The Tales of the Celestial Kingdom is the perfect addition to one of my all time favorite Duologies. Taking place during Daughter of the Moon Goddess and Heart of the Sun Warrior, Tales sometimes feels like extra chapters of these books rather than a novella in its own right, but this is definitely not a bad thing. Giving glimpses into moments throughout the series that were not given full scenes in the duology, this novella makes it easy to fall in love with my favorite characters all over again. The collection of short stories was a perfect way to give closure to each character that was not afforded in the novels and adds depth in all the right ways.

Not only were the stories themselves great additions, but the order in which they were told brought back all my great memories from the original books. It was nice to be able to remember the little details while reading, making the reading experience more complete. I really haven’t experienced such collections as this in the past, and I can definitely say I wish more authors would attempt a short story collection such as this!

This series is one of my favorite of all time and I will always love the world within the pages.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

“Immortal hearts must bleed as mortal ones do.”

“Tales of the Celestial Kingdom,” by Sue Lynn Tan

This was a fun book of Chinese lore novella. The lore and stories were interesting. I do wish they were a little longer so I could get more immersed. The cover is one of the best books covers I’ve seen in a long while. 3 out of 5 stars.

Thank you for the ARC.

It’s always special to revisit a world that you love. These snippets of stories brought me right back to the feelings I had while reading the Celestial Kingdom duology. This made me want to reread the duology and add these stories in where they belong.

For me, the last two stories were absolutely the high point of the entire book. They were the closure that I wanted. They had me sighing with delight from their sheer perfection.

What makes this book incredibly special is the drawings that are included.
They are exquisite and detailed. I wish that they were in color because they are masterpieces.

This book contains no profanity and kissing.

In Tales of the Celestial Kingdom by Sue Lynn Tan, we revisit the enchanting world and characters of The Celestial Kingdom duology through a new collection of short stories. As a nice thematic touch, the book is divided into three parts: Dusk, Twilight, Dawn.

The Dusk section serves as a prequel to the series and follows the legend of the sunbird from both Change'e and Houyi's perspectives.

The Twilight section takes place during the events of Daughter of the Moon Goddess and Heart of the Sun Warrior. Here we get a story about Wenzhi and Xingyin fighting a bone devil together, which I was happy to see since my one complaint about the first novel is that their relationship didn’t get enough screen time or development.

Then Dawn serves almost as an extra epilogue to the series—allowing readers to further glimpse into the characters’ lives following the events of the sequel.

Lastly, I want to mention that the book gorgeous illustrations on the inside, which I really appreciate and honestly wish more adult fantasy novels included.

Overall, these stories are told through Lynn Tan's signature lush prose and I'm sure this collection will delight fans of the series (and especially fans of Wenzhi).

Absolutely loved getting more content in this universe. The short stories were so good - if you loved the celestial kingdom duology, you will love this as well.

I enjoyed revisiting the world and the characters. As much as I love Xingyin and Wenzhi and I’m happy we got their epilogue from Heart of the Sun Warrior, Chang’e and Houyi’s story really had me in my feelings. Their backstory had the most effect on me. Overall, I enjoyed all the stories, this novella was beautiful written and had gorgeous illustrations!

Highly recommend and I’m excited to see what else the author writes.

Tales of the Celestial Kingdom is a collection of short stories that serve as both a prequel and an epilogue to Sue Lynn Tan's exquisite Celestial Kingdom Duology, and oh what a fitting final volume it is! I enjoyed reading these a few at a time and getting to see events play out that were only referred to in Daughter of the Moon Goddess, namely Xingyin's father's problematic victory over the sunbirds and her mother's desperate choice to save her child and herself by taking the elixir of life. But the real satisfaction comes in the final few stories were Xingyin's storyline can finally come to a satisfying end, one that Tan was not able to tie up as nicely in Heart of the Sun Warrior. I cried all over again and was so thrilled to see her finally reap some real happiness after doing what is best for everyone else for so long. Even a Goddess needs rest. If you enjoyed the Duology, this companion volume is a must read!

