It’s been said in other reviews, and I truly have no idea on how to emphasize this: K. S. Villoso’s The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is a stunning end to a phenomenal series.

Villoso wanted to write Talyien as a combination of the Chosen One and Strong Female archetypes, and she perfectly succeeded in doing so. Being a morally gray main character, it is likely that Talyien would receive a lot of hate from readers, which is totally fine. Talyien is problematic and does have her own issues which I fully believe that she still needs to deal with. However, if the reason that you find her annoying is that because she is female, please do take a step back and reflect. How come it seems easier for us to chase red flags if they’re held by men, and we tend to develop unsettling emotions when they’re held by women?

(Yes, this is possibly a self-reminder of how I initially loved and wanted to #RideRayyel no matter how fucked up he is.)

Talyien’s character development is amazing. She is the epitome of a socially aware, privileged woman, and it’s impossible for one to not notice that the most beautiful parts of this book are her inner monologues. Her musings. I am baffled by the amount of times that she explicitly stated that she wishes to write and appreciate poetry as beautiful as an Ikessar does, yet she failed to acknowledge the undeniable fact that her inner monologues are pure poetry. Her words hold power enough to topple even the strongest walls that one has built for protection against the emotions of life. I mean, having the ability to create such sentences + thinking that you have no talent = Talyien, a (future) writer with big imposter syndrome energy.

Reading The Wolf of Oren-Yaro to The Ikessar Falcon to The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng has been one heck of a journey. Fortunately, we finally get to see more of Thanh before it ended. In this final installment, Villoso blesses us with precious moments between Talyien and Thanh. (No, I am not crying. You are.) In The Wolf of Oren-Yaro, it seemed that Talyien’s goal was to bring back Rayyel so that, hopefully, everything would be better and that there would be peace; however, in The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng, we come to understand that that was never the ultimate goal of our Chosen One. The driving force behind every decision of Talyien is none other than Thanh. Is it selfish of her to focus most of her attention only on Thanh’s happiness and safety? Perhaps.

Of course, this is not to dispute Talyien’s accomplishments. She continued to do her best in her duties despite the fucked up secrets that almost everyone has been keeping from her since ever before she was born. Although I fully believe that Yeshin is a fool and deserve no rights (to be honest, none of them do—with the exception of the kids because fuck everyone who would even put kids in the face of danger), I am conflicted. Yeshin may have acted mostly for his (and Talyien’s) own interests, but he was also only trying to solve the larger issue that they are facing. It is heartbreaking to see how, at such a young age, Talyien was given this burden by her father. I recall my personal interactions with individuals whose parents are politicians. I recall how exhausting it is for them to be either hated or held up on a pedestal. I recall how they’ve shared their experiences of being bullied as kids simply because their parents are corrupt politicians. It’s painful how kids are forced to bear the lives of their parents before they even learn to say their first word.

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng broke me in ways that I can never fully explain. As I read those last couple of chapters, I wanted to stop. I was unprepared for the ending. I do not want it to end. I had absolutely no idea how it would end. But, oh god, I continued to read. My cheeks were wet and my nose ran like hell. How they were able to solve everything was perfect. I could not ask for a better or different ending because this is simply the Best Ending in the history of all endings.

Villoso is a master storyteller. I’m unsure how to convince each and everyone of you to read this masterpiece known as “The Chronicles of the Bitch Queen” because reviews are nothing compared to the magic of Villoso’s words. This series will forever be in my favorite shelf.

P. S. This might come off as a surprise and may irk other readers, but while the epilogue was written beautifully, I think it was a bit unnecessary.

If somebody wants a stay-up-all-night kind of book that will leave them breathless? Chronicles of the Bitch Queen series will always be at the tip of my tongue!

K.S. Villoso did not pull any punches in this book. It was both amazing and haunting to witness the blurry details from the first two books finally sharpen and stab me straight to the heart. Reading this book made me want to believe all the lies instead of learning the truths that I know will be painful. In the middle of all the intrigue is Talyien—a queen, a wife, a mother, and a daughter who is haunted by her father’s plans and actions. Villoso masterfully ties all loose ends by picking apart Warlord Yeshin’s plans and true intentions, confronting how the machinations of a dead man can influence the present so much.

I cannot emphasize this enough. Reading the whole Chronicles of the Bitch Queen series was one hell of a ride and this last book, The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng was an epic, explosive, unputdownable conclusion. Please read it. Expand your fantasy reading zone with the Asian (Filipino-ispired) culture and a one of a kind mother as main character. You will not regret (maybe a bit with all the emotional rides and unbelievable twists) reading it.

As those who have read the first two Chronicles of the Bitch Queen books will no doubt expect, this is not a happy book where bad things do not happen to good people and all conflicts are resolved with a group hug and a nice chat over tea. It’s bloody and it’s rough.

There’s one moment (which I can describe without spoiling) that encapsulates the feel of the entire trilogy, for me. Something horrible is about to happen to someone who doesn’t deserve it. I’ve got a sick feeling in my stomach. I’m bracing myself to power through. And then Kay hits me with this:

> And so those who grow mad with power learn they can do these things because no matter how we say we abhor them, a part of us will allow them to happen if it means holding on to those little comforts that make *our* lives worth living. Monsters know what they are. I am not much different. My desire to tell the truth comes at a price: the disregard of the ones who suffered the most while I spend pages upon pages immortalizing creatures like Yuebek and Yeshin. Such is the way of the world.

> So let me tell you what I later learned about [REDACTED] instead.

And then, rather than tell us about the horrible things that were done to this person at the end of their life, Tali tells us about their life. So we, the readers, know them as more than a person that helped Tali and died horribly because of it. We don’t know the details of how they died, and that’s OK. It’s not disrespectful to skip over the tortures they went through. They get to be remembered for the good and the bad that *they* did, not the things that a villain did *to* them.

