2.5 rounded up

<b>Rep:</b> South Asian Rep , LGBTQ (MM Rep)
<b>Genre:</b> Romance, Historical Fantasy, Adult
<b>Trigger warnings:</b> Sexual content, explicit scenes, blood
<b>Spice Level: 🌶🌶🌶🌶</b>

- Multiple timelines
- Chinese History + Asian Folklore
- Mythological Creatures
- Reincarnation
- Erotic scenes

Wow… this book had so much potential but it fell a bit short for me.

**Summary:**
Set across different timelines and locations, this debut novel follows the interconnected lives of two men who are reborn time and again, drawn together by a love that transcends the bounds of time itself.

There are 3 timelines:

‘In the year 4 BCE, an ambitious courtier is called upon to seduce the young emperor—but quickly discovers they are both ruled by blood, sex and intrigue.

In 1740, a lonely innkeeper agrees to help a mysterious visitor procure a rare medicine, only to unleash an otherworldly terror instead.

And in present-day Los Angeles, a college student meets a beautiful stranger and cannot shake the feeling they’ve met before.’


**My Thoughts**
Pros - Let’s talk about the good first.
- The cover is BEAUTIFUL. It is full of Easter eggs and I love that the more you look at it, the more you uncover.
- This book had a lot of potential! I do think that I could see this translate really well as a movie.
- Yay for the representations in the book! MM Romance and Chinese Asian representation.

Cons - Hold on to your seats
- It was a bit too spicy for me personally. But I’m sure some people wouldn’t mind it.
- I was getting a bit confused with the multiple timelines and trying to connect the characters across timelines
- The 1970 story was especially very confusing for me for some of the mythological scenes, maybe it was the descriptions or my inability to imagine what was happening, but I was left confused, especially some scenes with the grandma.
- Felt more like infatuation, not a love story, I wish we could have experienced more of the couple together. Maybe related to my next point…
- Stories felt short and incomplete. I understand that a huge premise of the book is that the lovers have to keep finding each other over each lifetime, but I wish we had a more developed love story. We only get a glimpse of what could have been.
- There were a lot of super interesting characters! But I wish there was more character development. I wanted to learn more about so many characters!
- The endingggggg. Although intentional, the ending felt incomplete. Who is Winston, what is Joey’s plan, why cant he just be with River, lots of unanswered questions that I wish were answered.
- Overall I wish each story was explored more.

In The Emperor and the Endless Palace, Justinian Huang has created a unique love story with powerful queer characters and spirituality. Throughout the story, as it flows through time and to each individual, nothing is quite what you expect, not only the connections between the characters but the events of their lives. 

I found each character in the narrative thread easy to connect to and compelling. Each is charismatic in their own way as they experience transcendent moments and visions of their past lives along with the connection to those they’ve loved. The narrative is dramatic, from He Shican who tangles with a fox spirit, courtier Dong Xian who loves emperor Liu Xin and in present day Joey and River. Each connection is one piece of the greater whole but also illustrates how we can be trapped within cycles and how hard it is to break the negative patterns that we carry with us from our pasts whether you embrace reincarnation or not.

If you love stories with reincarnation, with connections that transcend time and supernatural creatures, this novel is for you. I love the unique love story that embraces gay characters and the sweeping, dramatic narrative. It is a triumphant romance.

This let me down at the end, and none too gently. I know marketing was comparing it to The Song of Achilles, but don't get your hopes up, it doesn't achieve that sense of tragedy nearly as beautifully. I will say, as I saw my page percentage getting higher and higher to 98%, I was wondering if this was being set up for a duology, but alas. It just kept on going at the end. I know the point was not to have a happy ending, but I also didn't feel like there was a solid resolution, either. I think the story could have been longer, actually.

Overall, I'm conflicted on how I feel about this story, because I was loving it up to the 83% mark, and then I felt like I was dropped without warning. People disappoint you, even fictional ones.

So inventive and left me questioning who was who and what was what. I was disappointed in the ending, but I have a feeling that was the point. To be able to build 3 different worlds for these characters was an impressive feat. I definitely enjoyed the earlier lives more than modern day, but overall this was a very enjoyable and quick read.

