RATING: 3/5

I LOVED the first book but couldn't get invested in this sequel! Maybe if I had read it immediately after DAUGHTER OF THE MOON GODDESS.... nevertheless the writing is so lush and beautiful .

This book was magical. I love stories based on mythology and this one really doesn't disappoint. The Heart of the Sun Warrior was an amazing follow-up to Daughter of the Moon Goddess. The story was able to get so much richer and more detailed and the characters more complex. This has inspired me to research more into the story that this series is based on. The story itself is thrilling and keeps you hooked and engaged and emotionally invested in the characters the whole time. Definitely worth the read.

Heart of the Sun Warrior is such a gorgeous sequel and ending to The Celestial Kingdom Duology. The writing is captivating and creates such a vivid picture for readers to enjoy, which in my opinion is no easy feat! While the second book in this series did not contain as much action, the story was still gorgeous and fun to follow. I definitely think this duology is great to pick up for those who are looking for a read that gives a breath of fresh air!

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. The writing, the story, it was all wrapped up in a wonderful package!

There are many, many things that I loved about Heart of the Sun Warrior, and only a few things I disliked. I'll start with the dislikes, first.

-The love triangle took up far more space than it needed in this novel. I'm an avid romance reader, so I don't mind romantic subplots in other genres, but what bothers me is when the romantic subplots eclipse the bigger narrative taking place. Such was the case with Heart of the Sun Warrior. There's a really cool, fascinating conflict that Xingyin and her family must navigate, but so much page space is spent on Xingyin's divided feelings between her two beaus.
- I didn't love the way the triangle resolved, either. Xingyin made a choice by not making a choice, and I feel that it detracts from the supposed strength of her convictions.

We got some LGBTQ+ representation... tacked on to the very end of the novel like an afterthought. This is one of my least favorite ways to introduce queer characters. It feels like Tan may have gotten to the end of the novel, realized she had only heterosexual romances represented, and smashed two characters with barely a hint of chemistry (and certainly no page space to develop feelings for one another) into a relationship. Cool. It's not quite as bad as certain writers proclaiming characters to be gay long after books have been published with literally no supporting evidence for their gayness. That said, it was disappointing.

Those two major complaints aside, a lot of what I loved about Daughter of the Moon Goddess was present here in Heart of the Sun Warrior as well. The worldbuilding is exquisitely done without falling into the habit of being overly-descriptive. The different immortal kingdoms have unique identities that set them apart from one another. And, in spite of the fact that I was disappointed by the amount of pining taking place throughout this whole apocalyptic conflict, I would still recommend this novel (and of course, its predecessor) to anyone in need of a vivid and delightful fantastical romance.

This ended up being a bit of a slow start for me and I’m setting it down for now. Loved book one so will try again later

Thank you to Harper Voyager and NetGalley for a copy of this book. All opinions in this review are my own.

I absolutely adored this duology. There was so much that happened in this book, and yet it still ended in a way that was satisfying. This book continues where book one left off, but felt like its own story as well. The characters are so deeply developed and have so many facets - its wonderful. I don't want to spoil anything but one of the ending climactic battles that happened? FANTASTIC! I was at the edge of my seat, and also I definitely cried at some of the character deaths (sorry spoiler - people die). The story Sue Lynn Tan wove was so captivating, and I cannot wait to read what she writes next. Now I also have to go read the original myth! 10/10

A stunning conclusion to a beautiful duology. I'm adding Sue Lynn Tan to my automatic buy list because I'm obsessed with her writing.

What a magical story! I started this story and was able to complete it in just a little time as I was wrapped up in the plot. I think this was a great sequel.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to review this book.

What an adventure. You definitely feel transported to a new yet familiar world as the author provides lush descriptions and characters that you can relate to in some shape or form. The pacing of the plot wasn’t too rushed or slow and I found myself flipping the pages eager to know what would happen next.

I hate to say it but I had higher hopes for this book. I kept picking it up and putting it down, It didn’t hold my attention like the first book. Now don’t get me wrong it was still as action packed and full of drama as Daughter of the Moon Goddess was, but something in this book was just lacking.

Towards the second half of the book things started to get better and more interesting but still didn’t have that spark that the first book have.

3.5/5 (rounded down)

Unfortunately, this was a bit of a let down of a sequel. It felt very repetitive which made the plot feel unnecessarily long and slow. Several times it felt cliché and heavy handed, as well. The ideas were still there, but this one just didn’t deliver the same way the first book did for me.

Heart of the Sun Warrior is a stunning sequel to the incredible Daughter of the Moon Goddess. Tan's writing stuns once again in this whimsical second adventure for Xingyin. The relationships in this book – both familial and romantic – tugged at my heartstrings the whole way through.

I fell so in love with the series after reading the first book.
While this book still had some action and quest-like happenings, it wasn't as fast-paced as the prior book.
We did get to see all the favored characters and the changes in their lives after that first battle.
I was not a fan of some things here though, unwarranted betrayals and some characters just straight up losing their minds.
Even with all that,
It is still a wonderful fantasy that brings Chinese Mythology to life, just wished this second book was as exciting as the first.

I really wanted to love this sequel because Daughter of the Moon Goddess had a creative world that interwoven with a popular myth. However, I thought that this sequel was unnecessary. This is because the plot was dragged out, especially the love triangle. I also did not like how it ended. Nevertheless, I recommend this for fans of Elizabeth Lim, Julie C. Dao, and Rokshani Chokshi!

Ugh I loved this book. I wish I could read it all over again.I think this book may be better than the first one it surprised me in so many ways. We get to see awesome family reunion and a war!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me access to the free advanced digital copy of this book.

The first one was cute, this felt like a good extension of the last books. I really was hoping for a different ending, but this one was ok.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Voyager for sending me a copy of this book! All opinions are my own!

I'm not sure how to feel about this book. It was good, yet it didn't blow me away in the way that I had been expecting after the first book. And yet it wasn't bad either. It just was.

I felt like the romance was really forced this time around, and I found myself not really caring one way or the other how it would go. The action also seemed to have a little less kick to it, and I really ended up just zoning out from time to time and not setting that much stake in it.

I really love the world that was created, I just felt really underwhelmed by this ending. It was still a beautiful story, I just couldn't find it in me to care one way or the other.

If you are an epic fantasy lover, you'll definitely want to try this duology out though!

Reading HEART OF THE SUN WAR was living giving my brain a hug of words. Tan demonstrates the same myth-like beautiful writing as in the first book, Daughter of the Moon Goddess. Xingyin has excellent growth and development, and I appreciated getting to actually know Xingyin's mother Chang'e as a fully-fleshed out character rather than just a figure. The world is immersive and lush and keep me coming back wanting to know more. The banter between Xingyin and Wenzhi is top tier, and the ending is pure perfection. I look forward to the next work by this author.