A few hints of Disney and a lot of myth makes this a fantastic read. If you enjoy a myth retelling that brings some reality to the story. This is the one. But be warned, because the summary doesn't say it; this is the first in a series, not a stand alone. I still recommend giving it a go!

I really enjoyed this novel - it read like one of the C Dramas I love watching, and I even found myself casting the main characters with some of my favourite actors. It was so refreshing to find a SELFISH female lead (though I don't find her selfish at all, I thouroughly understand where she's coming from and how despair for what the world determines must be our place will lead to choices most will probably condemn), one who doesn't have 'the good of the world and her people' behind her motives, one who isn't about to sacrifice herself for the sake of others, like most heroes in fantasy tales. Meilin does what she does for herself, because she wants more than what society determined she should have, being a woman, a non-entity, a commodity as she is. Rebelling against the roles she's been forced to all her life, just because she happened to be born female, she chooses a way out, fully aware of the risks, but believing she can get away with them. I honestly wish she had, just for the sake of female vindication, but the story will not end there, I guess. I liked Meilin for what she stands and the way she - victim to the teachings of a secular society that sees women as cattle - considers herself an abomination, one she fully embraces, though. I didn't much care for Prince Liu (though his elder brother did get me very curious and I wish there'd been more screen time for him) and found him annoying but Cao Lei, now there's one I really found quite interesting. Maybe because he reminded me of the blind Gongzi on Bloody Romance (wonder if the author's seen that drama and got her inspiration from it) or maybe because he's sort of the antihero in all this, but where Liu Sky was a bit of a wet fish and a bidimensional character, Cao Lei had a lot more depth to him, as a character. I was invested in him and his story, contrary to Liu's.
One thing that irked and annoyed me a lot was the use of English translations and pinyin at the same time - it was extremely irritating to have names like Sparrow and Sky and Winter alongside Sima Yi, Cao Lei, Hao Meilin, etc. Why not settle for the pinyin in every name, with a side note translation of specific names? I also disliked the 'Okays' peppered here and there, but that's a pet peeve of mine. All in all, I did enjoy this novel a lot, it was extremely entertaining and kept me hooked the entire time, wanting to see where Meilin's choices would lead.
My thanks to the author and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Night Ends With Fire is a fascinating retelling of Mulan, including elements of the supernatural. We see Meilin struggle not just due to her place in society as a woman but also having access to magic which is outlawed. A big theme in the book is isolation and not just because of her circumstances but also due to the other characters motivations. The book can at times feel lonely as there's downsides to all of Meilin's potential allies, even Meilin herself is dealing with controlling her impulses due to her magic's influence. It makes it all feel rather hopeless at times, not knowing who to trust has you second guessing everyone's motivations and even Meilin. Despite this or because of this... The novel itself is a riveting read and flows well as Meilin escapes her marriage and joins the army in the three kingdoms war.

The cast of supporting characters are great and standouts such as Autumn, Lei and Sparrow really bring the book together even with you guessing the motivations and how they'll react if they discover Meilin's secrets.

I look forward to seeing what happens next in Meilin's story and if she can find some allies she can confide in! Thanks to Netgalley & Hodder & Stoughton for the arc.

This book offers a smooth, easy-to-follow narrative with some enjoyable characters, particularly Lei, who stands out as the most intriguing. While the writing flows well, it adheres closely to familiar story beats, lacking in surprises or moments of anticipation. The depiction of sexual assault, though thematically relevant, feels excessive and repetitive within the narrative. However, for fans of Asian-inspired fantasy, this book provides a solid and accessible read reminiscent of titles like Song Like Silver, Flame Like Night, and Six Crimson Cranes.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for a honest review.

“The Night Ends With Fire” was one of my most anticipated releases of 2024. It’s a book inspired by The Poppy War and Mulan, promising an epic adventure and a toe-curling romance. Unfortunately, I was wrong. The novel didn’t meet my expectations and I had to DNF this book at almost 50%. I don’t usually stop reading a book without finishing it, but it didn’t meet my personal taste and I just couldn’t force myself to keep going.

