Really liked the book. Really enjoyed the chinese proverbs in the book. Did not enjoy the Mulan retelling as much as it is a common trope right now.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy

The Nightblood Prince by Molly X. Chang is a first person-POV YA fantasy inspired by Imperial China that reads like a C-drama. As a baby, Fei was predicted to become the empress of all empresses, which leads the emperor to engage her immediately to his son Siwang but there’s another prince who is competing for her hand, Yuxue.

I know the marketing for this is Romantasy, but I did not get Romantasy from this. Most of the development of feelings seems to happen either off-page or is already established and we go for very long stretches without seeing either of the love interests. I think this is more of a C-drama in book form that, yes, part of the plot is driven by romantic rivalry, but isn’t really seen on page in the way that I expect of a Romantasy. I find this to be similar to Molly X Chang’s previous book, To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods, where a romance does exist, but the actual story itself is more interested in being deeply introspective and exploring a specific character within a situation rather than the romance. In my book, that is not a Romantasy, it is a character-driven fantasy.

Also like To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods, this feels more like a prologue book with a lot of set-up. Because we don’t yet have the sequel to TGUWG, I’m not sure what the pay-off is going to be like in the second books, but I feel I have a strong idea of what first books in a series look like for Molly X Chang. I think if a reader really enjoys her writing style, The Nightblood Prince is going to satisfy them. If a reader didn’t enjoy her style in TGUWG or the prologue book feeling, I would give this a pass.

This moves at a fairly slow pace in terms of story but is a reasonably quick read. Multiple chapters are only a few paragraphs long and at 60 chapters long, it is pretty easy to get through in a couple hours. It’s a short read for readers who like a slower feeling to their books.

I would recommend this to fans of YA fantasy that has deep character introspection and fans of C-dramas looking for a YA fantasy that is also a character study

⚔️The Nightblood Prince⚔️

After really enjoying Molly X. Chang’s debut last year I was excited to get an opportunity to read an advanced copy of her upcoming book, The Nightblood Prince! This is the first book in what I’m assuming will either be a duology or a trilogy.

The Nightblood Prince was a book I was easily drawn into. Fei is a strong female lead who although she was raised to fulfill a prophecy, she decides to try to claim her freedom and forge her own path. She was a character I could easily find myself rooting for. There is a bit of a love triangle but it isn’t over the top and worked for the story. The romance aspect of the story was on the lighter end of the scale in my opinion. Both princes are quite morally grey and are villain’s in each other’s stories. I found Siwang to be kind of boring, and found Yuexe far more interesting.

I liked that I found the story fairly unpredictable and it broke away from the cookie cutter that I’ve found present in a lot of the “romantasy” I’ve read lately. I was quite pleased with how it ended and am curious to see where it will go next.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read and I look forward to what will come next!

Thank you to @penguinrandomhouse & @netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. The Nightblood Prince is out on July 1st!

⭐3.5/5 stars⭐

This book fully had me in a chokehold. It’s giving royal court drama, forbidden magic, war, monsters, and a prophecy that never lets anyone breathe. I’m usually not a love triangle girlie, but it actually worked here — probably because both love interests are villains in different fonts. One’s wounded ego personified, the other is morally grey with just enough mystery to make me feral (if you know, you know). Fei is such a powerful main character — constantly pushed around by the world but never backing down, not even from the gods. That said, this is very much a first book energy situation. It builds a lot, hints at a ton, but leaves you knowing there’s way more to come — especially with Yexue and the whole vampire situation. I’m stressed, intrigued, and absolutely coming back for more.

This book disappointed me.

Going in I was expecting a gripping fantasy with tension—because what’s a love triangle without tension? I usually eat up love triangles despite majority of the book community hating it, but a love triangle where both of the men are idiots, possessive, controlling, lack critical thinking skills aren’t my thing.

98% of this book is repeated conversations just in different places. All of part 1 was just Fei going on about how the men are so controlling and at first I was like “Okay, hope the men get what they deserve at the end!” Basically, thought the men would get justice for being sexist when instead we get Fei falling for a guy who also wanted multiple women and a man who literally controlled her feelings about him. Also, both claim they waged the war (because of courts they have to be enemies on opposite sides of a war) because of Fei when all she asked was for them to stop fighting. They’ve killed hundreds but when Fei asks for them to raise the white flag of surrender they say they’re fine with literally doing anything but what she wants? No.

