Thanks to NetGalley and Dragonstone Press for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

From reading the premise, this book looked like something I would really love. Unfortunately, it ended up being the opposite for me. The whole time I was reading this book, I felt very indifferent towards the characters and I found myself not caring for the storyline at all. Aside from that, the romance really annoyed me because I really do not like the instalove trope. I can sometimes let that slide if I see both characters have genuine chemistry, however I didn't get that from this book. I also found the worldbuilding to be lacking since I didn't feel like there was actually any set up for it and that's something that I usually look for in the first book of a fantasy series. The worldbuilding was set in a way that the author assumed we are already familiar of this world. I admit I didn't have a lot of expectations for this when I started reading it, but overall I was still pretty disappointed.

So I found my first one-star read of 2021.
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First, I'd like to start with spreading some positivity: I loved the references to ancient Chinese culture and traditional folklores. The book vividly depicted the life in a palace. I'm not into palace dramas but it was nice to see things that are familiar thanks to years of hearing Chinese fantasy dramas being played as background music at home.
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Despite the familiarity, this book was so difficult to get through. I felt like I was reading a directly translated script of a fantasy drama (instant tb to Chinese Paladin...). I'm not sure if the author wrote the book in English, or in Chinese, but the abundant use of honorific titles gave me constant headache, and a bilingual crisis. The passage doesn't read congruently as it required constant code-switching. The characters felt inhumane, and there are so many of them......... Again, I have no problem with remembering Chinese names. But I have problems with characterless characters. I had who-are-you moments so frequently I quickly became frustrated. Also, is it really necessary to mention how unpretty someone is for multiple times? Girls can be friends with girls, really. And we don't judge each other's appearance all the time.
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Another issue I had was head hopping and the connection. I really didn't understand the need of following other character's journeys. It was so pointless as their stories don't even...connect? Maybe they did in the last page of the story. But at least for 80% of the book, they felt like people living in separate lives and their perspectives don't add up to an epic picture. Maybe the plot was also partially responsible. It was very plain even though it involved lots of politics and cruelty. I have wished for a deeper exploration of the magical system but apparently one's *intention* is enough...? Just focus, listen, feel the connection, congrats you have magic.
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To conclude. I have no intention to read the sequels. I might have appreciated this book slightly more if I read it in Chinese.

I'm sorry to say, I DNF this at 25%. I tried. I really, really tried, but the fact that I was already aggressively skimming from 15% on shows that this book isn't for me.

First of all, I want to say that I really don't want to trash this book. I appreciate that it exists; so much fantasy (good, bad, and mediocre) is based on the culture of white Europeans, and the Asian-inspired ones are usually written by white authors with varying levels of knowledge and connection to the culture they're drawing inspiration from. So, to see a book that's clearly inspired by Chinese culture, written by someone with a background in that culture, is something cool that I would love to see more of! I'm glad this book exists, it's just not for me.

To expand a little, here were my main issues:

1. The characters were unmotivated.
The two main characters, as far as I can tell, are Princess Kaiya and Prince Hardeep. All we know about Kaiya is that she likes to sing, thinks she's ugly, doesn't want to marry some general, and has the hots for Hardeep. We know all this because she tells us, over and over, every single scene that she's in. 25% of the way into the book, I still have no sense of her personality or motivation beyond "I like music and sexy Prince Hardeep." In fact, many of her decisions seem frankly baffling, as it implies that she simultaneously has no awareness of what it means for her father to be an emperor, wishes she was seen as more than just a future bride, but is also totally willing to go against her family and country when a hot dude winks at her. Not a great look.

Hardeep...honestly, in my head I've been calling him "sexy sexy prince prince," because being sexy and being a prince are his only defining characteristics, as far as I can tell. I say them twice each because they're both super important to his character. Kaiya helps him because he's sexy-sexy, and he wants to save his country because he's a prince. Beyond that, I really can't say much about him.

The two other major named characters - Zheng Tian and Jie - seem slightly more tolerable, but again very tropey. They're both super spies, with an angsty character trait (Tian was banished from court, Jie's a half-elf and no one takes her seriously).

2. Everything was told to you, not shown
This was touched upon earlier. A rule of writing that I've often heard is "show, not tell." I understand a certain amount of telling is inherent in writing, especially in fantasy settings with unfamiliar worlds, but the telling in this book was both excessive, and oddly placed.

For example: We are told that the emperor has a soft spot for his daughter Kaiya, but nothing in his only interaction with her (talking down to her about how real ruling works, then ordering her to be married ASAP), shows that. This is a time when there's only telling, no showing.

