Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion! I have been focusing on reading more adult literature this year as I've felt like YA has been a bit formulaic over the past couple of years. I'm so glad that I picked this book up in spite of that, it was an interesting read with a fleshed out storyline and characters. I didn't realize this was the first in an upcoming series, I'm really interested to see where the author takes this! If you're trying to get back into YA and want something fun to read, definitely pick up this book!

I didn't enjoy this book like I wanted to and I think it was mainly due to all the controversies surrounding it that were aired out on twitter. This wasn't a bad book by any means, I think the writing style just wasn't for me and it distracted away from the overall plot of the book and made it more of a slog to get through then I'd hoped. I will be checking out anything written by this author in the future however and I am excited to see what she will put out.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5
The cover was gorgeous, and the plot was interesting enough to keep me engaged throughout the whole book. However, the characters just didn’t work for me. On the one hand, I get that the unlikeable characters were an intentional choice—however, I just found it really difficult to enjoy a story where I couldn’t root for any of the characters. I do think that this story will work really well for the right reader, it just wasn't for me.

The colonialism critique was interesting, but falls a bit flat when one of the love interests is a colonizer.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!

The premise for this story is really intriguing and it takes you on a journey, and I think ultimately it delivers.

This is one of those books that you need to stick with till the end to really understand where it’s going.
Some of the things being done to Ruying’s people by the Roman’s are hard to stomach, but I think it’s all part of setting up the state of the world and where her character is at the start of this series.

I really enjoyed the world building and magic system. That juxtaposition of magic vs science was also very interesting. It also makes some important social commentary about the historical use of opiates to control oppressed people.

If I could compare this book theme wise to another popular book, it would be Raven Kennedy’s Gild. It feels like that first book in the series where it seems like you’re getting one story, when really the purpose is to give the character room to grow and break out of their cage. I’m excited to see where the next book in this series goes because I think Ruying is poised to shake things up now. A great start to a series!

This book was just.. alright. The premise was intriguing, but ultimately fell short for me. What did work for me was the magic system and complex characters (and their relationships to one another). It was also interesting to read about the characters struggling with what is right and wrong vs what they are, or aren't, willing to do to achieve their goals.

As for what didn't work for me - I wasn't expecting a future "Rome" to be the invaders in this historical, fantasy based version of China. The modern technologies mentioned, and use of weaponry and machinery, felt awkward to read about and out of place in the world. I also found myself skimming through parts of the story as the main character (Ruying) would go off on long-winded, repetitive internal monologues that would be pages long. In fact, I really didn't like Ruying at all. I found her to be hypocritical, cowardly, and naïve - to the point where I was literally rolling my eyes at some of her words and actions. With this only being the first book I'm sure this was intentional to show Ruying's growth, however, her "growth" so far at the end of this one was negligible. And it only happened when someone she cares about became involved. Outside of this I did enjoy reading about her interactions with her sister and would like to see more of their relationship. Really, I am interested in how all of the characters (Baihu, Antony, Meiyu, etc.) will progress in the next book, and to learn more of their backgrounds and motivations.

Overall, I feel like the bones of a good book are present in To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods, but the execution fell short. I did get through this rather quickly, and the parts that I did like kept me from rating this below three stars.

Rating: 3.5 stars

You know the whole “every villain is the hero of his own story” thing?

That’s pretty much what Molly X. Chang explores in her debut novel. At first glance, To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods seems like your typical YA fantasy, but it’s a messy little book set in a brutal world filled with harsh choices, monstrous princes, and unfair odds. Despite the elements found in your usual YA SFF–a handsome enemy prince, a rebel group with a mysterious leader, and a girl willing to do whatever it takes to protect her family (I volunteer for tribute)–this is less of an enemies-to-lovers, Chosen One-joins-the-rebellion story and more of a “cool motive, still murder,” make my your villain kind of a story.

Yang Ruying is the girl blessed by Death whose only goal in life is carve out a semblance of normalcy for her aging grandma and her estranged, opium-dependent twin sister. Unfortunately, she’s an orphan clinging to the dregs of her once-great family legacy just trying to survive in conquered nation decimated by poverty and addiction, and while her powers may be great, they’re costly, taking pieces of her soul and shaving hours from her life with each kill she makes. But sometimes, when you live a in harsh world, all your choices are bad ones, so when Ruying finds herself at the hands of her enemies, she agrees to work for one of the conquering princes in exchange for her family’s security. But achieving his vision for peace for both their worlds is complicated, and Ruying finds herself walking the knife’s edge between protecting her family and betraying her nation.