This was so good! I did not know what to expect from this story, and whether it would feel to high fantasy, which isn't my typical genre. But I immediately became immersed in the story and the three perspectives. Each chapter ended on a cliff hanger, which was very effective in having me fly through the book. Even though the perspectives were connected, the narrative voices were still distinct and separate and engaging in their own way. I wish the book ended differently, but I understand why it ended the way it did. I will absolutely read from this author again and definitely recommend this book to readers who do or do not generally read fantasy.

This book was a wonderful experience into Chinese culture and queerness. I knew nothing going in and was pleasantly surprised the entire time. Fair warning, this book is wildly explicit but it manages to tie the sensuality with the plot in a way that really drives the story more. I was interested in each story line and wanted to continue reading until all of the stories wrapped up together.

Really lush and beautiful writing! I am always a sucker for courtly intrigue. I almost wish more time had been spent on the historical parts of the narrative.

Thank you very much to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book early!

A retelling of both true historical record and a queer short story, this intricate story of reincarnation and finding love throughout multiple lifetimes drew me in from the start. Told in straightforward prose, I appreciated that this book neither wrote around nor shied away from the inherent queerness in this story and instead, made sure it was front and center. While I would say there were some pacing issues, especially as the story wrapped up relatively quickly, this is definitely a fast-paced book already with the present timeline taking place over only a couple of weeks (albeit with a time skip of a few months that was glossed over).

Ultimately, I really enjoyed the story being told in the first person, as it made the (first) twist more surprising (spoiler: that each character in each timeline was not actually the same person). And to continue in the vein of spoilers, the more I've sat on the ending since I've finished, I prefer the book's bittersweet ending. There is definitely an over-saturation of fantasy romance stories that wrap everything up quickly in an effort to gloss over the issues inherent within the relationship itself. This book could have taken an out by acknowledging that the past lives may have ended tragically, but the present life could be a happily ever after, even if the issues between the two characters have not been resolved. But it didn't take the easy way out. These two people are connected through multiple lifetimes and they will continue to be drawn together--their all-consuming love will continue to hurt them--until the cycle can be broken. It is clear that the end of this book is not the end of their story, but I felt that River walking away in the present was him making a choice for himself (finally) and no longer letting himself be pulled along by the machinations of others or by fate, as he has been in his past lives.

Inventive, intricate, full of genuinely heart-wrenching prose, and unapologetically queer, this is a book that deserves more attention. I certainly will be recommending it for a long time.

The Emperor and the Endless Palace by Justinian Huang weaves an ambitious novel that follows two men's red strings of fate as they're reincarnated across a millennium.

The book is divided by three storylines:

- Dong Xian, a low-level clerk who aims to work his way up the imperial palace's ranks

- He Shican, an innkeeper who is roped into helping a fox spirit procure a rare ingredient.

- River, a college student who meets a mysterious stranger at a rave.

I have to warn that this is a book the requires patience. Because the story follows multiple timelines, it does take longer for the story to take shape and find its rhythm.

Also, maybe it’s because I'm a historical girlie at heart, but I found the modern-day storyline the least compelling of the bunch. The conniving fox and the scheming court intrigue storylines were far more interesting to me, but that might partly boil down to personal preference.

Thank you to The Hive for this ARC!
The Emperor and the endless palace weaves 3 different timelines together to create a wonderful and spicy queer Asian fantasy! Please keep in mind this is very smutty, and mostly sex driven over plot. The writing was fast paced and kept me engaged. Would recommend!

I absolutely adore Justinian's writing style and was immersed in his ability to weave a story.

I will admit I am not the target audience for this book but I think for the right reader this will be amazing. Conceptually, this was a very cool book with multiple timelines and we love a good reincarnation trope. Parts felt a little slow for me (but that could be just me being a mood reader).

I will absolutely be reading whatever Justinian decides to write next, however.

Thank you so much to Justinian, HTP books and Netgalley for the ARC. I received a copy of this book and am leaving my review voluntarily and honestly.

Honestly, I'm really having a difficult time getting into this book. I might set it aside and pick it up a different time to give it another shot. Will update my rating then, but it's firmly a 3 star for now.

