Book 007 of 350 ~ 2025

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

I was so lucky to score not just the ebook but the audiobook as well.

For those who have followed me long enough, you will know I tend to do either one, then when it gets even more intense, I love listening and reading together.

@suelynntan - firstly, congratulations on your pub day. Second, this book is an absolute masterpiece.

I was so sucked in this entire mythical world and I just couldn't find enough pockets of time to either read it or listen to it.

Admittedly, I love reading the ebook. But the audiobook was so brilliantly narrated I couldn't stop myself from listening to it either. Kudos to the brilliant @natalienaudus - you brought these words to life.

I spent the last 10 chapters reading and listening. Absolutely glorious read and definitely one of my faves not just for the year but in my list officially.

Bravo!!

I received a complimentary copy of this book and audiobook. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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as the heir to tianxia, liyen has been raised knowing it is her duty to one day ascend to the throne and continue serving the immortals who once protected tianxia from an enemy. however, when she’s poisoned, her grandfather angers the immortals by stealing a lotus to save her life. now, when liyen ascends to the throne, it’s not with the pledge to serve the immortals, but to end this obligation. she’s invited to the immortal realm, where she takes the opportunity to learn their secrets. she even makes an alliance with the god of war, though he has been commanded to attack tianxia. liyen will do whatever it takes to save her people, though, even as doing so gets harder by the minute.

i loved sue lynn tan’s celestial kingdom duology, so i was very excited to read more from her! this had the same beautiful writing as those books, which really swept me away. i loved the fantasy aspect, which involved the aforementioned immortals and all the fantasy politics that brought. even more than that, i loved the romance aspect between liyen and zhangwei (the god of war)! they really took me on an emotional roller coaster.

narration: natalie naudus did a wonderful job narrating this audiobook! she’s one of my favorite narrators, so i was excited when i realized she narrated this. i highly recommend this audiobook!

Sue Lynn Tan weaves an exciting and winding tale through fantastical worlds sprinkling in a little romance along the way. Characters were well thought out and the plot keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole way.

Natalie Naudus' narration is dynamic and captivating as usual.

Immortal was such a wonderful audiobook to listen to, filled with themes of love, self-discovery, family, and friendship.

Liyen is the mortal heir to the throne of Tianxia. She was unfortunately ill and weak throughout her life. When someone poisons Liyen, her grandfather takes the drastic step of defying the immortal Queen by stealing the Divine Pearl Lotus to heal her. His death leads to Liyen's immediate ascension to the throne. She goes to the immortal realm to pledge her loyalty to the immortal Queen; however, Liyen desires change for her people, and if the Queen disagrees, Liyen will be unable to pledge her loyalty.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I loved this book. The entire story progressed into so much more than I anticipated. The story takes place in three separate realms: Tianxia, the immortals' realm, and another. The imagery and world-building were beautiful. I truly felt immersed in each of these worlds alongside Liyen and the God of War. The romance between Liyen and the God of War was well-written. There was so much in this book that was unexpected, from the betrayals to Liyen's self-discovery. There wasn't a single moment I didn't enjoy.

Natalie Naudus fit Liyen's character well. She was the perfect narrator.

I highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy romantasy and magical Asian literature.

romantasy • chinese mythology • asian literature • star-crossed lovers • magic • self-discovery

overall this is more of a 2.5 than a 3.

I found this book to be really hard to get through at the begining. I was not a huge fan of MCs character and her whims just seemed baseless. She is irrationally angered at the immortals because her grandfather had a heartattack. I get it, like in a way its tragic but it wasn't murder and they tried to help him. This anger stays with her a long time and while i understand the irrational feelings of a grieving individual this just felt like she was a hater only to make this more 'enemies' to lovers style. The god of war is nice to her most of the time and she is just mad at him to a point.

When he actually gave her a reason so hate him i could get behind it but she folded so quickly. Ultimately i felt like this book was too long and could have had improved pacing. I.e. if they wanted her to fall in love with GoW than he shouldhave trained her before the incident to strengthen their bond instead of after i think it would have done better to building up her affections instead of having 2 falling in love arcs.

the villians also could have had more depth and been involved way sooner allowing more breathing room and interest in their world in the finale.

I just wasn't a fan of the execution and struggled to finish and write this review. Book is not for me i guess.

This book was recieved for free via netgalley - i appreciate the patronage

"We each shone brightest in our own lives, unless we allowed out light to be dimmed. Our differences did not make us weaker; we were strong in our own ways."

