Soh Kam Yung reviewed Immortal by Sue Lynn Tan
Multiple layers in the romance between a mortal and an Immortal God of War
4 stars
Another fascinating book set in the author's Celestial Kingdom universe, involving a different cast of characters, but involving a romance between two characters originally at odds, until the plot twists show them to be intimately involved with one another.
Liyen is mortal, and becomes ruler of Tianxia (a kingdom cut off from the rest of the mortal world) when her grandfather dies during a confrontation with the Immortals. Her grandfather passed to her a gift that was meant for the Immortals; hiding it while trying to learn more from the Immortals in the hope of gaining freedom for her kingdom is the focus of the first part of the novel. But she is distracted by the Immortals' God of War, Zhangwei, whom she feels a strange attraction for.
An enemy attack during her trip to the palace of the Immortals' raises the stakes, as she feels betrayed by the Immortals …
Another fascinating book set in the author's Celestial Kingdom universe, involving a different cast of characters, but involving a romance between two characters originally at odds, until the plot twists show them to be intimately involved with one another.
Liyen is mortal, and becomes ruler of Tianxia (a kingdom cut off from the rest of the mortal world) when her grandfather dies during a confrontation with the Immortals. Her grandfather passed to her a gift that was meant for the Immortals; hiding it while trying to learn more from the Immortals in the hope of gaining freedom for her kingdom is the focus of the first part of the novel. But she is distracted by the Immortals' God of War, Zhangwei, whom she feels a strange attraction for.
An enemy attack during her trip to the palace of the Immortals' raises the stakes, as she feels betrayed by the Immortals by their actions prior to the attack. Yet she has no choice but to depend on the aid of the God of War to help her protect her kingdom until they discover more about the enemy's plans, or how they have escaped from the Netherworld, where they had been confined during a previous war that had involved Tianxia.
When the enemy attacks again, using magic to cut-off Tianxia from the Immortals, Liyen ends up in the Netherworld. And there, the plot twists begin, as she finds out more about her past relationship with the God of War and about the previous war. Now, she is offered two visions of a future where she emerges victorious; but in both, her kingdom ends up in ruins. Determined to avoid this, Liyen must find another path before the enemy breaks out of the Netherworld and rises again to challenge the Immortals.
Like the author's previous stories, this one features strong characters involved in a romantic relationship, while ending up in a conflict that both would rather resolve in peaceful ways. Liyen here is mortal with few of the magical powers of the Immortals, yet she feels a strong responsibility towards her kingdom and strives to find a way to protect her people and others, even if it would saddle her with hard decisions.
A book that starts somewhat slowly with the relationship between her and the God of War, but quickly picks up steam once that stakes for Liyen start to rise.