This is what makes K.S. Villoso one of the best grimdark authors, for me. Many people would argue against her getting that label, I expect, but I think it fits. The world of Jin-Sayeng is a grim and dark one, and Kay does a fantastic job of describing it *without* using the kind of graphic shocking violence that many less talented authors use in a cheap attempt to bolster their grimdark bonafides.

The ending of the story, unsurprisingly, isn’t happy for everyone involved. But it’s not awful for everyone involved either. It felt like the *right* ending. This is a powerful series, and I look forward to whatever Kay has coming next.

Where one problem ended, another one begins.

Have I told you that Queen Talyien’s life is colorful? Yeah, now she’s ready to paint the town red with the heightened tension of revelations and emotions that is The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng. Now we’re back to her own land, finally thank you very much, and if you thought that everything’s going to be just fine now that she’s with her people....WHY?? Why would you think that?? Oren-yaro is teeming with Yeshin’s shadow and crawling with secrets that threatens to undo everything that Talyien thought to be true

This is not an easy read (although easier in comparison to Ikessar Falcon hahah sorry, I do have that stressful gripe with Ikessar Falcon even though I liked it hahahaaha), but I can promise you that everything that goes into every scene is well thought of and essential to the story. Villoso never puts filler scenes just because she feels like it.

Apart from that, you would really feel that everything that K.S. Villoso writes on paper has meaning and draws from the real world. It would grip you and hook you because it’s a mirror of the world we live in today – not just politically but also, and especially with the toxic familial expectations that have long-term repercussions on the world that they would leave behind for their daughters – especially when the shadow of a man he was still eclipses the person shaping her daughter today. AND DAMN!! The best plot twist to ever happen in Yeshin’s genius mind was his own daughter UGHHHH!!!! Send help, I’m hyperventilating again!!! SOO GOOD.

5 FREAKIN STARS.
Full review here: https://pagesinwaves.wordpress.com/20...

Thanks to Caffeine Tours for having me on the blog tour and Orbit Books for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

<b>A FULL 5 STARS.</b> And a very late review. Oops!

Back in 2019, I joined Caffeine Tours for their The Wolf of Oren-Yaro blog tour, and I was so, so excited to join them a second time for the series finale! Thank you so much to Shealea of Caffeine Tours and Orbit Books for providing me with a free copy of this ARC as part of my participation for this tour. All thoughts here are my own.

<a href="https://enemiestolovers.blogspot.com/2021/05/blog-tour-dragon-of-jin-sayeng-by-ks.html">[Click here to see the whole article on my blog]</a>

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng has cemented The Chronicles of the Bitch Queen as one of my favorite Adult fantasy series of all time.

I don’t even know where to begin. If you want to see my live (spoiler-free) reactions, you check my Instagram (@theseviciousdelights). But an actual review?

We need a moment.

More than anything, I am astounded by the complexity that Villoso has weaved into this book. I came in wanting answers to my plot questions (will my fave characters be okay? Will they survive? How will they defeat the villain?) but I came away with so much more. This finale was an endless parade of heartbreak, philosophy, and gut-punching revelations.

Everything reaches a tipping point in this novel. The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is about facing the mistakes of history and forcing change, no matter how it makes you bleed, so you can march onto a brighter future. It says that we have had enough of complicity, enough of greed and mediocrity, enough of running away from our problems. Am I being strangely philosophical? Well, that’s the point. Villoso no longer hides how her story is both entertainment and an apt metaphor for our world, or perhaps more accurately, the Philippines.

But even without all of that, it’s still an amazing fantasy finale.

First, the plot. This one combines the usual action-packed war and dragons with court fantasy politics and endless scheming. If you want to be shocked by plot twists, then you won’t be disappointed. I legitimately did not know what would happen next… and I loved it. All I knew was that my heart hurt for Tali, and I wanted her to finally succeed. Or more aptly, find some happiness.

The character development is also off the charts. I don’t understand how I came from hating Rayyel with the intensity of thinking “I will cut his d*ck off” in Book 1 and now… being fond of him. Tali is further humanized in this one, because you finally understand how helpless she is despite her position as queen. You see how much she cares. She loves her country, her people, her father, her family. She loves Rayyel and Khine and every other ally with her. But what does a woman with so much love in her heart do when the world does not love her back?

Queen Tali is definitely one of the most iconic female protagonists to come out of Adult fantasy.

If you came in looking for more romance, you won’t be disappointed either. Villoso knows how to FEED HER FANS!! And while Tali has bigger problems than who she falls for, she manages to find brief respite and hope in the midst of everything. I really appreciate the romance in this one; it adds to the weight of the situation, and makes you hurt for both of them. Everyone needs love, even the Bitch Queen.

Especially the Bitch Queen.

Because I swear, reading this book will make you want to reach into the pages and give Tali a warm hug. And a break. She goes through a lot in this book, but it never seems to be sadism for the sake of it. Rather, it’s because she’s one player in a much larger game, and there are never any easy answers.

If you prefer your characters’ morality on the dark gray or gray side, then this is the series for you. But as usual, Villoso subverts it all by making you understand why people act the way they do. Nobody is ever truly black or white, and you can love or hate someone in equal measure.

Well, with the exception of one character, but Villoso explained them so well I can’t even fault her:

<blockquote>Monsters [...] aren’t born. They’re made.</blockquote>

Made. Enabled. Encouraged.

Everyone’s actions have consequences. I was shocked at how deep the chain reaction went… as some of the plans that come to a head in this finale actually took years to plan and execute. You can’t trust anyone, as loyalties shift back and forth to reveal double or even triple agents. I was so stressed while reading this book, I swear.