No idea how these men survived the Earth so long but hope Fei doesn’t end up with either of them.

I wanted to like this book, but I couldn't. The beginning was really good. It flowed well and kept me intrigued. But before part 1 ended, the tone shifted, the pacing slowed, and the characters were just 1D. I wanted to like Fei for seeming so strong willed, but when it came to action there was none. She was detached even from her sister who she has such a close relationship with. I also got she didn't want to marry the Crown Prince because of her status, but at the same time she had no real plans or dreams. With her alone, it was hard to follow along and maybe it was just me. I was told it is Helen of Troy meets Mulan, but there was no such promise shown sadly.

Tropes include:
Chosen One Main Character
Villain love interest
Fated destiny
Morally gray (kind of)
Enemies to lovers (kinda)

FABULOUS. From page one, “The Nightblood Prince” grabbed me by the throat and never let go. I resented every time I had to put this book down and ultimately stayed up stupidly late to finish it. This is exactly the kind of emotional intensity I chase when reading.

With marketing promises like “two villainous love interests” and “unique vampires,” I was initially skeptical that “The Nightblood Prince” would be any more than a cheap mashup of popular tropes. But Molly X. Chang absolutely blew me away with her gorgeous writing, her layered characterizations, and the way she approached those popular tropes. Plot points like love triangles and chosen ones can become so cheesy and hackneyed, but Chang brought phenomenal freshness and nuance to these storytelling elements — i.e., her hilarious twist on the “only one bed” trope, or Siwang’s perfectly executed, incredibly compelling dark streak that had me shivering. At times, Fei was almost an annoying “not like other girls” main character (“Poor me, I was raised in luxury and a handsome prince adores me, I just want to be freeeeeee!”) but Chang grounded Fei by making it abundantly, bone-chillingly clear why she should want to escape her gilded cage. I especially appreciated that the “Mulan” elements didn’t come until well into the book, after I’d spent significant page time watching Fei struggle and change. Chang didn’t tell me that Fei is a badass runaway princess, she showed me, and I adored Fei for it.

Also, the love triangle — THE LOVE TRIANGLE. It’s such a rare love triangle that has me genuinely torn between the two love interests for so long, and so completely convinces me that, yes, this girl actually is special enough for two powerful princes to be warring over her. Siwang and Yexue both had compelling reasons for pursuing Fei, and I loved how slowly and subtly Chang established that tension. She spent real time building the relationships between Fei and Siwang and Yexue, didn’t even bring Yexue fully into the picture until over halfway through the book, and that effort paid off enormously, as evidenced through my repeatedly flushed face and pounding heart. THAT is how you do romantic tension. THAT is how you do villainous love interests.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS: Where this book lost some ground for me was towards the end, when Siwang and Yexue started to feel a little Tamlin and Rhysand-esque, respectively. I would’ve loved to see Chang keep Siwang and Yexue on similar moral ground, rather than engaging in Yexue apologetics. But I also recognize that Chang was trying to resolve the love triangle, at least to some extent, and that Fei needed solid reasons to start walking away from one man or another.

There were also a few timeline things that could’ve been clearer. i.e., at one point, there was no explanation for how two characters got to a particular place or how long it took to travel there, they were just suddenly there, and it threw me off a bit.

Overall, though, WOW, I am OBSESSED, and I’m so excited to know that book two is in the works. Huge thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC — I’ll definitely be buying a hard copy for my shelves!

“I was the Empress-to-be, but an Empress still had to bend to the will of a man.”

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read this eARC and give my honest thoughts!

This is a YA fantasy that honestly reads more like an adult fantasy. I loved the topics and themes in this book: prophecies and how they can shape lives in good and bad ways, being a woman in a world ruled by men, and consequences of our choices. This is also more of a political fantasy and it has a love triangle between the three main characters that have their own flaws and motivations.

I am a self-proclaimed lover of the love triangle trope - it has always been one of my favorites and I honestly really enjoy when they are written well. I liked that this one was messy, and by messy, I mean that our girl Fei is waffling between the two main men and still trying to figure out how she feels about them with all their good points and deep flaws. Fei herself is just trying to live her own life out from under the rule of men and this causes a lot of drama as you can imagine!

I am excited that there will be a second book because I really want to see how the rest of this story develops! If you are in the mood for East-Asian political fantasy with interesting characters, feminine rage, and ancient creatures/prophecies, then you need to pick this one up!

