I'd like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me a shot at reading this book.

I think ... my expectations were a little to high for this one. I wanted a story that had a grittier protagonist, a girl who gets knocked down but gets back up again, and magic involved in her way of fighting through cage matches.

I didn't even get to the first cage match before throwing in the towel on it. The world building wasn't existing, the creatures were kind of just there, and the FL felt like a stock character instead of someone with depth and feelings of being overlooked, overworked, and poor.

I didn't come for romance, I came for a story with a Colleen Wing-esque protagonist with a tough independent streak. So blame it on me.

loved this book. the worldbuilding felt so unique and so did the story? i was HOOKED with everything going on in the arena. i loved how morally grey all of the characters were, even if they didn’t appear to be so at first— like, the REVELATIONS? also, desil is the Best Boy. 4.5 stars rated up

Thank you to NetGalley and DAW for the arc :)

2.5 ⭐️
I was SO excited about this book when I first read the description. And as much as some things fell flat for me, there was also a lot to like.

I was obsessed with the focus on the platonic relationship of the two main characters. I think platonic love is so underrated in fiction, and with the way that ~spice~ is becoming so popular, it can be hard to find adult books without it. Unpopular opinion maybe, but I don’t like spice that much, and I’m pretty neutral on romance, so I really liked this part of the novel.

I also loved a lot of the worldbuilding — “Sunsmith” and “Moonmachinist” as the names of deities especially stood out to me. Also, glowing fuzzy bees?? Sign me up. The vibes were very good overall, and the world felt vibrant.

Also, shoutout to the nature of the relationships throughout the story. By the end, not every relationship was mended or forgiven. Even after trying to meet eye-to-eye, some characters just didn’t get along with the main character, or it was clear that their relationships needed more time to mend, and that really stood out to me.

The language was generally very lyrical and elaborate, which I actually liked and wouldn’t have minded if it was consistent. However, there would be random moments of more anachronistic language that didn’t feel right. Having a lengthy, elaborate description of a setting and following it up with “ginormous” was a little jarring; similarly, I was pulled out of the story when a character would say “You ought to have come spectate” and then in the next line, say “my bad”. Maybe that’s a personal thing, but it kept throwing me off.

The story takes place over the course of a year, but a lot of it felt rushed. Most of the battles were glossed over and conflict was resolved too quickly. I think a lot of that was because of the golden rot subplot, which felt really out of place. I don’t think the story would have changed much without it. Either the book needed more space to tell the story, or some of the subplots could have been cut.

I was especially looking forward to the actual monsters in this book, since that’s the core concept, and I was really excited to learn more about Malaysian-Chinese mythos, as the book was described. But we got … bugbears? I even ended up doing heavy research to figure out if the monsters had any relation to Malaysian-Chinese folklore that I didn’t know about, but I couldn’t find anything. With the way the book was advertised (synopsis, cover, etc.), I suppose I was under a different impression. I don’t think it’s any detriment to the actual content of the book, nor would I blame the author (truly, it’s the marketing of it that I have an issue with), so it’s not affecting my rating at all. It’s just worth mentioning.

Despite my complaints, it was a pleasant reading experience and I’d definitely keep my eye out for future books by this author, although I don’t know if I’d jump to recommend The Serpent Called Mercy to any of my friends.

Thank you to NetGalley and Daw for the arc! I absolutely loved this. I’m struggling to put all my thoughts and feelings into coherent sentences, but I’ll try. Here are some things I adored about this book.

-Tears of the Kingdom lovers, come get your soup! There’s a location we spend a lot of time in that vividly reminds me of the depths. Speaking of which, I love the indulgent descriptions we get in this book. The author really takes me there, and I spent a lot of time happily and vividly hallucinating to a screen with letters on it. This book rocked my artistic socks.

-the world building is plentiful and fascinating and beautifully unique. As someone VERY partial to world building, this book was extremely satisfying. The religion, the history, the cultures, divine blessings, the socioeconomic state of the city, the mythology, the everything, MOONMACHIST? COSMOSCAPE? BEES? Mwah

-I love the main character fiercely. She’s easy to love, and her arc was incredible. I rooted for her the entire way, and I love everyone she was surrounded by too. They were all fleshed out and unique and lovely to read about. I felt sympathy for almost all of them, and I felt what I was supposed to towards each character. I also loved how almost everyone was splotched in shades of grey.