But you know what? It was all worth it. This is one of the best books I have read so far this 2021.

I can’t wait for you to pick it up too.

This conclusion gave me everything I wanted. It wrapped up everything in a satisfying way; however, there were some pacing issues that I think could have been solved if the series was a bit longer. There were some parts that felt a bit rushed and other moments where it felt like it dragged. However, I think Kay has created something truly special with the world-building of this series and I can't wait to get my hands on her prequel series The Agartes trilogy.

Well, we did it folks; we made it to the conclusion of one of my favourite series. The Chronicles of the Bitch Queen has been a hell of a ride and has what I can confidently say is an incredibly satisfying end. The ends of series always fills me with a small sense of dread, but I was confident that K.S Villoso would not disappoint and as per usual, Villoso delivered a stunning finale that had me in tears, clenched from head to toe from tension, and yet still warmed my soul from start to finish.

THE DRAGON OF JIN-SAYENG begins where THE IKESSAR FALCON ended. We find Tali finally back in Oren-Yaro but there are threats, concerns and enemies where we were hoping to find relief and support. Her bannermen have turned against her, the threat of Yuebek has followed her to her doorstep, and her son is still not safe. On top of that, the emergence of secrets from her father’s rule threaten to undo every sense of normalcy Tali has known and the hopes she had to save her kingdom from itself.

While it was the conclusion, Villoso managed to do so much with the story in this instalment. All the strengths of the previous books – the writing, the characters, the experience – were not only maintained but elevated. This instalment is no small feat – it is a hefty, hefty read and it is a testament to Villoso’s craftsmanship that the story never lagged, nothing felt like filler or out of place, and I was desperate for more. The events from the beginning of the stories created a solid foundation for the expansion of the story in this instalment and the journey we go on is so rich and fulfilling.

K.S. Villos’s writing (along with everything else that makes this series as phenomenal as it is) slots her in as one of my favourite authors. I have around 300 highlighted quotes and passages on my Kindle. I wish I was exaggerating and could say the highlights are mostly for note-taking on the world building and character development, but I would never lie to you. Villoso’s writing is capable of stopping you in your tracks, forcing you to take a breath before you can go on. And yet there are also lines that sneak up on you, their meaning sinking in slowly, filling you with dread as the realisation of their implications set in. The quotes on love and identity? Ruined me.

While THE IKESSAR FALCON was more action-packed, a lot of THE DRAGON OF JIN-SAYENG focuses on the political machinations of the world. We see just how far-reaching the power of Warlord Yeshin was and the longstanding effects of his choices (an incredible feat for a dead guy). We also see the ways in which our cast of characters do their best to correct the ways in which their families and past choices have shaped their current situation all while trying to find a way to stop Yeubek’s treacherous plans. The scheming was top tier and I am now in dire need of a massage to ease all of the tension out of my body.

The magic system is also much more present in this book and I loved it so much. So much of the world-building was established in the earlier books so we could freely move around and feed the plot and honestly it was such a big benefit to the story. So much happens. So many threads are continued but also introduced and they were all handled deftly. I will shout it from the rooftops: Villoso knows how to write a phenomenal story that constantly gives and gives and we are all better for it.

I could wax poetic about the characterisation and relationships in this series (and one day a post might go up on me doing just that) and THE DRAGON OF JIN-SAYENG is no different. Yes, I would die for Tali, what’s new? The rest of the cast isn’t perfect (except Namra and Khine of course) but they are all so interesting despite the frustrations they cause. Yeshin’s character has been one of my favourite aspects of this instalment. How can one man who died years before our story began have such a hold on the narrative and the choices and actions of our cast of characters? Yeshin is a powerhouse character and I hate to love him.

One of the bigger themes of The Chronicles of the Bitch Queen is how the sins of the father are paid for by the child, and the desire to forge one’s own path as a result. This is one of Tali’s greatest struggles throughout the series and it plays a big factor in her character development. It’s not a simple and easy arc, but I honestly love the ways it was mapped out and explored. It filled me with frustration and hope and pain but being able to think back on Book 1 Tali and compare her to Book 3 Tali, I am so impressed with the ways in which her character has found a truer sense of self.

There are so many intricate points to this story. It was so full and incredible and I wish I could talk about it and all its wonderful parts forever and ever. I have only known this series for 9 months but it has been one of my favourite reading experiences. In previous reviews I’ve mentioned how rough reading The Chronicles of the Bitch Queen was (in the best way) and I can now say with my whole chest that all the emotional battering Villoso put us through was completely worth it. Knowing Tali’s story has been a pleasure and a treat and I am glad to carry it in my heart for the rest of my days.

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng continues a theme that began with The Wolf of Oren-Yaro and carries it out to the very end. When I say every little thing that happened from the very beginning is important, I well and truly mean it. Villoso forgot nothing, so much so that you can be sure if she pointed it out in the text earlier, it made a reappearance and was explained in The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng.

I often say that Villoso is a master of genre-bending, and her writing in this installment proves it beyond a doubt. Although this is indeed an epic fantasy, I would also say it’s difficult to truly pin down this book’s vibes. It’s a character study, but it’s also a discussion of privilege, but it’s also a condemnation of family toxicity. This entire trilogy is not just one small thing, and therein lies its strength.

The characters also play a crucial part in bringing this magnificent story to life. In my opinion, Talyien’s character development is unparalleled. When this alll started, she was a brash young queen who only cared about the fact that she was betrayed by her husband. Her growth began in The Wolf of Oren-Yaro. Then she opened her eyes to the plight of her people in The Ikessar Falcon. Finally, in The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng, we see her acknowledgment of the reality her country faces.

