- It's hard to review the second book in a duology, so let me just say if you haven't read the first book, DAUGHTER OF THE MOON GODDESS, yet, go get it now! These books are so beautiful and engrossing. Despite their length, you will fly through them.
- HEART OF THE SUN WARRIOR is chock full of action, but the emotional relationships also shine. Both family and romantic relationships are given care and weight.
- I won't give anything away, but know that this is a satisfying conclusion to an incredible duology.

I love the concept and story of this dulology, but unfortunately, like it's predecessor, the pacing was really off and I found I did not care for the characters as much as I wanted to. I would still highly recommend it as a fantastic novel based off of Chinese myths and legends.

Like the first book in this duology, Daughter of the Moon Goddess, this was a beautiful work of mythology. Tan develops the world so intricately that you can see everything happening and the mythology feels absolutely real. The story is told in a way that keeps you reading, I couldn't stop listening to this one. I also listened to the first book and I highly recommend listening to these books. I love retellings of mythology and it's been wonderfulto see mythology from cultures beyond the Greek stories becoming so popular. These books read like a bedtime story - adventurous and engaging - but written for adults. I'll be recommending these books to lovers of mythology and adventure for the foreseeable future.

A huge thank you to the author and the publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions contained within are my own.

I was blown away when I read the first book in the Celestial Kingdom Duology last year, Daughter of the Moon Goddess. The writing and the story completely captivated me. So when I was approved for an e-ARC for the second book, Heart of the Sun Warrior, I was hyped! And then it took me forever to actually pick it up. I have a problem, y’all. Once I got to it, though, I found it just as compelling as the first book in this tale.

Spoiler Alert!!! If you haven’t read Daughter of the Moon Goddess, there will most likely be spoilers for that book in my review. If you would like to avoid those, maybe skip this review for now.

Heart of the Sun Warrior picks right back up where we left off after the first book. Xingyin is back home with her mother and settling into a less… eventful life. But the peace is short-lived when the Celestial Emperor and his right hand man set their sights on the moon and a secret hidden within. Now, Xingyin must team up with allies, both old and new, to fight for the home she had longed to return to and to find peace for her family… for good.

Once again, the writing in this novel was absolutely breathtaking! It’s vivid and lush, which helps to cement you in the story and keep you there as you fly through the pages. The worldbuilding continues to be well done and I found myself rereading passages because of how beautiful they were. This author definitely knows how to write a book that will have you in your feelings as you follow these characters on their adventures.

Speaking of the characters, they are all just as nuanced and compelling as they were in the first book! Xingyin continues to be an incredible main character, with a lot of heart and determination. I love that we get to see more of some of the side characters, as well, because they felt a lot more fleshed out in this book than they did in the first one. Not that they were flat in the first book, but they just felt more real as I read through the sequel. I didn’t even hate the love triangle, which is one of my least favorite tropes!

The only thing I didn’t care for as much in this book was it felt like it was too long. Like the plot was being dragged out so the author could hit a word count or something. It was fine while the action was intense and the adventure was ongoing, but it felt like the last few chapters were tacked on at the end. They didn’t flow as well as the rest of the book and seemed kind of unnecessary. I think it was an effort to wrap the story up nicely, but it fell flat for me. Overall, though, the journey far surpassed how I felt about the last few chapters. This was an excellent end to a great duology!

This was such a great conclusion to this duology! I love that it was cozy and messy. The plot was fun to follow, and I cannot wait to read more from Sue Lynn Tan!

Heart of the Sun Warrior was a beautiful story and a wonderful conclusion to the story we started in Daughter of the Moon Goddess. However, I really would expect no less from Sue Lynn Tan. Tan brings a thoughtful storyline to life through her lyrical prose. As other reviewers have noted before me: my hopes for Xingyin changed between books one and two. Although, I was never left disappointed. I went through an entire range of emotions reading this book and was very happy with how things ended.

