I will preface my review with saying I didn't know this author beforehand, but the book sounded interesting. What I ended up reading was a cookiecutter fantasy with some mythology sprinkled in but not in any really meaningful way. Why this book got one star from me is not just that it was formulaic but also problematic. It was giving off very STRONG bigotry vibes and not in the way that makes you think and examines real-world issues- in a way that was fully supportive of the extinction of a whole species...Big yikes from me.

I picked this up at the same time I started getting into c-dramas, and it couldn't have been more perfect! This is a stunning addition to the romantasy genre and THAT ENDING??? I need book 2 ASAP!!!

I can still enjoy a book with a weak plot, but poor character development really bothers me. Àn’yīng is the most unlikable female character I have ever read. Actually, she was portrayed good at first. One tragic night, at just 10 years old, she witnessed her father's death and found her mother barely alive.

After 9 years of taking care of her bedridden mother and her little sister, she was set on a mission to acquire an immortality pill to save her dying mother. To get that immortality pill, she has to survive a few “trials” and make it through a deadly forest packed with hellbeasts and whatnot. Now, this seems like a very promising plot, and it actually is, if the character were portrayed well enough. I understand Àn’yīng was traumatized and self-taught to fight. I get it; one cannot just go and kill beasts without actual practice.

But at least at some point she has to fight, right? That's the whole point of the plot, to fight for her dying mother and her little sister. Armed with six blades, all she did was tease the male protagonist, Yù’chén. Seriously, for the first half of the book, every time she was in danger, Yù’chén saved her and she wasn’t even grateful. Instead, she insulted him every single time. Later in the book, Hào’yáng (another love interest) ended up saving her. And the other character keeps saying that she is strong, like how? She was like, "I will fight with you, Hào’yáng," while she can't even save herself.

While the plot focuses on completing the Immortal trials and learning to fight, most of the story revolves around the tragic love story and the tension between Àn’yīng and Yù’chén. That frustrated me even more than Àn’yīng herself. Even in her training sessions, there was more talking than actual training. The trials were portrayed as insignificant. She did practically nothing and winning them all with the help of others.

If there was no trial and no one was on the edge of dying to be saved by Àn’yīng, I would have loved the book, imagining her to be more grateful and less awful to others. I did love the twists nearing the climax. There were so many unexpected twists; even though they had nothing to do with the plot, they were all great. Considering the twists, the writing style, and the tragic love story, I’m giving this book 3 stars—because, for me, 2 stars means a bad read, and this one doesn’t fall into that category.

First of all, you had me at Amelie Wen Zhao!! Her duology still ranks in my top ten for a wholesome ending instead of a HEA!! I mean fantasy with a healthy dose of real life, what more could a reader ask for...

An'ying is my kindle of heroine, smart, sassy and entrusting, but with a beautifully stubborn streak and a slew of blades. Trying to save her mother after the loss of father to a Mo or demon, she is fighting to save her mother by winning the pill of immortality in the Kingdom of the Sky while secretly searching for her guardian of the jade.

This tale weaves hunger games, with Asian myths and demons, the end of the world, a dark hero and white knight dueling for affection in slow burn romance... A mortal competing against magical competitors in an immortal regime whist searching for her savior.. it had all the feels, all the twists and more!! I didn't want to finish it, and lo when I thought I reached the cliffhanger, there was more... and then more and then MoRE!!

Loved it to bits and eagerly awaiting the sequel(s)!! Write faster Amelie!!! Many thank yous to Netgalley and Delacorte Press for the arc!!

THE SCORPION AND THE NIGHT BLOSSOM is my first 5 star read of March and one of my favorites for the year so far. I’m a huge fan of Amélie Wen Zhao’s books, so it’s not surprising that I’d love this one.

The world-building is my favorite element of the whole book. It’s beautiful, it’s glittering and opulent, but it’s also harsh and dark depending on which way you look. There are demons in this world that are a perfect mirror to the world — beautiful on the outside, but sinister the more you look at them. There’s also a magical school, which is the backdrop for the dangerous trials that the characters enter in order to gain immortality.

Never a dull moment, there’s excitement, danger, and action on seemingly every page, and there’s also a bit of a romance blossoming between MC Àn’yīng and not one, but two boys. I love a good love triangle, so I’m definitely not upset at that turn of events. The ending alludes to much more to come in this world, and I’m excited to for the second book in duology to see how things end. Pick this up if you enjoy:

➼ Star-crossed lovers
➼ Deadly competitions
➼ Chinese mythology
➼ Apocalypse/threat of the end of the world
➼ Demons
➼ Beautiful world-building
➼ Twists and turns


*Thanks to TBR and Beyond Tours, the publisher, and NetGalley for the gifted copy.