The thing I adore about Talyien is that she is so imperfect, and she finally makes her peace with it. She’s been raised to be the perfect Dragonlord. “Yeshin’s bitch pup”, as she’s always called. At last, she lets go of those expectations and learns that what really matters is doing what’s right and best for her people.

You’ve heard about the Skywalkers? Those space royals got nothing on the Orenars.

In the previous escapades of Talyien Orenar, in Villoso’s brilliant Chronicles of the Bitch Queen, Yeshin Orenar’s plans for his daughter roll out from the grave in The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng, solidifying this all down to one final and brutal ending. Talyien attempts to save her people, her son, and herself from cruel politics and an arranged marriage from hell, even though everything, from the very beginning, seems to be against her. The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is a fistfight with Game of Thrones and all those rotting Fantasy tropes of yore.

Right from the start of the novel, action meets revelation after revelation, and Villoso keeps everything turning, twisting into an intricate and fastly paced read, making me feel like to survive this book, the only thing I could do is to keep reading deep into the night. To curb the stress, I made off with a survival kit full of soda and copious amounts of sugar.

Talyien, imprisoned and awaiting the trial against her, and luckily for us, not without her own charismatic thief climbing through the window, that boy that yearns for his disaster queen, even if it makes him seem completely mad. Chess pieces are all laid out before us, one leading to another. From Dai Kaggawa, who keeps her son in his clutches as their people fight, to her father’s political machinations, which have been set to go off in a stream of events that Talyien is determined to resist. But along with her father’s plot to marry her to Yuebek (a very sadistic mashup of a zombie and a prince), she’s up against the magic’s destruction on Jin-Sayeng, which terrorizes and destroys the lives of innocent people. With the enemy she knows, her favorite thief/simp boy, and her irritating ex (a lady that hates her guts, a boy with nothing to his name but a heart, and the boy that lost her heart), she tries to do right by her people.

What makes this series stand out is its brilliance in making readers question the tropes they love and know. Who is the villain, the hero, and what does all of that look like when the chosen one is a Filipino-coded woman making terrible decisions? How does the narrative, and the reader’s sympathies, change when she tells it? What happens when real people are hurt and drowning in their past? In Fantasy, royalty is historically rewarded to the hero. People want to imagine that privilege is only given to those that are selfless heroes, not those that are made to be so powerful that it goes unchecked. The one that’s known for ignoring their people’s plight, the corruption in their home, and the rumors surrounding their marriage all typically remain villains. The stories told about Talyien Orenar are all those things, but through other’s tongues, her story becomes a rumor by wagging tongues and chroniclers determined to tell the story based on their own personal politics. To them, she’s the bitch, the whore, the villain. A powerful queen, privileged, and given everything without working for it. But unlike many fantasy characters, such as a particular blonde Dragonrider placing herself as a victim rather than a perpetrator, Talyien grows into something richer than wealth, and the dragons providing them such a power-filled status, can provide.

Villoso asks us to listen to the story, to see Talyien as something other than through rumor. Dismissing her people’s opinions no longer becomes something in Talyien’s heart, but rather, Talyien listens to their cries in this cruel world that the Ikessars and Orenars created (there’s a truly heartrending scene where her people line up, and she listens to their pain). She is not full of fire without a care to who it hurts, demanding people be for the queen or its Dracarys for you. She’s not a mother asking her children to set fire to things because they pissed her off. Even so, reading her perspective can be quite disturbing as we follow her development. A morally grey character does not always come down to pure white rage when things don’t turn out as they want. The motherhood of Talyien Orenar transcends not just to her relationship with her son, but to her relationship with her father, with this political environment he’s forced her into. The way this whole series is about the love of a mother never quite diminishes. The intimacy of Talyien Orenar, the love she has for her son, and her home hit the heart just right, making everything painfully sweet. That part of her identity takes hold of who she is as a person. Her tendency to rush and smash things is curbed by those she loves. One of the first scenes in this book is a distinctly memorable flashback of Talyien carrying her newborn son in one arm and her sword in the other. Armored to the teeth, but this one is a softie at heart.


While the plot is brilliant, what truly makes the politics of this world interesting is the intimacy the characters have with the world and how those politics impact them. I’m drawn into the characters’ relationships, their hurt caused by this world, and each other. Villoso makes Jin-Sayeng and its politics feel like a person instead of a map. It is flawed and complicated, like her characters, who never seem to align in the ways we want them to because, like us, they’re just people. Each chapter is perfectly paced, with each new revelation, intimate moment, and well-kept secret like a finely written mini-series featuring some real spicy magical family drama.

In this last book, I’m happy to say that so much of the moments I’ve been waiting for have satisfied me on a level that I don’t think I can explain in a single review. Many scenes had me screaming and grinning like someone has just handed me an extra-large bag of candy (I always love some excellent sweets to rot my mouth further). I’m just as enraptured as Talyien, watching Khine slicing onions for breakfast, with the layers of memory, politics, and family that have finally shown us the story. Most of all, Villoso has a gift for making me feel for those characters that inflict pain on Talyien. There’s nothing brilliant about a writer that makes the flawed character without complexity, with their layers, which makes them most human. Characters like Yeshin and Chiha are those characters for me. I found myself hurt for them. But more than anything, I felt the pain that Taylien had for her father, a relationship that reminds me so well of my own. That grief for a man that is your family, wanting to do anything to earn for that love, even at the expense of yourself. That’s the most raw and gut-wrenching part of this series. A father’s relationship with his daughter cuts like nothing else.

It was what drew him to her from the beginning-all that love, given without ever a care or thought on what it did to her. She loved, even when it ruined her.