Here’s the thing, this book was good. Quite good, even. I can acknowledge from an outward point of view that this book was good, and the plot was too. However, I really do have my qualms with purple prose. It’s genuinely my least favourite thing in the world while reading. While I understand the desire to be incredibly descriptive, for people like me, it makes the experience difficult to enjoy. It’s a two star because I can acknowledge it was good and that the story was well done, but the writing style really isn’t for me. I do very much appreciate reading this book however, and wish the author great success.

This book started well so I was very optimistic about it. But the more it went on the more confused I got. I was quite unsure about the period that it was set in. It felt very historical but with a more modern tone. The ratio of erotica-fantasy was also disappointing. I was expecting more fantastical elements.

This was actually a fascinating book! I went in without reading carefully through the synopsis and it made it quite the ride for me! The time jumps were confusing at times but mostly cool, and I loved trying to see how all the parts fit together. And that ending!

I’m having a hard time getting into this book. I have yet to finish it but I’m going to be setting it aside for a while and coming back later. As of right now I don’t think it’s for me.

I will be using 3 stars as a placeholder.

I would like to thank NetGalley and MIRA/HarperCollins for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
Very Wuxia feeling. I loved the premise of this book. I feel like it was fantastical and seemed to capture the essence of Chinese epic fiction. ITs a romance but not hung up on romance, its erotic but not smut, its fantastical but not overwhelming. It captures the essence of Chinese epic traditions so well, while putting a wonderfully queer twist to the genre.

This book was so different from what I've been reading lately, in the best way possible. I was hooked from the very beginning and couldn't put this down. I feel like this is best going in blind, but know that the story pulled me in and I had to know what happened next. I"m so excited to see what Justinian does next, because this book was amazing!

2.5

I have such mixed feelings about this book. The cover is stunning and I am a sucker for the reincarnation trope but I'm not sure how successful this is a romance so I think marketing it as one does the book a disservice.

I enjoyed the three timelines equally and found how the intertwined really interesting. I also love the use of culture and casual queerness. Unfortunately, I ultimately think this was a sort of forgettable novel and I found the ending disappointing.

That being said, I like the bones of this and the prose is beautiful so I'd be willing to give the author another chance.

I like romance and I love fantasy, but I’m not a big fan of romance in fantasy, so I’ve been reluctant to try out romantasy. Needless to say, The Emperor and the Endless Palace is my first romantasy read ever. I’ve been pushing myself to read more East Asian inspired novels in an attempt to connect with my heritage and find myself in the myriad Asian American experiences that exist, so, after a little battle with myself, I decided I wanted to try this one. The fact that it involves two men who are bound to seek each other out lifetime after lifetime, to love each other fiercely only for fate to intervene time after time, just kind of felt like the icing on the cake. In the end, I’m glad I read this, and I fell in love with the souls of these two men, but I’m quite sure this genre will just not be for me.

Across three timelines, the souls of two men are reborn time and time again, these three stories are expertly woven together so the chapter beginnings and endings blend perfectly together despite the massive time jumps. And yet it’s easy to figure out which timeline the reader is dropped into chapter after chapter. Despite three disparate time periods, the story unfolds in a mostly straightforward manner to masterfully tell this story of tragic, intense love.

In 4 BC, Liu Xin is Emperor, but he’s kept on a tight leash by his grandmother, who maneuvers around him and prevents him from doing as he pleases. Her manipulations extend to Dong Xian, a low-ranking Imperial clerk, as she orders him to seduce the Emperor, none of them able to foretell the intense love they’ll develop, even as the Emperor’s cousin watches and protects from the shadows.

In 1740, He Shican runs a relatively remote inn. It’s quiet until a young man named Jiulang arrives with his ill grandmother, asking Shican to bring Dr. Qi Yewang to help her. Shican has a complicated relationship with the doctor, but he does as Jiulang asks. In trying to cure the grandmother, terrible truths and a powerful being are revealed, changing Shican’s life forever.

In the present day, River has just recently come out and finds himself at a rather intense party with his date Calvin, unexpectedly bringing him into the orbit of a man named Joey who is, in strange ways, bound to the insanely wealthy Winston Chow. River and Joey are inexplicably drawn to each other, but tragedy has struck life after life, asking the question of when it’s time to let go. Or perhaps many more lifetimes are necessary for these two souls to find happiness.