This was my first book by this author and I liked it well enough! THE SCORPION AND THE NIGHT BLOSSOM (such a great title!) kept my throughly enthralled.

The Scorpion and the Night Bloom is an exciting young adult fantasy steeped in Chinese folklore and mythology. Yes, there is romance, but the love for one’s family is what really shines.

I love reading for escapism, especially when it keeps to fantasy, but I also love it for exposing me to new cultures and points of view. This book did that for me. It took me a little bit to get into this story, I wasn't so sure if I would like it initially. That definitely changed by the time I finished and I will absolutely be reading the next book.

Àn’yīng leaves her mortal home in the Kingdom of Rivers to face the Trials in the Kingdom of Sky where a handful of winners will receive a pill of immortality. Most people choose to take the pill for themselves, but Àn’yīng is determined to win it for her mother.

Nine years earlier, Àn’yīng watched a mó (demon) kill her father and drain half of her mother’s life force, leaving her on the verge of death. Since then Àn’yīng has been training herself to fight these demons to keep her remaining family safe.

Stars 4.5

Third time's the charm?

Nope.

It took me three novels to learn that Amélie Wen Zhao's writing is definitely not for me. I thought Blood Heir was very formulaic and written to market. Nothing original. Passable for a YA fantasy if you're not well-versed in YA fantasies. I DNF Silver Flame something or other.

The Scorpion and the Night Blossom is more of the same. The characters are built with popular tropes and current romantasy trends, so they end up being very dull. The worldbuilding... exists. Other than the Chinese influences, it's your typical YA fantasy with trials and tribulations, interchangeable side characters, falling in love with the enemy (ish), corny flirting and even cornier declarations of love, and third act reveals that aren't really all that interesting or shocking.

This is style over substance, and the style isn't even as pretty as Sue Lynn Tan's Immortal. At least with Immortal, the worldbuilding is gorgeous. This one feels like it depended on the reader's knowledge of East Asian fantasy novels/movies/TV shows.

And every time I picked up this arc, it was guaranteed to put me to sleep. I only struggled through it because my buddy reader, Mai, felt similarly about this book.

Oh, well. On to the next one.

Thank you to Delacorte Press and NetGalley for this arc.

4.25/5
Great Chinese mythology based fantasy. I enjoyed the world and the different kingdoms with different species. The main character comes off a little annoying but I love her drive and the compassion she has throughout the story. The side characters with their brief interactions help round out the story. Now for the love interest he's the stereotypical morally gray and I love it. I found the story at times pretty slow but once she gets to the immortal kingdom it starts to pick up a bit. Overall can't wait for book 2!
Thank you NetGalley and Delacorte Press for the opportunity to read this book!

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for providing me with this review copy. All opinions are honest and my own.

4/5

We know I can't resist an east asian inspired fantasy, and it doesn't hurt that I already adore this author's writing. Similar to her previous book, <Song of Silver Flame Like Night>, this one also explores (heavy-handedly) themes of racism, family, and duty in an imagined world of high stakes. I don't care for the way these themes were presented, but it's fine. The plot isn't completely innovative - a girl participates in magical trials to gain a prize, and there's an "enemy" love interest, and everyone has secrets. Sound familiar? But MAN was this fun. It's fast paced, punchy, and three dimensional. The story flowed well with a good sized cast of characters to create a believable world but not get lost in it; the romance felt natural and sparkled with tension. And above all, this was profoundly bingeable, which is my preferred way of consuming fantasy novels. Major eye roll at the love triangle, but I'm in a forgiving mood. Can't wait for the second book.

The start of a new trilogy, the Scorpion and the Night Blossom introduces us to a world rife with conflict. The immortal realm stands apart from the mortal realm, but both have a common enemy, the demonic mó who are determined to elevate the Kingdom of Night to rule over as much as they can.

In the mortal lands, Àn’yīng and her family live in the Kingdom of Rivers. 9 years ago their realm was devasted by the war between the Kingdom of Rivers and the Kingdom of Night. Determined to do whatever she can to help her family, Àn’yīng plans to face the immortality trials. Her aim is the prize of an immortal tear for her mother, but ultimately to gain more skills to help her family and follow in her father's footsteps.

I really enjoyed this one. There's fun dialogue and solid relationships as I've come to expect from this author. The romantic characters always have great banter and there are some lovely friendships in the story. I really enjoy that Àn’yīng is feisty and loves her crescent blades so much. The creatures, mythology, and general world building in this story is really intriguing and I look forward to seeing what comes next as we spend more time in this world. There was a little more focus on the romance that I was expecting, but it definitely fits with the story.