On the other hand, we're both told and shown that Kaiya is into Sexy Sexy Prince Prince. But mostly told. She mentions his hotness in every thought about him, and even worries about flirting in the face of danger. This makes the whole "instalove" thing (which I never like) even more egregious, because I really don't feel like the instalove is every backed up by anything other than Kaiya waxing poetic about how sexy he is, and how he'd probably let her sing.

So while telling abounds when it comes to the motivations and thoughts of the characters, there's very little description of the setting. I don't want a worldbuilding info-dump, but it's very hard for me to place the setting. It's mostly clearly a China-inspired empire with dragons, but there are also elves and orcs, I guess? There's clearly racism towards other human races, and maybe towards elves? It's really unclear to me, and that's too bad, because that's the stuff that I might have found interesting.

3. The plot wasn't compelling
As far as I can tell, the two main conflicts are, "Kaiya is supposed to marry Boring General but she wants to marry Sexy Sexy Prince Prince" and, "Sexy Sexy Prince Prince wants to save his people, but Kaiya's dad is fueling a war." I think there are hints of other stuff, but that's mostly it. Again, even if it's tropey, it could be interesting, but everything is strangely paced, irregularly explained, and generally unclear. Sexy Sexy Prince Prince invites Kaiya to run away with him to use the magic of song to save his country, and she agrees, so then they...waltz right into the imperial archives and enlist the help of the librarians, being super clear about what they're doing? It's all very confusing.


On the whole, I think that there are some good ideas, and some interesting pieces of worldbuilding that could make a really cool series. Unfortunately, I think that this book suffers in the execution, which makes it hard to read and enjoy.

While it's not for me, I think that some people might enjoy this book; it being a young adult book certainly makes sense. Sixteen year olds would likely relate more to Kaiya, and also be less critical of the executions of plot/characterization/worldbuilding, etc. The whole "instalove" thing is also generally more relatable to young adults, since they are more likely to have crushes and feel very strongly about them.

That is to say, for a YA fantasy novel, it's fine. Not amazing, but not terrible. Some people will probably like it, and I definitely see the worth in it existing as part of the YA fantasy world. Unfortunately, it's just not for me.

What cool characters! Rich in Asian culture and traditions, it transports one into the intricacies of court and their set ideas of honor and duty, which I find fascinating. The story revolves around 3 very likable characters, Princess Kiaya, Jie and Tian. Kiaya is a young impressionable girl, who has a strong sense of right from wrong. At 16, she knows she is soon to be married off to form alliances to strengthen her kingdom, yet she longs to be more than just a pawn. She is blessed with a beautiful voice and soon discovers that her singing and playing of the lute, have a profound impact on everyone around her. She strives to do all she can to right a wrong, in doing so,defying her father the Emporor. Tian and Kiaya were childhood friends but had not seen each other in 8 years, yet the bond they shared as children is as strong as ever. Tian and Jie work for a spymaster and uncover some startling evidence that could bring about a war. Trying to make sense of who is instigating strife and why, leads to intrigue and some terrific fight scenes. Both Kiaya and Jie are not your typical heroines, yet both are strong minded and spirited, which I find far more compelling. It's a beautifully written story, which only promises to get better and better. I particularly enjoyed how descriptive the book is, with just the right amount to ignite the imagination. I would definitely recommend this bool

DNF at 15%

I must admit that the cover and description got me hooked. Something about the story grabbed my attention right away. The aspect of racism, the Asian culture and lots more. Yet, this book is so chaotic that I have no clue what I was -trying- to read.
At the beginning of the book there are maps, long lists with names (and terms?) and after the prologue you're kind of left in a black hole. The book misses a lot of description and background information. The world building for a fantasy story is very weak which made it hard for me to understand the setting and atmosphere. I missed the Asian feeling which I was hoping for.
But most of all, there were so many characters and names to remember. I'm not good at names. I barely knew who was who.
Not only did the characters confuse me, but the whole story did. Even after 15%, so much was happening. I didn't know what exactly was happening. I also had no clue where the plot was going.

I think it might speak to other readers, but it wasn't my cup of tea. Might be taste, but I feel like it's too chaotic. The author wanted to tell way to much and included too much elements that don't matter to the plot. Which eventually turned out to be a problem because crucial information was left out.

DNF. The 1 star is a placeholder.
I got a decent amount into this book before reading a review by a friend of mine who also got an arc of it. It should be noted that I am not an Asian reviewer and he is. After hearing his thoughts about both the colorism and racism in this book, I have absolutely no intention of continuing it. It would be better to read his review detailing the particular grievances in this book as he knows about what he's talking about (and I do not), so I'll link it right here.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3819433867
On further thoughts...? I don't particularly care for world-building or plot when compared to the characters, but I still expect it to at least be reasonable enough for me to enjoy it. This book was missing that wonder and interest I look for in fantasy. Not to mention that many of the terms used were just actual words instead of coming up with their own system. Again, just read his review. That's all.

