The book was all over the place there was very little worlds building you were expected to know what was going on as soon as you jumped into it

This book has so much potential and many rooms to improve. I finished this book in two sittings, I honestly was really curious how this book would continue.

My review might contain spoiler.

I actually really invested in the complex political and colonization situation in this book but some parts didn't sit right to me. The romance, frankly, was really bad. First, I thought the romantic plot was for Ruying and Baihu, but suddenly Baihu wasn't mentioned anymore and after the 6-month time skip Ruying and Anthony suddenly attracted to each other and in those 6 months Baihu didn't even try to find Ruying. I felt like it Ruying had stockholm syndrome since I assumed the only person she spoke to was only Antony, but I couldn't find any reason for Antony to like Ruying.

During those months, Ruying had killed around 49 people, which again I assumed all of them were high profile people, even though she made them looked as "natural" as possible, it was kinda weird that no one talked especially the Phantom. I really hope that we can get more story about the Phantom in the next book. I also found the Phantom was rather ambiguous. I knew that the Phantom wanted the Roman gone, but attacking Sihai guards and its people really confused me, shouldn't they stand with every Pangu citizens?

Ruying wasn't really a likeable character, she was too indecisive that she was easily swayed from left to right. Dear Ruying, please make up your choice! My favorite character was Sihai Emperor. He really was a wise one. I really enjoyed his interactions with Prince Feng, too bad his part was short. I hope Prince Feng will make more appearance in the next book, he was one of the few that actually stood up!

Overall I enjoyed reading this book and I look forward to book 2! Hopefully more explanation about Rome, more actions with magics because as far as I remember only Ruying, Taohua, and Prince Feng who showed their magic in this book, but I might be wrong, also maybe a new plot that doesn't revolve around a silly romance, because to me the conflict in this book is good and complicated enough.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group and Netgalley for this ARC for in exchange for an honest review.

This is a story of magic and Roman science. The story centers around a girl names Ruying who commands death magic and the sacrifices she is willing to make for her family and people to keep the might or Rome from crashing down around all of them.

This book ebbed and flowed for me. At times I really found myself into it, but more often then not, I was bored and just not interested in these characters. There were times I felt like yelling at the book, DO SOMETHING! but no they took the boring option. The pacing wasn't great either and found my eyes wondering at times. To the point where I put this book down for several weeks before finally finishing it. When I finished the book I read some say it was enemies-to-lovers and boy do I wish there was more of that, it more just goo-goo eyes and it was boring!

I had high hopes for this and was sadly disappointed. Sorry but I won't be continuing on with the series.

an entertainingdebut!! i found it quite faulty at times, i thought for the whole book that it was a YA read, it leans more towards romantasy YA books than an adult fantasy or sci-fi, some plots were quite unclear and the worldbuilding was a bit lacking, i found the romance a bit problematic since the colonizing aspects were very prominent and went a bit against the characterization of the lead character.
The cover is lovely though!

HEROES DIE. COWARDS LIVE.

I was promised an “epic fantasy” and even star crossed lovers but you know what I got? A COLONIZER ROMANCE.

The beginning started so strong. There were so many lines that had me giddy because I finally found another ARC that I could get into and was written well. Unfortunately, the threads of the story started to come undone around halfway through, and by the end, everything felt rushed and confusing.

We start with Ruying, a young woman in a setting that is basically medieval China (under a different name). She is very firm about (and repeats it every chapter) her willingness to do anything to protect her twin and her ailing Grandmother. Ruying also has powers like a small sub-section of her world, but no one knows where the powers came from or why each person that has them is unlike anyone else. Three people can have water powers, but one might have the ability to control bodies of water, one might control storms, one might be able to suck water out of the environment. Ruying’s power is Death as in she can suck the Qi out of anyone to the point that they die.

We kind of murkily also discover that her kingdom is actively being colonized by Rome (yeah, Rome, Rome. Why the author gave fantasy-China a different name and not Rome, I don’t know). But this version of Rome is set far enough into the future that they have guns, universal remotes, emergency room equipment, bulletproof glass, fighter jets, and nukes.