At its heart, To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods is a story about how far one would go to protect her (or his) people. Chang creates a world in which the only options are tough ones and throws in a protagonist who wants simple desires in a world that’s anything but. The result is a complicated cast of characters with messy motives, delusions of goodness, and questionable morals.

As a reader, you’re not really sure who to root for because everyone’s kind of messed up in their own way–including our illustrious “heroine”–and while it may be hard to like many (or any) or the characters, I think Chang does a good job of making them, at the very least, understandable. They’re, as the saying goes, heroes of their own stories and are so convinced they’re doing the right thing at the end that they’re willing to do things that are very, very wrong. The age-old question rings throughout the story like a refrain–does the end justify the means? (Personally, I’m thinking no.)

I’m the kind of reader who doesn’t love villain origin stories (or villain romances), but despite a few dicey moments, I don’t think To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods fits into either category. It’s a messy book full of characters who, whether real or imagined, find themselves with their backs against the wall, stuck between a rock and a hard place. I feel like I spent a good portion of the book watching them run around, thinking, well, that’s a choice.

At face value, the romance can seem problematic. I know it caused a bunch of controversy, but I wanted to read it for myself and tried to avoid the drama so I could look at it objectively. I couldn’t block out all the noise, but I’m not really convinced To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods is an actual love story. I’d call this a light romance at best, but even then, my gut instincts tell me that the real romance hasn’t quite started yet and that the actual love story–if there ends up being one–will go in a direction most readers might not expect. (Fingers crossed!)

Really, the main focus of the book is the constant tension between struggling for survival (no matter what the cost) and doing what’s right. The central question seems to be, is it better to turn a blind eye and cling to the pretense of peace or to fight a losing battle in pursuit of it? Antony, who’s constantly spouting his questionable maxims like some kind of macabre fortune cookie, is really just another means (albeit one with pretty jade eyes) to highlight Ruying’s internal conflict.

The pacing in To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods is a little weird. It’s a pretty slow, meandering story for most of the book. I personally didn’t mind the pacing as much, but this does very much feel like an introductory book leading up to the actual story that I’m hoping will be told in subsequent books. Ruying’s character arc, for example, barely starts by the time we reach the end of the book. It’s not necessarily how I’d want to kick off a trilogy–an argument for a tighter story and stronger plot can definitely be made–but it’s a pretty prose, easy-to-read kind of a book, and my brain has been quite tired lately, so it wasn’t a huge deal for me.

That being said, I do think the story could’ve been developed a lot more. The world building is a huge disappointment for me. I was really excited for another Asian-inspired fantasy world, but it’s not particularly detailed or fleshed out. If anything, the bits of information we get are kind of confusing. I can’t tell you how long it took for me to realize Ruying and Antony’s nations weren’t just on separate continents but from completely different worlds (slash dimensions?? I’m still kind of confused.) It definitely doesn’t help that “Rome” isn’t the Roman Empire that’s on everyone’s minds, but the way the worlds are introduced are clunky and hard to piece together.

In terms of the characters, it’d be nice to see more growth and development over the course of the story. I get that we still have two more books, but part of what makes series fun is the emotional attachment you get for fictional characters. As I mentioned early Ruying’s nascent arc is just starting to kick off towards the end of the book. When the pacing starts to pick up, it feels a little rushed and some characters (Antony) start to do things that seem a little out of character. The side characters are really interesting, and I wish we’d gotten to see them more. I would love to learn more about Ruying’s military-minded Grandmother or her treasonous traitor of a childhood friend, for example, but they only make brief appearances throughout the book. (Am I hoping they play a larger role in the next two books? Absolutely.)

To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods really feels more like the buildup to a larger story than a smaller contained to the first of three books. I am really interested in seeing where Chang goes from here (and if my predictions are right,) so I’m definitely keeping my eyes on release info for book 2 and hoping we get some stronger world building the next time around.

I was unsure of this book at first. It took some time to get started, with other obligations. I found myself thinking of Cruel Prince by Holly Black as it went along. Though the main characters have different motivations, I see in To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods a story of a young woman seeking power and going down a dark path as a result. Her reasons for joining with the enemy, the ends justifying the means. Still, a colonizer prince with a huge amount of power over Ruying ending up in a romance with her was hard to swallow. I'll continue the series, but book 2 will have to be amazing to continue anything beyond that.

The world that Molly X. Chang built was so intriguing to me, but I wanted more. I know that YA fantasy is not super heavy in world-building, but I think in this story it would have added more dimension to the story and given the character arcs more of an impact. In my opinion, the writing was too heavy on the dialogue and could have used a bit more editing. Especially as you navigate the tricky world of morally-grey characters.

