Xifeng is beautiful and knows she is destined for greatness. Her aunt has instilled in her that the stars have predicted that she would one day become the Empress of Feng Lu. It doesn’t matter that she is a lowly peasant girl, the witch Guma has regularly read her cards and has seen Xifeng’s future. What will Xifeng need to do in order to bring these predictions into truth? Will she be willing to give up her true love in order to follow her destiny?

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is the first book in the Rise of the Empress series. Although Dao has created an East Asian world that is deep with history and legends, readers won’t feel like they are inundated with excessive world building. There are portions of the story that drag some and the ending felt rushed, yet readers will still finish the book with an anticipation of the next volume. A good read but will not satisfy all readers.

An East Asian fantasy re-imagining of The Evil Queen legend about one peasant girl's quest to become Empress--and the darkness she must unleash to achieve her destiny.

I had my doubts as I had been reading reviews about it being an anti-hero, but the writing and the world building was well done and this kept my interest for sure. I would give this a 3.5 stars, but rounded down, it was a dark story, but an enjoyable read!

Do you like magical tales? This has the Asian twist and perfectly played out the roles of different characters which are in difficult position themselves,

This is magical book or elements from the most common fairy tales, but it stands on it's own. The storytelling reminded me of Lian's Hearn trilogy series Across the Nightingale Floor, but the plot is completely different, don't mix these two!

This is about an ambitious character, a very ambitious one, who would cross everything and no death would stand in a way. But that of course, doesn't happen without a price OR being played to step these steps without even knowing it. Forest of a Thousand Lanterns has a very influential main character, playing to be one personality but being completely different.

Xifeng has been influenced by her Guma to follow the future the cards has lead her, promising unbelievable life spun from her current position, her Guma has purposely educated her all life to fit in the task she is about to set as her aim. All the beatings and long hours reciting poems turns to become useful when life throws Xifeng in dangerous situations. Although having a difficult growing up and developing feelings to the boy from her village, she aims for something more, being completely free and doing what she wants, not what other wants her to be...but is it ever possible? In the environment harem and kingdom is set?

It was really promising as a retelling, and with the point of view of the character who's always "the bad one" portrayed as the main one here, explaining her backstory as you could say, I expected a lot more. In the end I didn't like her one bit. I can stand evil but I can't stand pure and inexplicable selfishness. I just can't.

Okay … can we talk about the sheer awesome power of this novel? I mean seriously! I can honestly say I haven’t read a book like this in a loooooooong time! It has everything – conniving men and women, power struggles, a romance that isn’t romantic, an anti-heroine who you can’t help but kinda love, the examination of the complexities of being a woman in a man’s world, and a story that just never stops. One of the hardest things I had to do was turn the last page of this book because I wasn’t ready for it to be over. This is even more impressive, because when I first started reading I thought for sure I wasn’t going to be able to make it. Xifeng felt too conniving, too narcissistic, too everything. But as I kept reading I found that in the context of the story, Dao couldn’t have created or developed a better character. AND that is what made the whole reading experience that much more interesting and worthwhile. Xifeng is not a cookie cutter anything, she is entirely her own and I really admire that Dao was able to not only make that work but also successfully sell it as well as she did. Additionally, I found myself rooting for Xifeng because as the story progressed I began to understand her. This has nothing to do with sympathy or empathy but rather everything to do with survival and finding your way in a world that says you aren’t enough. To me, this too is a sign of a very deft and very talented storyteller (Bravo, Julie Dao! Bravo!)

To say that I’m excited for the next book would be a gross understatement. I think this is going to be one of those books that has everyone talking and one that has the capability of holding even the most reluctant of reader’s attentions. I cannot recommend this book enough and I am thrilled for more from this new voice in YA literature.

Great read! At our school it is better for the stronger readers & we will definitely use in a book club.

"You have two faces. Two beings live within you, struggling for control. One has a heart that thrives in darkness and feeds on the pain of weaker souls. The other longs to stretch a hand to the light, to live and love as others do."


OH MY GOD, THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING. I had a feeling I was going to like this book since it's a retelling and I'm a very big fan of that genre, but honestly, I didn't know I was going to love it and devour it as fast as I did. But turns out, it has become one of my favourites of this year so far, and I can't wait to see what path the story's going to take.