-the relationship between Lythlet and Desil was was so tender and written so beautifully. God I love platonic love. It is SO underrated, and the way it was done here made my chest squeeze and heart ache. Genuinely one of the best bonds between two characters I’ve read about this year.

-this book challenges you, and has beef. It’s full of wisdom, philosophy, metaphysical schemes, very quotable and powerful lines, and this book challenges the mythos of storytelling. It also has a good deal and depth of socioeconomic commentary and political intrigue. Not to mention the symbolism, which was detailed and plentiful; I can think of a certain scene that is VERY ghibliesque.

All in all, this book cleansed my skin. I loved it from start to finish, it had substance, and it was chef’s kiss. More books like this please -5 sun-cursed beasts

"The Serpent Called Mercy" by Roanne Lau is an exhilarating rollercoaster of epic fantasy, where the stakes are as high as the blood-soaked battles! With a Malaysian Chinese-inspired world that feels both fresh and familiar, this novel draws you in with its gritty, fast-paced action and keeps you hooked with its rich layers of ambition, betrayal, and friendship. Lythlet’s journey from debt-ridden slumdog to a cunning conquessor in the monster-fighting arena is packed with edge-of-your-seat moments, and watching her navigate the deadly games both inside and outside the ring is nothing short of thrilling.

What truly sets this book apart is its heart—the bond between Lythlet and Desil shines amid the chaos, adding an emotional depth to the story that balances out the ruthless fight for survival. The political intrigue and the harsh reality of the cost of ambition make this more than just an action-packed fantasy; it's a gripping exploration of power, honor, and loyalty. With a unique world, unforgettable characters, and twists that will leave you breathless, "The Serpent Called Mercy" is a must-read for fans of intense, high-stakes fantasy!

I mostly enjoyed this book, largely owing to the worldbuilding and the characters. The blend of Malaysian-Chinese mythos and culture makes this one stand out from the plethora of fantasies available today and was one of the strong points for me. I particularly thought that the female main character--Lythlet--was well-written. Her desperation at her circumstances, and her love for the people around her, was very well done. Mostly I have not given this book a higher rating is because the writing style did not gel with me. I'm not sure if others will feel this way, but I found it to be dry and boring most of the time. I don't need lyrical prose or anything, but it made me feel more distanced from the protagonist more than I would've liked, even though I thought Lythlet was well-written.

Oof. I knew a few pages in that this book wasn’t going to do it for me, but I gave it a chance to get better once the plot kicked in. Things did not get better. Generic writing, worldbuilding done solely through long expository passages, and characters with very little depth. What bothered me the most was that the book presents itself as a Malaysian Chinese inspired epic fantasy, and yet every character sounds English, down to their use of colloquialisms like “oi” and “mate.” I found it so incongruent with what I was told this book was supposed to be that I was honestly kind of pissed off about it.

I received this book as an ARC.

I really enjoyed this story. It follows a young woman desperate to better the lives of her best friend and herself. The relationship between the FMC and MMC is very realistic as they love each other (platonically) so much and yet struggle to share their deepest shames to protect each other. I will admit that I struggled to like the FMC for the middle portion of the book as I found her to be self-serving. However, her character arc and redemption were very rewarding.

I found the side characters to be fun and enjoyed the silliness they brought to the story. I would enjoy to learn more about them and their journey as they went through their challenges.

I would definitely read another book by the author and enjoy to learn more about this world!

This was a good book and it was not even my typical genre read! It was so cool to read about the mythology and cultures from China and Malaysia. It definitely did have SQUID games vibes, it was an arena based fight between different monsters, it was good, the pacing was good, and the writing style kept me entertained
Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and especially the author for this ARC in exchange for my honest review of the book!!

The cover and description is what drew me in and I was so glad I was able to read this. I loved the use of Malaysian-Chinese mythology worked overall. I thought it was a great idea for a monster-fighting arena. It had that plot that I wanted and it was so well written that I was hooked from the first page. The characters had that feel that I wanted and glad they worked so well in this world. I enjoyed how strong Roanne Lau’s writing was and that the characters worked overall.