Despite three different time periods, three different sets of characters, and three different settings, The Emperor and the Endless Palace is actually relatively straightforward, focusing on the epic love story between two souls who find each other lifetime after lifetime. There are, of course, hurdles in their path in the form of two other souls, one who wishes to control and one who loves and refuses to relinquish it. I really enjoyed the way all these souls were wrapped up together, bound to find each other and try to control each other life after life, but I left this novel with a vague feeling of dissatisfaction as I realized this is more of a tragic love story than anything else.

The Emperor and the Endless Palace is really laid out in a fascinating way. Over the course of three different lifetimes, a whole love story unfolds even as each time period has its own meetings, hurdles, and conclusions. The Emperor and Dong Xian’s story introduces these two souls and sets them on the path to being eternally reborn to find and eventually lose each other. He Shican and Jiulang’s story gives them the opportunity to be together, but it’s fraught, even as hurdles are destroyed and displaced. River and Joey’s story is a sweet re-meeting, but is tinged with the betrayal from their first lifetime, proving some bonds are too strong to break and letting go might have to be an eventuality.

These two souls, these two men, are not perfect, and neither is their love. It’s intense, and I was immediately drawn into their love story. There are outside forces in the Emperor’s grandmother and his cousin/protector that will try to control them, and it hurt my heart so much to watch them have to struggle. But their love is something like a beacon for both of them, and I loved seeing them together, loved their softer intimate moments. There’s a feeling of need and desperation, and I could feel the want so keenly. And yet neither of them are perfect, and they’re bound to hurt each other. Despite probably countless lifetimes, they’ve never managed to shake the shadow from their first lifetime together, and it felt like a shadow over the entire book. The ending hurt, but made absolute sense, and perhaps all these lifetimes were meant to be cleansing instead of an intense need to finally be together once and for all.

The thing that made me feel unbalanced, though, was trying to figure out which soul was which man in the two later timelines, and then having to readjust when it wasn’t quite right. It makes absolute sense by the end, but it was a little frustrating to have to think back through everything and rearrange how their relationship works. As straightforward as this story is, there are still some mild surprises as new information is provided, but most of it happens towards the end. The first two thirds ended up feeling a little slow, with each of the three timelines feeling like they were gearing up very slowly. I was a little surprised by how slowly each timeline actually moved as the frequent switches made it feel like the story was constantly moving forward. It made it easier to readjust to which soul was in which man, but I found myself pausing now and then to fix assumptions I’d planted in my head so the story would align properly.

For such a straightforward story, there are a ton of details in this book. There are two souls who are split into three lifetimes, side characters that go with each timeline, lush settings that accompany each couple, and the mythology behind fox spirits. I had a fantastic time getting to know these men as they remained the same at their cores, but their different life experiences also had a hand in shaping them somewhat differently. I loved meeting the Emperor and the clerk, but wasn’t so fond of the innkeeper and his guest, though I adored River and found his timeline the easiest to slide into, probably because it’s set in the present day. I also love the LA setting as that’s where I live, and I love that little thrill of recognizing different areas and landmarks. But I also loved how the forest played such a huge role in the 1740 timeline, because it was perfect with the story of the fox spirit and the magic that was woven in, as terrifying as it was now and then. The manipulations in the ancient Chinese palace were a ton of fun, too, and I really enjoyed how it set up all the characters. But I also loved Calvin in the present day, and my heart really ached for him. I loved what I think he symbolized, and I love the possible scenarios that play out in my mind after the book’s last page.

I can’t say whether The Emperor and the Endless Palace is what romantasy is, or how much of the genre it embodies, but I enjoyed it. I loved the characters and had fun with the settings, and I do like the idea of reincarnation here. The love story was certainly intense and fraught, and I didn’t mind the graphic sex scenes as much as I thought I would as they’re kept relatively short, but I was also a little dissatisfied with the way the story wrapped up. I did love all the fantastical elements, and I enjoyed watching these two souls try so hard to be together, but the focus on the love story ended up being just a little too much for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.