Told through first-person perspective, Chronicles of the Bitch Queen makes it seem like something that Talyien wrote down in an effort to show her story, with all her faults, not her heroics, but how the political events in her life unfolded. It is clear how much work Villoso put into a world where the decisions made in the text, details that would only become clear later in this story, where backstory and the written word goes up against how history and rumor play into remembering a person’s life…asking the question of who is the villain and who is the hero. Throughout this entire story, from The Wolf of Oren-Yaro to The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng, history and how truth is told is important. It mirrors the real way in which governments and society choose to tell people what’s real and which person’s narrative is the correct one. As I’m writing this, I’m watching Palestinians fighting for their truth and liberation against Israel and western nations using language and images to command the narrative of defense against a people that Israel has oppressed since its fruition. Narratives, perspectives, and truth become critical in how we see political events. Given how much the politics in this series is inspired by the political climate in the Philippines, it makes sense how much it becomes an intimate part of the story K.S. Villoso wanted to tell.

War is so much a part of this book, and these politics are things that Talyien most grapples with herself. How does she do the right thing for her people, a Queen born in Yeshin the Butcher’s image? Dealing with the turmoil of romantic relationships, the stakes rise higher and higher as the lies around her crack at the seams. She’s constantly at war with herself in this book, even though she’s aware that her past does not come before her people’s. This book is where it all comes to a point, and we understand how and why Talyien’s memory becomes key to the series.

In the end, I’m left with brutalized heart but one that I’m sure will heal. I’ve been given everything I need and wanted to know in this beautifully told series. With family drama that even the Skywalkers couldn’t handle, politics that cut straight to the heart, a wonderful thief mad for love, this gastronomic fire-filled cake of a fantasy book is just the correct amount of flavor to fill me years to come.

This series started out from a fairly noncommittal position for me. I had never heard of the author before, and was, frankly, a bit put off by the series title “Chronicles of the Bitch Queen.” But, on the other hand, I have a very hard time resisting an adult high fantasy story that features a grown woman protagonist. Add to that that she’s a warrior queen. And thankfully, I let my general genre preferences rule the day, because I’ve absolutely adored this entire series. I’ll just spoil the lead here: this was the perfect conclusion to what had been an excellent series up to this point already.

The queen has finally made it home. But what had seemed like such an insurmountable challenge for the last two books was only the beginning. Her nation and its people hang together by only the merest threads. Distrusted and, often, disliked, Talyien must navigate the fraught waters full of suspicious and ruthless lords, ambitious foreign nationals, and her own perilous position as she attempts to save the son who has been stolen away from her. With the few people who remain that she trusts and depend on, Talyien must work to carve out a future for herself and her country.

Bizarrely, sometimes it’s the most hard to write reviews for a series of books where every entry is fantastic. When you’ve already raved about plotting, characters, and world-building in two earlier reviews, what do you say in a third about a book that was equally strong on all of those points?? But I’ll give it a go!

The world-building has always been fantastic in this series. But in many ways, the fantasy elements involved have been sparse and only sprinkled in here and there. We’ve heard a few mentions of dragons and the threat they had posed in times long ago, but no one thinks much about them now other than recognizing fortifications built to resist them, now crumbling with time. So I was very excited to see the dragons themselves begin to play more of a role in this book. I didn’t necessarily need this added level of straight fantasy, but I’m never going to say no to dragons!

I also liked the continued exploration of parenthood and the expectations and burdens set upon each generation from the one that came before it. We’ve seen this play out in Tali’s memories of her father, and here we get an even deeper insight into why the brutal warlord made many of the choices he did. We also see Tali and Rayyel begin to understand that they are now this generation, that their choices will shape the country and will be the bright path or heavy burden set upon not only their son but the generation of children growing up right now. It’s a very human realization and shift, and one that is strange to experience. It’s the high fantasy, grand scale version of a grown child realizing that they’re now responsible for hosting holidays! Much more complex than that, of course, but sometimes these simplest, most relatable feelings are the ones that take hold the strongest. Even when you have dragons!

I was also happy to see more of Thanh, Tali’s beloved son. For most of the series up to this point, mother and son have been separated by an ocean. And while we hear Tali’s frantic thoughts and worries over him, her deep love for him driving all of her choices, we never get to actually see their relationship in person. Not only were the two of them lovely together, but I also enjoyed Thanh as a character in his own right. There was also a shift in Rayyel, Thanh’s estranged father. Up to this point, he had been a fairly villainous character. So I was happy to see more given to his character to soften some of these aspects and make him more sympathetic.

Beyond that, everything I’ve raved about in the first two books remains true here! Tali is an excellent leading lady, flawed but constantly taking action and moving forward with the cards life has dealt her. I enjoyed the way the romantic plot line continued to unfold. And I was very impressed by the way all of the loose ends were tied together in a satisfying way here at the end of the trilogy. Fans of this series will love this thrilling conclusion! And don’t forget to enter our giveaway to win a copy of this book!

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Rating 8: A fantastic end to this trilogy with higher stakes than ever while focusing on themes of parenthood and the burden of responsibility.

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng // by K. S. Villoso

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is the much-anticipated conclusion to The Chronicles of the Bitch Queen. I wrote a rather long review for the first book but I always feel like the further along in a series you get, the more difficult it is to write detailed reviews without spoilers so this one will probably be just some quick thoughts.

While this is definitely my favorite of the three books, a lot of my criticism still stands. I had a hard time getting a good grip on the characters and their motivations, and some situations just still were much too easy for the queen to get herself out of (by now everyone should know there need to be a lot of guards to hang on to her). While I don't think the disagreement between the royal couple should've caused the issues it did (that could've been handled much more maturely), I was VERY impressed with how the many different strands of this story tied together and made sense by the end. There was also some excellent intrigue and I ended up liking several characters much more by the end. The dragons and magic also continued to fascinate me and I wish there had been even more detail on those. I'm a sucker for learning more about magic systems.

