Thanks to NetGalley and Philomel Books for the opportunity to read and review Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao. Xifeng lives with and under the control of her Aunt Guma in a poverty-stricken kingdom where the king forces young women to be his concubines. Guma uses magic that makes others suspicious and cautious. She’s reading cards for Xifeng’s future and the cards state that Xifeng is going to be Empress someday. Xifeng and her boyfriend Wei leave the village for their freedom and their futures. They each discover something new about themselves and each other. This debut novel contains unique elements. The protagonist also seems to be the antagonist and as the story unfolds the theme seems to change. I’m fascinated with Xifeng and her reasoning with all of her actions as well as the beautiful relationship she has with Wei. An impressive, entertaining first novel by Julie C. Dao! 5 stars!
*I received a complimentary copy of this book for voluntary consideration.

EXPECTATIONS: Ever since I read Heartless by Marissa Meyers I realized I really enjoy books about villains. And considering that Forest of Thousand Lanterns is about an evil queen I was really up for it from the moment I found this book on Goodreads.

THE WORLD: I would say very fairy tale like but most of the time it actually feels very similar to ours. Yes there is magic and yes there are enchanted forests and fantastic creatures but that is not talked about as much as I would have liked. The moment we arrive to the emperor's castle we pretty much enter the usual royal atmosphere. Also this book deals with an emperor who has many wives and they all fight for his attention so if you are not into books featuring harem I would stay away from this one.

CHARACTERS: Xifeng is a young girl when we meet her, she is raised by her crazy aunt who has it in her head that Xifeng is destined to be an empress. So Xifeng sets out to the emperor's castle to become part of his harem and with big hopes to actually become and empress. Now don't forget Xifeng is not a goody good character, she actually uses others and the fact that they love her to her advantage whenever needed. There is a boy in this book who is crazy in love with Xifeng and she just keeps breaking his heart again and again, it's pretty horrible. Xifeng is also blinded by the fact that she must be an empress, basically if she is not an empress than she should not be living and is worth nothing. So what do I think of this Xifeng character? Well to be honest I am not a big fan. I mean yes I like that she is fine with doing whatever it takes but the whole idea of making a man fall for you to be somebody is a bit hmm...There is a lot also girl on girl hate because well it is a harem and all women are fighting for a drop of attention. So even tho I did like Xifeng something I found myself not liking the general idea so much that it reflected also on my feeling towards Xifeng.

ROMANCE: As I already mentioned men go crazy about Xifeng, she is this amazingly beautiful blah blah girl that everybody just drops in love with. Frankly that was too much for me.

GOOD: I liked beginning of the book really much and it was so promising till we got to the girl on girl hate.

BAD: Essentially it is all about using men that fall in love with you and making a man love you to be somebody. I don't like this idea of having so much testosterone involved. I am also against harem lifestyle or polygamy in general. I am not saying there is only monogamy that is right but I very much dislike the idea of doing whatever it takes for attention of a man. It might be feminist speaking in me but really, nobody needs a man to be validated. Maybe if it was a queer harem is would feel different.

OVERALL: It was alright but I will not read next book in the series. I just cannot deal with so much testosterone and need of man's approval.

My favourite thing about this book was that Xifeng was not a nice girl. That seems harsh, and perhaps it is, but it’s also true. I don’t mean this in a nitpicking way. Xifeng is selfish, ambitious, and determined to the point of being willing to walk over anyone else to get what she wants. She has set her sights on being Empress, and she will do anything, and does more than the unimaginable, to get it. There were scenes that were difficult to read, and events in the book that change your opinion of Xifeng for good, but it all adds to the complexity of the tale, and of Xifeng herself.

When the book begins, we don’t yet know if she is an unwilling pawn in a game of her aunt’s, whether she even wants to follow this path that has been set out before her, but as Xifeng takes step after step down the path, and as she knocks opponents and obstacles out of her way, we see her accepting her own desires, and embracing her ambitious selfishness and the darkness that lies within her soul. By the end of the novel, there is no doubt that Xifeng is not the pure, innocent girl that we thought she was at the start of the novel. She is dark, evil even, but having followed her along her whole journey, it is difficult to ignore the humanity in her that even she has set aside. Xifeng’s characterisation made this book so easy to read for me.

I loved seeing the exploration of her character reach new depths, and couldn’t get enough of deciphering her morals, or lack of them. What seemed like a bit of a cookie cutter female protagonist in the first pages, turned out to be a character of many layers, with surprises lurking beneath each and every one. When the book ended, I was shocked. I kept expecting a redemption arc, a sorrowful and repenting protagonist, eager to right her wrongs, but Xifeng doesn’t regret anything that she has done to get what she wants, and as horrifying as that is, I also found it refreshing and exciting to read a character do so confidently.