Overall, I would recommend this book to other readers. I may even argue that this book is better than the first. If you enjoyed Daughter of the Moon Goddess, you are in for a treat. Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review the arc of this book. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I look forward to seeing what the future brings from Sue Lynn Tan.

Overall, I consider this to be a strong and engaging sequel to Daughter of the Moon Goddess though in some ways it’s not as strong as the first. At times it felt a bit winded with plot points stretched longer than felt necessary and the plot in the sequel is less linear and focused than that of DMG so which could have contributed to that feeling. It also has less action, which naturally slows down a story.

The characters though are just as enjoyable and the prose is beautifully written with a lovely unique voice. Xingyin takes a while to get to her true character development in the final act but I loved her just as much this time around. The love triangle between her, Liwei, and Wenzhi is even stronger in the book than the last, the complications feeling more grounded and mature as Xingyin wrestles with what future she wants for herself and how to let go of past mistakes. It was very believable the way they three interacted and made me more invested in that than the main plot line.

I might’ve given it a lower rating if not for the ending. Tan really knocked the final 25% of the book out of the park. The climax was exciting and impossible to put down. The resolution afterward was just as engaging as Xingyin struggles with her choices and facing the future. The resolution of what she decides to do, and how the love triangle works out, was absolutely perfect. We’re left with such a beautiful picture of the future, I found it impossible to rate it any lower with how satisfied I felt in the end.

I do think that the Celestial Kingdom duology is one of the best YA fantasies I’ve read in a very long time. It’s inventive, unique, and beautifully written with characters that you’ll love with your whole heart. I highly recommend both books to any YA fantasy reader.


Note: I received a free electronic edition of this book via NetGalley in exchange for the honest review above. I would like to thank them, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to do so.

The sequel to Daughter of the Moon Goddess, Xingyin is back home with her mother. All seems to be well until someone comes to their home who isn't what they seem. Following her intuition, Xingyin finds herself on another adventure that could effect the Celestial Kingdom for the worst.

I enjoyed the many different dynamics of this book, but what I enjoyed the most was the use of family and healing. In so much YA we see parents dead or just plain terrible, but in this book it really rings in how much family matters and how the love of parents and children can shape both to be amazing and loving. I greatly enjoyed the healing aspect as well. While Xingyin has ben through so much, and unfortunately experiences death, I felt the grieving in this book was well done. Most books gloss over the healing process and the fact that a YA novel really focused on that and discussed how important self-healing is was such a breath of fresh air.

I only wish the love triangle wasn't as drawn out as it was. Sometimes it felt like the romantic dynamic stalled the progression of the story. Overall, I think this was a nice conclusion to the duology.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for an ARC.

I enjoyed Heart of the Sun Warrior, but I think I preferred the first book in this duology. There was a lot of repetitive language especially coming from Xingyin. I understand wanting to emphasize the devastating moments that contributed to the person Xingyin becomes by the end, but I think saying it more than twice makes it a bit repetitive and forced. It was also missing the fast-paced action that defined the first book.

I hated not posting about this book on its pub day in November, and I’m thrilled to finally be able to do so now, because it was an epic follow up to an amazing adventure! Both books in this duology absolutely fly by — whether that’s because of the writing style or just because I couldn’t wait to see what happened next, I can’t say, but the ride was so much fun. Watching Xingyin sort through her complicated feelings about Liwei and Wenzhi while trying to save the entire empire from ruin and deal with her family drama seems like it would be overwhelming, but the author handles everything with a deft hand. I can’t wait to see what she does next!

Heart of the Sun Warrior was everything I hoped for to end this duology, and more! It had the stunning and lyrical writing of Daughter of the Moon Goddess as well as a captivating story. I had no idea where Sue Lynn Tan would take the story after book one, and I was so thrilled with where it took me.

Heart of the Sun Warrior is a beautiful story of love, family, friendship, loyalty, and courage. I highly recommend it to any fans of fantasy books, and this duology belongs on every shelf. It is truly excellent storytelling.