Tales of the Celestial Kingdom by Sue Lynn Tan
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Length: 176 pages (ebook)

Thank you to Netgalley, Sue Lynn Tan, and Harper Voyager for my copy. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own!

I fell in love with Sue Lynn Tan last year with the Daughter of the Moon Goddess duology. I remember when I finished Heart of the Sun Warrior and I told everyone that I was not ready to say goodbye to this world. Thankfully these short stories allowed me to revisit these characters that I love so much.

AND CAN WE HAVE A MOMENT FOR THIS COVER PLEASE?!! 😍😍

I can’t recommend these books enough! They’re fun, emotional and action packed. Sue Lynn Tan writes magical and captivating stories that are sure to stay with you. I cannot wait to see what she writes next.

I loved reading the beginning of the story with how it all came to be.

This prequel/ added perspectives and epilogue are beautiful. It takes us into the mine of each of our beloved supporting characters. We get to read a bot more about the story and get insight into the others head.

It is beautifully done like first two book. This is an Author to wacht out for she is an incredibly writer!!!

Sue Lyn Tan's "Tales of the Celestial Kingdom" is a captivating collection of stories that delve into the rich tapestry of Chinese mythology and folklore. Through a series of interconnected narratives, Tan transports readers to a realm where gods, demons, and mortals coexist in a delicate balance, weaving together themes of love, betrayal, and redemption against the backdrop of ancient China.

One of the most striking aspects of Tan's storytelling is her ability to breathe life into the characters that populate her tales. From the wise and enigmatic celestial beings to the humble peasants grappling with the whims of fate, each character is imbued with depth and complexity, making them feel both familiar and otherworldly at the same time. Through their trials and triumphs, readers are offered a glimpse into the human condition, transcending cultural boundaries to explore universal truths about love, sacrifice, and the pursuit of meaning.

Furthermore, Tan demonstrates a keen understanding of Chinese mythology, seamlessly blending elements of legend and folklore into her narrative fabric. Whether it's the epic battles between gods and demons or the poignant love stories that unfold amidst the chaos, each tale is steeped in symbolism and allegory, inviting readers to ponder the deeper meanings hidden beneath the surface.

Tan's writing is elegant and evocative, transporting readers to a world of ancient palaces, mist-shrouded mountains, and bustling marketplaces with vivid and immersive detail. Her descriptive powers are extraordinary, painting scenes that linger in the mind long after turning the final page.

As with Tales of the Celestial Kingdom's predecessors, I found the pacing uneven, with specific stories feeling rushed or underdeveloped compared to others. Additionally, those unfamiliar with Chinese mythology may struggle to fully grasp the nuances of the narrative, as Tan assumes a certain level of prior knowledge on the part of her audience.

Overall, "Tales of the Celestial Kingdom" is a captivating and thought-provoking read that offers a fresh perspective on the timeless themes of love, duty, and destiny. Sue Lyn Tan's mastery of storytelling and her deep reverence for Chinese mythology shines through on every page, making this collection a must-read for fantasy, folklore, and literary fiction fans.

This book is such a lovely companion to the Celestial Kingdom duology. In it, we get to see glimpses of Chang'e and Houyi's life before Xingyin is born as well as some side stories that take place during the events of Daughter of the Moon Goddess and Heart of the Sun Warrior. The collection concludes with short stories that serve as a sort of epilogue to the events of the duology, which were swoon-worthy and an absolute balm to my romantic heart.

Chang'e and Houyi's stories are more directly interpretations of Chinese mythology, which Tan crafts here into a fitting prologue to the events of her books.

I should note that if you have not read the Celestial Kingdom duology, the stories told from the perspectives of Liwei, Wenzhi, Shuxiao, and Xingyin won't make a ton of sense. If you HAVE read the duology, though, these stories add some depth to familiar characters, and it was a delight to revisit them.