I feel I've been talking about this book quite much this year, because it was in my top 10 most anticipated releases of this year, so I can't thank the publisher enough for giving me an ARC of this book. There were a lot of good reviews on the internet by then, so I went with very high hopes, and it still managed to surprised me even more, so extra kudos to that.


"Fate finds you alluring," Guma said, tapping the lotus, " but do not be fooled. It is you who are its slave. Let no one stand in your way. If they face you, your beauty will entrap them. If they turn away, you will stab them in the back."


Let's begin by saying I'm a very big fan of villains, and it always fastinates me to see the creation of one, because in the original fairytales or Disney movies, you didn't get to see it that often, so I'm always on the hunt for a story like that. And I must say this was a damn good one, where you see Xifeng's development, and little hints of how she could end up being an amazing villain.

Yes, Xifeng has become one of my favourite characters so far. She's incredibly intelligent, and she knew how to use her beauty and knowledge to her advantadge and to get what she wanted. She came from a very abusive family, and I think most of the evil she had inside her came from that. But nonetheless, it was still very interesting to know about her, because she had a lot to give, and the series has just began.

I love the diversity of the story, and how most of if not all of the characters were POC. Despite being a first book in a series you could really grasp that fairytale-eske vibe, and the world building was quite expanded, which surprised me a bit. You learnt the myths and legends of that world, and the different stories that circulated the world, along with people from different regions, which was super interesting.


"I am the moon and darkness around it. I am the wind and the rain and the ceaseless sea. I am time itself, and yours is running out."


I must say the story had a very slow pacing, so if that's something you don't like maybe this book might not be for you, because it took a while for the action to come, and some parts were mostly descriptive. And because we're talking of a retelling of the creation of a villain, that slowness was justified, I think. I didn't paticulary mind, because it didn't seemed like I was bored or it was too slow, but I still wanted to point that out in case you do.

I would say it was more focused on the characters and their development and transformations. The second part of the book took place in the palace, and it was quite interesting seeing the different faces people gave to the princess, and how unreliable they were. There was a bit of a romance in the story as well, but I wouldn't say it was a very important part of it, though the way it impacted our main character was.

Overall, I adored and devoured each single part of this book. The writing was gorgeous and beautifully done, and I kept wanting to read it. I would totally recommend it if you're looking for a diverse retelling, or simply if you love a good villain.

I recieved an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This doesn’t change my opinion whatsoever. All thoughts are my own.

I love so many things about this book. From the East Asian historical setting (I will talk a lot about this later), to the plot, and the characters. BUT I also hated some things about it, and in a good way. You know, this is an anti-heroine novel. So, I think it’s perfectly reasonable to loath Xifeng – an anti-heroine – at some points for her villainous and ruthless deeds. But at the same time, I love her in a lot of ways. Does that make any sense? I HATE HOW MUCH I LOVE HER.

I have no words for Julie C. Dao’s writing style. It was a bit slow for me at first, but after a few chapters, I can hardly put the book down. Reading this book will give you a great feeling of lush. Her words are super rich and very exquisite.

Beautifully written story and a very engaging take on the wicked stepmother/evil queen fantasy tales.

I always liked fairytales rewriting and I was very curious to read this one.

The rewritings are always a little complicated to judge, there is already the difficulty to create somethings new and original, here the rewriting happens in an extremely patriarchal Asian universe. I liked the folklore created by the author, the latter was able to mix touches of magic and History, I enjoyed plunging myself into it. Moreover, the tone of the book is rather dark, a lot of black magic and some scenes are really creepy. In addition, the patriarchal side of the book conveys a feminist message that is rather welcome.

As for our heroine Xifeng, we know she will become the villain of the story, the end is predictable in that way, but the key of the novel lies in her personal evolution. She is a young girl, who has always been praised for her beauty, she comes from a small village and since she was young, she knows she will end up at the palace. It's a girl who has been programmed to think about greatness and that's what will push her to make dubious choices. I am quite ambiguous about this heroine, I think that from the beginning, I did not like this character, her decisions seemed improbable to me although logical for the story. Her evolution also demonstrates the importance of physical beauty in our societies, the difficulty of living beyond the standards and the fear of rejection that it creates. So I liked the message, but not the character.