Overall, I really adored Forest of a Thousand Lanterns, and I’d love to read it again in the future to explore Xifeng some more. Whilst this book might not be for readers who like to like their protagonists, or for those who don’t like violence and gore, I would still recommend giving it a try and letting it challenge you. I like morally ambiguous characters, and still, Xifeng even challenged me. Julie C Dao writes Xifeng in a way that you still hold out some hope for her, and you’re so reluctant to let go of it, and that made reading Forest of a Thousand Lanterns a really interesting experience for me personally. I really think that this book has pushed the boundaries of YA fiction, and I hope to see more books like it.

This is a wicked read of a rising empress. An antiheroine’s journey, you’ll hate and love and succumb for the risk of knowing how prophecy dictates a woman’s dark and envious mission.

Forest Of A Thousand Lanterns is definitely a book you’ll read for its writhing sense of wit and dangerous actions. A story with a protagonist goes dark side conquering her true fate ahead as the cards revealed. A twisted tale of desire, beauty, envy, and wickedness.

A deja vu happened to infest my mind during reading this book that reminds me somehow a piece of similarities of my previous read. How the main character delves deeper through her course that favors her success. Quite I expected from this story yet it still uniquely reestablish again in my mind.

I really have a mixed feeling throughout this. A pang of hatred for Xifeng, the antiheroine protagonist, yet I still adore her clever, firm, and brave self. A collision of turns of events. That nasty and gory ritual – you have to read this to know what I mean.

You definitely read this if you’re looking for a fantasy that weaves the story into a magnificent dark twisted feminine tale. Also, this depicts how the woman become a power to a man’s world.

Do I love this book? More than I can say I love it. This is just too great for a debut novel. A compelling and awesome one to say.

Xifeng is beautiful and knows she is destined for greatness. Her aunt has instilled in her that the stars have predicted that she would one day become the Empress of Feng Lu. It doesn’t matter that she is a lowly peasant girl, the witch Guma has regularly read her cards and has seen Xifeng’s future. What will Xifeng need to do in order to bring these predictions into truth? Will she be willing to give up her true love in order to follow her destiny?

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is the first book in the Rise of the Empress series. Although Dao has created an East Asian world that is deep with history and legends, readers won’t feel like they are inundated with excessive world building. There are portions of the story that drag some and the ending felt rushed, yet readers will still finish the book with an anticipation of the next volume. A good read but will not satisfy all readers.

An East Asian fantasy re-imagining of The Evil Queen legend about one peasant girl's quest to become Empress--and the darkness she must unleash to achieve her destiny.

I had my doubts as I had been reading reviews about it being an anti-hero, but the writing and the world building was well done and this kept my interest for sure. I would give this a 3.5 stars, but rounded down, it was a dark story, but an enjoyable read!

Do you like magical tales? This has the Asian twist and perfectly played out the roles of different characters which are in difficult position themselves,

This is magical book or elements from the most common fairy tales, but it stands on it's own. The storytelling reminded me of Lian's Hearn trilogy series Across the Nightingale Floor, but the plot is completely different, don't mix these two!

This is about an ambitious character, a very ambitious one, who would cross everything and no death would stand in a way. But that of course, doesn't happen without a price OR being played to step these steps without even knowing it. Forest of a Thousand Lanterns has a very influential main character, playing to be one personality but being completely different.

Xifeng has been influenced by her Guma to follow the future the cards has lead her, promising unbelievable life spun from her current position, her Guma has purposely educated her all life to fit in the task she is about to set as her aim. All the beatings and long hours reciting poems turns to become useful when life throws Xifeng in dangerous situations. Although having a difficult growing up and developing feelings to the boy from her village, she aims for something more, being completely free and doing what she wants, not what other wants her to be...but is it ever possible? In the environment harem and kingdom is set?

It was really promising as a retelling, and with the point of view of the character who's always "the bad one" portrayed as the main one here, explaining her backstory as you could say, I expected a lot more. In the end I didn't like her one bit. I can stand evil but I can't stand pure and inexplicable selfishness. I just can't.