The novel follows the life of Mielin, a young woman living in a household with her beloved stepmother, her two siblings, and an abusive father addicted to opium. Forced to marry a man, Mielien decides to run away and join the army in the upcoming war. To do that, she’ll be forced to hide her identity and pretend to be a man.

During the first chapters I found myself intrigued by the relationship of Mielin and her stepmom, an equally young woman compelled to endure her husband’s abuses. It’s hard to find books with lovable stepmothers that are on good terms with their stepdaughters and I hoped to see that bond evolving throughout the book. But Mielin goes away, trying to save herself from an unwanted and violent marriage and leaving her stepmother and her siblings alone in that unbearable situation. It was the only possible choice, but it also meant abandoning the woman who has become as close to her as a sister in the hands of her father. I found it quite selfish, why not try to make them all escape, or ponder something even more drastic?

The book was fast-paced, the narration proceeded quickly, leaving no room for thorough descriptions and characters’ insights. Even though the novel is narrated in the first person by Mielin, I couldn’t fully emphasise with her— expect for the beginning, especially when she was still leaving in her house—, nor did I root for the couple.
I’d like to focus on the training sessions Mielin did to enhance her abilities. The time goes by, but the reader doesn’t feel Mielin’s improvement precisely because they aren’t described. These might have been the right opportunities to deepen the characters, showing their strengthens and weaknesses, thus letting the reader develop a sort of attachment to the characters.

I was fascinated by the magic system, but it wasn’t wholly developed. Everything felt fuzzy and not as interesting as I hoped it to be. Mielin was afraid of the very notion of power not only because it was something dangerous and unknown, but especially due to the misogynistic beliefs of her people. Sadly, I found this issue to be somewhat overlooked.

The romance felt flat just like Sky. If we can enter into Mielin’s mind, we’re totally unaware of Sky’s personality. He remains a mystery and I couldn’t grow fond of him. The relationship between them isn’t properly developed. They create an important link when Mielin is training to become a better soldier, but these scenes aren’t shown so it’s something difficult to believe. They could have raised the tension and even built a proper bond between them.

Mulan merely inspired “The Night Ends With Fire”, but a lot of scenes were pretty much the same. At least the first half of the book proceeded with very few differences with the cartoon. On the other hand, I didn’t find anything close to The Poppy War.

Obviously that’s my personal opinion. The novel is well-written and it’s easy to read. I highly recommend it to readers who are new to the fantasy genre. It isn’t a bad book, but it wasn’t for me.

The Night Ends with Fire is a Mulan re-telling with a twist. I love Mulan so of course I had to pick it up, and honestly it 100% delivered. I will say that the pacing might not work for everyone, as it jumps from one thing to the next quite a bit. I'm usually not a fan of this as I enjoy the journey, however, it worked here. In my opinion, anything extra added between the time jumps would have felt like filler. Instead the pacing was fast and the action kept me hooked and eager to continue reading.

The main character, Meilin, wants more than the lot women are afforded in this world. What sets her apart from your typical heroine is that she is unapologetically ambition and although she has to save the world, her reason for wanting to do so is not selfless. She doesn't want to save the world for the sake of humanity, she wants to save the world to protect her loved ones. I really liked her relationship with her stepmum, it was heartwarming and a change from the usual horrible stepmum set up. She also tentatively develops a friendship with another female character, and I hope she encounters more in the sequel as I l love seeing women support women.

The world building was straight forward with no info dumps, making this the perfect read for fantasy novices. I found the concept of the spirits and the magic tied to them to be fascinating.

Another aspect of The Night Ends with Fire I enjoyed is the romance. I will say that there is a love triangle, but personally it didn't bother me. I know who I'm rooting for and hope that he is end game. I mean, the development of his relationship with Meilin was naturally paced and such a good slow burn.

Needless to say, I can't wait for the release of the conclusion to this story!

I would like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and honestly review an advanced reader’s copy of this book.

