A-/B+ | This book is another perfect example of how villain origin stories should be done. While the worldbuilding is pretty damn cool, what really makes this book work for me are the characters themselves, specifically Xifeng. However, the pacing can be far too slow at times, making it a drag to read when it does. Still, I think that Dao comes out strong in this debut novel.
Title: Forest of a Thousand Lanterns (Rise of the Empress, #1)
Author: Julie C. Dao
Synopsis: The Wrath and the Dawn meets Snow White and the Huntsman in this dark and mystical East Asian fantasy reimagining of The Evil Queen legend about one peasant girl’s quest to become Empress.
“A richly developed fantasy world . . . Julie C. Dao is a talent to watch.”–Marie Lu, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Young Elites
Eighteen-year-old Xifeng is beautiful. The stars say she is destined for greatness, that she is meant to be Empress of Feng Lu. But only if she embraces the darkness within her.
Growing up as a peasant in a forgotten village on the edge of the map, Xifeng longs to fulfill the destiny promised to her by her cruel aunt, the witch Guma, who has read the cards and seen glimmers of Xifeng’s majestic future. But is the price of the throne too high? Because in order to achieve greatness, she must spurn the young man who loves her and exploit the callous magic that runs through her veins–sorcery fueled by eating the hearts of the recently killed. For the god who has sent her on this journey will not be satisfied until his power is absolute.
Set in an East Asian-inspired fantasy world filled with both breathtaking pain and beauty, Forest of a Thousand Lanterns possesses all the hallmarks of masterful fantasy: dazzling magic, heartbreaking romance, and a world that hangs in the balance. Fans of Heartless, Stealing Snow, and Red Queen will devour this stunning debut.
Publication Date: 11 September 2018
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Table of Contents
— REVIEW:
I adore well-written villains. Give me a well-written villain who is absolutely evil incarnate but has such great characterization, inner monologue, and development over a hero who is no different from a white wall of paint, but just so happens to be fighting for good.
And I adore villain origin stories. When they’re done right (showing their descent and making no excuses what so ever), they become some of my absolute favorite books to read/watch. #SWPrequelRights !!!
But I can absolutely see why someone would not enjoy this too much.
It is slow.
Very, very slow. The opening is long and drawn out. The plot doesn’t get going until about 30% of the book and even then, it doesn’t really pick up until about 40-50% of the book. It took me a while to truly get into it.
However, part of the reason why I stuck around was that I did like that Dao was trying to basically set the stage. I appreciate that. Plus, Dao does a great job with introducing the characters and the conflicts that would take place.
Still, I do think that there’s a fine line that authors need to be super careful about not crossing. Yes, setting the stage is important. Introducing us to the characters, to the setting, the world, the conflict — all of this is important to a story, especially if it’s set in a world not like our own. But there needs to be action and plot happening. Or there needs to be something else that draws my attention to the story.
In this book’s case, it’s Xifeng.
Xifeng is our protagonist and damn, she is great. I adored her evolution from this sweet girl who yearns for love (but holds a hint of darkness in her) into this villain basically obsessed with her own beauty and desire for power and this promised destiny of hers. Look, I have pretty high standards for villain origin stories. Can’t help it; that’s what happens when you’re an Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader fan. Is Xifeng up to parr with Anakin/Vader? No, but she comes pretty damn close.
Despite the fact that the opening was slow and it took a while for the ball to really get going in terms of plot, Xifeng was changing and developing little by little. The shift from a sweet village girl to empress who schemed and killed her way to the top wasn’t a sudden thing that just popped up over night. There was an internal conflict within her; she had choices.
But nevertheless, she made the choice to consume the hearts of living creatures to stay beautiful. She made the choice to send Wei away (although, I can 100% understand why). She made the choice to go after the emperor.
She wanted power. She wanted beauty. She wanted the destiny that was promised to her all her life. She wanted to be free, even if it meant sacrificing the man she claimed to love.
Quite frankly, I was happy when Xifeng and Wei went their separate ways.
I am Tired™ of people trying to control and hold back their partners under the guise of “protecting” them. Now, this isn’t to say that Xifeng was any better because she was manipulating the situation to her needs and desires. But lord almighty, Wei bothered the hell out of me.
Don’t get me wrong! Wei loves Xifeng and cares for her. But he expects her to be someone she’s not. He expects her to be content being his wife. If she had been content with being his wife and had no ambition to becoming empress, that’s a different story. But Xifeng had those ambitions. For all her questioning and her concerns, she wanted power and freedom. She did not want to simply be Wei’s wife and mother to his children; she wanted to be empress.
Wei thought that simply taking Xifeng away from Guma was enough. He thought that away from Guma’s influence, Xifeng would become the vision he has of her in his mind: a good wife whose days and nights ended with him and their children.
Look, I am glad that Xifeng was taken away from Guma because that woman was horrid. However, it didn’t sit well with me how Wei was acting. It felt way too much like he wanted her to be thankful that he spirited them away. He would get disgusted over the fact that she killed rabbits — something that used to make her cry — when they were on their way to the imperial city. Of course, she had her reasons to kill those rabbits, but even if she wasn’t killing those rabbits for her selfish gains and just wanted to hunt for the party, the fact that he got mad she killed was just infuriating.
And look, it’s not like Xifeng is an innocent flower herself.
Like I said, she has a darkness within her and she chose to follow it into the dark side. But that’s the beauty of this book. The characters’ complexity are what makes this book — slow paced as it is — interesting.
Overall Thoughts?
Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is a strong debut, despite its issues with the pacing. This villain origin story is one of those books that’s carried by the characters. Xifeng’s descent into darkness was pretty well done. I am sad that the next book focuses on another character because I truly did enjoy being in Xifeng’s head. However, I am looking forward to eventually picking that book up nevertheless.
Recommend?
Yes, absolutely. It is an intriguing retelling/reimagining of the Evil Queen’s rise to power. Again, I emphasize that it has long, drawn-out opening and slow pacing so if you do pick it up, be prepared. However, it is so worth it for Xifeng’s characterization alone. To watch her descend into darkness was a delight for a villain loving reader like me.
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