Heart of the Sun Warrior

THE HEART OF THE SUN WARRIOR - Sue Lynn Tan Esta segunda parte mantiene el tono folclórico de la primera, pero reconozco que me ha gustado menos. No sé si es porque se centra en el conflicto desde el minuto cero de libro, preparándolo todo para construir el final (que por cierto encuentro muy bien organizado y justificado), pero echo de menos que la protagonista tenga un segundito de paz para mis cositas costumbristas favoritas. Dicho lo cual, está: muy bien acumulada la tensión a lo largo del libro. Se va sumando toda la problemática y las relaciones románticas son un tira y afloja bien llevado (quizás un pelín demasiado hacia el final), hasta el culmen de las últimas 100 páginas. Madre mía. MADRE MÍA. Vamos a dejarlo ahí.

A pesar de no encontrarle la estructura tan redonda que me dejó Daughter of the moon goddess, me ha parecido una gran continuación para profundizar un poco más en el Reino Celestial. Ojalá un libro que profundizase en ese Worldbuilding y en cómo se llegó a la situación del inicio de la bilogía.

About After winning the Celestial Emperor's pardon (although not his favor), Xingyin thought she'd be returning to her quiet life on the moon with her mother. But political turmoil rages in the Celestial Kingdom, churned on by her previous actions. With her home on the moon threatened by old enemies and new magic, Xingyin must once again take up her bow and fight for the ones she loves. And maybe even the ones she thought she gave up loving.

Thoughts The first book of this series was largely an adventure punctuated with romance. This one is definitely a romance punctuated with adventure. Xingyin is already an accomplished fighter, and so we see very little by way of her development in that area, with more time spent on her growing emotionally and learning how to process different kinds of grief. There's a lot more at stake here, with several deaths, and the loss of potential lives lived, with no one coming out entirely faultless in the process. The moral depth and complexity definitely outshines the first book in this space. The romantic triangle from the first book takes front and center here, with Wenzhi, Liwei, and eventually Xingyin all being way more honest about their feelings than the first go-around. There's a clear endgame this time around, and your enjoyment will probably hang entirely on who you cheered for in the first book. Action scenes move quickly, with fewer "epic" set pieces and more subdued fights (on average). There's also more time spent on Chinese lore, which I really enjoyed. Overall, I feel like it's a really good conclusion to the previous book, and it ties up all the loose ends really well.