When you read the sequel to an amazing book, there’s always that nagging worry that it’ll be a let-down, that it won’t live up to the first, that it will somehow ruin the magic. I did not have that worry with He Who Drowned the Sun, and I was right not to. It’s an incredible finish to an incredible beginning; a heart-breaking, gut-wrenching, yet soaring and victorious tale.

Ouyang and Zhu’s begrudging alliance turned frenemy-ship (for lack of a better term) was phenomenal. I knew it wasn’t going to end well, but I was still so devastated when it all went sideways, which is a testament to how this book gets under your skin even when you think it won’t.

Baoxiang really comes into his own as a character here, and the ways in which he manages to become sympathetic to the reader despite his ambitions being in direct opposition to Zhu’s is amazing. His enigmatic not-romance with the young prince was just such a gut-punch, as was him falling for Ma in the third act and then getting his just-deserts.

Where She Who Became the Sun was about reaching out and taking hold of one’s fate, He Who Drowned the World really picked up and continued on with the themes of sacrifice and losing/giving up whatever is necessary to ultimately achieve one’s destiny. The scenery and the characters continued to sing with vivid, lush and immersive detail. Even the secondary characters, like Xu Da and Ma and even the Empress of Salt were still solid, well-rounded characters in their own right. These two books exist in perfect symbiosis with each other, and in my opinion are the ultimate duology.