I also very much struggle identifying with characters who make bad choice, after bad choice after bad choice. I know this adds to the tension and conflict in the story, but it also disconnected me as a reader from Ruying.

the thing about the colonizer and colonized dynamic is that one will always be viewed as less than human, their identity equivalent to dirt in the eyes of the other, and this would have been okay (in the most absolute marginal sense) if the male romantic lead wasn’t the leader of the colonizers (committing the most atrocious of crimes) but perhaps a mere civilian questioning the morality of his nations actions.

no amount of fluffy hair or marble jawlines or jade green eyes is going to make this dynamic become even remotely humane or morally digestible.

all the potential this book had was overshadowed by the colonizer romance. it was disgusting, weird as fuck, and tone deaf. in this day and age, i think we are all old enough to practice a bit of self awareness and understand that colonialism is not a thing of the past but a very prevalent and inhumane reality for many of our fellow humans.

there is no sympathy or compassion for the colonizer. it's pretty sickening to think that romanticizing colonial violence could be seen as a 'morally gray' concept, and even worse to consider writing a story where a victim of colonial violence is forced to rationalize the atrocities her people have suffered to paint the male lead in a better light. it's beyond messed up :-(

I'd like to add that i have seen the title for the next book and it does give me hope. although i felt a lot of what was in this book was unnecessary and really ruined it for me. molly is a great writer. she has a lot of potential and i will look forward to reading and supporting her other works.
thank you for the arc.

I enjoyed this debut even though it could have been tightened up a bit more. Chang did a good job with the worldbuilding but I wanted more since the details were somewhat convoluted with the Romans vs the magic system. The setting was fascinating to read about. The romance didn’t quite hit for me, although I’m wondering if it’s supposed to be the actual romantic ship as well. Overall I would read the sequel.

I'll be honest though, I think the marketing really failed on this one. I dont think the romance is supposed to be liked (unless we have a different problem to addresss) but it was marketed heavily toward the romance aspect. That difference in marketing vs reality really shocked me into a whiplash.

I had high expectations for To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods. I loved the premise when the author advertised on social media. The cover is stunning. However, I am uncomfortable with the colonizer romance.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Del Rey and Netgalley for the ARC.

This one sounded so interesting with the world that it promised but I found it didn’t deliver on a few levels. First, the reader is thrown into this world without a lot of context. Like even a prologue that tells the history of this a little to situate us in this world would’ve been so helpful. It kind of does this but it is very narrative instead of straightforward.
Next, this is much more romantasy than advertised. I think if I had known that going in I could have been more prepared. It just is weird in a lot of places and the romance felt uncomfortable even for enemies to lovers. Like can it truly be enemies to lovers if the main male character is an evil ruler????

My heart goes out to the author for the difficulties that she had with this book (and there were so many). However, I really recommend reading and watching BIPOC reviews/reviewers about this book. There is a lot of trauma associated with the historical events portrayed in this book.

This is a story that promised so much but unfortunately fell short of my expectations. This is set in a world that has been conquered by technologically advanced invaders. Ruying, one of the colonized people and our main character, possesses death magic—a power that both intrigues and terrifies her. When an enemy prince discovers her abilities, he imprisons her and demands that she become his assassin or he will harm her family.

Obviously, the romance was a HUGE problem. The anti-colonialism message (that I THINK was supposed to come through?) was completely overshadowed by the romance in this. The romance between Ruying and the prince feels forced and made me incredibly uncomfortable, especially given the author's note in the beginning. There were notes of romance between the two even when his actions were horrific. She kept thinking about how attractive he was even as he was threatening her and her family. Ruying's motivations and character development also feel inconsistent, as her actions often contradict her stated beliefs and desires. Another huge problem I had was the time skip. That portion could have been utilized to expand upon the feelings between the two characters and could have shown us how Ruying was being manipulated by Antony. It really only serves to confuse readers and disrupt the flow of the story. The world-building and character development suffer as a result, leaving the reader with more questions than answers.

I wish the author all the best and hope that she takes the criticism to heart in the continued series. I appreciate the copy from Netgalley and the publisher. This review is based on a complimentary pre-released copy and it is voluntary.

Young Adult Fantasy
Science Fiction
Asian Literature (Chinese mythology inspired)
Science vs Magic
Enemies to Lovers

This first caught my eye with its lovely eye-catching cover. I was honestly surprised that this was a science vs magic novel as at first I thought that it was purely fantasy. I loved that it went in that direction and I’m really excited to know more in the next instalment. For me, this book is well written. The main character’s internal struggle to make the best choices in the midst of manipulation and cultural conflict is well done. Definitely waiting for the next book.