For 20 years, Rome has steadily invaded Ruying’s world through a portal we truly get no details on. It’s just a portal that showed up one day and never left; it just exists in the sky and is never mentioned again.

Anyway, Rome is colonizing book-China and exerting God-like authority over Ruyings people thanks to their “science” (a major theme is that the ever-lessening magical powers of this world can’t stand up to the “science” of Rome, aka progress/advancement/technology/weapons)

Ruying encounters a man named Antony (yeah.) that she knows is a villain, but surprise, he’s hot and she gets a crush while acting as his assassin under duress. The thing is, all the assassin-ing happens off page. We just hear about how randomly skilled she is for a 19 year old with no formal training or experience, but never really see it.

Things progress, betrayals are had, feelings go back and forth etc etc until some very predictable plot twists and a random chapter thrown in from Antony’s POV that spoils the whole “is he actually a bad guy? Or is he just misunderstood?” Question. Because honestly, for the whole middle part, I wanted to believe that he was secretly scheming for the good of both worlds in a way that would be revealed in grand fashion. But instead, it really is just a book about a girly falling in love with her oppressor. Even when he’s come close to killing her, forced her to kill people he admits are innocent, holds a gun up to her head,, tells her that he’s willing to sacrifice people for the “greater good” (which people’s greater good?) and only ever made weak excuses as to why he’s doing what he’s doing for his rickety-ass plan to “save the world.” She turns her back on the culture and people she says over and over and over that she’s wholly dedicated to and protective of.

My girl Ruying ignored every red flag that was slapping her in the face. She even occasionally snaps out of her lovesick puppy shtick, only to fall right back into it when Antony smiles at her with dimples.

I think this was an interesting (or at least a first, for me) examination of the messiness of interpersonal relationships under colonialism. Of the merits between honoring the past and those who have shaped history and forging forward for progress, but destroying your history. Of people trying to figure out if what they do as an individual matters in the grand scheme of things. If justifying some for the sake of the masses is justified. I also really liked the way Antony was a super villain but in a way that was carefully crafted; he didn’t just stomp in and crush people, he learned their culture and beliefs and language. To me, that makes him even more insidious because he knew exactly how to hurt people.

I just think it needs a few more rounds of editing, clearer and earlier world-building, and if you’re going to have the colonized fall in love with the colonizer just to have her be betrayed by him, it needs to be more drawn out and really soak in the feelings of disgust and confusion. And when she’s in that, keep her in it, harder to really drive the impact of the betrayal.

Another emphasis on needing more editing. I know this was an ARC, but there are lots of grammatical errors and the twist with the experiment gets ruined bc it’s confusingly accidentally revealed before the actual reveal of her name. And some of the dialogue was confusing in a way that it takes you out of the story. Things like characters supposedly in mideval times saying things like “is he going to be okay?” And “don’t paint me out to be the bad guy” plus their use of both gold coins AND pennies????

Things I wanted more of:
- Baihu!! He was a really interesting and complex character and I was much more interested in his espionage between worlds
- Ruying’s daddy issues; I wanted more about how they probably manifested in her speedy trust toward Antony; the need to belong and be taken care of!
- Baihu eating Ruying UP about her naivety
- The magic system. In this book, the only explanation for it that we get is “no one knooooows where it comes from! It’s just there!!”

Favorite Quotes:
“Heroes die. Cowards live.”

“To say Er-Lang Baihu was a villain would be a stretch. To say he was innocent was a lie.”

“Frustration was dark crimson. It tasted of ash when I tried to swallow, scorched my throat before clotting my lungs.”

“All heroes fail to pass the test of love.”

“I fear you the way mortals fear gods.”

“He pushed me away, loaded a bullet into the gun, and pressed it against my head this time.

‘Your power is exquisite—and you are beautiful. But there are plenty of pretty things in this world. Don't think for a second that I, Antony Augustus, am someone who sees a pretty girl and loses his head or grows soft. If I were like that, I would have been killed a long time ago, and Rome would never meet its greatest ruler.’”

