What do you think?
Rate this book
Astrolabe Rebirth
In a world ruled by machines, one human stumbles upon a mysterious man whose presence foreshadows an apocalypse. Sci-fi meets danmei (Boys’ Love) in this brand-new story by Arise Zhang, also known as Fei Tian Ye Xiang (非天夜翔)—author of Legend of Exorcism and Dinghai Fusheng Records!
Somewhere along the tides of time, humans lost their position as the dominant species. Instead, they became subjugated by the City of Machines—a gleaming metropolis crafted by the androids’ ruling class. With guidance from their deity, Father, these machines wield control with an iron fist.
This is the new reality for the young human slave, A-Ka, who struggles daily just to survive upon the Astrolabe. After all, life on this planet-sized petri dish is no easy feat. Yet when A-Ka encounters a mysterious raven-haired man named Heishi cocooned along a desolate beach, everything changes. As foretold in stories, this stranger’s appearance means life in the Astrolabe is on the brink. When all is lost to the apocalypse, what—and who—will remain?
400 pages, Paperback
Published July 29, 2025
53 people are currently reading
815 people want to read
About the author
Fei Tian Ye Xiang
83 books159 followersAssociated Names:
* 非天夜翔
* Arise Zhang
* Fei Tian Ye Xiang
* เฟยเทียนเย่เสียง (Thai Profile)
* 非天夜翔
* Arise Zhang
* Fei Tian Ye Xiang
* เฟยเทียนเย่เสียง (Thai Profile)
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 78 reviews
September 24, 2025
DNF at pg 200
Honestly, a disappointing read. I think this could have been an interesting story, but the world building was flimsy, nothing was explained and the characters were just cardboard cutouts.
Honestly, a disappointing read. I think this could have been an interesting story, but the world building was flimsy, nothing was explained and the characters were just cardboard cutouts.
August 10, 2025
This ended up being a pretty disappointing read. I was already feeling a bit skeptical going in, mostly because it’s so short, and books set in a completely different universe usually need more than one volume to properly flesh out the world-building. It’s hard to immerse yourself in a new setting when so much has to be introduced in such a limited page count. Still, I hoped it would surprise me. Unfortunately, it ended up being even weaker than I expected.
The first few chapters were crammed with events and characters, and the pacing felt rushed from the start. Instead of gradually easing the reader into the world, it just threw information and plot points at me all at once, and I was left trying to piece things together on my own. A lot of it felt incoherent, and because of that, many potentially interesting elements were left underdeveloped. By the time I reached the halfway point, I had more questions than answers, and the story never circled back to resolve them.
The romantic development was also disappointingly thin. It’s hard to believe A-Ka and Heishi truly loved each other because there’s so little shown of them actually falling for one another. Their relationship felt more like it was told to us rather than shown through meaningful moments or gradual emotional growth. Without that foundation, their bond just didn’t carry the weight it was supposed to.
And then there’s the ending. It felt abrupt and unsatisfying, leaving me with the sense that the story stopped before it had really finished. At the very least, an extra chapter could have given the characters and the readers some closure. As it is, it’s like the book simply ran out of pages before it could properly wrap up its ideas.
Overall, it’s a book with potential that’s ultimately undone by its rushed pacing, lack of depth, and underdeveloped relationships. It could have been something great with more room to breathe, but instead, it just left me feeling frustrated and unfulfilled.
The first few chapters were crammed with events and characters, and the pacing felt rushed from the start. Instead of gradually easing the reader into the world, it just threw information and plot points at me all at once, and I was left trying to piece things together on my own. A lot of it felt incoherent, and because of that, many potentially interesting elements were left underdeveloped. By the time I reached the halfway point, I had more questions than answers, and the story never circled back to resolve them.
The romantic development was also disappointingly thin. It’s hard to believe A-Ka and Heishi truly loved each other because there’s so little shown of them actually falling for one another. Their relationship felt more like it was told to us rather than shown through meaningful moments or gradual emotional growth. Without that foundation, their bond just didn’t carry the weight it was supposed to.
And then there’s the ending. It felt abrupt and unsatisfying, leaving me with the sense that the story stopped before it had really finished. At the very least, an extra chapter could have given the characters and the readers some closure. As it is, it’s like the book simply ran out of pages before it could properly wrap up its ideas.
Overall, it’s a book with potential that’s ultimately undone by its rushed pacing, lack of depth, and underdeveloped relationships. It could have been something great with more room to breathe, but instead, it just left me feeling frustrated and unfulfilled.