This was an intriguing read. Its a book that has elves and dragons and even orcs in its history. This is very much influenced by DnD. And in a world where these types of books are heavily white washed, i was so excited to read an asian inspired fantasy like this. On top of that, this book has a heavy focus on misogyny, somewhat (maybe too little given the statements used in the writing) on racism within Asia, and while its a coming of age story it also has a lot of political intrigue. So on the surface level it has a lot going on for it.

But oh boy, there’s a lot to unpack. I did not enjoy this book as much as i would’ve hoped to. I’ll get to the serious issues i had in a bit, but first, i did not enjoy the writing style. Its did not fit well with the voices of each character, at least in my opinion. But thats not a huge problem, its accessible enough!! But the huge problem for me was the lack of descriptions. On surface level the book had a good world building. We got to see different cultures, the food and clothing of Ankirans, etc..., but... its not original. Even the names are completely the real life names (of people, food, clothes and other things). But i could have let that slide if i had gotten a visual of the settings we were in, but that too lacked. There were a lot of different names of different locations thrown around but not even the main setting, the palace or the country was described well enough to paint a picture in my mind. As for people, a lot of them(men) were described as being “beautiful” or “handsome”. These are very general terms and it differs so much with different people. So there wasn’t much for me to visualize these characters.

Another issue was the handling of misogyny in the culture. That was explored a lot in the main character Kaiya’s pov chapters. Now the thing here is i have conflicted opinions on whether or not this was well done. Its a very serious issue and we got to see a lot of the restrictions that are bound to especially women in this society, and the things that were brought up, i would say was done really well. But the problem arrived when Kaiya, after breaking some rules thought that yeah its fine all of it were for the right reasons; to be more than just a political bride, liberate a people etc... BUT THEN GOES ON TO SAY and i quote, “All possible because this one man saw true potential in her.” The one man in question is Prince Hardeep whom she “fell in love” after seeing just twice. The insta love is a trope i hate a lot but thats just my personal opinion, regarding that aside the statement that was put kind of insinuates that yes she can try to change her position in this culture *but* only when a man allows it. Now i could be reading the undertone wrong, but thats how i understood this. So it kind of defeats a lot of character work that was previously going on for Kaiya.

The biggest thing that just had me mad, was the way how racism was handled. And it was NOT handled well. This isn’t even a major plot point but it was still brought up especially (surprisingly only) in earlier chapters. I think the author was just trying to establish that this racism existed in the world, and thats okay it doesn’t have to be a plot point in every book, but there are much better ways in approaching to establish that racism and I wouldn’t have a huge problem with it if this specific statement wasn’t used. So for context, a character is acting as a stowaway and she got caught where she wasn’t supposed to be, so the people who caught her asked what she saw. She replied with this.
“I ain’t see nothin’. Just some curry-lovin’ brown folk.”
And yes she is not Ayuri (south asian equivalent in this book that the author himself has pointed out at the end of the book).
This statement was used to stereotype in this book by an EAST ASIAN author when its a very commonly used statement in the real world specifically to insult and stereotype a community of SOUTH ASIANS. That just doesn’t sit right with me. There are so many other ways to have tackled it but using exact phrases that are used as insults in the real world against some south asians just so casually? Especially when the racism within Asia is such a relevant topic, it doesn’t sit right with me.

As for the plot twist even though i called it early on i think that was pretty well done and again this is just my personal opinion and i can see how the storyline can be alluring to a lot of people, but the way certain things were handled just took a lot away from me enjoying this book.

(Note: i got an ARC for this book from Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

An interesting concept of the book, however there were a lot of things missing for me. I missed specific descriptions, since the story is happening In Asia, and there could've been so many descriptions of smells, architecture, dresses, traditions (Since there is a mix of cultures). Book is very predictable, Kaiya sees the first male and falls in love, no way...

Fair enough, author in the book description says that the main character Kaiya is very naïve, but level of her naiveness is well exaggerated, I could not stop rolling my eyes. Also, too much talks about her period “Heaven’s Dew”.

Also half of the book Kaiya is running is search for the magical instrument. Basically there isn't much happening.

There is so many names!!! At some point I thought I would need to start writing them down, because I lost who was who... It was annoying because there were so many "one scene" characters, but everyone had a name...

I really liked the fact (and it truly makes me sad, because book could’ve much bigger potential) of mixing two different cultures of Cathay and something that reminds me of India.

This is also one of those books where you like secondary characters more. I’m an absolute fan of half elf girl (unexpected in this book), she’s cool and I think that she would be much better than the main heroine, just because of her I want to keep reading this series, hoping that things will improve.

