Perfectly decent followup to Daughter of the Moon Goddess, with the same flowery melodramatic writing style. Where the first book focused on Xingyin’s fight to prove herself a worthy warrior, this one focuses outward, on politics and her family dynamic. There are a few fight scenes, but not as many as in the first book; to make up for it, we get lots of love triangle angst and tense, layered conversations. I appreciated the main antagonist, whose backstory and motivation came together to create a true monster.
Tag: author-sue lynn tan
Daughter of the Moon Goddess, by Sue Lynn Tan
Uses the legend of Chang’e, the Chinese Moon Goddess, as a jumping-off point. Xingyin, daughter of the imprisoned Chang’e, sets off on a quest to free her mother. I almost didn’t get past the beginning, in which Xingyin’s escape felt overwrought and melodramatic; however, as she bravely inserts herself into the court of the Celestial Empire, learns to be a warrior, and forges her own uncompromising way forward, I found myself really enjoying the story. The book reads like a wuxia drama, all silk and steel and smoldering glances, with the characters preoccupied with plotting and honor, and it’s such fun. Slow start, great finish. Apparently there’s a sequel but this book stands alone well.