Liyen is weak and has been poisoned by those that do not want her to ascend to her grandfather's throne. When they are attacked by the immortals, her grandfather gives her a cure, the very cure that the Immortal queen is attacking them for. Liyen vows vengance, hoping to free her mortal land from the isolation that keeps them from the rest of the mortals. However, as she travels to the immortal realm to try and plead her case, she finds herself drawn to the handsome God of War. There is more to the situation than she understands.

This book felt like it was several books in one, making for one long book with several related plot points throughout. It was long but well written. The scenery felt lush and realistic.

The narration was excellent, immersing the reader right into the story.

The romance was well done and added to the story. There was a lot of slow burn to it.

Thank you to Net Galley and Harper Audio Adult for the DLC. All opinions are my own

2.5 stars. I loved Daughter of the Moon Goddess and was extremely meh about Heart of the Sun Warrior and Tales of the Celestial Kingdom, so I wasn't sure what to expect from this. I think in the future I will be waiting to hear reviews before diving into more of Tan's work.

A lot of the lower-rated reviews seem to have an issue with the 'insta-love' of this. I will admit I was frustrated by this, but it was explained later, so I give that a pass. However, the main character's internal dialogue is extremely annoying and not helpful to the reader. She had the typical "I hate him but I need to be near him" vibes during the enemies part of the enemies to lovers, but we didn't have any real understanding of why she would feel that way to him. And his behavior was weird, even though it was later explained, during that portion.

This book has a LOT of 'telling' of the plot, and not in the most interesting of ways, so the plot felt convoluted and random. We start with the main character being poisoned and it's something that is very important to the plot... so I didn't understand why we weren't given the poisoning more explicitly? I initially thought the main character had a chronic illness because it was unclear. I was unsure what the different types of creatures (?) were, and the explanation was never really given. There was a back history/politics between these creatures (mortals, immortals, and wuxin... creatures feels like the wrong word but I don't knwo what the proper one would be) that was very much told in a non-interesting way. The plot could have been handled much better than it was.

Finally, the pacing was off. Part one and two were significantly slower paced than part three. Some have argued that the first half drags on and the second half races through - my issue is more that the pacing just doesn't match up. Nothing happens and then EVERYTHING HAPPENS. Let's just make it more evenly paced throughout?

Natalie Naudus can do no wrong, and she does this book as good as it can be done.

Thank you to HarperAudio Adult and Netgalley for an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Picture this: you’re poisoned, your kingdom’s in trouble, and the literal God of War is on your doorstep—both a threat and, annoyingly, an extremely attractive one. Welcome to Liyen’s life. I, for one, would have curled up in a ball at "poisoned," but Liyen? Oh no, she’s out here plotting alliances, resisting forbidden romance, and taking on immortals like it’s just another Tuesday.

Sue Lynn Tan has crafted a world so lush and immersive. The stakes are sky-high: betrayals, secrets, ancient grudges, and the looming threat of everything collapsing if Liyen doesn’t keep her wits about her. Which she does—mostly. There’s a slow-burn romance with a certain God of War that had me yelling, “Don’t trust him!” one moment and “Okay, but maybe just a little kiss?” the next.

The pacing felt like a dance: sometimes an elegant waltz, other times a chaotic conga line. The first half builds like a storm, with Liyen’s world expanding beautifully (and ominously). By the second half, it’s all high-stakes action and emotionally charged confrontations that had me gripping my book as if my Kindle would betray me.

Liyen is a delight—brave, flawed, and so relatable in her stubborn refusal to catch a break. And the God of War? Let’s just say he’s an infuriating mix of “dangerous enemy” and “ugh, why are you hot?” Their dynamic is tension-filled and swoon city, though I did roll my eyes at how often they avoided saying what they actually felt (classic).

If I had one quibble, it’s that the ending wrapped up a little too quickly. I wanted a touch more resolution, especially after everything Liyen went through. Like, she deserves a long vacation or at least a very fancy tea party.

Overall, Immortal is a romantic fantasy with everything: forbidden magic, political intrigue, broody gods, and a heroine you can’t help but root for.

An absolutely lovely new romantasy “enemies to lovers” standalone by Sue Lynn Tann! It is set in the same world as the Daughter of the Moon Goddess duology, so if you are a fan of that series you will definitely enjoy this too!