Overall, this series is a solid 3 star read for me. Take this with a grain of salt though as I have not found a single other person that has felt the same as I do so I definitely encourage everyone to try it. I am intrigued enough by the author myself that I do want to continue reading her work and am looking forward to what she will be working on next.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is the best conclusion to this masterpiece of storytelling, and K.S. Villoso does not leave a thread hanging as she brings this epic and heart-filled journey to a close. It takes everything I love in the first two books–worldbuilding, themes, culture, relationships, details, CHARACTERS–and brings them all together in a way that would leave no one wanting. Especially Talyien. Good Lord knows she needs the break.

There’s so much to love and unpack in this book, and here are some aspects that truly hit the mark for me.
Power and hidden histories

Throughout the first two books, Yeshin’s shadow has been looming over Talyien’s decisions. In this book, all of Yeshin’s secrets comes to light as the characters uncover how deeply a dead man’s influence taints the very core of Jin-Sayeng’s history. The meticulous planning, the BRAINCELLS Yeshin has is just so… I can’t think of any other fictional character who can surpass the level of insight he has into the people around him that he can maneuver them with ease. The closest example I can think of is the original Homunculus or the Monster in the Flask of Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, but… no. Yeshin is a class of his own.

I love how each subsequent reveal is a commentary on the reign of greed and the lengths the privileged will go to just to keep the power within their grasp. Historiography here is not the distanced, clinical way of chronicling past events, but rather a narrative that is rewritten to serve the people in power. In contrast, we see how Talyien struggles with her place in the story of her country and how she aims to write a fresh one for the sake of her son.Writing this paragraph alone is so hard because I want to geek out about how this whole series follows the Filipino concept of kasaysayan: ito ay isang salaysay (a narrative or story) na may saysay (has sense, holds meaning) para sa pinagsasalaysayan (for its audience).

I LOVE EVERYTHING. MY BRAIN IS GOING ON OVERDRIVE.
Filipino families: the good, the bad, and the downright ugly

Though I knew that this was going to be an emotionally hard-hitting book, I did not expect it to be told in the form of a classic Filipino telenovela, where family love, hurts, and secrets form the main medium for storytelling. In the world of The Chronicles of the Bitch Queen, the family is considered the basic unit of society and the core on which every single thing is built: the characters, the history, the struggles for power and legitimacy… EVERYTHING.

Talyien comes to terms with her identity and role in Jin-Sayeng’s history by continuously interrogating her expectations and responsibilities within the family. Princess Ryia’s significance is best understood when she is viewed as a matriarch who bends everything to her will. On a larger scale, we see how kinship ties between bannermen and warlords dictate the tides of war, and how this complex web of relationships is built on viewing children as extensions of their parents’ legacies. There are no lone wolves here, no solo adventurers. Even orphans or bastards here have their respective positions in their families.

While reading this book, I couldn’t help but cry over the depiction of different kinds of families that are so undeniably Filipino to the point that most ownvoices readers can think of an example for each one presented here. In particular, Rayyel’s and Agos’ failures as fathers hit too close to home for so many readers as they represent the toxic masculinity that Filipinos struggle with today. This truly is a very Filipino worldview, and any attempts to read this series with only the usual Western values of individual glory, redemption, and corruption will do the work and the author a huge disservice.
Narrative structure

This part here is more of a note to myself about the parts I still want to understand more when I reread this book. The whole story is set up like a trap or a heist or a con, and it is reflected in the titles of each act: the approach, the play, the send and the touch, etc. It further amplifies the eerie feeling that even the reader is falling into Yeshin’s trap and that we are all being played by a madman.

I’m not really someone who pays much attention to chapter titles, but reading through the table of contents alone makes me so curious about the way each narrative beat is laid out. When everything starts to fall into place and explode in my face, I pause to just marvel at the level of craft Villoso employs to make sure her story sails through.

Wow. I have nothing but respect for the care, brilliance, and hard work the author put into The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng. This series–and especially this particular installment–should be considered part of the literary canon.

Overall, I love this book so much that I think nothing I read in the next ten years would eclipse how much it means to me. As someone who has struggled with losing her favorite books to critical rereads, I’m so happy that I finally have found a series that I can consider home.

K.S. Villoso wrapped this Filipino-inspired fantasy series beautifully and as a reader I was left incredibly satisfied in a way that not a lot of books do. This was such an incredible reading experience and I wish I could read it for the first time over and over. I loved the intricate plotlines and fulfilling conclusions, the strong characters, and the powerful themes. It was so well-written and there were no inconsistencies in the narrative; every single detail was a puzzle piece and they all fit together perfectly in the end.

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is undeniably one of the greatest in the fantasy genres. It’s not your typical sword and sorcery story nor is it a story that draws a line between what is good and bad. Rather, The Bitch Chronicle series explores grey morality, the legacies our parents leave us and the expectations vested on women in power.

After the events in The Ikessar Falcon, Queen Talyien has gone back to her home, Oren-Yaro, only to be made prisoner. Her own people have turned against her and trust is as risky as placing one’s neck on a chopping block. Tali has fallen into a situation long before she had even been born. This book asks the question, can we defy a future that has already been cemented by our parents? Where does the boundary between remaining true to ourselves and doing our duty to the nation?

Tali must navigate these emotions and choices. She is not only has to play the role of queen but also that of wife, a mother, a politician, a warlord, and above all, the role of Yeshin’s daughter. Or so that is what she believes. When her father shaped a future and taken steps for Tali, is there anywhere else she can turn to?