Thank you to publisher Random House and NetGalley for an eARC.

2.5/5 stars rounded up

This one just wasn't for me. I'm a big character reader, and when I can't get into the characters I struggle. Neither love interest is a good person, nor do they deserve Fei. I'd rather see her kick them both to the curb and find someone else, or just be alone. Fei's relationship with her family was strange. She has spent minimal time with them, but there is no resentment when their life circumstances change and in a short period of time they seem to know each other so well. I almost set it down at the beginning. I prefer my social commentary to have nuance and for us to see it within the world. We are pretty much bashed over the head with the social commentary in this one. We 'see' a small amount of war and misogyny but mostly we are just told about it. I certainly understand Fei's anger and resentment with her place in the world but I started to get a bit numb to it after a while.

Fei was born with a birthmark and a prophecy: she will one day become the Empress of Empresses. Immediately betrothed to the Crown Prince of the Empire of Rong, Fei longs to escape her fate and choose her own destiny. On a royal hunt, Fei escapes with the intent of slaying a rare tiger and thus winning a wish from the Emperor to cancel her betrothal, but unexpectedly saves the life of a captive prince trying to escape.

I was not a fan of To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods, so I went into this with low expectations and really enjoyed it. We have a fairly standard xianxia setup with a number of fantasy tropes. However, the book deliberately plays around with these tropes. There’s a love triangle here, but both princes are not portrayed well and Fei sees through a lot of their BS. Fei falls into a sort of Mulan subplot but quickly deviates from the standard storyline. My favorite is how the book portrays the one bed trope.

There’s also a lot of truly excellent feminine rage here (“You will not blame this war on me, Rong Siwang. You will not blame your selfish wants on me.” and “What if I don’t want to endure?”). I think this is something we don’t see often enough with heroines pulled in all directions by forces outside of their control, especially the so-called romantic interests.

Altogether, it’s a trope-conscious, entertaining story that I enjoyed far more than To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods. In fact, I think this might be my favorite xianxia style novel so far. Some readers will probably enjoy it as a standard romantasy, but it’s more than that.

It appears to be the first in a planned trilogy. My kingdom for more standalones!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion!

Young adult isn't usually my cup of tea, but I think Molly X. Chang is absolutely brilliant so getting approved for this book made me so happy. What made me even happier: this book is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo good!!! I really enjoyed all of the characters, especially our FMC, Fei. There were definitely some Mulan vibes with certain regards to different parts of the story, I did also really enjoy there being Vampires and other magical vibes. The love triangle wasn't cringey either, which is very hard to pull off! Overall, I think that this is going to be a hit when it's published and can't wait for more!

I unfortunately cannot make myself read any further. The premise of this book is very interesting. But I can't keep reading if Fei is going to constantly talk about how she is a victim. I like my main characters to be strong, and maybe Fei finds that later in the book, but all I've read so far is how picked on she is, and how disgusting men are. I will not be posting about it on my socials, because I DNF'ed the book, and I don't want to discourage people from at least trying it. But I know this book is not for me. Thank you for the opportunity to read an early copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.
The Nightblood Prince is the first book in a new series by Molly X. Chang. This book follows Li Fei who all she wants is to be free of her engagement to the crown prince of the realm, Siwang. When she goes out to hung a difficult tiger to bargain for her release from the engagement, she finds herself in the presence of a rival prince from another kingdom.
Thankfully, there is already a review on here that lays out the issues I have with this book. Please check out Jenny's review here. This review goes into great detail and highlights the same issues I had with this book.
I only gave this book three stars because I think there was potential here but it was not met what so ever. A lot of people seem to love this book already from the ARC's they read so I could see this working for other people. However, it did not work for me.
First off, this book needs a copy editor to go over this. Time has literally no meaning in this book. There is one point where the FMC is given seven days to leave and the math she does just does not add up. As Jenny said in their review, one part there is a message sent, via horseback rider, and weapons are made and sent back to the front within three days. The time just makes no sense. There is also a lot of inconsistency not just with time line but with even where characters are standing or who is in what scene.
The characterization in this actually drove me a little crazy. The "yes I love him, no I don't" that Fei went through constantly drove me absolutely mad. She didn't show herself to be a capable fighter or hunter but told us she was all the time. I just didn't see what was being claimed laid out on the page. One of the biggest issues I had is actually a spoiler which I will pt in a spoiler wrap here. The fact that we find out the Yexue is coercing Fei to feel things for him due to his blood being in her body really disturbed me. I felt as if that was non-consensual and I hated that it was used to make it seem like they 'felt" something for each other.
I do recognize that English is not Molly X. Chang's first language and I do have to commend her for writing a book in a language she is not as familiar with. However, I do think the editors need to go through and fix some grammatical problems before the bopok goes to print. I also liked hte use of Chinese characters used in the book but the way they were incoporated felt really disjointed and needs to be blended in better.
There are those who love this book and I love that for them. However, it just wasn't for me and I can't see myself recommending it. But if the premise interest you and you want to give it a shot I say go for it.