I enjoyed this one almost as much as the first. It felt a little slower in some places and it wasn't what I wanted to reach for at times because of that, but it was overall an enjoyable read and a great ending to the duology.

That ending was simultaneously the best and worst thing that has ever happened to me. Never has a happy ending left me feeling so on edge and so unsettled. What a book! Packed with action and heartbreak and sacrifices and love — it was the best conclusion to this story that I could've imagined.

This was the perfect end to an amazing duology. It’s a super unique fantasy story. Sue Lynn Tan is definitely an insta but author for me from now on.

This is (surprising no one) a stunning follow-up and conclusion to 'The Daughter of the Moon Goddess,' with prose and narrative befitting that gorgeous cover.

I enjoyed this follow up. The continuing and more in-depth world building coupled with the character development was superb. I think I may have enjoyed this more than the first book. The only critique I have is the pacing but that did not detour me from liking this book.

Heart of the Sun Warrior is the second installment in the Celestial Kingdom Duology by Sue Lynn Tan and brings us back into the world of The Daughter of the Moon Goddess and thankfully we did not end on a huge cliffhanger, I appreciated that!

With the way DOTMG ended I thought there would be some rest for our main characters but HOTSW was just as action packed as the first. It had loads of action and excitement, not really a lull for me anywhere. Overall I would say I enjoyed the book and I felt it came to a fitting conclusion. One thing I didn't really vibe with was the love triangle. I really can't stand love triangles to begin with, they make me so anxious and with HOTSW I felt it was pretty obvious what was going to happen in that triangle so maybe it wasn't needed. Also I felt this one dragged on a little too long when I didn't get that feeling in DOTMG really. There were a few times that it could've ended satisfactorily but there as just more chapters afterwards...weird.

I will say that I initially anticipated this duology for the covers alone, my goodness, but they ended up also being so beautiful on the inside as well. Sue Lynn Tan really has a gorgeous writing style and I look forward to more of her books in the future.

Thank you so much to Avon and Harper Voyager for providing me with an eARC via Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

4.5/5 stars. Thank you to the publisher for providing me a digital review copy of this book via NetGalley.

I liked the action and the emotional story of this one. As with the first book, I think this one was a bit long, but it had just enough action to not feel like it was dragging on too much, thankfully. I was pleasantly surprised with how the romantic storyline ended up - Xingyin knows her heart and takes the time to grieve. I definitely cried a bit at the ending.

Overall I was satisfied with this conclusion to the duology, and look forward to reading other work by Sue Lynn Tan!

Heart of the Sun Warrior is the sequel to Daughter of the Moon Goddess and the conclusion of the Celestial Kingdom duology, a Chinese fantasy drama (epic fantasy rooted in Chinese mythology). Although it didn’t blow me away, I did enjoy it and the duology overall.

I won’t give spoilers for the first book, but suffice to say that this one picks up only a short time after that one ends. From there, a new adventure quickly begins. That’s one thing I liked about this duology: Each book feels like a complete story. This time around, Xingyin knows herself and her strengths better; she’s still headstrong, and she still rushes into situations a bit too quickly, but it was nice to get to know her as a more confident person.

One strength of this duology is the prose. Sue Lynn Tan writes gorgeous sentences, and these books are lush and cinematic. That matches up nicely with the kind of action-packed, something-for-everyone story. I also loved getting to know the legend of the Moon Goddess through this lens!

The reason this fell a bit short for me, however, is just that I don’t like love triangles. Sometimes I can be convinced, but I never quite got there on this one. I think it could have benefited from more character development for the secondary characters in the book; they’re all sort of flat except for Xingyin herself. Although part of this may also be my own inexperience and naive reactions to a more Eastern storytelling style.

Still, if you find yourself drawn to this one, I’d say definitely give it a shot!

This duology was everything I hoped it would be. The ending threw me but I am very happy with it. I am so happy for so many things with this book. I absolutely love this book and can’t wait to read more from this author.