I am not a short story girly. Anthologies, essays, short stories are not for me. I had to try because I loved the books. But even though I loved the duology, I was much less invested in this. It wasn’t enough to be re-immersed in the story.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for the eARC! All opinions are my own!

4.5, rounded up!

Sue Lynn Tran has done it again! Coming back to the Celestial Kingdom was enchanting, to say the least. I loved the short stories with the different characters that we had seen in the previous two books.

Each story had heart and I was invested in most of them, but I struggled with Shuxiao's story. I think maybe it was a fault on my part because I couldn't remember who she was until the very end (lol). You don't need to read the other books to read this one, but I think it's a definite plus to know who these people are going in.

I enjoyed reading about the past and the side events that we previously didn't see in the main story. Sue Lynn has a way to make her characters all sound distinctive from each other, which is hard to do.

I also enjoyed seeing all the pictures illustrated by Kelly Chong! I feel like they added that extra touch that usually isn't seen in short stories and it was nice that every story had a picture or two. I think they bring the characters more to life because you can put a name to the face and also see what's going on.

I can't wait to see what Sue Lynn Tran has next in store!

A wonderful treat after the first two books. It was a delight to return back into the world and the characters that are beloved. The illustrations were beautiful and this was an absolute delight to read.

The book was a great collection of stories from the Daughter of The Moon Goddess universe! I enjoyed the first two books and was excited when she came out with a novella. My favorites were the stories about Chang’e and Houyi. I loved returning and reading more stories from these characters! If you enjoyed the Daughter of The Moon Goddess duology, I would highly recommend picking up this novella! I hope Sue Lynn Tan decides to write more stories in this universe in the future!

I will never get over how beautiful this series is. The author has such a lyrical writing style and it truly creates such an immersive world that leaves readers wanting more. Tales of the Celestial Kingdom consists of nine short stories that take place before, during, and after the events of Daughter of the Moon Goddess and Heart of the Sun Warrior. I love that we get further insight on how everything started in the first place, with what happened between Chang'e and Houyi. There was definitely a greater emotional impact after having read the other two books in this series.

Liwei and Wenzhi are two characters that will always have a place in my heart. It was almost bittersweet reading Liwei's chapter but the author does such a great job showing how Liwei still genuinely loves and cares for Xingyin despite everything. I would love to see Liwei get his own happy ending but even in such a short book, we can see how much his character has grown and how he has grown into his new role as the Celestial Emperor. I'm very happy that we get an epilogue that highlights Wenzhi and Xingyin's happy ending. Between Liwei and Wenzhi, I'm still not confident I would be able to choose between them but both of them are such well-developed characters and I'm just relieved they both have their happy ending. Also, the illustrations are absolutely stunning and they add to how sweet each chapter is. This book is truly a great gift from the author!

I really enjoyed this short story collection. This is definitely a book that you have to read AFTER you have read the duology though because it contains major spoilers for the other two books.

There are 8 short stories, broken up into sections. The first three stories are essentially prequels to book one (so that would be the only exception to not reading this before finishing the duology). They center around the main characters' (Xingyin) parents and some of the history.

Story 4 & 5 are set during book 1 and are sidestories.

Story 6 & 7 is set during book 2, one gives background to a quest and the other you hear about what's happening with another POV character.

Story 8 is an epilogue for book 2 with a new story telling you what's happening 20 years in the future and gives some closure to the previous ending.

A lovely addition to the original duology, beautiful drawings throughout the book and the author states she is giving her proceeds to charity (not named).

I'm so happy I read this prequel to DOTMG! The pictures inside are amazing. Sue Lynn Tan did a great job developing Changé and Houyi's story. I learned so much and felt so much love.

A lovely little collection of stories set around The Celestial Kingdom duology. There's insights to stories and characters we already know and love. It's a nice dip back into this world. Sue Lynn Tan has such a way of writing, especially romance, I can't wait to see what she releases next!

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon/Harper Voyager for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

*Thank you so much to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the chance to review an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*