3.5

All her life, Fei has been shackled by a prophesy delivered at the time of her birth. She was to become the Empress of All Empresses. Determined to that power come to the kingdom, the Emperor takes Fei and raises her at the palace alongside his son. Though the two grow up to be close friends, Fei doesn't want to marry him. Desperate for a way out of their engagement, Fei decides to hunt a white tiger and earn her freedom with a wish. Only she wasn't counting on Yexue, a prince from a rival kingdom.

Read if you like:
-Prophesy
-Vampires
-A Woman Fighting Against a Man's World
-Fate
-Seers

I really enjoyed The Nightblood Prince. It was prophesy meets Mulan meets vampires. All at once both new and familiar. However, it was long and the pacing was off. So much of what I wished would have happened between 1/3 and 1/2 way through the book wasn't happening until the final third. And I'm guessing this is going to at least be a duet based on the ending. There is more to the story and I'm interested to see how it all plays out.

I loved this!

It really felt like a cdrama. The pacing was so strong and it didn't linger in one frame of thought for very long before shifting to the next plot. I'm a big fan of Molly X. Chang's other work, so it made sense this would also be right up my alley.

I'm a sucker for a love triangle and this one was no different. I have a very clear choice for who I want to win, but it felt balanced and developed enough that I might be able to be swayed the other way eventually. Knowing that this is a trilogy makes me have a lot more patience here in book one.

There are vampires. That's all you really needed to tell me.

Highly recommend. Can't wait for more.

2/5 stars

(Heads up, some spoilers ahead!)

This one hurts.

I've been looking forward to The Nightblood Prince since the author announced it in May of last year, following along excitedly as fanart and snippets were posted online, and ecstatic when I was recently approved for the ARC.

Unfortunately, it did not live up to any of my expectations.

Clocking in at just under 300 pages, The Nightblood Prince feels super rushed, and everything suffers for it, including pacing, plot, and characterization. Too much was crammed into too short a run time, and it feels like two or three books mashed into one. I really think it could've worked had everything been far more fleshed out, and had there been more showing than telling (which is my biggest gripe with this book). POV main character Fei is constantly telling us what's happening instead of us seeing it play out on the page, and insists on repeatedly saying things like "Siwang loves me" while only backing it up with "because he used to do xyz for me," or stating where she traveled but not doing much to describe the surroundings, leaving me to poorly fill in the blanks. I was also deeply annoyed whenever Fei would state in the first half of the book that "Siwang is a villain" when at best, Siwang is a jackass with delusions of grandeur (ending notwithstanding).

I also feel like the book failed to deliver on the things I was most excited for, which were "Helen of Troy meets Mulan" and the double-villain love interests. While the Mulan aspect is there and I enjoyed the pieces given of it, again, it isn't nearly as fleshed out as I wish it had been (I especially loved her comrades in the war camp, and was disappointed not to get more of them), and ends up feeling far too separate from the rest of the story. As to Helen of Troy, I guess technically for a few pages, but she isn't stolen away by rival love interest Yexue, and the war was started for other reasons than Fei being both princes' love interest).

Speaking of, in regards to the love interests: because I already had preconceived notions before reading, I'd decided which one to root for, and naturally, I chose the vampire. Which is why I was disappointed that we had only a handful of pages with him at the beginning, and then didn't see him again until 65% through. His character, like the rest of the book, felt rushed and forced. I tried so hard to root for Yexue and Fei and ended up just not caring in the slightest by the end. Speaking of forced, the relationship between Fei and Siwang was even worse. If there was any actual feelings Fei had for Siwang besides general affection before she suddenly decides she's in love with him midway through, it wasn't detailed well enough for me to pick up on it.

