Heart Of The Sun Warrior follows the events of book 1 as Xingyin adjusts to life back on the moon. But her newly found peace is soon ruined by new forces of evil who'll stop at nothing to obtain power, leaving her and her loved ones forced to follow her into unknown lands for sanctuary. But soon she realises she must fight to protect her kingdom & face the consequences.

It was so lovely to revisit this magical world of Chinese mythology I adore the lore of these tales - it keeps you gripped throughout. This book was filled with action packed sequences, some unpredictable twists & turns, with emotional plot twists thrown in too which combined made it a fast paced gripping novel that will have you desperate to learn more.

The love triangle was gripping throughout and I found myself changing teams about 30% in which I wasn't expecting but the way it was written made it seem quite a natural choice.

The death's in the book were generally well placed and meaningful which I always appreciate. It added more depth to the story & provided the characters with more motivation.

Overall I rated this one ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

⚠️📢 Beware spoilers below⚠️ 📢

I did change ship to Wenzhi (about 30% through) & Xingyin as he battled to redeem himself, showed genuine remorse & began putting her first at his own expense. Plus you get to see that Xingyin & Lewei's dynamic is naturally not evolving, especially with their future destinies. However I wanted her to choose before Wenzhi's death & to have more of an epilogue.

Having said that I did still love the book on the whole!

The Heart of the Sun Warrior by Sue Lynn Tan is an engrossing conclusion to the Celestial Kingdom Duology. In this captivating story, Tan paints a vivid picture of the mystical world of the Immortal Realm, a place of great beauty and power.

Tan takes readers on an intense journey with Xingyin, a brave and determined young warrior. She is forced to flee her home, only to find out that the situation has become even more dire than she originally thought. Her mission is to find allies, who can help her fight the tyrannical Celestial Emperor and prevent the destruction of her beloved world.

The Heart of the Sun Warrior is an enthralling tale of strength, resilience and courage. Xingyin's battles, both literal and metaphorical, will captivate and inspire readers. Her will to survive, to not give up despite overwhelming odds, will stay with readers long after they turn the last page.

This is a masterful exploration of myth, legend, love and duty that should not be missed. The Heart of the Sun Warrior is a powerful read that is sure to enchant fantasy lovers and stay with them for many years to come.

This one picks up fast from where we left the world in Daughter of the Moon Goddess and I was not disappointed. We got even further beautifully executed world building, even more cloud travel (Quite possibly my favourite description of travel in any fantasy I've read - Who would not want to travel this way!), we were treated to a love-triangle and our female lead went from strength to strength!

This was such a beautiful duology and it was a strong end. I would read this again, hands down!

Really enjoyable sequel to the Daughter of the Moon Goddess. I really like duologies and the pacing/storyline for this was very well done.

Like the first book a lot of things happen and Xinying is forced to battle for her friends and family against the big bad. There are lots of sad and poignant moments but I felt a little removed from the emotion. The love triangle was also a little tiresome. However I loved the ending and liked the way the story was wrapped up. I would totally be up for reading more stories set in this world though.

I found The Heart of the Sun Warrior to be a good conclusion to the Celestial Kingdom duology.

I enjoyed the author’s writing style. Her prose was lyrical and descriptive without becoming laborious to read.

I love mythology and the author expands on the world created in her first book. The new quest was interesting and the tension was built really well as the danger grew closer.

For me, however, the book focuses too much on the romance element and it detracts from what could be an exciting battle. I stated in my review of the first book that I didn’t particularly enjoy the love triangle and that didn’t change during its sequel.

The love triangle trope has been done to death and this take offered nothing new. I actually found it quite predictable and knew who Xingyin was going to choose.

In The Daughter of the Moon Goddess I liked Xingyin and her bravery and determination. However, I felt in this book she put away much of her character growth as she continued to make questionable decisions. The strong main character we have come to know seemed naïve and at times I felt irritated by her.

I did enjoy the ending and how everything was tied up nicely. However the story just didn’t move me as much as I’d have liked. This is perhaps because I didn’t feel overly invested in either of her potential love matches so I felt quite disinterested with the outcome.

Considering so many people love this duology, I really wanted to, but this probably just falls under the category of not for me. This surprised me seeing as I usually love Chinese mythology and retelling books but there was a lot I couldn't really get on board with.
The love interests both felt bullish to me, I didn't see the appeal of either. They hate her speaking to any other man and get weirdly territorial and won’t take no for an answer.
The writing of the romance aspect to me feels kind of reminiscent of A Court of Thorns and Roses which is probably why I didn't get on with it.
A lot of the plot felt far too convenient and the main character kept making silly decisions which was very frustrating.

Unfortunately I dnf this at 60%. I loved the first book daughter of the moon goddess and brought it after reading the arc but this 2nd book had a completely different vibe, it was so doom and gloom and pretty boring if I'm honest. I will just think of daughter of the moon goddess as a stand alone now as this book didn't bring anything to the table for me.

I really enjoyed this sequel as I enjoyed the first book. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this title.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and the Publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a perfect concluding half to the duology. I cannot stress enough how much I have enjoyed the journey that Sue Lynn Tan has taken us on. We pick up where we left off (without spoiling anything), Xingyin's peace is shortlived and she is forced to leave her safe haven for the Immortal Realm. Alliances are shifting and she must decide where or not to put past grudges behind her in order to save all that she holds dear.

What I loved:
- The poetic nature of SLT's writing is sublime; each line is carefully crafted and I felt carried off into the pages.
- The mythology and lore interwoven into the narrative is wonderfully executed.
- I'm not a fan of love triangles as a rule, but this worked SO well. I think perhaps because we feel everything that Xingyin is feeling and because the romance does not overtake the rest of the plot in the way that some books have suffered from.
- The way death and grief is handled (no spoilers!)
- THE ENDING. When I tell you this book made me sob; I nearly ruined my copy with drippy mascara!

