The cover and premise really drew me into this book. However, the world building left something to be desired and left me a bit confused. While interesting, I struggled to understand the magical system within the book and found my focus wavering. I wanted to immerse myself into this magical world, but I couldn't. It is possible that I simply read too many fantasy books in a row and needed to read something else before starting this, because I had a hard time picking the book up.

The love story was not very convincing and I didn't connect well to the characters. The captor/captive relationship did not lead to a believable love in this case, the MMC was always threatening or condescending. I live for romance in these books and expect them to pick up my interest where the world building may lose me, but this did not.

Unfortunately I wanted to love this, but didn't.

This book was one of my most anticipated reads this year. The synopsis and cover drew me in, but I was disappointed to say the least. The story didn’t really grasp my attention. I kept putting it down and had to force myself to pick it back up again. I just don’t think this story was for me.

To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods sounded so exciting and different but between the writing and the main character, I couldn't get into the story and felt myself dragging through the pages. I put it down a few times in hopes it was just my mood, but nothing changed. I think this could be a great story to others, but I couldn't vibe with it.

This was a 3.5/3.75 for me. I felt it was a decent read, but wasn't in love with it. I know there was a lot of controversy with the "colonizer romance" though I don't think that was the focus of the story. I liked and appreciated the Chinese historical aspects.

I found this book enjoyable, though I have quite a few significant reservations. It achieved the one thing I ask of a book: it entertained me. Ruying is a frustrating protagonist—sometimes you just want to shake her—but I appreciated joining her on her journey as she’s a deeply unreliable narrator. It was intriguing to see how she coped with her choices, in a “girl, wake up” kind of way. Watching her believe her own lies and eventually start to unlearn them was compelling, but your mileage may vary. If you’re looking for a likable character who is confident in her choices, Ruying likely isn’t for you.

The plot held my attention, and the dynamics between Ruying and Antony reminded me of being seventeen, listening to a friend in a chaotic, toxic situationship while smiling and internally screaming: she hasn’t realized it yet, and you can’t say anything! But also, is she being naive? It’s a sea of red flags! I didn’t care much for their romance; it was clear that wasn’t the focus. That said, I found it a quick read if you can overlook the prose.

While I liked the story overall, the writing was some of the most brutal I’ve encountered. There were a lot of sentence fragments, and even though I managed to read it, I often found my eyes glazing over. It really came down to pushing through the prose for me. I understand this is an uncorrected ARC, but I genuinely think it could’ve benefited from another round of editing to smooth out the writing, as it felt choppy enough to disrupt the reading flow. Additionally, it felt a bit odd that Chang chose to use a futuristic version of Rome rather than creating a new name for it. Conceptually, it’s not a big deal, but it was jarring at first.

Overall, it’s clear this is Chang’s debut. While she has a solid grasp of her plot and intentions, the writing style does not do it any favors. There’s room for fine-tuning, and I hope the next book is more polished. Given the prose and the need for additional edits, I ultimately found this to be just okay. There’s plenty of room for improvement, and it won’t be for everyone, but it’s not the worst thing I’ve read, and I did take something away from it, so that’s a win. Thank you so much to Del Rey and Random House Publishing for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I went into this book hoping for a different story arc that avoids a controversial romance but sadly i was disappointed. I appreciated the historical relevance aspect of this book, but I had to dnf after it followed the oppressed & oppressor relationship stereotype that is heavily based in race. I was really excited to receive this arc after seeing all the hype around it, but it really wasn't for me.

This book has received a lot of bad reviews and I understand why but I think it is a fun read and there is good chemistry between the characters.

I received an advanced copy of To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods from Netgalley and the publisher and am leaving this review voluntarily.

One of my least favorite things to do is write one-star reviews, especially for a book I was so excited about. I want to love everything I read, but I also have to remember that not everything is for everyone, and To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods was one of those books. I will also note that I did not finish this book, so all opinions are based on the first half since that's how far I got before I had to put it down.

I have no idea who the audience for this book is. Young adult? Adult? It's marketed one way in some places and then completely differently in others (in genre and content, but that's an entirely different discussion). It becomes incredibly confusing because I have different expectations of adult and young adult books. That's not to say I don't expect both to be good stories; I just hope for more complexity and depth in adult books. I would categorize To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods as a young adult, but that's only after reading what I did and going into it thinking it was an adult book. And that's where most of my issues stem from, as I was unprepared for what I was about to read.