There's so much more I could rant about, but here, have some things I actually liked:

•Fei's sister
•Fei being spiteful and learning archery
•the eff-the-patriarchy tone and vibes
•quotes like "If l knelt at your feet like a loyal servant and begged with all the love and devotion my mortal heart has to offer, would you stay?"

Overall, this had some gems in it, but ultimately was very rushed, cluttered, and suffered from an overabundance of telling vs showing.

There are threads left open for a sequel, but honestly I'm okay without one.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free digital ARC for my honest review!

4.25/5 stars

Twilight x Mulan is CRAZY and I ate it UP.

Okay, it’s not really twilight but it’s a love triangle and has vampires so therefore I’m instantly getting Twilight vibes (in the best way possible).

What a a fantastic read though. Easily my favorite Mulan retelling that I've read so far! In general, I think I am long past my addiction to love triangle’s but boy did I eat it up in The Nightblood Prince by Molly X Chang.

Fei is a powerful yet empathetic FMC. I absolutely loved being in her head. She had so much put on her plate, being prophesied the day she was born to unite the empires. She feels this intense weight while also desiring to having a say in her own destiny. I really appreciated the balance she brought between protecting others, fighting for what she wants, and understanding that she holds a great power that will affect the entire empire.

As we were getting towards the end I was panicking about how we would wrap things up in time. Imagine my surprise when I found out it is not a standalone! Thankfully, the storyline was very much so adequately concluded in a satisfying way, so I didn’t feel like I was left hanging, but I’ll still definitely want to pick up the second book when it comes out. Hopefully there will be more information on it’s release day soon!

Fei is said to be at the center of a prophecy, to be the Empress of all Empresses. However she wants more than that, rather than being someone else’s wife, unable to truly be ‘free.’ She decides to take fate into her own hands to hunt a mountain lion so the Emperor (based on tradition) would grant her a wish and she’d have her betrothal annulled. But soon war breaks out and the ‘prince’ she saved in the mountains now leads an army of ‘demons’ against her people and her former betrothed.

This is my first book by the author and I really enjoyed her prose. It was easy to get hooked into the story and want to know what would happen next. Details/descriptions of locations, actions within the plot, growing relations with others felt realistic, had me feelings emotions throughout so— always cool as a reader.

Now I’m personally hoping Fei doesn’t end with either of the love interests (not a fan of love triangles) and is able to girl boss her way to help her people. She deserves SO much more than society keeping her down due to being a woman. I’m really excited to see where this series goes!

The Nightblood prince captivated me from the start. A rich story filled with turns and strong characters. Molly X Chang does it again, and I will pick up anything she gives me.

I was very excited to read this book because I had read To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods and very much enjoyed that book. I follow Molly X. Chang on her social media platforms and the teaser images and cdrama inspo posts have enticed me to eagerly anticipate this book. I was drawn to the thought of being able to read a culturally rich, emotional and politically complex story. I was craving something like a cdrama.

This book fulfilled only a portion of those desires. I was not able to connect with this book mainly due to the characterization of the FL. Fei was very unlikable and it was difficult to root for her. I could empathize with her feelings of being trapped by the prophecy that basically dictates the trajectory of her life. However, her actions are rooted in selfishness and frequently put the people she loves in danger. Which contradicts Fei's goal of wanting to protect everyone. Then there is her inability to empathize with people who are just as trapped by fate and external factors out of their control and she paints them as villains in her mind.

I think that because of Fei's inability to connect with anyone this books lacks so much in the romance aspect. She's so detached to anyone and anything. It seems like the only people she cares about are her family, and even then there's a significant level of detachment there too. So when these two male leads are present and competing for her favor, there's no real tension or excitement of two people connecting. There is no "getting to know each other" phase because one already knows her inside and out and the other one is more like a villain that only appears once in the beginning and then again after the 70% mark in the book. And most of that time in between, Fei doesn't have any positive feelings towards Yexue.

There isn't much of a plot here either. I'm not really sure if any of the character's motivations mean much to the story or are even part way fulfilled by the end of this book. The ending has me believing Chang has a sequel in store for this story. I felt very unsatisfied with unresolved conflicts.

I'm not sure if I'm even willing to read the sequel. However, I do not think Molly X. Chang is a bad writer. I will still be looking forward to her future work in To Kill These Monstrous Gods.