To start, I received the audiobook ARC and it was absolutely well done! The narrator did a good job and it was easy to listen to and follow along. It was easy to discern which characters were speaking and follow the thoughts and mindsets of the MCs. I also like listening to audiobooks at 2x speed but it is sometimes hard with fantasy series but I am glad to report that I didn’t have any issues. If the plot gets a bit complicated or it is hard to follow the dialogue I usually lower my speed to 1.5x but I didn’t have to do that with this book.

As for the book itself, Sue Lynn Tan is a master of crafting the most beautiful settings and scenes. Immortal is everything I was expecting as a fan of the DOTMG series. This spin-off is executed well and you can absolutely also enjoy this book without having read Daughter of the Moon Goddess and Heart of the Sun Warrior. You are immersed in the story from the start and the plot moves along pretty fast. Following along the story of Liyen and the God of War was a journey! Lots of ups and downs, and some big surprises!

I love standalone books to get a break from the often long fantasy series (that are often unfinished 😥) and I am so glad this one didn’t disappoint! I will definitely be recommending this to all my romantasy fans!

Thank you to HarperAudio for an ARC of the audiobook via Netgalley!

This book (and anything Sue Lynn Tan writes) is practically perfect. It’s magical and engaging, and the writing is gorgeous. I can’t recommend it enough.

sue lynn tan knocked it out of the park with this. it was incredible! I love the world that she created. my only complaint is that it was a touch to slow paced in beginning.

*Thank you to NetGalley for an Audio ARC*

This was a beautiful story truly! I feel that I didn't connect to the characters the way one would if they were all consumed. I enjoyed this story following along learning about the world, Gods and the wars that were being fought.

The downfall was that I couldn't connect to the FMC and felt this was too juvenile for what I enjoy reading and I also felt like the characters were a little too insta-lovey

This book would be excellent for someone who loves YA Fantasy Romance that has a lot of Asian Mythology woven in. It was a beautiful world!

Such a good book! I think I enjoyed this one even more than the Daughter of the Moon Goddess. It did get a little confusing towards the end with the similar names, especially on the audio, and new characters being added, but overall, great book!

I unfortunately didn't like Immortal as much as I wanted to.

I appreciated a lot of aspects about this world, but I think I'd have enjoyed it more had I read Daughter of the Moon Goddess first. I enjoyed the magic system and parts of Zhangwei and the God of War's relationship, but parts felt too easy or rushed. Knowing the twist, it makes more sense but without knowing that it makes the story a bit less believable.

I definitely enjoyed the writing style and will be picking up from Sue Lynn Tan in the future.

Story: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5
Narrator: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5 (Natalie Naudus)
Length: 14h26mins

Sue Lynn Tan’s Immortal takes place in the same world as Daughter of the Moon Goddess, it has completely new characters and can be read first. It is a standalone romantasy following Liyen, heir to Tianxia and Zhangwei, God of War. It is inspired by some of the elements found in Chinese mythology. As per all her book, love is the main theme.

* Self Discovery
* Family & Friend Bonds
* Vengeance
* Enemies To Lovers
* Touch Her & Die
* Slow Burn
* Forced Proximity

This was another beautifully written book. With strong plot that is completely immersive. Plot twists and not knowing how the ending will go. Amazing world and character building. I throughly enjoyed the pacing of the book. Just the right amount of tension and banter.

Zhangwei's character and Liyen's characters are strong and determined. Both have many layers to them. Watching the slow burn, enemies to lovers romance enfold, was perfect. I don’t want to give anything away but it was perfectly executed.

I highly recommend this book if you’re a fan of all her other books. She did another incredible job. This is a perfect standalone if you love adventure, swoon worthy character love story, thoughtfully written story, and just the right of emotional depth.

I was given an ALC and the audiobook was great. The narrator, Natalie Naudus, did another incredible job excellent job. Her tone and pacing was on point and helped to bring the story alive.

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Audio for the chance to experience this beautiful novel.

Big thanks to @harperaudio and @netgalley for the arc copy

Immortal
By Sue Lynn Tan (@suelynntan)
Release Date: January 7, 2025
Narrator: Natalie Naudus

The world-building was somewhat hard to grasp as it was slow and felt info-dumping, and the romance had that instant-love feel. But as I loved Sue Lynn Tan's other books I kept listening

The political intrigue was engaging, and the twists truly took me by surprise! Which was pleasant because I can usually predict twists. Liyen was a strong protagonist, and I loved watching her rise to the challenges and the power that was unexpectedly placed on her shoulders.

