The Buried World by Jeff Wheeler takes us on the next leg of Bingmei’s heroic journey to save her world from the evil Echion, the recently revived dragon king who is as evil as the evilest despot that you can imagine.

What I Loved

The tone of this installment of the series fluctuates between hopelessness and determination, whereas the first book was full of wonder and fear. Echion does not leave room for a positive tone as he proves his absolute might to an unexpecting world. No one can escape him, though many have died trying. He knows all, sees all, and is more than willing to kill all, of which there is no doubt.

Bingmei is feeling the weight of being the Phoenix-chosen, the only one that can stop him. She fights her destiny, as her natural inclination toward survival kicks in - her choices to save the world conflict with those she instinctually makes to save herself and her friends. It’s a harsh realization for her to make, and that is adequately reflected in the weighty tone.

All of the characters, who help Bingmei, face individual challenges. These challenges aid in the growth, development, and complexity of each character that I have grown to love and admire. Each death that takes place, though inevitable, is one more character I will miss along the way. And each success against all the odds is ones that I celebrate for the characters as they have too much work to do to allow themselves to take the time to rejoice.

My favorite character is still Quion. I can imagine him running along, hefting his too-heavy backpack full of essentials, pots, and pans jangling, and his snow leopard companion by his side. He is so endearing with his unfailing determination and friendship. His survival skills are so ingenious that they alone reflect the complexity of his character, who otherwise would seem inconsequential in a fight for life against an unstoppable foe.

The power of forgiveness sticks with me. Bingmei is compelled to forgive one of the last people she would ever expect to bestow this gift upon, and in its subtle way, it truly begins to turn the tide and is more magical then than any Phoenix blade, mei wood staff or mei wood cricket. Sometimes it’s the small things that can make the difference when all hope is lost.

I also sympathize with Rowen’s struggles as he tries to find where his destiny lies. Instinctively he knows he has a role to play, but challenges and people try to convince him otherwise. Whereas Bingmei wears her specialness, Rowen does not have any outward markers, which proves more challenging than the weight of Bingmei’s destiny.

I love everything about this story – it’s intricately woven characters who each reflect characteristics that are as strong as the smells that emanate from them, it’s beautiful and deadly setting and its universal themes that are just beginning to emerge. I especially love the rune magic and the dragon lore, as these add more wonder to an already beautiful world.

To Read or Not to Read

Lovers of epic fantasy will be missing out if they don’t pick up this new series by Jeff Wheeler. I give it six stars on a scale of 1-5 and whole-heartedly rave about it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I did not even realize Jeff Wheeler had new books coming out till I seen this. I was so PUMPED. So had to get them and I was lucky enough to get my hands on this too. He always has the strongest female characters and. I love that! And his writing is so detailed I swear I am really there. It really is a gift he has to be able to engulf you in the world of his writings.

Much like his other books this one takes place right after the first and if he sticks to what he usually does it's only going to get better from here. It is a bit

The characters growth is gorgeous.

It's just perfect.

The Buried World picks up right after the first book. Bingmei continues to struggle with the demands others put on her to sacrifice herself. Echion is ever vigilant over the kingdom, squashing insurrection and the nobility, promoting those who will enforce the martial laws, and constantly chasing Bingmei. His rule cannot be complete without his dragon queen.

Bingmei continues in her moral struggles. These are some of my favorite scenes as she grows into the person she becomes by the end of the book. She is driven and relentless in wanting to do right. She has to know who she is to know how to best help others and defy Emperor Echion. Sometimes, her choices seem like they'll make everything worse - and they do, but she has to trust herself and take action.

If I were to hypothesize on a moral lesson from this series, I would take the themes of forgiveness and knowing who you are. In that way, The Buried World is a coming of age story at its heart - and we all need a little forgiveness.

By the midpoint in the novel, hang-on to your seat for the rest of the ride. The tension ramps up even more in this adventure series. Friends are discovered, betrayals hit forgiveness is found, love is a driving force, evil is overwhelming, the odds are stacked against our hero. Is death really the only answer?

If you enjoy fantasy novels with interesting worlds, you won't want to miss The Immortal Words. Even though this one ends on a cliffhanger - which I liked since it's full of intriguing possibilities - the next in the series, The Immortal Words is scheduled to come out on September 22, 2020.