As for my overall opinion, there are things I liked like the feminist message, the pen of the author however the book has many lengths, I did not find that the action is very strong. It's a book with a lot of introspection and they have not really convinced me. So I'm a little mixed on this book, I'm waiting to see the summary of Volume 2 before I decide to continue the serie.

This was DELIGHTFULLY dark. Like, the type of book where you just kinda cackle as things unfold because holy shit, we're going there. It's also the type of book where you simultaneously root for the main character to go full dark side but also wish she had a better life because she needs to be protected a little. At least that's how it was for me. I was all in basically from the beginning (I mean, Asian-inspired Snow White retelling from the Evil Queen's POV, C'MON). Something about Dao's writing just really sucks you in, it's beautiful. This was so atmospheric, I felt fully immersed in the world and in Xifeng's mindset. I'm also so happy that there are protagonists like Xifeng and I'm so looking forward to her continued journey. If you felt let down by The Young Elites (like I was) or if you liked that series, I would highly recommend you pick this one up at the bookstore or your local library. It's so damn good.

It was a bit slow in the beginning, but once you get into the story it's very difficult to put it down. An addictive story with a great writing style, also has a dark touch that makes the book even more interesting. I think the characters are good but they are not the best I've read, yet I recommend it, I think it's a very original story that you'll surely enjoy

Two weeks ago, reading Forest of A Thousand Lanterns quite too soon didn’t honestly even just stumble in my mind. I may have thought about it before because of the hype but I did not plan nor thought of reading this quite too soon. Even having an eARC, I still didn’t plan to read it yet because of all the review copies I have to read first. But little did I know, if I wasn’t invited for this blog tour, I would have probably missed such a great chance and wasted my time because this book is so excellent to even miss.

“Your beauty is all you are, and all you have. Your only weapon.”

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is a wicked read about beauty, power, dark magic and a girl’s quest for greatness.

First things first, I just want to say how beautiful Julie C. Dao’s writing is. Engaging right at the first page with excellence that was proven along the way. How could you not expect for a beautiful wicked ride?

It is a reimagining of the Evil Queen fairytale which didn’t stop me from remembering my last 5 stars read Girls Made of Snow and Glass, a Snow White reimagining, where we saw Mina’s story – who stood as the reimagined Evil Queen. In this book, we follow a peasant girl named Xifeng’s story who stood as the reimagined Evil Queen.

It was set in an East Asia inspired world which I really loved. The story takes place in a continent called Feng Lu. And man, a map of Feng Lu is a need in my life. The rich and strong world building was evident from the very beginning. Chinese and Japanese names were even used. Forest of A Thousand Lanterns made me feel right at the very beginning like there was a Chinese historical movie playing in my head. I imagined the dragon dancing from China, their old houses and markets I saw in movies, an Empress wearing those beautiful royal Chinese gowns with a crown full of jewels in her head. The feeling is new and the experience is refreshing for that I haven’t read a fantasy book with much East Asian influences yet.

Forest of A Thousand Lanterns is a book as powerful and as wicked as its characters. Dao brought to life characters who each have different stories to tell, different lives to live and different purposes to fulfill but all the same strong in their own respective ways. Although some of them really left me conflicted, more specifically, the main character Xifeng and Wei.

Xifeng, the anti-heroine, a peasant who climbed her way to the top with the goal of fulfilling what the cards have said her destiny, did a great anti-heroine, though I cannot say that I did really love her character. She was plain confusing at times. She also did have double standards which really irked me. But what made me like her still, was that I saw a part of myself in her, that girl with ambition, that girl who doesn’t want anyone to think low of her, that girl who wants to be on top. But there was still a soft spot inside her, there was still that girl who wants to protect her loved ones and be loved underneath the though surface.

Wei on the other hand, I may have liked him for the fact that he reminds me of someone and the faithfulness and love that he showed but he was such a sexist I couldn’t handle him at times. He also can be close minded which was so disappointing.

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns also gives spotlight to women with great ambition, for women who knows that they have purpose and for women who believe that they are meant for greater things. This, alone, made Forest of a Thousand Lanterns a fierce, promising and beautiful read. As a woman who have an ambition, who knows that she has a purpose and believes that she is meant for greater things, this book hits home. I also love how the book screams that women wants to be able to choose and decide for themselves even if they live in a world where men think they own women.