Despite being years dead, Yeshin’s character comes alive throughout the series. We may never know the man but through Tali’s eyes, it feels as if he is still alive. This is probably the intention of the author, to make him as alive to us as he is to Tali. To make him just as inescapable. But there always comes the moment when the people we aspire to be or stand up as break before us. We may always be our father’s child but we do not carry their spirits. In short, Tali was never meant to be Yeshin and this is something she has to grapple with. Because refusing to be what has been set for could mean the lives of her loved ones forfeit.

This feeling of entrapment is so vivid throughout the book. Tali’s introspection has to go beyond what she wants for herself because the any choice she makes has consequences on her citizens. We come to understand this as we follow Tali on the run. I love that the author does not uphold Talyien as a good ruler but rather makes Tali face the consequences her neglect and how the fights between warlords is taken out on the common folk.

As Tali tries to fight for her nation, she is continuously betrayed. This isn’t something the author wrote to up the stakes. Consider this: Tali had spent years living up to her father’s legacy that in the end, she had no standing of her own. Who was she beyond a representation of Yeshin’s peace? Who were loyal to Talyien and not Yeshin’s plan? This was something Tali had to discover herself, on her own, before she could truly claim the title of Queen.

Yet Talyien never gives up. Her love for her nation, her people and her son is boundless. Dare I even say her love for Khine? I love Khine’s character because he is never imposing. He understands what needs to be done and that Tali is not someone he could his love on. There is a delicate balance between the two. I love how they would often drift into a world of their own. As for Rayyel, though I hated him at first, I have come to understand him. Again, him and Talyien were only children, forced into a plan they had no idea of. We all make mistakes and unfortunately for Tali and Rai – theirs literally shook the nation. I did enjoy how the author portrayed the ruins of marriage. Yes, I love romance and a couple who are great together. But I also know that over time, feelings change. People grow and sometimes this means growing apart. It doesn’t make the past you shared any less important or any less loving.

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is a masterpiece. This is the kind of fantasy that leaves you feeling exhausted, bruised but very satisfied. K.S. Villoso is an amazing storyteller who writes characters that are raw, cruel yet still worthy of love. Each character developed in painful ways but to be able to tell their own stories, they had to, and I’m every so grateful to K.S. Villoso for sharing them with us.

Long may she reign, mahal kong reina.

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is a stunning and intense conclusion to The Bitch Queen Chronicles. The Wolf of Oren-Yaro and The Ikessar Falcon were so good but I feel this part might be my favourite so far because it’s so beautifully done. This review will be spoiler free!.

The Story and Plot

The story follows right after The Ikessar Falcon and we are thrown right into the midst of the mess. I was engrossed right from page one. The story took a lot of twists and turns and it kept me on the edge because it was intense but at the same time I could not stop reading it. Even after three books, K.S.Villoso manages to surprise us with the plot and keep you just as interested. It was thrilling and painful and truly so well done. This was a book I knew I was going to love but it still managed to surprise me and make me love it so much more.

The politics and the drama are so good and I don’t want to spoil but honestly I am so in love with how well this series handles so many themes such as friendship, motherhood, betrayals and family, a villain to be reckoned with and mix all this with chaos and an engrossing story, The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is a winner.

The Characters

Talyien has gone through so much and this book is not kind to her either but the tremendous growth in her character from book one is amazing. Thinking about the journey she goes through will get you emotional. I loved how we see the different sides to her and it’s like going through it with her as she finds out who she is and what she truly wants. One of my favourite characters Khine remains my favourite and it’s absolutely beautiful to read how well his character grows.

Rayyel somehow manages to get more annoying and I also really hate Yeshin (so much). There’s lots of old and new characters which make an appearance and I love how well a part they all play in the book. A big cast of characters which bring just more chaos as the story progresses made for a super entertaining read.

The World Building and Writing

We see even more of all the nations in this book and the beautiful writing made for a good imagery. While reading it, the one thought which was constant was how well this series would look on screen. The descriptions and the setting were all top notch. The one thing I have always loved about this series is how vast and detailed the world was. It does not get boring but it pulls you in and it’s always a treat to read such books.

Overall, I don’t think any words can do much justice to this series. The Chronicles of the Bitch Queen is a book whose protagonist is a mother, a wife and a queen battling it out and trying to come out of chaos and mess. A world which constantly undermines her and still expects too much from her. It’s a story about survival and love. Its also a story about the struggles a woman goes through and the expectations of one’s parents. Talyien’s story of fighting the world, the responsibilities her father left her and more importantly the fight with herself: this book does all this and more and does it beautifully. It was painful and heartbreaking and everything I could ask from this conclusion.

Thank you to Caffeine Book Tours and Orbit Books for making me part of the tour and providing me with an ARC of the book!

I’ve seldom read a series that is this consistent throughout. There is never a dull moment (although poor Tali could probably do with a little reprieve from time to time). We start right after the events of The Ikessar Falcon, with Tali finally coming home only to be made prisoner. She is right in the middle of some schemes that started way before she was born and she has to find a way to become herself, not only Queen Talyien and not only Yeshin’s daughter. And still fighting for her nation and her son.

“You’re just human, Tali […] Queen or not, you have to forgive yourself for it”

Yeshin is so present in this book, despite being long dead. He is in Tali’s head, he is in the choices everyone around her makes, he is everywhere, he is inescapable. One reason why I love the Bitch Queen Chronicles so much is that this series asks questions. Can we take our future into our own hands when everything seems to be already set in stone? Do we follow the path our parents set out in front of us? What do we have to endure for the greater good? Tali especially struggles with this not only for her own but also for her son Thanh. She wishes that he is free of all her shackles, that he can be only a boy, not an heir, that he can marry for love not for politics. But she seems to be the only one who sees the boy in Thanh instead of a future Dragonlord.

