Heaven Official's Blessing

by Mò Xiāng Tóng Xiù

Genres: Fantasy, Romance
Pages: 404
Series: Heaven Official's Blessing / Tian Guan Ci Fu #7
Rating:

Synopsis:

LIFETIMES OF CRUELTY, CENTURIES OF DEVOTION

The Kiln is open, and White No-Face is back to his full power. The past eight hundred years have not blunted his hatred nor his obsession with Xie Lian — he aims to break Xie Lian down to nothing, even if all of humanity and the heavens themselves are collateral damage.

This time, however, Xie Lian will not face him alone. Together with Hua Cheng — powerful ghost king, stalwart protector, and devoted love — can Xie Lian finally reveal the face behind the mask and put an end to the nightmare forever?

It was perhaps a mistake to dash on and read book eight of Heaven Official’s Blessing before I wrote a review for book seven, but here we are, so I’ll do my best! And to be honest, I would recommend reading them that way too. Book seven is back in the “present” (after the flashback in book six), and it’s hurtling rapidly toward a final confrontation which takes up the first half of book eight (the latter half is extras). You won’t want to stop at the end of book seven, especially not given where it ends.

Book seven sees Xie Lian break out of the Kiln, reunite with Hua Cheng, return to the heavenly court, discover the big bad, play hide and seek with his captor around the heavenly court, and then essentially re-enact some Gundam series or other in an epic battle that takes him into Black Water’s domain. It’s full of action, and the end of the book isn’t really a natural break — it’s a cliffhanger moment, and it makes some sense to end a volume there, but as a reader it’s super annoying (and in terms of actual plot, there’s only half a book left).

This volume also sees Hua Cheng and Xie Lian comfortable in their feelings for each other (if not, in Xie Lian’s case, always happy with public displays of affection, or other people knowing about their relationship). More than ever, Hua Cheng’s total devotion is on show — and so is the answering strength his support wakens in Xie Lian. It’s lovely to read.

The story that’s been building over the previous six volumes is so satisfying at this point, with so many threads (which didn’t always tie together yet) coming together. I keep wondering when I’ll rate any given volume five stars, and it’s difficult to say: no volume alone makes me think “it’s perfect”; it’s the whole that gives me that feeling.

Rating: 4/5