Plot-wise, I don’t think I still have to mention that I loved it so much. It was well constructed. Perfectly weaved. There may be things that were easy to figure, the ups, downs and turns will still make you not regret jumping into this ride.

I also loved the complex relationship Dao built between these characters. That feeling of wanting to love and be loved by your own enemy. That feeling of sticking to people just to have power. That feeling of having to let go someone you want to keep forever in order to achieve other things. That feeling of letting go of your old self just so you could be better, greater, no matter what and how much it cost. Man, I love Julie C. Dao so much.

Despite having characters with fairly strong voices, and aside for the fact that some also left me conflicted, I didn’t connect with any of them either which was a little bit disappointing because I would have loved this book even more if I connected with even just one or even just Empress Lihua or basically anyone. But even Princess Lihua felt distant to me, more especially Xifeng. And lastly, along the way, I felt like it became easy to forget why Xifeng was doing all those things, that quest for greatness. At first I really liked the thought of it but as the story goes on I felt like her climb to top was becoming senseless, tiring and boring. At some point, I wished for this book to have more than the story of how Xifeng climbed her way to the top. Side stories will do. Nevertheless, these didn’t make Forest of a Thousand Lanterns any less excellent.

For a debut novel, Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is utterly impressive. Hats off to Julie C. Dao!

Watch out for this book and its anti-heroine. Forest of a Thousand Lanterns will go big. I highly recommend!

I really enjoy the first half of this book. I love how the author write it. My review is on my blog as I participated to the Ph Blog Tour of the book.

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is a wonderfully intriguing East Asian fantasy reimagining of The Evil Queen. I always wanted to pick up a fairy tale retelling and this book sounded especially promising, since it seemed to capture the dark side of fairy tales, which is often forgotten in many newer stories. I definitely wasn’t disappointed. I had many expectations and all of them were met.

Dao‘s writing is simple, yet poetic. It’s easy to read and at the same time, she manages to create a fascinating and magical world with her words, filled with both darkness and light.

"Be the blade and the edge together, the light and the dark. You have two faces, Xifeng."

The characters, too, have each more than one side. There isn’t just good or bad, but a mixture, and this is most prominently seen in the main character, Xifeng. I haven’t read many books centred around a protagonist that is, at the same time, the villain, the anti-hero. But Dao did an absolutely brilliant job here. I felt with Xifeng, wanted her to succeed and wanted her to fail; I can definitely say that I have a lot of conflicted feelings about her - and isn’t this evidence enough that the author created a wonderfully complex character? The side characters were so, so good as well: kindhearted Shiro, loving Empress Lihua, cruel Guma. Every character seemed carefully crafted and came alive on the beautiful pages that make up Forest of a Thousand Lanterns.

The plot itself was very captivating as well; fast-paced, but not overly so. I read most of the book while I was sitting on the train, on my way to university, and whenever I had to get out I was so sad, because I just didn’t want to stop reading. And when I came back home the first thing I did was take out my kindle and continue reading. The magic of it all was dark and intense, topics such as prophecies and fate were in the centre of the story and throughout it all Dao wove threads of darkness. Through Xifeng’s eyes we learned, how hard it is to turn your back on power, even if it comes with a price.

"How generous is fate, she thought. And how cruel."

I have so many theories about the next book (or books?) and I cannot wait to see where Julie C. Dao is going with this story. If you’re a fan of anti-heroes, fairy tales, strong characters, a magically written world and a unique story, you should do yourself a favour and pick up this book. I read the second half of this in less than a day, because I just couldn’t put it down! Book #2, can you please be published as soon as possible? Thank you.

“Forest of a Thousand Lanterns” follows Xifeng, a peasant girl with exceptional beauty and great destiny. Her witch aunt Guma groomed, disciplined and taught her poetry, history and other ways of the aristocrat, as preparation for her future. A part of Xifeng doubts her foretold great destiny but another part wants to believe it. One day, while being fed up with her aunt Guma’s beatings, the part of Xifeng which believes fate won over and she decides to run away with her lover, Wei. Together, they chase their luck in the Imperial City.