I am intrigued by the world of Bingmei and cohorts. There are some great characters and a really great premise. Very real consequences come from Bingmei's selfishness. I enjoy her story. Unfortunately, I do not seem to be hooked on Jeff Wheeler's writing style. It took me a little over two weeks to read this novel, which is a painfully slow reading pace for me. I do admit that the Asian based names tend to slow me down because I want to have the pronunciation perfect in my head so I'll get hung up on a sentence every now and again.

But you may also remember my review of The Killing Fog here back in February. Unfortunately many of the same struggles I had with novel number one, I find continue in novel number two. The repetition of Bingmei's descriptions on smells borders on irritating, but this time I find that the repetitive dialog seeped into the world and character descriptions as well.

The first half of the book I often just stopped out of frustration. Then something just seemed to switch. The writing smoothed out, the repetition became a little less frequent, and I was able to push through the last half in just a couple of days. The action scenes we get are absolutely phenomenal, like having a kung fu moving playing in your head while you read. It's these moments that make me understand people's recommendation for Jeff Wheeler.

If you'd like to make your own opinion, The Buried World is publishing June 23rd.

i really enjoyed reading this book. As with past Jeff Wheeler books, the reader is quickly immersed in the story, which is very descriptive as the characters move along in their quest. Great perspective and detail into what the main character is thinking. Story reached a climax and ended at an appropriate point in the story, and left you wanting to read on in the next installment of the series.

Generally, I feel the ideas in a book are really put to the test in the second installment. In this case, Wheeler's book has done exceptionally well. Plenty of new ideas and continuations of exciting developments were brought up and I wasn't bored or lost at any time. What stood out most was that Wheeler's writing is captivating yet concise. He doesn't fill your time with reading his book with parts that aren't necessary or just add filler. I will definitely be reading the next in this series and checking out more from his other publications.

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free e-arc!

I honestly can't get enough of Jeff Wheeler's writing. It is so easy to get lost in the world he creates, and I am in love with this series!

This book, the second in the series, answers some of the questions that the first book brings. Yet, at the end we are still left waiting for more answers. I loved getting to know Bingmei and her companions more, and getting to see the bonds she forms. The details that are put into this story are astounding.

I truly cannot wait to see what happens in the next book!!!

I absolutely loved this series and will definitely be selling/recommending these books and author to my customers! Unfortunately I´m not able to get a hold of all his backlist, as they are not stocked at my wholesalers.

Thankyou to NetGalley, 47North and the author, Jeff Wheeler, for the opportunity to read an advanced readers copy of The Buried World in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.
I really enjoyed reading this book. The narrative and the characters draw you into the storyline. This author has certainly delivered a magical journey. 3.5 stars.
Well worth a read.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and 47North for letting me read and review another incredible book by Jeff Wheeler. He's one of my favorite authors and I love everything he writes. His stories are always very well written, intriguing, and take me on emotional rollercoaster rides and journeys alongside his characters as they go through trials, learn, grow and discover truths about themselves and what they're meant to do with their lives.
In this second installment in this series, it picks up pretty much from right where it ended with the first book. We continue on, following and going along with Bingmei on her journey to discover answers and figure out what to do now that she's awakened the dragon, Echion, who wishes to take over the world and craves all the power. Echion also wants Bingmei to awaken his queen, Xisi so that they can rule over everyone and everything.
Bingmei still fights her destiny to be a hero, to cross the Death Wall and save the world and in this book, she goes back and forth with herself as she continues on the journey with her friends and comrades trying to find an answer for herself and then coming to a decision and having to learn to accept it for herself. She has to learn to accept herself and how to control her powers and such so she can be ready to do what's necessary and be the hero she's destined to be.
As things continue through this story, we find out and get to know more about her companions, more background and info on them, and Echion and his queen, Xisi, and also some more about the Death Wall. Also along the way, there's some romance, contention, and love that's been around for more than one life but cannot be acted upon at this time. We also learn more about the different talents and magics each person has and can use.
And once again at the end of this book, everything suddenly flips upside down and they find themselves in some intense and stressful situations. While you're trying to figure out what's happening, you suddenly find yourself racing to read the end to see what happens and left on a major cliffhanger. I'm dying here wanting to know what happens next in the epic and thrilling conclusion of this amazing series!
If you like dragons, magic, ancient legends, ancient myths, and all, then you're going to want to have this one marked, pre-ordered, and read it as soon as possible! Also, make sure to read the first book, you're not going to want to miss this fantastic read!