This was almost something. Let’s start with what I did like:
The writing was smooth, easy to follow, and though it had some stilted chapter endings here and there, overall it was an easy read.
But that’s all it was: easy and fine. It was hitting nothing but familiar story beats, and at no point did the story turn around and make me go: Wow, I wonder what happens next!
I liked some of the characters. I really liked Lei, he was the most interesting one in here. I liked the Meilin was unapologetically greedy, but that’s probably all I liked about her. She felt a bit bland to me.
Now, there were two or three instances in this story where it was heavily alluded to that the main character as going to be sexually assaulted. And while I understand the story dealt with themes of war, and that people are awful, and that this happens… in this particular story, it felt incredibly unnecessary. I don’t know how to explain it without going into detail, but it felt unnecessary and boring, especially when it happened multiple times.

Overall, the story is fine! I think I just wanted something different than what it was. If you love Asian inspired fantasy, this would be a solid read for you! It kind of reminded me of Song Like Silver, Flame Like Night, Six Crimson Cranes, etc

3⭐️!

Loved this fantasy romance! It was fun, fast paced and the romance was great.

This is an amazing retelling of mulan. If you like mulan, fantasy and romance then read this, you won’t be disappointed! Although it did read quite YA, it was still well written.

This book is not only dramatic and engrossing, it is also insightful and wise. Read it! Read it! You will never forget it!

I loved this book a lot. I loved the way the characters had magic through the Jade which bound them to a god.
I loved the flawed characters.
The romance was written fantastically.
I can't wait to read more from this world!

final rating: 4.5/5☆

thank you to netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the e-arc!

i like myself a good retelling, and this is one. Mulan (the disney animated one) holds a special place in my heart, so when i saw this, i knew i had request it. this book took what was originally already an empowering and captivating story of a woman taking her father's place in the army in disguise and made it into so much more.

(spoilers ahead!!)

this book started out reminding me a little too much of the live action at first, the girl Meilin with too much qi/chi who likes to flip around rooftops and will end up marrying against her will. but then that's where it all starts going whoosh in all the best ways. her meeting with Sky felt straight out of Howl's Moving Castle and i could feel the chemistry between them, something easy and exciting brewing that i needed to see come to fruition. and boy did we see that happening throughout the training arc, even thinking she's a man, Sky became her only true friend who supported her till the end (unlike Sparrow in the end, hope he gets his comeuppance in a sequel).

small note: the naming conventions took me out a bit. perhaps because i know chinese, seeing in english, Liu Winter and Liu Sky felt a little strange. i mean, i wouldn't have minded seeing Liu Xue and Liu Tian or Liu Kong, since everyone else's names romanised.

okay but, i was not expecting all the political intrigue in this one! it was all lots of fun, especially when Meilin is imprisoned by Lei, and he keeps us guessing about his intentions, towards her, towards the chancellor, and towards the war. in the end, i think he was the one who was clearest about the truth. apart from the spirits Zhuque and Qinglong, who will never reveal the truth. magic and politics in a Mulan retelling!

i can't wait to see what could happen in a sequel, with Meilin behind bars, Lei being used to negotiate a peace treaty, and the still not destroyed seal.

3 stars - I loved the inversion of the usual evil stepmother trope, and I wish there had been an opportunity to see a little more of Meilin's relationship with Xiuying. I enjoyed the quotes included at the beginning of each chapter and how they helped to give a bigger picture of the world and magic system. The plot was engaging and I loved Meilin's resilience and drive, as well as her acknowledgement of her wants and her greed without feeling ashamed. The ending was realistic to the world the author had created, and leaves the book in an interesting place for the next one to pick up from. The author's note was a lovely addition - it was so interesting to read about the author's intentions with the book!

I really struggled with the writing style in this book, as despite being written in first person, I felt so disconnected from Meilin. The love interests seemed like interesting characters, but their relationships with Meilin felt underdeveloped, and many of the side characters also felt shallow. The dialogue, writing and characters seemed more YA than Adult to me, and I would have loved some more details about the worldbuilding and magic system.

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the arc!

Mark my words, this book is going to be your next obsession!