“His eyes met mine, without fear. As if daring me to prove my words. I gripped the gun tighter. ‘Call off the snipers!’

‘Or what?’ ‘Or I'll show you how much of a killer I can be.’ ‘Do it,’ he whispered without taking his eyes off me, his body too close to mine in the confined space, his voice a taunting rasp.

‘Do it. Kill me. Pull the trigger.’”


Thank you to NetGalley and RandomHouse for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book has a promising premise, however I did struggle to get through it.

Let’s start with the positives - the overall premise has so much potential. The world itself is interesting and I would love for it to be built upon more in the sequels. Chang’s descriptive writing makes me interested and invested in Pangu and what happens to its people.

The ending was enough for me to want to read the next book - I do want to find out what’s next, and the last 25% of the book was my favorite part.

Now, onto the negatives: the pacing is all over the place, particularly towards the beginning. I found myself struggling with the first 60% of the book. There were times were I wish the story would move along, but others where I wish we spent more time.

There was also a lot of tell, not show in terms of the Ruying’s motivations. She is billed as morally grey, but I just don’t see it. She has a relatively strong moral compass - only swayed by her feelings for Anthony, which leads me to my next point…

The romance is was a low point for me. There wasn’t a lot of build up, and I’m not entirely onboard with idea of falling in love with your colonizer. I find myself wondering why she wavers when she’s with him.

Overall, despite pacing issues, I do find myself curious to learn more about the world and how this story ends.

Thank you NetGalley and RandomHouse Publishing for an advanced copy of this book for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

TGUWG

If you’re looking for YA version of The poppy war, where it’s less gory. To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods is definitely up your alley. It’s very similar to The Poppy War but it has different magical elements. Female main character with lots of rage and resentment that’s been built up over time. TGUWG starts off very strong in the first chapter. It engages you right on the first page. I thought that it got a little slow towards the middle when talking about the politics in the book. It could’ve been a little bit more descriptive in the world building. Overall, I enjoyed it. 3 out of 5 ⭐️

"What sacrifices will one make to protect the ones they love?" is a question Ruying, the death-wielding narrator of To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods, continuously asks herself in this fantastic debut. Ruying is convinced by one of the leaders of the colonizing forces that occupy her home world that allowing him to weaponize her will lead to a better world for her people and the invaders -- but at what cost? Will Antony's demands not only take literal years off Ruying's life, but also ultimately harm her family, the very reason she agreed to his dubious proposal? Some readers may be frustrated the pacing and with Ruying's reiterations of her rationalizations, but others will empathize with her internal justifications as she transforms into someone she would once have abhorred.

I wanted to badly to like this book, but it fell short in multiple aspects and didn’t execute the concept in a way that worked. Potential spoilers in my review.

The writing itself felt very surface level in a way. There was so much repetition about Ruying’s connection with Death, her love for her family, and her hatred for the Roman, but it didn’t seem like it was truly conveyed throughout the book. She’s going against her morals to protect her family and friends, but her close relationship with them is barely shown and they feel almost like strangers.

Ruying doesn’t come off as morally grey, she comes off as naïve. If she had a slower progression of acceptance that she’s an assassin and her romantic feelings towards Antony, I could understand her character a little better. I think a time skip after she became an assassin was a bad decision, it would’ve been nice to see her transition into someone who doesn’t struggle to kill as much as she had before and watch her get manipulated and used by Antony. Other people have already spoken on the aspect of the colonizer romance, so I won’t. I think the author was trying to make it where Ruying was manipulated and taken advantage of Antony, and because of the lies he used against her, she thought she could trust him and developed romantic feelings from that. I think that could’ve been a decent plot point, but it doesn’t give time for that to develop, it is too rushed.

The last thing that fell short to me was the world building. The world building is poorly done and as a reader, I would’ve benefited from a map, character index, or something similar. Especially because of the science-fiction aspect, it was hard to picture the world in a way that made sense and information felt like it was randomly scattered in.

Even though I did not like the book, I loved the cover, title, and the concept the book was based on.