The writing could have been more precise. There was lots of repetition, awkward phrasing, and odd style choices that would have been okay once or twice but not every other page. I usually have no issue with purple prose, but the flowery language made everything overcomplicated. It left me confused and wondering what I was supposed to understand from the statement. And again, having that as an occasional style choice is no big deal, but it was everything from descriptions to dialogue between characters. Paragraphs upon paragraphs were used when one would have sufficed. Reading became almost tedious as I dreaded flipping the page to see more convoluted words.

Unfortunately, the characters were unremarkable. Ruying makes many questionable choices that feel wishy-washy with her characterization. I understand we can't know what choices we would make if we've never been in those situations. However, she was so inconsistent that it was hard to believe her motivations. I've seen some discourse on the romance aspect of this novel. I won't be speaking on it because I didn't get far enough to understand the characters' relationship.

The world-building was also lacking. What I got was interesting, but there wasn't enough to fully understand the world's complexities. Hopefully, there was more in the book's second half, but I feel it would be too little, too late by that point. If I'm to believe that there's no way Pangu can win against Rome, I need to understand why exactly their magic isn't stronger than Rome's science. I also need to understand why Pangu hasn't learned a little about how the science works after twenty or so years. I can get that Ruying might not know as she doesn't have much, if any, interaction with it, but to believe that the country as a whole has no way around it is a little far-fetched.

I hoped to love To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods, but the unclear genre, odd writing, unremarkable characters, and lack of understanding of the world left me disappointed and unable to finish. Many have and will love this book, but it wasn't for me.

I had really high hopes for this book but I found to be not for me. The story was ok but I found it hard to finish. The cover is so pretty though and I think I just wasn't the right person for this book.

This is soooo well written. I loved all of the history references and the discussions surrounding colonialism and addiction. I love all the intrigue and the storytelling was incredibly well done. I’ve seen some people criticize the colonizer romance but I think that’s supposed to part of the commentary. It supposed to show the amount of cruelty and manipulation that goes into colonialism. I don’t think the colonizer romance is meant to be an actual romance, especially considering that there is another book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book! I went in completely blind and it paid off in so many ways. I loved the magic in the book and want to know more about the different kinds of magic the people wield and why some people have magic and some don’t. The world in this book was brutal and really spoke to colonialism and its effects and lasting impacts. I was awed by the richness of the culture incorporated into this book. I am really looking forward to the next book as I loved Ruying and her struggles throughout the book. I could understand why she followed Antony and Rome because she just wanted to keep her family safe and was manipulated by Antony. I am so excited for the next book.

I DNF'd about 100 pages in. Calling the other world "Rome" and the Chinese world "Pangu" really threw me off, the barely changed Opicum name, and honestly I know this apparently can be read as a colonizer romance turned on its head, per other reviewers, but man it does not seem like it will be well-written. And honestly, the main character was just...way too boring for me to enjoy this.

In a world where people are gifted with magic and powers, they are facing a takeover by people with science and technology. Somehow Ruying is blessed with the power of death, and yet still can't defeat guns and missiles on her own. She finds herself facing an impossible choice when she's captured by the enemy prince - does she become his assassin and keep her family safe? Or turn on him and help kick these invaders out of her country?

The magic concepts were creative and unique, and I really enjoyed seeing them juxtaposed with modern technology in our world. I liked how the MC has no clear path to follow. She's almost morally grey with choices that are questionable and yet her motives are understandable. Ruying does a lot to protect her family and friends and it really drives every decision she makes. The author really explores how complex things like loyalty and morality in a colonialism setting are, and she did a fantastic job. There are a lot of truly awful things to read when comparing them to events that have happened in our own world history, with drug addictions and experimenting on people. It really makes me wonder where this series will go next and which characters we can trust.

I enjoyed this book, it kept my interest I'm looking forward to continuing this series! It is a great YA fantasy that is easy to get into and understand.
And how gorgeous is that cover?? Trigger Warnings for drug addictions. I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley for my opinions.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Dark and Gripping Fantasy

To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods is an intense and captivating read that kept me hooked from start to finish. Molly X. Chang does an incredible job building a dark, atmospheric world filled with intrigue, morally complex characters, and plenty of twists. The plot is layered with mystery and action, making it hard to put down.

While some parts of the story were a bit dense with world-building, it ultimately added depth to the complex universe and characters. If you're into dark fantasy with rich lore and a fast-paced, gripping plot, this book is definitely worth the read! Looking forward to the next one in the series.

This book was very difficult to read. For those who do not have a strong understanding of Chinese history, it will be hard to see exactly how this is a reflection of the history. I don't have that background, but I think it relates to the Boxer Rebellion. I love books that expose me to cultures and experiences that differ from my own, and I can say that I ended up doing some decent researching to understand the background of the book. The problem is that without that I don't feel like I could connect with the story as well. Both the characters and the worldbuilding fell flat for me. While this book is a pass for me, I can see potential and will look for future offerings by this author.