For me, this felt like a mix of Daughter of the Moon Goddess meets Mulan. There was so much weight to the story, even just behind Meilin’s identity.

I can’t wait for more people to read about this book and fall in love with the characters in the same way I did (even the bad ones 👀)

I’m eagerly awaiting book two!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Hodderscape for giving me access. This was a much anticipated read for me, and I have been aware of this book for a few months now.

I would like to preface this review: I have not read the original Mulan story, and do not know the details. Therefore, I cannot make a detailed analysis of how this books stands as a retelling.

Wow... just wow. K. X. Song has absolutely blown me away with this absolutely epic and exciting story. It deals with a variation of themes: gender inequality, inner conflict, grief, deception. I was moved by how each character had its flaws, but understandable motivations behind their actions. The dynamics between Lei and Meilin were wonderful to read. I hope we get more of them in the next book, as they have both suffered similar fates. I enjoyed learning about the lore, and the concepts behind the dragon, the phoenix etc. It was unique, and added a high fantasy element to this story.


On the note of gender, reading this book encouraged me to reflect. I haven't felt this with many recent fantasy books, but this one truly made me consider if the inner conflict that Meilin is facing is comparable to those that women face today. Seeing her grapple true difficulty with accepting the confines of her gender in this period was heartbreaking, but also realistic. Watching her find her own ways to rebel was a moment of immense pride, I felt like I was cheering her on.

K. X. Song has a special talent for writing tension between characters, especially that of anger, and attraction. I was fixated on this book in the last 35%, where the writing becomes immaculate. Though I will say that the first half, and certainly the Part One were a little slow, but it definitely paid off for the excellent run up to the climax.

An unexpected addition that I thoroughly enjoyed was the wonderfully written Authors Note at the end. K. X. Song writes 'And yet in the course of war, as Meilin gains courage and comes into her own power, she begins to redefine the parameters of her potential and re-imagine how far she can go in this world. I hope you, too, may do the same.' This was deeply moving.

I did not see this story being ended on a cliff-hanger and I am absolutely EXCITED for the next book. I have many unanswered questions.

Meillin is about to go from being the property of her abusive father to the property of an abusive husband. But Meillin would rather die than go quietly into such a life, so she disguises herself as a man and joins the Army.

After a bit of a slow start, this book becomes a gripping, epic fantasy with a brilliant plot and incredible characters. I absolutely loved it!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

A solid interrogation of the legend of Hua Mulan and an exploration of ambition within a fantastical, divided world inspired by Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Hai Meilin is greedy for autonomy and respect, but in a world where *sighs* women are to obey men and are suppressed for wanting or being their own persons, she is suffocating. So when war enlistment comes knocking on her household's rotting doors, she takes the only chance she has to have a different fate than being an abusive lord's docile wife. The consistency of her actions in pursuit of her goal is lovely to see.

So...seeing the way the supportive cast acted at the end is a little heartbreaking but emphasises the social norms that are bigger than her. I'm having hunches about where the supportive cast's arcs and the wider status quo will end up.

The romance is interesting. The two LIs parallel Meilin's desires and personality and embody social norms in different ways. One reflects her greed and ambition, the other her desire to triumph on her own merits and trust and hope for the world. The LIs have their own arcs that need to be accounted for if one is to try and foresee who'll form the endgame couple. Although...I'm inclined to say neither.

Spit-fire notes:
- I enjoyed the inclusion of the quotes at the beginning of each chapter, especially since they're well-used (you know, world-building, character-building, and foreshadowing).
-I love the author's note. PSA: please include more author's notes! It gives me insight into their minds and is more material for me to analyse the text.
-The naming conventions are inconsistent, with some having English first names (like Liu "Sky" or Liu "Winter") and others getting Chinese first names (e.g. Meilin). There weren't any in-universe or creative explanations for why. So, the reading experience was made weird with the names.
-While the magical lore is cool, I'd love additional literal worldbuilding with more place descriptions!

Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton (Hodderscape) for providing me with the e-ARC/DRC in exchange for an honest review.

P.S. making my cover predictions now...the next one is going to be blue (because plot and also how many times out of 10 does a red cover get followed up by a blue one or vice versa?)