[…] a part of me always knew that the truth could be as complex as a shaft of light through a cut gem. Turn it, view it from another angle, and it shifts. Sometimes it is telling, a burst of clarity on a dark streak, brightness to chase away shadows. Sometimes it is blinding.

Every action Tali takes has consequences, everything she does seems to hurt the people she loves or the people that love her. And she can’t escape. Her feeling of being trapped, literally (by her own people) or figuratively, is so vivid, you can feel it in your bones while reading. Your heart, no your whole body aches for Tali.

I’ve said this in my reviews for the previous two books already but it deserves mention again. What pushed K.S. Villoso’s writing and her stories to the top are her characters! They aren’t good or evil. They just are so real and flawed. And I especially love how introspective the series is. We truly get to see into Queen Talyien, see her thoughts, her doubts and her hopes. It only makes everything cut so much deeper.

Another character who is just incredibly intriguing is Khine. And I adore how he is with Tali. He understands her, when to give her room and doesn’t let her push him away. As he lets her do what she thinks she has to, he does what he has to as well. I loved how he changed so much throughout the series, and yet, somehow stayed the same.

Tali and Khnie both have to make some truly horrible decisions, take terrible actions and face themselves and the consequences. I loved seeing all this through Tali’s eyes. We see who she hurts with her actions, the poor and marginalised, but we also see how much she bleeds for her country and what she is willing to do to save it. The exploration of this throughout the trilogy, but especially in this final installment is perfectly done.

“She didn’t do it to be remembered.
She did it to be forgotten.”

-K.S. Villoso – The Dragon on Jin-Sayeng

It’s 100% a character-driven story but don’t fear, there is enough action. Villoso does a fantastic job of combining the introspection with the action. It’s absolutely seamless and gives the story so much more depth. There is always another twist coming, another betrayal, another enemy, another struggle. But there is no drama for drama’s sake … you get the sense that everything happened organically this way, it couldn’t have happened differently with these characters in this country.

I am a big fan of politics in fantasy books and it was so interesting to finally get to know even more about Jin-Sayeng after traveling throughout most of the other two books. The big cast of characters is so well done and I never was confused as to who is who like it sometimes happens in epic fantasy. They all bring the story together and make this story so real. The world is so vivid, the descriptions so well done that I could see and feel the world around me while reading. It never gets boring as there is always more to explore. Everything just comes together perfectly.

“I can close my eyes and pretend I don’t sit on a throne of skulls, but I cannot change the truth of what I am and what brought me to this world.”

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is truly a masterful finale to a phenomenal trilogy. With intriguing, flawed characters that have to make difficult choices in a world that seems to work against them. Queen Talyien has to carve a path different from what her father already set in motion long before her birth and fight against friends and enemies to help her son, her nation and herself.

This trilogy incorporates so many important themes such as family, different kinds of loyalty, friendship, love and motherhood and the consequences our choices have. In a world on the brink of chaos (or already in the midst of it). It’s about power and how those in power shape the world around them. It’s about monsters, and humans and the monstrosities humans can do. And it’s about intent and impact.

I truly cannot describe to you all how much I love this finale, this series. It means the world to me and words just can’t describe how good it is! I’m heartbroken that this series is now over and I’m still reeling from all the chaos and I’m not sure I will recover or if this book has ruined me forever.

“There are no right or wrong answers. We make choices and then we simply … live with the cost.”

trigger warnings: ableistic language (not direct), death, violence, misogyny, rape (off screen), emotional abuse, torture, gore

I just finished it yesterday and I’m still processing everything so please bare with me.

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng is the final installment of the Chronicles of the Bitch Queen. The story picks up where we left off in The Ikessar Falcon. Talyien (Tali) is finally back home and too much have changed during her absence. What doesn’t change though are the threats and the enemies who are determined to destroy her. On top of that, her son is still in great danger and her father’s secrets still haunt her.

I loved and admired Talyien’s character so much eventhough I still wanted to slap her once in a while. The story is written in her point of view which was definitely one of the things that I loved about this trilogy. And this book, we get to see and know all her different sides. She went through a lot and watching how her character developed throughout the story was very astonishing. Her love for her son is very admirable. She loves her son so much she will do everything for him. Talyien’s character is definitely unforgetable and I feel so honored to have met her.

We also get to see more of Khine and Rayyel in this book. Khine still remains as one of my favorite characters in this trilogy and I really loved his moments with Tali. I enjoyed seeing Rayyel’s different side that we haven’t seen before but it still didn’t change how I feel about him. I thought Yeshin’s character is fascinating. He died years ago but he continously affects and influences Tali’s life and decisions. I loved how each and every character (both old and new) has played their parts in the story.

There were no slow or boring parts in this book and it has 606 pages to be exact. There were no unnecessary scenes as well and I thought the pacing in this book was faster than the first two. The writing is phenomenal as always. I smiled everytime I read Filipino references (like champorado with tuyo and the pahiyas festival) and I highlighted far more lines in this book. It’s not as action-packed as The Ikessar Falcon but it’s very instense nonetheless. All the twists and revelations has kept me on the edge of my seat. I was really amazed on how everything makes sense towards the end. How the author connected the storylines very flawlessly to form such an intricate plot.

This book is about power. How it affects those who have it and how those people with power affects those who don’t have it. This book is also about sacrifices and the selfless things we do for the people we love. It’s about politics and how dirty and messy it can be when greedy people are involved. This book addresses a lot of important themes such as sexism, colonialism, racism, and more. A proof that the Chronicles of the Bitch Queen is not just your typical adult fantasy novel.

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng was a tremendously satisfying finale and it’s everything I could ever ask for.

+Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher and Caffeine Book Tours as part of my participation in their tour. This did not affect my overall opinion of the book.