What I didn't love:
Nothing. Immaculate. TAKE MY FIVE STARS!

Read this duology if you love:
- Mythology, Folklore
- The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea, Daughter of Darkness,
- Enemies/ Friends to Lovers
- Morally Grey characters

This was a solid and interesting read. I didn't love it as much as the first one but still a very good novel. And the worldbuilding remains fantastic.

Rating: 5 Stars
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Pages: 480 Hardcover

“True happiness springs from within, a contentment with oneself. And while it may be humbler and quieter, there is nothing more precious and lasting.”

'Heart of the Sun Warrior' is the second book in The Celestial Kingdom Duology. After finishing the first book in the series it was hard to believe the second would ever compare to the beautifully written first instalment but I have never been more happy to be wrong!

A quick summary;
"After her perilous quest to free her mother, Xingyin thrives once more in the tranquility of her home. But her fragile peace is threatened by the discovery of a strange magic on the moon and the unsettling changes in the Celestial Kingdom as the emperor tightens his grip on power. While Xingyin is determined to keep clear of the rising danger, the discovery of a shocking truth spurs her into a treacherous confrontation."

With a continuation of Xingyin being a strong female lead, she is an easy character to love. Although I felt this book crammed in more than the first without as much of the beautiful background details the first weaved into the story, the main character deaths hit their mark and a new villain kept the story interesting and gripped me throughout.

The romantic relationship within the story is lovely to read but doesn't over power the friendships and maternal /family dynamics at play. With a satisfying ending to a fast paced, fleshed out Chinese high fantasy you would not be disappointed picking this wonderful book up.

A Huge thank you to netgalley, harper Collins uk, and Sue Lynn Tan for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

1 ⭐️

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the e-arc for an honest opinion.

Please take in mind it’s my opinion, and everyone is allowed to have one.

I DNF’ed it at 50% that’s already way more than I expected. This was so boring, nothing really happened. So I gave up on reading it. This was my anticipated sequel but it didn’t live up to it, which is fine. Hope someone else will like it more than I did.

I really enjoyed book one of this Chinese mythology/xianxia style story, and love the world building and lore elements that carry through to this sequel. I flew through story and found it a satisfying conclusion to the duology, but I did have mixed feelings.

Bits I liked:
- great lore and world-building, expanding on the mythology laid out in book one
- quest style plot with lots of twists and turns, keeping up the pace while still having emotional pause points
- interesting characters on both sides, with distinct personalities and their own side stories
- emotion and action side by side through a lot of the writing
- satisfying conclusion of the main elements from both books, rounding off the story but leaving some bits for readers to continue imagining after

Bits I liked less:
- MC spent a lot of time with inner turmoil due to the love triangle, and it became very repetitive, with a lot of long paragraphs going over and over her feelings
- the above point also had her being very insistent on how she would always feel a certain way (am attempting to avoid any spoilers!) but it was obvious from the start that it would shift
- story focused a lot on the above back and forth, and it took away from the main quest, which I felt was really strong

Overall I did enjoy both parts, and feel this retelling is a fantastic way to update the mythology of Chang'e and bring it to new audiences. I would recommend it, and it's possible that people who enjoy the romance genre more would find the love triangle bit less irritating than I did, so do give it a go! :)

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for access to an ARC of this story, and to the author for a great piece of work! My opinions are honest and freely given.

I really enjoyed the first book in this duology, but I think that I liked this one even more. I think the familiarity with most of the characters meant that the narrative felt more streamlined and the plot was more propulsive. The added elements and characters in this book were really well done and the atmosphere was equally as lush and evocative. There was a real tragic and poignant feel here that was dealt with very well, and I thought that the ending was great! Overall, a really satisfying and compelling conclusion to a very interesting and unique series. I will definitely be picking up Sue Lynn Tan's next offering.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Many Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing the digital review copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
I really enjoyed DOAMG so I was excited to read this follow-up book. Sue Lynn Tan has a unique voice and I really loved her writing style. This book follows on from when the last book left off, and I think had more progress than the first book, there are lots of twists and that ending was brilliant, but not what I expected at all. I didn’t love the love triangle as a lot of it was quite toxic especially when Xingyin is so vulnerable.

a very fast paced and beautiful novel. not the ending i expected but it was much better than i could’ve imagined

I enjoyed book one and raced through this book too. It was nice to revisit this world and the familiar characters, but sadly, this one missed the mark slightly for me.

The writing style isn’t really for me sadly and I found it clunky in places. The story was fast paced and so much happened, which kept my attention and I did enjoy the retelling, but despite this I couldn’t get anymore invested and the love triangle felt forced at times which did mean that I wasn’t rooting for anyone.

So much was done with the characters and I know so many will love this, but I didn’t love it as much as i hoped I would.

3.5 stars

Really good followup to the first one, but I still preferred book one...this one didn't feel as necessary.

This is the second book in the Celestial Kingdom duology. This one just wasn't for me. The main character kept making frustrating, illogical decisions and was quite naive - I found that I didn't really care anymore. It didn't work for me but if you liked the first book I'd say it was still worth a read.

I adored Daughter of the Moon Goddess and was absolutely desperate to get a copy of the next installment in the duology. It's not uncommon for sequels to disappoint, but Heart of the Sun Warrior is actually even better than it predecessor. Having done all the world building and introduced us to the characters in the first book, Sue Lynn Tan wastes no time diving head first into the action. With a gripping plot full of twist and a few heart wrenching moments, it's certainly the quickest I've flown through nearly 500 pages in a long time. Best of all, Xingyin's love triangle is tied up perfectly, literally the best way the story could have ended!