A beautifully written epic fantasy that will rip your heart out and put it back together in the best way. I’m not usually a political fantasy fan but I ate this one up with no regrets.

Chang has pieced together a beautiful love letter to Asian culture but has also created a gut-wrenching, gorgeous fantasy in such a masterful way it is hard to believe this is a debut novel. Spinning colorful images and enchanting cities on the bring of war in front of the readers very eyes is part of what makes this book so addictive.

I honestly am struggling with it being over it truly is the perfect fantasy to engulf the reader into rich Asian culture that is under attack by Roman influences. I felt like I was listening to a beautiful piece of music that managed to make me feel empowered and sad at the same time. This book is a symphony that every reader will have stuck in their head for years to come. I honestly can’t wait to read the second one.

At its heart, To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods asks us what are we willing to do to survive? And is said survival justifiable if it stands on the back of others? The fictional world of Pangu is caught in an impossible situation against the colonizer Rome. To rebel can lead to death, to survive and work within the system leads to betraying and killing your own kin. The narrative gives more attention to the latter, characters that choose to survive and therefore find themselves in a web of complex choices. The characters who chose to fight back are not given as much characterization, we never get to learn in detail about The Phantom or spend much time with Ruying’s sister, outside of her struggles with opian addiction.

This is perhaps a byproduct of the novel’s romance elements, and how much attention is given to Ruying, Antony, and their relationship. We spend most of the novel following Ruying, who is willing to do anything to protect her family - even if said anything comes at the cost of others’ livelihoods. Ruying, who has a very clear understanding of Rome and their horrifyingly violent, colonizing actions, works with one of Rome’s high ranking officials, Antony. Since she has the power of death, she’s seen as very useful by Antony in pursuing his own ambitions. At first, this is presented as self-preservation, strategic even on Ruying’s part. Ruying is thinking of her family’s safety, as well as trying to work within the system to evade the genocide of her people. Ruying’s agency is severely limited, which I felt connected very well with the questions that narrative posits. Under colonialism, choice is complicated. This is where there’s a lot of opportunity for the narrative to explore Ruying as a morally grey character.

The novel, however, goes in a different direction. Ruying develops romantic feelings for Antony over time. She begins to believe in Antony’s gentler brand of colonialism, that Anthony seeks power and kill however necessary for the better good, to bring peace and a form of co-existence between Rome and Pangu. The plot takes us as far as Ruying not only risking her life for the man who she has witnessed horrifying atrocities from, but also seeking revenge on his behalf. This felt frustrating because it felt out of character, unlike the Ruying who is willing to do what it takes to survive but had a deep understanding of Rome’s colonialism.

By the end, Ruying sees Antony is no better. But this moment of realization felt sudden and brief, compared to the many pages that centered on Ruying’s complicated feelings towards Antony. I feel that the emphasis on romance took away from Ruying’s characterization, which is a shame in a novel that otherwise tackles complicated questions of agency under colonialism.

This is an amazing opening book to what I can only imagine is going to be a thrilling series. Ruying is a main character you can understand even if you don’t entirely agree with her choices. She’s stronger than she gives herself credit for and by the end of the book, I’m ready to watch her burn the world down.

The world building is good. A bit hard to follow at first but that’s not unusual for fantasy books-you pick up more and more as you read. I feel like I’m learning more about our own world as I learn more about Er-Lang and Rome. The characters are complex and interesting and their motives make a lot of sense. It takes a while for the action to really start rolling but once it does, it just keeps coming.

The romance is definitely one you can see coming but it builds well and doesn’t feel rushed or out of left field even if it is basically futile and doomed. I can’t help but wonder how things will progress in the sequel(s?) because I feel like there’s no way Ru and Antony are endgame. Also I still don’t know why Antony thinks the whole “using your powers drains your life force” thing is fake. I’m guessing that will come with time, but Ruying definitely seemed to be taking a beating from using her abilities.

Would’ve been 5 stars but there were definitely some fits and starts with the exposition that held me back. Overall, it’s an excellent and entertaining read, and I definitely recommend it.