With all the Discourse around this book, I wanted to love it... But, I absolutely could not get behind Ruying and her terrible decision-making, and the mental gymnastics attempted to make her into anything close to a Good Person. I really think that Molly's marketing campaign took a convoluted turn when she began to claim it as a Dark Romance/Zutara-esque story, because neither of those comparisons are actually true. It also feels like a very surface level approach with grappling incredibly heavy and dark history, which just isn't a good back drop for any type of romance...

I sat on my review for a while just trying to figure out my feelings & what i wanted to say about this book.
Every time i tried to read this book i kept finding myself confused or bored. I eventually had to write stuff down because the whole Rome, Roman names for the bad people shall i say kept throwing me off tremendously, i love mythology i saw where this book was based on Chinese mythology & the horrors the Manchurian people experienced. Which intrigued me so much ! Also the Chinese culture itself intrigues me. I kept finding myself lost at times, irritated with how dull the main character was she felt boring at times. The world building was very sparse to where it wasn’t easy figuring out & understanding the basics of what it looked like or how the people came to be.
The fact that this book was so dear to the authors because it was based on stories that her grandfather told her during her childhood that were all rooted from reality of what he experienced made me even more sad that i didn’t like this book, the authors note was so amazing , personal & touching to where i was expecting so much more out of this book then what i got.
I’m all for enemies to lovers, i actually really love that trope & I’m also a huge dark romance fan so there are a lot of things that don’t affect me , but something about our main character falling for her colonized her who was actually really brutal & awful to her just didn’t sit right me .

Now I’m rating this book 2.75 because there were moments that had me really intrigued. Ruying’s powers were pretty fascinating to me. Anthony’s story was also fascinating. I love a good background story of a character

I might end up re reading this book when her next one comes out just to see if i feel differently or if maybe this being her debut book it wasn’t the best she could do . I am all for giving authors second or 3rd chances so I’m not giving up on Molly yet. 🩷

Going into this book I pretty much dropped any and all expectations I might have had because of all the discourse online and I wanted to give this one a fair read. And honestly I had a fun time with this one. I thought the world was an interesting set up in this one with this blend of fantasy world where the book is set mixed with the science aspects of the colonizing world in the book. I love when books blend magic and science so that really worked for me.

I found Ruying to be a pretty interesting narrator. Seeing the plot through her eyes as she makes decisions and is manipulated gave an interesting view of what was happening and even when I disagreed with her decisions I felt like I understood why she was making those decisions.

And finally to address the colonizer romance aspect of this book as that is what is being blasted all over the bookish internet. So yes, the main character is from the colonizing nation and is actively participating in the oppression of the the female character's nation. I'm not going to argue that he is absolutely a colonizer. But in order for something to be a colonizer romance I feel as though there must be a romance. And straight up I would not call it that. It's just stockholm syndrome and manipulation and I thought that was pretty crystal clear while reading that the author's intent was not for it to be a relationship you are rooting for at all not did I ever think was the intent for it to be an end game relationship so i did not have an issue with it in this first one.

I will definitely be picking up the second book in this series!

- thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc to review!

- this was not worth it. a story about a ecofascist colonizer romance with an idiotic protagonist who literally obsessed over him until the last TWO CHAPTERS OF THE BOOK?? the book lacked the nuance needed to handle such deep topics such as colonialism and unit 731, and literally had no emotional impact between the characters. all of them were brain dead expect for Baihu, who was the only one who had a brain apparently.

I’m sorry, but this was one of the worst reads. the writing style needed editing, as characters would monologue for an entire page, more than once. it was headache inducing, and while Chang has a writing style that can work, she needed to edit this a bit more. it doesn’t hurt to edit, i promise.

i might tune into the other books, only so i can see how messed up it gets from here, and if this is the only “colonizer romance” book of the series. if not, i will be very frustrated. colonizer romance should not be written to portray such shitty people as decent, morally ambiguous love interests. it’s not right.

While I did enjoy the overall story, there was a lot to wade through before I got to that point. It was frustrating at times waiting for Ruying to come to her senses and figure out the truth, but I did appreciate how she was able to walk back and understand just how much damage she was doing. I’ll probably read the second book out of sheer curiosity as to how this will end.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey for the ARC copy they provided.

I regret that I wasn’t able to finish To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods before its publication date and leave an advance review, but life, as it often does, got in the way. I was able to read several chapters, though, and Molly X. Chang’s clean and beautiful writing style pulled me in immediately.

As did her storyline and blend of history with fantasy. There is culture and reality in the midst of the fiction elements of To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods, and this depth adds intensity to the story.

Though I was unable to read the whole book at the time of this review, I can say I already love To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods and look forward to reading it at my leisure for pleasure and not in the sense of “needing” to leave a review. There is a reason I kept seeing this book on most anticipated lists. I can confidently say you won’t be disappointed.