This book has a serious identity crisis- an entirely new storyline sweeps in at about the halfway mark. Also, everyone in this book “sneers.” But the worst thing is the FMC herself. I’m absolutely baffled by one of the love interest’s devotion to her. She rationalizes her decisions by saying they’ll give her more freedom, but these are consistently the worst choices possible AND have negative consequences for her family.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Random House Children’s for letting me read The Nightblood Prince by Molly X. Chang! This author continues to impress! I’m a romance reader at heart, so I wish that aspect had been a bigger part, but in context it makes sense given the main character’s rightful resentment and mistrust for love due to her prophecy. The action and tension were impeccable, the whole book really played out like a movie in my head.

This was such a fast paced fantasy romance! Which I really appreciate, especially for a fantasy. It doesn’t get bogged down in the world building. To be clear, this leaned more romance than fantasy. While Fei consistently reminds us about her frustration with her fate and how she is limited by her gender, the plot does truly center on her choice of romantic partner.

I am a lover of love triangles and a lover of villains- and I feel like I needed more of both of in this book. I would call Siwang and Yuxue more morally grey than legitimate villains. The few sparkling moments of banter that we got were not enough to satisfy and I’d like to see more of that in following book. But I would read future books as I can see the potential in all 3 main characters and how they can develop over time.

The Nightblood Prince is a thrilling blend of romance, prophecy, and magic that will keep you on your toes. Fei, destined to be the Empress of All Empresses, finds herself torn between two princes: the duty-bound Crown Prince and the mysterious, vampire-commanding Yexue. The tension between fate and desire is palpable, and Fei’s journey of self-discovery is what really drives this book.

The world building was so beautifully written and the romance and the tension was so swoon worthy that you can feel it sizzling off the page.

The one downside? The plot can feel a bit predictable at times, but with beautifully written scenes and some serious magical stakes.

Would I recommend it? If you’re into romantic fantasy with a side of vampires and impossible choices, absolutely.

I really loved reading this book and I can not wait for more by this author!! I flew through this book because it was that good. The author did an amazing job keeping the plot interesting without it getting boring or slow. I will be recommending this book to all of the family and friends.

This book has wonderful world building and I found my self enjoying the characters a lot but there were some errors that were odd and probably would be edited out when the book is published such as some small misspellings but I would definitely recommend this to teens in my library.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. That said, I do hope the final print edition will have gone through another round of edits. Multiple times I came across pages with sentence(s) copy/pasted, one instance where the wrong character was mentioned in a scene, and a lot of misspelled or entirely missing words.
As far as the story and characters go, Fei was really difficult to like. It felt like the author had changed her mind about how to let particular scenes play out, yet never went in to fix the scenes after.
This story would have been better served with more page time with the second love interest, who was hardly even in the book for nearly the first 200 pages and yet easily the best character. It was nice when he finally showed back up, but until then I kept asking myself, 'where's the other guy?' And 'I thought this was a "villain" love triangle?' I didn't realize there would be a book two, so while I am curious to see if Yexue finally wins her heart, I won't be rushing out to get it upon release because this was marketed as romance, but the romance really fell flat for me. Especially considering the end. I was really disappointed. There was also just too much reliance on the inspiration from Mulan and the Illiad/ Helen of Troy... but with vampires.
The I think the teens in our library might enjoy this, but not for those seeking a satisfying romance. And it desperately needs to be polished. There's really no excuse for a book this short to be so riddled with errors and inconsistencies, so i hope it will be fixed before final printing.

This book is a masterful blend of intricate world-building, compelling characters, and thrilling adventure. From the very first page, the author draws readers into a world brimming with magic, danger, and political intrigue. The setting is both vast and richly detailed.
Overall, this book is a true gem for fantasy lovers. Whether you're new to the genre or a seasoned fan, it's impossible not to get lost in its pages. A captivating, unforgettable read!

Thank you NetGalley for proving an ARC.