Thank you @Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This review will be posted to: Goodreads
Review will be posted on: 03/02/2021

*3.5 stars

I loved the setting of the story as well as the concept including a music as the magical power aspect. The ending was my favourite part and the plot twist alone makes me excited to read the rest of the series. The writing style was easy to understand and the chapter lengths were perfect and made it a lot faster to get through.

However I'd say 60% of the back is rather slow building and was a little tedious to get through, but once the action kicks in the plot picks up a lot and becomes more interesting. This isn't very surprising though as most first books in a series tend to be much slower to get into due to the world and plot building. The character development was also rather minimal but I'm hoping the next instalment of the series will delve more into the characters and fleshing them out more.

Overall it was an interesting read with a great plot that keeps you wanting to know more. Hopefully I'll get to pick up the second instalment soon!

Gripped my early on and kept me going. Overall good book, loved the world building. I’d definitely check out the others in this series

*Thanks to the publisher for the ARC! Here is my completely honest review*

DNFd at 20%. I really wanted to push myself to finish this, especially so that I would have evidence for the things I liked/didn’t like. Nonetheless, it increasingly felt like a chore to pick this up, and this to me is a sign that a book is not for me. I can say, however, that this 20% of the book was enough to figure out how the rest of it was going to go.

First of all, I hated the insta-love. I had never seen a book where the main character falls in love with the love interest SO QUICKLY. Not even romance novels do that. She is sixteen, but even at sixteen, I think kids have some sense, or so I want to believe. Sure, do all the stupid stuff you want, you’re a teen... but what I can’t believe is that this character immediately aligns with the political goals of a nation she had never seen in her life. We are supposed to believe that she is a princess, and even though she has been educated as a musician and not a diplomat, she surely should have some sense of politics... right?

But I’m not sure what’s going on with that, to be honest, because we don’t get explanations for anything. Anything! It’s like the author wanted to avoid worldbuilding info dumps, and so they treat the reader like they’ve read an encyclopedia’s worth of background content before embarking in the reading experience. I don’t know what Kaiya, the princess, is supposed to know and not know, because I know nothing about her life or what she’s supposed to do and be like. Apart from the fact she is going to be married off to some noble and she hates the idea, but when this foreign prince comes around she’s suddenly into him like it’s her only purpose.

Tying into that: there is no description at all. The maximum I spotted (and I know because I was paying attention) were two lines saying what colour and shape a room was. And a description of a dragon-shaped throne. Otherwise, no description. The reader is presented with action and dialogue, nonstop, but we are never shown what this world looks like, or what the characters dress like, or the kind of city we are in. If you’re telling me the princess is taking off an outer robe, tell me what the robe is like or what her outfit looks like now, at the very least! It made immersion in the world impossible and it meant I never cared for anything because I wasn’t truly introduced to it.

For the worldbuilding: I think the setting makes sense, sounds appealing and cool, and the premise is awesome too – I could make out some of the myths and legends of this nation which were certainly cool. We aren’t shown the world, though, and the author assumes the reader already knows it all, when it’s not the case. Additionally, some aspects felt very much pulled straight out of Dungeons & Dragons. The dwarf artificers making toys that are mentioned a couple of times, the stereotypical rogue, this foreign prince being trained as a Paladin (yeah, with a capital letter.) These elements alone aren’t necessarily connected to D&D, but unless you flesh them out and explain them, that’s what people are going to connect them to. For instance, in Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir (a book that I didn’t love, don’t get me wrong!), we are presented with “Cavaliers” and “Necromancers”, which initially sound very much like Fighters and Warlocks, but the author spends a while fleshing out the intricacies of it so it’s never stereotypical.

But I digress. My last point is on the writing style, which I have noted pretty much throughout this review but I think deserves a moment. It’s bad, I didn’t enjoy it. It’s clunky in the way it jumps from omniscience to character perspectives, and we aren’t shown the characters’ feelings either. The dialogue is repetitive and unnatural, and the action doesn’t read smoothly - I had a hard time figuring out what was going on during action scenes. Finally, I spotted quite a few grammar and punctuation errors, which usually I would be fine with when reading an ARC. This, however, is a book that is being released for the second time, so I expected the editors to be more careful with it.

Overall, Songs of Insurrection was stereotypical, hard to get through despite the writing not being dense or overly complicated, and to be honest, quite a disappointment.

I have to say that the cover drew me in but sadly the multitude of names was just far too much. I wished that the author would have cut down the amount of characters in this one. Because I just couldn't follow everything and everyone. I don't feel like you should need a float chart to keep everyone in my mind and in the story.