Okay … can we talk about the sheer awesome power of this novel? I mean seriously! I can honestly say I haven’t read a book like this in a loooooooong time! It has everything – conniving men and women, power struggles, a romance that isn’t romantic, an anti-heroine who you can’t help but kinda love, the examination of the complexities of being a woman in a man’s world, and a story that just never stops. One of the hardest things I had to do was turn the last page of this book because I wasn’t ready for it to be over. This is even more impressive, because when I first started reading I thought for sure I wasn’t going to be able to make it. Xifeng felt too conniving, too narcissistic, too everything. But as I kept reading I found that in the context of the story, Dao couldn’t have created or developed a better character. AND that is what made the whole reading experience that much more interesting and worthwhile. Xifeng is not a cookie cutter anything, she is entirely her own and I really admire that Dao was able to not only make that work but also successfully sell it as well as she did. Additionally, I found myself rooting for Xifeng because as the story progressed I began to understand her. This has nothing to do with sympathy or empathy but rather everything to do with survival and finding your way in a world that says you aren’t enough. To me, this too is a sign of a very deft and very talented storyteller (Bravo, Julie Dao! Bravo!)

To say that I’m excited for the next book would be a gross understatement. I think this is going to be one of those books that has everyone talking and one that has the capability of holding even the most reluctant of reader’s attentions. I cannot recommend this book enough and I am thrilled for more from this new voice in YA literature.

Great read! At our school it is better for the stronger readers & we will definitely use in a book club.

"You have two faces. Two beings live within you, struggling for control. One has a heart that thrives in darkness and feeds on the pain of weaker souls. The other longs to stretch a hand to the light, to live and love as others do."


OH MY GOD, THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING. I had a feeling I was going to like this book since it's a retelling and I'm a very big fan of that genre, but honestly, I didn't know I was going to love it and devour it as fast as I did. But turns out, it has become one of my favourites of this year so far, and I can't wait to see what path the story's going to take.

I feel I've been talking about this book quite much this year, because it was in my top 10 most anticipated releases of this year, so I can't thank the publisher enough for giving me an ARC of this book. There were a lot of good reviews on the internet by then, so I went with very high hopes, and it still managed to surprised me even more, so extra kudos to that.


"Fate finds you alluring," Guma said, tapping the lotus, " but do not be fooled. It is you who are its slave. Let no one stand in your way. If they face you, your beauty will entrap them. If they turn away, you will stab them in the back."


Let's begin by saying I'm a very big fan of villains, and it always fastinates me to see the creation of one, because in the original fairytales or Disney movies, you didn't get to see it that often, so I'm always on the hunt for a story like that. And I must say this was a damn good one, where you see Xifeng's development, and little hints of how she could end up being an amazing villain.

Yes, Xifeng has become one of my favourite characters so far. She's incredibly intelligent, and she knew how to use her beauty and knowledge to her advantadge and to get what she wanted. She came from a very abusive family, and I think most of the evil she had inside her came from that. But nonetheless, it was still very interesting to know about her, because she had a lot to give, and the series has just began.

I love the diversity of the story, and how most of if not all of the characters were POC. Despite being a first book in a series you could really grasp that fairytale-eske vibe, and the world building was quite expanded, which surprised me a bit. You learnt the myths and legends of that world, and the different stories that circulated the world, along with people from different regions, which was super interesting.


"I am the moon and darkness around it. I am the wind and the rain and the ceaseless sea. I am time itself, and yours is running out."


I must say the story had a very slow pacing, so if that's something you don't like maybe this book might not be for you, because it took a while for the action to come, and some parts were mostly descriptive. And because we're talking of a retelling of the creation of a villain, that slowness was justified, I think. I didn't paticulary mind, because it didn't seemed like I was bored or it was too slow, but I still wanted to point that out in case you do.

I would say it was more focused on the characters and their development and transformations. The second part of the book took place in the palace, and it was quite interesting seeing the different faces people gave to the princess, and how unreliable they were. There was a bit of a romance in the story as well, but I wouldn't say it was a very important part of it, though the way it impacted our main character was.

Overall, I adored and devoured each single part of this book. The writing was gorgeous and beautifully done, and I kept wanting to read it. I would totally recommend it if you're looking for a diverse retelling, or simply if you love a good villain.

I recieved an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This doesn’t change my opinion whatsoever. All thoughts are my own.

I love so many things about this book. From the East Asian historical setting (I will talk a lot about this later), to the plot, and the characters. BUT I also hated some things about it, and in a good way. You know, this is an anti-heroine novel. So, I think it’s perfectly reasonable to loath Xifeng – an anti-heroine – at some points for her villainous and ruthless deeds. But at the same time, I love her in a lot of ways. Does that make any sense? I HATE HOW MUCH I LOVE HER.

I have no words for Julie C. Dao’s writing style. It was a bit slow for me at first, but after a few chapters, I can hardly put the book down. Reading this book will give you a great feeling of lush. Her words are super rich and very exquisite.