The Trials/competition aspect was well done and created some interesting conflicts. I enjoyed seeing the Immortal world and how the mortals and immortals treat each other. Some of the other things I really loved about this book I can't really mention without spoiling a lot of things, but let's just say I really enjoyed how things played out. I was able to guess at many truths along the way but I still enjoyed the reveals and am ready for whatever comes next.

This is the third series and 6th book I've read by this author. There's some similar vibes to her previous book weaving in her Chinese culture, stories and mythology, but definitely a darker tone to some of the things which I enjoyed.

Strongly recommend!

Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, and War
Minor: Sexual content

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Children’s for giving me early access to this book! All opinions are my own.

I really wanted to like this, but the writing style is too…I’m not sure how to describe it, but it’s not for me. It feels like how you would give directions, not necessarily how you tell a story.

Àn’yīng becomes the breadwinner of her family after her father was killed by a soul-sucking demon. With her mother bedridden after the incident and her younger sister taking care of the house, she looked after her mother’s ailments by harvesting light lotuses that are rich with life energy, but with demons roaming around in their village, it was an arduous task.
The lotus would only help for a certain period so she decided to take part in the immortality trials where one could get an immortality pill from the Eight Immortals if they passed the trial.

Àn’yīng and Yù’chén met right before the trials began. She was the damsel in distress with Yù’chén playing her white knight couple of times. They were allies before learning he was a demon halfling, who are forbidden to exist in the Kingdom of River. Although she keeps her distance from him, Yù’chén has her back throughout the trials.

Àn’yīng and Yù’chén’s relationship was very different from previous AWZ’s works, but I enjoyed reading the complexity of it. Àn’yīng was wary of Yù’chén after learning about his halfling status. He came from the line of demons that killed her father and made her mother sick. Although she had no problem being amicable towards other (non-demonic) halflings, she couldn’t overlook his DNA. Their dynamic was strained, yet they looked after each other. It was complicated but one that played out in an interesting way in the climax.

While the trials were the main reason for Àn’yīng to enter the Kingdom of Sky, she also had other motives. Her father had left a note, which she found right before the trials, asking her to seek someone in the Sky realm. Although she doesn’t have much clues to help her, this note propelled her to win the trials.

After having read the book, that secret mission had too many unpredictable turns waiting for Àn’yīng.

Although Àn’yīng was not prepared for the trials as her peers, she was trained from childhood by her father. He was once trained in the Kingdom of Sky and part of his skills were taught to Àn’yīng.

The Scorpion and the Night Blossom is out in stores now. If you are fan of the following tropes and enjoy Xianxia dramaesque novels, you should check out this book.

Thanks to Netgalley, TBR Beyond and Tours and the publisher for the DRC of the book!

I love a good fantasy novel and have read some excellent YAs. This, this just didn't quite do it for me.

What I liked:

The FMC.

What I didn't like:

The writing style. It was fast paced (which wasn't horrible), but the prose was, well, let's just say I wasn't a huge fan.

The fantasy elements were there, but it wasn't anything new or not done in other fantasy novels. And the romance- I'm not a fan of love triangles so I'm not sure how this is going to turn out going forward in the series.

All in all, it was okay.

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this story overall.

I loved the Chinese culture and mythology woven into the story as well as the names of the characters. The plot was dramatic in its flow. I struggled to stay attached to the story in sections, and other sections were so engaging that I struggled to put the book down to do adulty things like work and sleep.

I received this ARC thanks to the Publisher and NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 4.25 stars

A dark romantasy inspired by Chinese folklore and mythology. This story is devastatingly beautiful. I am slightly hesitant with continuing this series, because if it is anything like the “Song of the Last Kingdom” duology, I am just asking for a heartbreak. However, despite the foreboding feeling, the story is beautifully written. The worldbuilding is vivid and immerse. The plot is fast pace, riddled with secrets and high stakes. The trials are captivating, pushing the limits of a person’s physical and the mental state, and the main characters are incredibly layered. I love how the author explores the theme of humanity, prejudice, and acceptance through these characters. However, I did wish the side characters had just a little bit more depth, which I hope to see in the sequel. As for romance, it was filled with delicious tension, a good balance of tender and angsty moments, and tragic foreshadowing.

Overall, “The Scorpion and the Night Blossom” was an incredible start to a new series. I am curious to see where the story goes and the relationships between the characters.

Thank you Netgalley and Random House Children Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC. All opinions are my own.

★ ★ ★ ★
Length: 400p
Source: ARC - TBR & Beyond, Delecorte Press
Release Date: March 4, 2025

Can we first and foremost just GUSH over the cover?! I am LOVING these feminine, floral covers!

