Daughter of the Moon Goddess

Even though the cover drew me to this book, the story did not disappoint. The author took the well-known myth about the Chinese moon goddess and wrote a beautiful story about the daughter that could have been. Xingyin, said daughter, was hidden from the Celestial Majesties, because her mother might've become immortal but much to the disapproval of the Empress.

I fell in love with Tan's writing inspired by Chinese mythology, and her devotion to the magical description of the sceneries. Not only did she give us an brave and headstrong protagonist, but also a plot that never fails to test Xingyin's bravery through challenges and intrigues. It made me feel a bunch of emotions, stretching from happiness to devestation. It's the right choice for everyone seeking fantasy including violent sceneries of war just as much as the difficulties of a love triangle.

Every time I thought, "What could come now? Everything is accomplished", the book surprised me with its twists and turns. The story is told in a soft tone at first. A beautiful story begins when the protagonist has to flee. She wants to save her mother and fights herself (often literally) through everything to reach her goal. The love story was beautiful yet heartbreaking. But this story is not just a story of new beginnings, but also of second chances. I am really thrilled for book two and I can just recommend "Daughter of the Moon Goddess"!

What a beautiful book this was! A fantasy take on Chinese Mythology and all I can say it was breathtaking. The world building, the characters, the romance and just all the mythology aspects were perfectly blended together. Definitely cannot wait for the sequel to be released!

Long ago, there were ten sunbirds in the sky above the mortal realm. They scorched the earth, killing hundreds of people. No human was able to stop them, until the legendary archer Houyi shot down nine of them. His reward was a potion that could grant him immortality, which he chose to not drink, remaining mortal. However, when his pregnant wife Chang`e fell ill, she saw the elixir as the only way to save her and her unborn child. After becoming immortal, she is banished to the moon as her punishment, where she lives with her daughter and a servant. "Daughter of the Moon Goddess" is a retelling of the old chinese myth of the legendary archer Houyi and the moon goddess Chang`e, told from the perspective of their daughter Xingyin. When the empress who banished Chang`e to the moon is about to find out about Xingyin`s existence, she flees from the moon. In the immortal realm, she lives the life of a friendless servan. Until she meets the crown prince Liwei and is chosen to study alongside him at the court. Here, she is thrown into a dangerous world but also finds a chance to save her mother. I don´t read a lot of romance, and the romance elements are strong in this book. However, they`re written in a way that doesn`t bother me and that I think will be appealing for fans of romantic stories. What really drew me into the story were the action elements and the world building. I didn´t know the myth of Houyi and Chang`e before reading the book, and I don`t know a lot about Chinese mythology in general, but Tan describes the world in a way that is simple to understand but still feels vivid and alive. "Daughter of the Moon Goddess" is a solid mythology retelling in the vein of Madeline Miller, Elizabeth Lim or Axie Oh.