My review is a little tainted by bias since reading this book was really fun for me because it was the first book I’ve read in Chinese, so my perspective is a little clouded by the joy of reading in a second language, and I started this book because I absolutely loved the show and needed something to tide me over until season 3, so I have trouble rating it lower than 5 stars because I enjoyed reading it so much haha.
In terms of the story itself I found that even though this book is slower since it’s focused on Fan Xian’s backstory, it is still so interesting as you look into what it must be like to go through the strange and confusing experience that Fan Xian has. I love watching him adapt to the world and finding allies where he can.
It's a very long book. took me 3 months to finish it, but it's fun to read or listen. I enjoyed the second part of the book the most, the ending could be better with fewer words in my opinion. Using the author's words, he wrote the book for joys and hope bring it to readers...task well accomplished.