and layered—there was Xifeng, who came from an abusive household and had to make so many sacrifices for her position, whom the reader rooted for even while she quite literally ate the hearts of her enemies. There was Wei, who was kind and loving to Xifeng but also had a bad temper and treated her like a possession. Empress Lihua, who was gentle and only ever longed for a daughter but emotionally manipulated her ladies in waiting because of it. The reader even sympathized with Lady Sun and the struggles that came with being a woman in Feng Lu while still hating her guts. The sometimes indistinguishable flaws and strengths of every character made them, and by extension, the story, feel very real.
This was only accentuated by the gorgeous descriptions of Feng Lu. From the clothes the characters wore to the settings each scene took place in, so many details were described with care and eloquence. I only wish Feng Lu's mythological system had been explored more, and that the different kingdoms would have been better developed. The worldbuilding was rich and full wherever Xifeng went, but I had trouble imagining an entire world beyond, even with the inclusion of ambassadors and foreign politics.
Furthermore, Forest of a Thousand Lanterns certainly wasn't wasted as a retelling. It is my firm belief that retellings should always explore something new about the original story, which this book definitely accomplished. Humanizing the Evil Queen without turning her into some poor misunderstood baby? Check. Exploring the negative relationships that develop between women in a world where they're constantly pitted against each other? Check again. Denying the fairy tale notion that everyone is either good or evil? Taken care of.
If you're alright with slower paced books and are sick of mindless fairy tale retellings, I would absolutely recommend Forest of a Thousand Lanterns. It's bound to have the morally gray, heart-eating, slaying (get it?) protagonist you've always wanted.