In a world where immortals fought demons and humanity was abandoned, a young girl enters the Immortality Trials to save her mother.

Àn-Yīng was a well flushed out character and I really loved her—spunk. She was such a fun character to read about! The romance was quick but I honestly REALLY enjoyed it.

What surprised me was I thought this would be more nail-biting and nerve-wracking but it felt almost—cozy? I definitely didn’t dislike it…it just wasn’t what I was expecting. It was also WAY more ya than I was anticipating in the romance.

I am, however, looking forward to listening to this one and I can’t wait for the second book, since this is a duology!!!

♡ ya fantasy
♥ immortals x demons x humans
♡ he falls first & harder
♥ forbidden love
♡ rivals to lovers
♥ Chinese mythology

{I was gifted a complimentary copy of this book. All reviews are my own.}

The Scorpion and the Night Blossom is the first novel in the Three Realms duology. The story follows Àn’yīng whose family suffered a lot nine years ago during the war between the Kingdom of Night and the Kingdom of the Rivers leaving her mother barely alive and a baby sister to care for. She decides to enter the Immortality Trials where the survivors can gain the pill of eternal life. There is a lot of world-building, and it was easy to become immersed in this universe. As a character, Àn’yīng, was interesting, but needed a little more depth, which could come together in the second novel. She was likeable towards the beginning of the novel, but slightly lost that trait the more the story moved forward.

Yù’chén is a rival contestant and a potential love interest. There is also the handsome Hào’yáng who helps Àn’yīng. Based on the first impressions of each love interest where one is pure human and the other is not, it did not come across the right way, for me, in some places. It could just be how I read it, but there were some moments where it came across with some racist tones. I think some reworking of how each of them was introduced to the reader could have softened this initial impression. The actual romance is pretty obvious about how it will move forward, so I did enjoy that it wasn’t a huge love triangle focus. The beginning of the story starts off very strong where it draws the reader in, however, it does slow down a lot in the middle before picking up towards the end. I prefer having a little more quicker pacing in the first novel in a duology, so I wish it picked up a little in the middle. Overall, this story has a lot of potential where I am not quite sure about it yet, but I am interested enough to read the final novel in the future.

**I give a special thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, Penguin Random House, for the opportunity to read this entertaining novel. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.**

This book is nuanced and just so well written - and I did not see any of the plot twist coming? I loved the Chinese folklore that comes through in this story as well as the idea of the three realms - demons, humans, and immortals. I adored this book and am so excited to get my beautiful Fairyloot edition!
I read some reviews that compare the book heavily to other deadly trials, but I think this book stands so well on its own. I’m so excited for the next book to close out this duology. Also I rank books based on how much I feel while reading and this was a good one!
Thank you NetGalley and Harper Voyage UK for an electronic copy of this book! All opinions are my own.

Valentine's Day 2025 #3

Hold me accountable. No more East Asian fantasies, no matter how good they look. I cannot be trusted. They cannot be trusted. No one can be trusted.

The nights have been longer and more beautiful since their world began to bleed into ours. -- This is just another mythology lite where the immortal world bleeds into the mortal. There's a bit of forbidden love. There's a tiny love triangle.

I swapped needles for knives -- We've got our wannabe assassin. So strong! A strong, female character! *rolls eyes*

black hair that falls like a living shadow down his back. Skin that looks sculpted -- We've got a baddie I'm ready to fall in love with. He's my type. He's your type. He's everyone's type. But don't worry. He's boring. She's boring. This whole book is boring.

My name, Àn'yīng, is an uncommon one, meaning "cherry blossom in the dark." -- That was so cliché, I just choked. Unfortunately, I didn't die. Please kill me?

skin pale as milk, hair the black of a raven's wing, lips red as blood -- Snow White called. Don't know what she wants. Don't care.

His hair, billowing like swirls of ink; his eyes, flashing golden like embers in the sun -- James Herondale called

sometimes the mind doesn't know what the heart wants -- While this is true, at this moment in time, I wanted the book to be over.

He is impossibly fast and steady. -- Twilight called

I am doing the exact opposite of what my parents and all mortal stories warned me of when I was a little girl: following a demon through the dark of the woods in the night. -- Do it. I'd do it. He's hot.

"You have poisoned me, little scorpion, and I would gladly let you do it over and over and over again." -- I just threw up a little

I know immortals cannot die -- No shit?

🥃 Take a shot every time green eyes are mentioned. I think it was only twice, but twice is too times too many. I will take more shots than this. I think I deserve them.

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Press