Xifeng’s character is a re-imagined origin story of one of the most iconic fairy tale villains, the Evil Queen. As a villain in the making, Xifeng is not intended to be likable at all but she will grow on the reader just the same. She never lets people who step on her get away with it. When people underestimate her, she does every thing in her power to prove them wrong. The Feng Lu Empire is a man’s world but Xifeng gets to do a little smashing of the patriarchy in the end. Murky morality aside, she is a strong character for sure.

I like how Xifeng’s character takes the reader to an exploration of the concept of freedom. A large chunk of the book is about Xifeng starting to figure out her way to being free and her own person. There is this thought Xifeng had earlier in the book where she questions if running away with Wei is the freedom that she wanted after being finally free from Guma’s clutches: “When had she gone from being Guma’s possesion to Wei’s?” Hey Wei, dude, don’t mess with this girl, she can think for herself. And then there was this instance when she killed small animals for their hearts to heal a scar in her face. This ritual had always upset Xifeng before when Guma made her do it but when she does it on her own volition, there is this hint of triumph in Xifeng. I had goosies when it dawned on me that she was upset in sacrificing animals before not because she thought it was wrong but more of because she was being forced to do it.

Being on top has become Xifeng’s idea of ultimate freedom. Xifeng one by one discards any thing (poverty, love) and any one (there are murders, gasp!) she thought would suppress her from ascending the ranks of the Imperial court. She totally becomes out of touch from herself, even succumbing to an evil spirit so she can ensure the fruition of her goals. Am I giving away too much plot here? Sorry, I just cannot stop with too much pleasure in discussing all things Xifeng. Just as I told you, she grows on the reader.

The book’s world-building is not that defined yet. I hope it gets more enhanced on the sequels. The Feng Lu Empire appears to be vast but I experienced only a glimpse of it. Aside from Xifeng’s travel from her obscure village to the Imperial City, most of the story’s setting is limited inside the city of women, which is a place she cannot leave as a court lady. There are still a lot of people (the Five Tigers, the Crimson Army, the royalty of the other Kingdoms) and places (Kamatsu, Surjalana, Dagovad) mentioned that I hope to meet and visit in the next book/s.

The supporting characters are serviceable but aside from maybe Aunt Guma and Empress Lihua, they are mostly broadly written. There is a distinct lack of humor that I know is not really required but could pick up on the unexciting bits of the book. The pacing is a little uneven with the first parts going slow and steady day by day, week by week and then rushing to year by year on the last parts, using casual birth and death of periphery characters to indicate the passing of time.

Strangely enough, I am willing to let go of these little flaws and jump right into the next book in the series. I just want to bear witness to the terrible things Xifeng has in store for the Feng Lu Empire. I also can’t wait to meet the Snow White equivalent of the series, although I believe I’ve already saw her briefly in this book. I hope she becomes a formidable foe to Xifeng. “Forest of a Thousand Lanterns” is a confident set-up piece for a book series, with a strong anti-heroine at its front and center. It delivered a promising origin story and an excellent character study for Xifeng whom we all know is bound to unleash her reign of terror in the future. I don’t know about you, but until someone proves to be a worthy adversary to her, I’ll be standing here holding a sign: U DA BADDEST & DA FAIREST, XIFENG!

A beautiful story. I love the language used, lyrical and rich, describing everything so well I could see it all.
I was surprised here and there - I don't want to give too much away, but some of the characters managed to surprise me, twists I didn't see coming. I love it when a book can surprise me like that.
I'm not sure how to feel about Xifeng. She wanted to better herself, I can understand that, but some of the lengths that she went to... I'll be thinking about this one for a while. I hope there's going to be a follow up.
A couple of times the transitions seemed awkward, although maybe that's a function of reading on Kindle and it will be clearer in the finished book. Particularly near the end, when there's a large time skip I had to figure out from context.
Overall, though, I adored this book and I've found a new favourite author.

"She was a monster, a bride of the darkness, and she rose to face her destiny as though it were the blood red sunrise of a new day."

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns was probably one of my most anticipated Fall releases, because the summary promised me so many elements I loved: an anti-heroine, a West Asian setting and a retelling of the Evil Queen. I went into it with great expectations and it definitely delivered.