Also, definitely needs some editing throughout.

I absolutely loved the magic system in this book! This was so beautifully written. Ruying is willing to do anything for her family. Even if it means having to go against everything she thought she stood for. Her family is everything and her unwavering dedication to them is infinite.
I love the takes on present day humanity shown through the Romans. Especially as their world is filled with trash and running out of natural resources.

I received an Advanced readers copy from Netgalley and Del Rey in exchange for a fair review. First, this is a 3.5 for me... There are a few parts I suspect will be edited further and bring it to a 4, so Im rounding up to a 4.

This story is complex. It's about a young woman, Ruying, living in an Asian world that's being colonized by futuristic brutal Romans from another dimension. She struggles with the generational trauma and weight of cultural expectations while trying to find a path to peace for her people. Did I mention she has magic powers to kill people with a thought? Oh and the Romans want her to use her powers for peace.

One of the things that I loved about this story is that it felt like a Chinese Star Wars story in the coolest way. It wasn't really about space, but the dimension hopping and advanced science combined with colonialism had the vibes. It was described very beautifully, and had some very deep dives into Ruying's tumultuous thoughts about trying to achieve peace and trying to see humanity in her captors. It is a bit slow in the beginning, mostly focusing on Ruying's thoughts and world perspective, but then you learn more about the world quickly.

I did notice this book had a couple of negative reviews because of a possible colonizer love interest. But I do think that there's a lot of symbolism in this connection, and it is an important story to tell. I don't want to give any spoilers, but this is just the first book, and people are allowed to be complex and explore their feelings, and I think this exploration makes people who are less familiar with colonization understand.

I think book 2 will probably delve deeper into the magic of the world, more of the culture, and possibly into the futuristic Rome.

The parts that would bring this story down to 3.5 for me is that there is no trigger warning, and there are some violent sections that might be disturbing to come people, and that there are a few sections that feel very repetitive. Again, I am assuming these are both things that will be fixed in editing, and other wise it's a very creative and thought provoking story.

Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group Ballantine, Del Ray for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

From the first chapter, I am immersed into the world immediately and it's all thanks to the author's descriptive writing style. I can almost picture every new place she is describing in my head. There were many lines that I wanted to highlight because they resonated with me.

There are many Chinese proverbs in this book and some apply to what is happening in the book currently and some I felt were unnecessary. There were a few pacing issues as the middle of the book did drag. It is the weakest part. The last quarter of the book had more action which kept my attention enough to continue reading. Overall, I appreciate the setting taking place in ancient China and I hope to read more books set in this time period in the future.

It was really hard to get past the romance in this one. It was extremely toxic and made it unfun to read

Ahh I saw the cover an knew I was a goner, I wouldn't say I was disappointed because I have read some VERY disappointing books. But what I can say is that this was an okay Book, I wasn't very interested in the relationship of the two people of this book( could even say annoyed,irritated, etc) even tried to ignore it but I can see some people enjoying this book in there own right. Just wasn't for me like I thought it was.

With an asian cast and background, written by an asian author, I wanted to like this book so badly. Maybe it’s that YA books don’t appeal to me as much as they used to, but I felt it hard for me to really immerse myself into this book. Some parts of the book dragged on and I found myself quite bored.
The characters themselves were quite loveable and they were also my favorite part of this book, although the world building and the general speed of the book needs a little work, I did enjoy this book and I will be looking forwards to the second book of this series.

Well...I really wanted to like this book, but unfortunately I was very underwhelmed with it. While the prose was lovely and I really liked her writing style, this story was just too repetitive. The vast majority of the time is spent in our MC's head, and when she's not infodumping she's spiraling between the same three thoughts over and over again. Most of the action happens off screen, if there is any. There isn't enough world building to make us feel connected and justify the actions of the MC and the dialogue feels incredibly unnatural. I didn't get anything out of this that I didn't get better from The Poppy War.

Thanks to NetGalley and RandomHouse Publishing for the advanced copy in exchange for a review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

This was a great book. If you love Asian mythology you will love this book. The world building was very well done!