I also appreciated how accessible the story was, especially for a fantasy, which can sometimes feel dense or difficult to follow, especially on audio. The author wrapped everything up in a way that left me satisfied but also gave me the freedom to imagine what comes next.

So I gave this read a 3.5

Thank you @harperaudio and @netgalley for the gifted copy!

Immortal
Sue Lynn Tan @suelynntan
Publishing Date: January 7, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25

🎧 Narrator: Natalie Naudus 🎧

What a great standalone fantasy novel this was! Thank you to my friend and buddy reader @katycherry.reads for putting this one on my radar!

I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about this one for the first third of the book, as the world building was put in place somewhat slowly, and the romance started to feel a bit insta-love. However, the author quickly put me in my place as things all started coming together in the most perfect of ways.

The writing was beautiful, the banter (in not only the romantic relationship, but all of them) was so good, the world building was vivid and well developed, the politics were intriguing, and the twists definitely caught me by surprise! Liyen was a great FMC and I loved watching her quickly rise to the occasion and situation of power that was thrust on her. Her and Zhangwei had such great chemistry and were a great couple to start 2025 with.

I loved how easy to follow this was, as fantasy can at times be dense and confusing for me, especially on audio alone. The author did a great job of wrapping things up in such a way that leaves you feeling fulfilled but also leaves room for your imagination to continue the story for yourself.

“𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘸𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴. 𝘐𝘧 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘮𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘈 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥.”

🎧 Natalie Naudus was fantastic in her narration for this one! I had this one exclusively on audio and have no regrets!

As a big fan of Daughter of the Moon Goddess, I was excited to dive into another beautiful work by Sue Lynn Tan and this did not disappoint! Tan always writes with such lush and vivid clarity, creating a beautiful and captivating world. I loved how solid and real this book felt, everything read as so well thought out that I could picture myself in the world right next to the characters.

The character relationships really had my heart, and Liyen was an amazing woman to follow on her journey to self assuredness and strength. As with Daughter of the Moon Goddess I found the pacing a bit quick, but I don't think it ever detracted from the story and still allowed natural progression of the romance.

Beautiful and breathtaking writing as always, Tan has a life long fan in me!

Natalie Naudus also shines in her narration, her voice was perfect in bringing this story to life and I truly felt that she breathed life into Liyen. She never misses, I always look forward to seeing her named as narrator!

Not for me personally but I can see this being a favorite for many fans of Sue Lynn Tan. I enjoyed the plot but felt there were a few big holes that needed more

I read a lot of fantasy and can often predict plot twists from a mile away, but Sue Lynn Tan managed to surprise me with Immortal. Some key moments caught me completely off guard, which is a rare and delightful experience for me. The rich world-building that I loved in Daughter of the Moon Goddess is also beautifully present here. While Immortal is a standalone story, it feels like a seamless extension of the world introduced in the Celestial Kingdom duology.
Sue Lynn Tan’s writing is simply exquisite. Her whimsical prose is what draws me in most, and the complexity of her characters adds so much depth. No one feels one-dimensional. Zhangwei and Liyen’s romance is truly swoon-worthy, delivering classic enemies-to-lovers vibes that feels genuine. While the romance is central to the story, what stood out to me most was Liyen’s love and unwavering dedication to her people—even when her court didn’t grant her the respect she deserved.
Just like Daughter of the Moon Goddess, this book hooks you from the very first page with action-packed scenes and keeps you engaged through a fast-paced, page-turning journey. I received my advanced copy on Friday and finished it by Sunday,I simply couldn’t put it down! Sue Lynn Tan has officially become an auto-buy author for me. And can we talk about that stunning cover? I’m hoping to add a signed copy to my bookshelf.
I was fortunate to receive both an ARC and an ALC, which allowed me to alternate between reading and listening. Natalie Naudus returned as the narrator for this book, and her tone and inflection for both Liyen and Zhangwei were absolutely perfect. Having the audiobook alongside the eBook was especially helpful for learning the correct pronunciation of the characters' names. I highly recommend the audio format, even if you typically prefer other mediums.
My sincerest thanks to NetGalley, Harper Voyager, and HarperAudio for the ACR and ACL for this masterpiece in exchange for my honest review.
#Immortal #NetGalley
@HarperVoyagerUS and @SueLynnTan