3.5 stars. This was a solid read. There were some good aspects to this, like the worldbuilding, but I felt like it was lacking in other areas like character depth.

I don't give many books 5 stars because I reserve it for books I think are truly phenomenal, but The Night Ends With Fire definitely deserves all the stars I can give it and more!

This is a hard hitting book about the oppression of women, mysogyny, and one girl's fight to find freedom in a man's world. Billed as a reong of Mulan, I wasn't sure what to expect, but this exceeded any expectations that I may have had.

Meilin is an excellent character who strives for what she wants: a life free from abuse at the hands of men. This makes her selfish and greedy and self-serving, but she is still kind and loyal to those around her, leaving her open for betrayal.

Both princes are beautifully written, leaving open a love triangle.

For fans of The Poppy War and She Who Became the Sun or just awesome women doing great things, this book will resonate.

Just a note to the publisher, there are several formatting errors that will need to be cleared up for readibility before final release.

Thank you Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for providing me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. My review is my own and not influenced by others.

This night ends with fire was one of my most anticipated books coming out this year and I felt very lucky to be able to read this earc of it.
The cover is beautiful and when I read in the description that it was inspired by Mulan, I knew I had to read it because I love the story of Mulan.

In This ends with fire we follow a young woman, age 18, who’s father is addicted and who’s mother died of young age. Her father remarried and his addiction only grows, so much that they are broken and therefore demands Meilin to marry an old man with loose hands. Meilin decides to join the army because she wants to be free for a couple of months. But because she’s a woman, she has no rights and has to keep her secret close to her.

Like I said before, the story was inspired by Mulan and I can see the elements this author used for her story. The idea was good and interesting in the beginning.
The story mainly stays focused on the characters and the journey they’re on. There’s not much about the world building besides that woman are nothing and has no right to whatever they want. Meilin is someone who wants something more, something better but lacks of the strength by my opinion to do so in a good way. I couldn’t feel much sympathy for her beside that she’s being oppressed. It wasn’t only her but all the characters lacked something to feel a connection with them and quite frankly annoyed the hell out of me. Lines like ‘Woman and children are like garments, easily replaceable.’ give me so much anger that you lost me for the whole book.

Besides that, I understand that Mulan was some kind of inspiration for this story, it was one of the reasons why I wanted to read this book so much. But it was only one of the inpirations the author had while writing this book. With that in mind and with a story which is totally different than Mulans story, a FMC who was totally different than Mulan, I don’t understand why the author choose to rename Meilin at the end of the book and let her go on as Mulan. It wasn’t necessary to do this and because both caracters are different in many ways it icked the heck out of me.

Does all of this mean that this book was bad? I don’t think so, the writing was good and the pacing was good enough to keep your attention to this book. If you like the characters at the beginning of this book, I definitely think this book could work for you. For me, it was unfortunately no match.

This book!😍 when I read the synopsis, I thought it sounded similar to the story of Mulan and the author later confirms this as a retelling. But she really makes it her own and I devoured it!

There are some similarities to the story of Mulan of course; The Dragon and Phoenix spirits, being disguised as a man in the army and the scene where she is bathing. But I feel that's really where the similarities end.

This story has flawed characters, Meilin often refers to herself as overly ambitious and greedy and this just grows throughout the book. And there's a love triangle going on also (will come back to this). I loved that none of the characters were wholly good or perfect. With Meilin, I feel her selfishness is relatable because I'm sure occasionally the majority of people at least wonders about 'what ifs' and plays out scenarios of what we could do if we had freedom of choices or more power or money.

I'm not generally a fan of love triangles but I can see why she would be attracted to both men, for different reasons. I've seen a few different opinions, but personally I prefer Lei❤

I just couldn't put this book down. It was full of action and I loved Meilin's determination and relentlessness. Her goals don't align with anyone else's, she is very strong and single-minded.

Can't wait for the sequel!

Thank you to Netgalley, Hodder & Stoughton and the author for the review copy, provided in exchange for an honest opinion.