February 8, 2023
[Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]
Feb 6, 2023 - Feb 7, 2023
Possible spoilers ahead, be warned...
Another sci-fi danmei I've now added to my pitifully small pile. I've always wanted to read more sci-fi danmei, but I'm always reluctant to pick one up. The only sci-fi danmei I've really love so far is Mist by Wei Feng Ji Xu, and it's about time travel. I really loved it so much that I was afraid I wouldn't like another sci-fi danmei. I've seen this novel a lot of times and read good reviews about this so here I am.
This can be considered shorter than average novel, but it doesn't feel like it. A lot has happened in a short span of time I was reading it and it definitely didn't have any unnecessary scenes. All happened purposefully and the foreshadowing is strong from the very beginning.
Though it might not be the best and wouldn't be included in my top favorite, I had fun reading this one. But the last part kind of ended abruptly. I wanted atleast a chapter or two more to wrapped things up nicely, but the climax and the ending all happened in just two chapters. I think this is the disadvantage of an action-packed novels with a shorter length. It would be harder for the author to end the story that would give a solid and satisfying ending in a short amount of time.
But nevertheless, it's a good story. Many complicated sci-fi terms but easy to understand, atleast for me. This is a danmei so it's natural to have a BL subplot. The relationship between the MC and ML is actually adorable to follow. Despite their banter, the full trust they give each other is still evident. But I really want to rant about them not having enough moments after the 'reunion'. I would have loved to see their interactions together after all the issues are resolved. I don't like the subtleness of that reunion part, as if the author was like: you know what will happen, no need for me to elaborate. I was like, NO, I want you to elaborate!
But, I still recommend this. It wouldn't take a lot of time whether you end up liking it or not. I definitely didn't regret picking this up.
Feb 6, 2023 - Feb 7, 2023
Possible spoilers ahead, be warned...
Another sci-fi danmei I've now added to my pitifully small pile. I've always wanted to read more sci-fi danmei, but I'm always reluctant to pick one up. The only sci-fi danmei I've really love so far is Mist by Wei Feng Ji Xu, and it's about time travel. I really loved it so much that I was afraid I wouldn't like another sci-fi danmei. I've seen this novel a lot of times and read good reviews about this so here I am.
This can be considered shorter than average novel, but it doesn't feel like it. A lot has happened in a short span of time I was reading it and it definitely didn't have any unnecessary scenes. All happened purposefully and the foreshadowing is strong from the very beginning.
Though it might not be the best and wouldn't be included in my top favorite, I had fun reading this one. But the last part kind of ended abruptly. I wanted atleast a chapter or two more to wrapped things up nicely, but the climax and the ending all happened in just two chapters. I think this is the disadvantage of an action-packed novels with a shorter length. It would be harder for the author to end the story that would give a solid and satisfying ending in a short amount of time.
But nevertheless, it's a good story. Many complicated sci-fi terms but easy to understand, atleast for me. This is a danmei so it's natural to have a BL subplot. The relationship between the MC and ML is actually adorable to follow. Despite their banter, the full trust they give each other is still evident. But I really want to rant about them not having enough moments after the 'reunion'. I would have loved to see their interactions together after all the issues are resolved. I don't like the subtleness of that reunion part, as if the author was like: you know what will happen, no need for me to elaborate. I was like, NO, I want you to elaborate!
But, I still recommend this. It wouldn't take a lot of time whether you end up liking it or not. I definitely didn't regret picking this up.
November 16, 2025
2/5stars
I think I have a similar opinion as most people that this book had the bones for something great - the characters, the story, the amazing world - but it just wasn't long enough to actually do any of those things well. Introducing the characters, world, story, having an entire rebellion and then a 6 month timeskip all within the first 65 pages is just a LITTLE much in my opinion
Especially knowing how Fei Tian can write when he gives himself the space to (aka Legend of Exorcism) I think this book was just very early on in his writing career and isn't his best work.
I think I have a similar opinion as most people that this book had the bones for something great - the characters, the story, the amazing world - but it just wasn't long enough to actually do any of those things well. Introducing the characters, world, story, having an entire rebellion and then a 6 month timeskip all within the first 65 pages is just a LITTLE much in my opinion
Especially knowing how Fei Tian can write when he gives himself the space to (aka Legend of Exorcism) I think this book was just very early on in his writing career and isn't his best work.
