Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C Dao is an East Asian fantasy re-imagining of The Evil Queen legend about one peasant girl’s quest to become Empress – and the darkness she must unleash to achieve her destiny. I received my copy of the book in the October FairyLoot, which featured all things “Villainous” – otherwise, I really don’t think I would have picked this one up for myself. I haven’t been a huge fan of fairy tale retellings of late, and this seemed like another YA Fantasy Retelling ripe for disappointment.
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.
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