I remember this book receiving a lot of criticism before release for being a ‘colonizer romance’- I personally didn’t feel like it was one. I felt like the romance aspect wasn’t meant to be the main focus of the story but rather to push the story forward. Also given the fmc’s predicament and need to survive in the world she lives in, I felt like the romance wasn’t really a romance but more her clinging to a thing she deemed safe. Now on the story and world itself- I found it fascinating and written really well, this perspective of colonization and feeling desperate in a world meant to destroy you is going to leave you with an fmc that makes some questionable decisions and I felt the author got this across so well! I would’ve loved to see more aspects of the magic (this concept of death magic is so fascinating to me!) & world itself fleshed out more and less of the continuous inner monologues, I also feel like if there had been more character development a la female rage wise throughout instead of in the last 10% or so I would’ve been really obsessed with this first book but regardless I think the author set the ending up to develop that further into the sequel which I am really intrigued to see. All in all I thought this was well written and has an interesting concept that I’m curious to see play out!

I didn't enjoy this book.

The plot felt predictable, that she would start with the guy she had grown up with, who she believed was in the wrong. But then she ended up with the evil prince, just to realize her childhood friend that she thought was evil wasn't that bad. The romance with the prince is frustrating, it's not enemies to lovers, it's Stockholm Syndrome with her colonizer who is holding her against her will. She seems to think that he's not actually evil, and that really they're similar because they both grew up poor. It's like because he saved her life and holds her when she cries it over shadows the fact that he threatens to kill her family if she doesn't murder people for him.

I wanted to give this book a good chance but I just didn't enjoy it. I think the second book has potential to go into a different direction and make the series better, but I'm unsure if I will read it.

The tension in this book is phenomenal! The world building is strong and the characters are so believably flawed that you can't help but root for them. If you want a book to help you sift through your emotions about a myriad of things happening in the world right now, this one might help you do so. If you want a light-hearted fantasy romp based on Chinese history, this is not it. The book is gritty, it is sad, and it will leave you crying and/or raging. But it is also so well-written and filled with characters you want to wrap up in a hug. This is not a palate cleanser, but it is a wonderful book to read.

I wanted to love it, but it's just felt short. It's not terrible but it's not great. Writing is not the best and could've been cleaned up some, but I did enjoy the story line overall. The FMC made me want to bang my head against the wall sometimes, and the MMC made me want to punch him.

if i never have to hear about antony’s jade green eyes again, it will be too soon.

and why is he quoting taylor swift lyrics?

twenty years ago, a portal opened in the sky and the romans conquered ruying’s world. now, after a lifetime of avoiding her power—the gift of death—ruying is captured and blackmailed into becoming the personal assassin for one of the invading princes.

i found to gaze upon wicked gods very repetitive, and despite the monotonous info dumping on every other page, the world building was scattered and confusing. rome is relatively modern, while pangu seems to be based on ancient china? and they’re connected by a portal in the sky for reasons that are never explained.

for a book about an assassin, we see very few of ruying’s kills—most happen off-page, during a six-month time skip where ruying and antony apparently bond, because i guess that space was needed for the eighth random aside about magic vs. science? i wasn’t a fan of how that conflict was handled either. on one side we have the scientifically advanced romans with fighter jets and guns and missiles, and on the other, the people of pangu attempt to defend themselves with magic and bows and arrows. it all felt very poorly researched and almost infantilizing to frame science as such a foreign, evil concept when so much innovation has come from china (gunpowder, hello).

then there’s the romance—or is it “romance”? based on the book alone, you can argue that chang is writing an abusive dynamic/stockholm syndrome from the victim’s POV and setting the scene for the oppressed rising up against the oppressor (as well as hinting at a different LI) in book two… but the initial marketing did not align with that, and neither did the taylor swift-quoting chapter from antony’s POV. (which was WILD to read. this man is experimenting on her people.) even if the intention was to portray a manipulative, toxic relationship, it was poorly executed and frustrating to read.

finally, i’m begging authors to stop calling everything and everyone morally gray (at one point we’re explicitly told that a character is morally gray. no. stop that. show, don’t tell). and ruying isn’t even morally gray, she’s a wishy-washy mess of a character who doesn’t have any clear values. she’s just annoying, and not at all the character the synopsis promised.

rant over! i’m taking this as a lesson to stop requesting netgalley ARCs because they have pretty covers.