September 1, 2025
I usually don't drop books right before the end, but this one was so bad that I hated the thought of wasting even one more minute of my life on reading it, and I not only dropped it - I mentally threw it far away from me 3 chapters before the end. Sometimes, I just don't click with a novel, and recognize it's not the novel's fault. But this time? It's 100% the novel's fault. I love science fiction and I love dystopia, but I love it when they're good, and this one just isn't. I've also read several other novels from this author, so I know he can write way better than this.
Astrolabe Rebirth is anything but original, as other reviewers pointed out as well. The characters were criminally underdeveloped, and the romance was not romancing either. It was just plain awful reading experience, every page felt like time wasted, and I forced myself through it until I couldn't even force myself anymore.
You can't even say the novel's numerous issues stem from it being only 1 volume, because I've read many infinitely better standalones of the same length - length has nothing to do with how the whole novel just fails in every single aspect.
Astrolabe Rebirth is anything but original, as other reviewers pointed out as well. The characters were criminally underdeveloped, and the romance was not romancing either. It was just plain awful reading experience, every page felt like time wasted, and I forced myself through it until I couldn't even force myself anymore.
You can't even say the novel's numerous issues stem from it being only 1 volume, because I've read many infinitely better standalones of the same length - length has nothing to do with how the whole novel just fails in every single aspect.
February 27, 2025
Pros:
-Short- only 19 chapters
-Written in 3rd person
-Found family trope
-Happy ending
Cons
- A lot happens in the 1st 5x chapters and my mind was blown. After that it got boring and confusing at times.
I thought it was going to be an 'evil robots' kind of sci-fi story which I love but that's not the case. I was confused when the time travel happened towards the end and I don't enjoy sci- fi stories which have that in.
- Under-developed world building.
- Flat & forgettable characters
-The romance was non-existent. I didn't buy into A-Ka (MC) and Heishi (ML) having feelings for each other.
Basically, I love evil robots so am disappointed with this. For readers who want a sci-fi danmei I would still recommend 'Little Mushroom' rather than this because chances are it won't let you down.
-Short- only 19 chapters
-Written in 3rd person
-Found family trope
-Happy ending
Cons
- A lot happens in the 1st 5x chapters and my mind was blown. After that it got boring and confusing at times.
I thought it was going to be an 'evil robots' kind of sci-fi story which I love but that's not the case. I was confused when the time travel happened towards the end and I don't enjoy sci- fi stories which have that in.
- Under-developed world building.
- Flat & forgettable characters
-The romance was non-existent. I didn't buy into A-Ka (MC) and Heishi (ML) having feelings for each other.
Basically, I love evil robots so am disappointed with this. For readers who want a sci-fi danmei I would still recommend 'Little Mushroom' rather than this because chances are it won't let you down.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 28, 2025
this was REALLY bad. like BAD bad.
the characters, plot, worldbuilding, romance. everything was rushed and underdeveloped. this definitely should have been a series.
the characters, plot, worldbuilding, romance. everything was rushed and underdeveloped. this definitely should have been a series.
dnf
August 9, 2025dnf @36%
ummmm well this did not go how i hoped it would
starting to realize that i simply cannot get into the earlier works by feitian ye xiang. loved tianbao fuyao and riverbay road men’s dormitory but my experience with this danmei and 2013: doomsday was completely different…😬
ummmm well this did not go how i hoped it would
starting to realize that i simply cannot get into the earlier works by feitian ye xiang. loved tianbao fuyao and riverbay road men’s dormitory but my experience with this danmei and 2013: doomsday was completely different…😬
October 31, 2025
“I don’t want the world we have now to be the one you all live in. To change that, I’d give up my life, no question.”
I’m someone who usually gets swept up by a strong ending, so I try to jot down thoughts as I read to keep my impressions balanced. This story had moments that pulled me in, especially in the last stretch when the pace really started moving. But early on, it was tough to stay hooked. I found myself taking long breaks between chapters, not because the premise wasn’t interesting, but because the way the world was introduced felt rushed. The setting had plenty of potential, yet the short length left little room to fully explore or absorb it. With a world this different from our own, more space to breathe could have made a huge difference.
One thing that tripped me up was the naming. The main robot system and its creator share the same title, and without enough context or distinction, it created unnecessary confusion. I’ve read other works by Fei Tian where the characters spark off each other almost immediately. Here, the two leads never quite clicked for me. It wasn’t a matter of one being emotionless—it just felt like the connection between them never came alive. Because of that, the romantic angle didn’t feel earned and came across more like a narrative push than something that grew naturally.