The first book to this series is what initially led me to read almost all of Jeff Wheeler's works, and have yet to be disappointed. When I saw "The Buried World" was out on NetGalley, I got overwhelmed with excitement for the opportunity to read this book; that being said, once again Jeff Wheeler does not disappoint. I would like to go more into detail the closer the book is to release, but I surely wasn't disappointed in any aspect. I also want to throw it out there that the world building, the culture, the chinese background just really makes this book so great- mix it with fantasy and you have a brilliant work of art. So happy to have had the opportunity to read this book, I literally subscribed to Kindle Unlimited solely to read Jeff Wheelers works.

3.9
I find the world very detailed, inviting, engaging, and detailed, I can taste the wind, see the trees, the buildings and the people. I can see how certain items are taken culturally from certain mythology. The negative is the unknown hand leading, guiding, causing that feeling of what to do without logic. The inherent nature of one person born with some historical past live experience help leading her. Kind of like Rand Al Thor was, except clearly in this case not the dragon, yet the Phoenix. The nature of evil being all consuming with no practicality and just petty bickering at times was more of a means of escape rather then logical.

I look forward to reading the next book.

5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish

Both books in the series were excellent. The plot grabs you from page one and it gets better and better. The author is creative. It is a fantasy read so get ready for a lot of twists and turns as the journey continues.

Another great addition to the Jeff Wheeler world. Really enjoyed this novel. Lots of excitement, intrigue, and adventure. I think like many series, and I say this a lot, this was a middle book in the series and had it’s slow moments and some unnecessary items. That seems to be very common and I don’t hold it against anyone because you have to have the bridge books. But I think overall still a great book

Thank you to 47North and Jeff Wheeler for providing me with an advanced reading copy.

I recieved this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book it´s 3.5 stars. I liked this book very much buuuut not as the first book. Bingmei is one of my female characters of all time and in this book she surprised me a lot!

It´s very dificult to talk about this because spoilers but in this part all the characters are awesome! all of them grew a lot and have many personal issues that are dificult to resolve. All this world is amazing in all things, in kingdoms, characters, structure, magic, etc...

And again, a lot of girl power and that is awesome! we need more stronge female characters in fantasy and all the books! I am very sure Bingmei is going to be a very strong and legendary woman in fantastic literature and i am very anxious for the 3rd book!!! because OMG HOW THIS IS GOING TO END!?

Rounded up to 4.5 Stars.
Oh my goodness I am enjoying reading through this trilogy. In my experience the middle book of a trilogy usually the least exciting, the one you need to read through to get to the exciting conclusion (being the third book).
Not in this case! The Buried World is every bit as good as the first book, The Killing Fog. The action continues and the characterisations develop nicely. And throughout there is Jeff Wheeler's lovely writing. I have become quite a fan of his description's of Bingmei's gift and the way he slips them into the prose seamlessly as though it is the most natural thing in the world.
I can't wait until the final book!

I just love every book I've read by Jeff Wheeler - and the Buried World is a more than worthy continuation of his Grave Kingdom series. Excellent characters, excellent story, excellent world building, and a touch of magic - it's all there. This series is quite different from his Kingfountain series, as it is based more on Chinese fantasy or fairy tales. But the usual foundation is there - a brave and honorable young girl doing her best to save her world - and I am completely enjoying the story of Bingmei as she struggles to save this new and interesting world. Many thanks to NetGalley and 47North for the e-arc. Read it! His stories are wonderful!

This review is for the first two in this series. These are solid fantasy tales told with a nice style and lots of good imagination. The author has been around a while and knows how to tell a good story with well formed characters, an engaging plot, and some nice surprises. I'm not a huge fantasy fan, but this worked for me.

Thanks very much for the ARC for review!!

Jeff Wheeler has quickly become my favorite author. He has so many unique yet wonderfully detailed worlds and stories. He does not let me down in the second installment of the Grave Kingdom series. This books just pulls me in to where I cannot stop reading. I loved every second and cannot wait for book 3.

Another 5-star read from Jeff Wheeler. This newest series has quickly joined his other works on my "favorites" shelf. I love how different this series is from the rest, too! Bingmei's story is captivating, and I cannot wait to see where it goes in the next book.