Beautifully written story and a very engaging take on the wicked stepmother/evil queen fantasy tales.

I always liked fairytales rewriting and I was very curious to read this one.

The rewritings are always a little complicated to judge, there is already the difficulty to create somethings new and original, here the rewriting happens in an extremely patriarchal Asian universe. I liked the folklore created by the author, the latter was able to mix touches of magic and History, I enjoyed plunging myself into it. Moreover, the tone of the book is rather dark, a lot of black magic and some scenes are really creepy. In addition, the patriarchal side of the book conveys a feminist message that is rather welcome.

As for our heroine Xifeng, we know she will become the villain of the story, the end is predictable in that way, but the key of the novel lies in her personal evolution. She is a young girl, who has always been praised for her beauty, she comes from a small village and since she was young, she knows she will end up at the palace. It's a girl who has been programmed to think about greatness and that's what will push her to make dubious choices. I am quite ambiguous about this heroine, I think that from the beginning, I did not like this character, her decisions seemed improbable to me although logical for the story. Her evolution also demonstrates the importance of physical beauty in our societies, the difficulty of living beyond the standards and the fear of rejection that it creates. So I liked the message, but not the character.

As for my overall opinion, there are things I liked like the feminist message, the pen of the author however the book has many lengths, I did not find that the action is very strong. It's a book with a lot of introspection and they have not really convinced me. So I'm a little mixed on this book, I'm waiting to see the summary of Volume 2 before I decide to continue the serie.

This was DELIGHTFULLY dark. Like, the type of book where you just kinda cackle as things unfold because holy shit, we're going there. It's also the type of book where you simultaneously root for the main character to go full dark side but also wish she had a better life because she needs to be protected a little. At least that's how it was for me. I was all in basically from the beginning (I mean, Asian-inspired Snow White retelling from the Evil Queen's POV, C'MON). Something about Dao's writing just really sucks you in, it's beautiful. This was so atmospheric, I felt fully immersed in the world and in Xifeng's mindset. I'm also so happy that there are protagonists like Xifeng and I'm so looking forward to her continued journey. If you felt let down by The Young Elites (like I was) or if you liked that series, I would highly recommend you pick this one up at the bookstore or your local library. It's so damn good.

It was a bit slow in the beginning, but once you get into the story it's very difficult to put it down. An addictive story with a great writing style, also has a dark touch that makes the book even more interesting. I think the characters are good but they are not the best I've read, yet I recommend it, I think it's a very original story that you'll surely enjoy

Two weeks ago, reading Forest of A Thousand Lanterns quite too soon didn’t honestly even just stumble in my mind. I may have thought about it before because of the hype but I did not plan nor thought of reading this quite too soon. Even having an eARC, I still didn’t plan to read it yet because of all the review copies I have to read first. But little did I know, if I wasn’t invited for this blog tour, I would have probably missed such a great chance and wasted my time because this book is so excellent to even miss.

“Your beauty is all you are, and all you have. Your only weapon.”

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is a wicked read about beauty, power, dark magic and a girl’s quest for greatness.

First things first, I just want to say how beautiful Julie C. Dao’s writing is. Engaging right at the first page with excellence that was proven along the way. How could you not expect for a beautiful wicked ride?

It is a reimagining of the Evil Queen fairytale which didn’t stop me from remembering my last 5 stars read Girls Made of Snow and Glass, a Snow White reimagining, where we saw Mina’s story – who stood as the reimagined Evil Queen. In this book, we follow a peasant girl named Xifeng’s story who stood as the reimagined Evil Queen.

It was set in an East Asia inspired world which I really loved. The story takes place in a continent called Feng Lu. And man, a map of Feng Lu is a need in my life. The rich and strong world building was evident from the very beginning. Chinese and Japanese names were even used. Forest of A Thousand Lanterns made me feel right at the very beginning like there was a Chinese historical movie playing in my head. I imagined the dragon dancing from China, their old houses and markets I saw in movies, an Empress wearing those beautiful royal Chinese gowns with a crown full of jewels in her head. The feeling is new and the experience is refreshing for that I haven’t read a fantasy book with much East Asian influences yet.

Forest of A Thousand Lanterns is a book as powerful and as wicked as its characters. Dao brought to life characters who each have different stories to tell, different lives to live and different purposes to fulfill but all the same strong in their own respective ways. Although some of them really left me conflicted, more specifically, the main character Xifeng and Wei.