This novel had a fascinating world-building and Dao's writing, both beautiful and evocative, definitely strengthened that. It pulled me right into her world and I was amazed at every turn. I would really love to discover new places in this world, but I'm pretty sure that's not the plan, as it's mostly set in a palace. Forest of a Thousand Lanterns intertwined Asian mythology elements with a retelling of the Evil Queen, and I totally fell in love with it. I really, really need to read more YA books with Asian mythology elements. It was quite a pre-Snow White retelling and I really loved that, because learning about how villains became who they are is so much more interesting: they're flawed, complex and make all the wrong choices (with their reasons). I'm really hoping that the sequel will be a Snow White retelling from the point of view of the Evil Queen. *fingers crossed*

I have to admit that while I was very curious about the way this novel was taking, it was quite predictable in the beginning, because it was about a girl going to a palace, but once we moved past that, it was such a gripping story and I devoured it. Luckily, when it was a bit slow, all the other elements made up for it. It was quite a dark story at times but it totally fitted who the main character was as well as the atmosphere of the novel.

Moreover, Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is a perfect example of: 'you don't have to love a character to love the book'. The protagonist of this novel, Xifeng, is an anti-heroine. At the beginning of the story, it seems that she is in love, that she might run away with her lover, but she doesn't. She chose to accomplish a destiny she apparently didn't want, even if it means she has to use people, be selfish and do immoral actions. She starts as an insecure and abused girl to become a girl who knows what she wants and will stop at nothing to get it. She's an amazing anti-heroine and I was in awe. In a way, Dao chose to use the trope of the Chosen One but twisted it: while Xifeng is the heroine of her own story, she will be the villain for the rest of the characters.

Something else that I really liked and wasn't expecting: Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is a critique of a patriarchal system. The world it is set in shows that men are considered superiors, are the ones governing, when women have to stay home or to be content with being concubines for the ones who are in the palace. Xifeng's lover himself, Wei, only wants for her to stay home with him, because that's what he's been taught and what he believes in. Yet, at some point in the story, a character mentions another country where it's the other way around, it's more of a matriarchy. Yet, concubines manipulate men into getting what they want and some of them even influence the government. The world this novel is set in shows that patriarchy is seen as the model, but that it isn't right, and that both men and women are equally capable and I loved that the author decided to do that. There are so many fantasy worlds with patriarchies that are never questioned, a lot of sexism, but it doesn't have to be that way.

Overall, Forest of a Thousand Lanterns was a very good debut and I'm already anticipating its sequel. It is a villain origin story about an anti-heroine who will stop at nothing to get what she wants, set in a fascinating world where patriarchy is the rule and yet, women prove men wrong daily.

Xifeng knows that she is destined for great things - it's written in the cards, and the cards don't lie. They do however show you an alternative path and Xifeng has to choose which road she would rather walk down; The one of obscurity and happiness or that which requires her to be cloaked in darkness on the way to becoming the most powerful woman in the world.

Xifeng's journey starts out with so much hardship that you are praying for her to leave her Guma behind and make a way for herself despite the darkness that is stirring within her, a darkness neither she nor the reader yet fully understands. Once those shackles come free her journey from there pretty much sky rockets as she makes a name for herself within the palace and takes steps towards her destiny.

The only problem with this is that... well she takes steps towards her destiny. Everything that happens is told to us in the beginning... and then it happens. There is very little resistance with destiny and so as enjoyable as this book was - there was no real element of surprise in the plot.

From the beginning I was a fan of Xifeng's dual characteristics, both sweet and kind, yet poisonous and manipulative. Her conflicting personalities are so different from many other characters in the genre and so as a reader you wrestle with whether or not you are rooting for her to succeed. The escalation of her character from midway takes a dramatic turn which I found bold and unique in it grotesqueness, if not a little sudden.

I really enjoyed this book, I love Asian inspired stories as they have a way of weaving in their own myths and are so culturally different from westernised societies that it automatically makes the world ten times more alluring. As this was a cover read I didn't realise it was a re-imagining/ retelling of the Evil Queen until I had finished which in retrospect made the story even more clever.

I do however hope the story won't be dragged out into anything more than a duology, as events have been set up wonderfully in this first book, and now all we need is for them to fall.