Xifeng, the anti-heroine, a peasant who climbed her way to the top with the goal of fulfilling what the cards have said her destiny, did a great anti-heroine, though I cannot say that I did really love her character. She was plain confusing at times. She also did have double standards which really irked me. But what made me like her still, was that I saw a part of myself in her, that girl with ambition, that girl who doesn’t want anyone to think low of her, that girl who wants to be on top. But there was still a soft spot inside her, there was still that girl who wants to protect her loved ones and be loved underneath the though surface.

Wei on the other hand, I may have liked him for the fact that he reminds me of someone and the faithfulness and love that he showed but he was such a sexist I couldn’t handle him at times. He also can be close minded which was so disappointing.

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns also gives spotlight to women with great ambition, for women who knows that they have purpose and for women who believe that they are meant for greater things. This, alone, made Forest of a Thousand Lanterns a fierce, promising and beautiful read. As a woman who have an ambition, who knows that she has a purpose and believes that she is meant for greater things, this book hits home. I also love how the book screams that women wants to be able to choose and decide for themselves even if they live in a world where men think they own women.

Plot-wise, I don’t think I still have to mention that I loved it so much. It was well constructed. Perfectly weaved. There may be things that were easy to figure, the ups, downs and turns will still make you not regret jumping into this ride.

I also loved the complex relationship Dao built between these characters. That feeling of wanting to love and be loved by your own enemy. That feeling of sticking to people just to have power. That feeling of having to let go someone you want to keep forever in order to achieve other things. That feeling of letting go of your old self just so you could be better, greater, no matter what and how much it cost. Man, I love Julie C. Dao so much.

Despite having characters with fairly strong voices, and aside for the fact that some also left me conflicted, I didn’t connect with any of them either which was a little bit disappointing because I would have loved this book even more if I connected with even just one or even just Empress Lihua or basically anyone. But even Princess Lihua felt distant to me, more especially Xifeng. And lastly, along the way, I felt like it became easy to forget why Xifeng was doing all those things, that quest for greatness. At first I really liked the thought of it but as the story goes on I felt like her climb to top was becoming senseless, tiring and boring. At some point, I wished for this book to have more than the story of how Xifeng climbed her way to the top. Side stories will do. Nevertheless, these didn’t make Forest of a Thousand Lanterns any less excellent.

For a debut novel, Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is utterly impressive. Hats off to Julie C. Dao!

Watch out for this book and its anti-heroine. Forest of a Thousand Lanterns will go big. I highly recommend!

I really enjoy the first half of this book. I love how the author write it. My review is on my blog as I participated to the Ph Blog Tour of the book.

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is a wonderfully intriguing East Asian fantasy reimagining of The Evil Queen. I always wanted to pick up a fairy tale retelling and this book sounded especially promising, since it seemed to capture the dark side of fairy tales, which is often forgotten in many newer stories. I definitely wasn’t disappointed. I had many expectations and all of them were met.

Dao‘s writing is simple, yet poetic. It’s easy to read and at the same time, she manages to create a fascinating and magical world with her words, filled with both darkness and light.

"Be the blade and the edge together, the light and the dark. You have two faces, Xifeng."

The characters, too, have each more than one side. There isn’t just good or bad, but a mixture, and this is most prominently seen in the main character, Xifeng. I haven’t read many books centred around a protagonist that is, at the same time, the villain, the anti-hero. But Dao did an absolutely brilliant job here. I felt with Xifeng, wanted her to succeed and wanted her to fail; I can definitely say that I have a lot of conflicted feelings about her - and isn’t this evidence enough that the author created a wonderfully complex character? The side characters were so, so good as well: kindhearted Shiro, loving Empress Lihua, cruel Guma. Every character seemed carefully crafted and came alive on the beautiful pages that make up Forest of a Thousand Lanterns.

The plot itself was very captivating as well; fast-paced, but not overly so. I read most of the book while I was sitting on the train, on my way to university, and whenever I had to get out I was so sad, because I just didn’t want to stop reading. And when I came back home the first thing I did was take out my kindle and continue reading. The magic of it all was dark and intense, topics such as prophecies and fate were in the centre of the story and throughout it all Dao wove threads of darkness. Through Xifeng’s eyes we learned, how hard it is to turn your back on power, even if it comes with a price.

"How generous is fate, she thought. And how cruel."

I have so many theories about the next book (or books?) and I cannot wait to see where Julie C. Dao is going with this story. If you’re a fan of anti-heroes, fairy tales, strong characters, a magically written world and a unique story, you should do yourself a favour and pick up this book. I read the second half of this in less than a day, because I just couldn’t put it down! Book #2, can you please be published as soon as possible? Thank you.