Still, there’s an underlying charm in the concept, and parts of the execution worked for me once the momentum picked up. I can see readers enjoying this if they’re drawn to unconventional worlds and are fine with a lighter touch on character chemistry. For me, it was a mixed experience: moments of intrigue, flashes of emotion, and a finale that nearly made me forget the slow and uneven start.
Date Read: 2025.08.10
I’m someone who usually gets swept up by a strong ending, so I try to jot down thoughts as I read to keep my impressions balanced. This story had moments that pulled me in, especially in the last stretch when the pace really started moving. But early on, it was tough to stay hooked. I found myself taking long breaks between chapters, not because the premise wasn’t interesting, but because the way the world was introduced felt rushed. The setting had plenty of potential, yet the short length left little room to fully explore or absorb it. With a world this different from our own, more space to breathe could have made a huge difference.
One thing that tripped me up was the naming. The main robot system and its creator share the same title, and without enough context or distinction, it created unnecessary confusion. I’ve read other works by Fei Tian where the characters spark off each other almost immediately. Here, the two leads never quite clicked for me. It wasn’t a matter of one being emotionless—it just felt like the connection between them never came alive. Because of that, the romantic angle didn’t feel earned and came across more like a narrative push than something that grew naturally.
Still, there’s an underlying charm in the concept, and parts of the execution worked for me once the momentum picked up. I can see readers enjoying this if they’re drawn to unconventional worlds and are fine with a lighter touch on character chemistry. For me, it was a mixed experience: moments of intrigue, flashes of emotion, and a finale that nearly made me forget the slow and uneven start.
Date Read: 2025.08.10
August 5, 2025
I didn’t like the way this was written, it felt like a rough draft that needed all the details and descriptions filled in. Characters were flat, important events were hastily skimmed over, and the whole thing just felt very shallow. The story would’ve really benefitted from being longer to give it more depth but as is, I found it a bit of a chore to read.
I really hope this isn’t a typical example of Fei Tian Ye Xiang’s writing style
I really hope this isn’t a typical example of Fei Tian Ye Xiang’s writing style
August 9, 2025
While this isn’t my favorite Fei Tian novel, I still liked it! I tend to be pickier with sci-fi so I’m sure that is a contributing factor, but overall not a bad read
July 29, 2025
it was engaging read despite its length! i do think its shortness is what keeps certain things from feeling more.. complete? maybe? but i liked the journey. it's a good 3 tho!!
September 13, 2025
Well, I picked this one up thinking, “Ooh, this is going to be fun!” — and to be fair, the premise really was promising. But somewhere along the way, things got a little bumpy. By the halfway mark, I found myself silently chanting, “Just wrap it up, please…” Not quite the reading adventure I had hoped for.
This was my first book by this author, so I didn’t come in with any emotional attachment or prior expectations — which, judging by other reviews, may have actually made a difference. There’s a certain kind of grace we give authors we already know and love… sadly, I had none of that here.
That said, I have to give credit where it’s due: the author did manage to pack a lot into one book. Impressive? Yes. Overwhelming? Also yes. It felt a bit like cramming three seasons of a TV show into one feature film — you get the plot, but miss the magic.
Despite this lukewarm first encounter, I’m not writing the author off. I've heard glowing things about her other works, and I’m curious to see if those will hit the right notes for me. Fingers crossed!
Still… a bit sad this one didn’t quite deliver the spark I was hoping for.
This was my first book by this author, so I didn’t come in with any emotional attachment or prior expectations — which, judging by other reviews, may have actually made a difference. There’s a certain kind of grace we give authors we already know and love… sadly, I had none of that here.
That said, I have to give credit where it’s due: the author did manage to pack a lot into one book. Impressive? Yes. Overwhelming? Also yes. It felt a bit like cramming three seasons of a TV show into one feature film — you get the plot, but miss the magic.
Despite this lukewarm first encounter, I’m not writing the author off. I've heard glowing things about her other works, and I’m curious to see if those will hit the right notes for me. Fingers crossed!
Still… a bit sad this one didn’t quite deliver the spark I was hoping for.
August 1, 2025
4,5⭐️
This is such a brilliant story!
It reminded me of some parts of the plot as well as the character’s development and dynamic in Dinghai Fusheng Records-an historical novel written by the same author.
I felt as if I was reading the modern sci-fi version of this novel, even though Astrolabe Rebirth was written a few years before Dinghai.
However, I became so fond of the main characters and curious about the plot and mysteries about the figure of the “Father” that I binge-read all the middle part of the story.
So many scenes got me really emotional but ESPECIALLY the ending and the epilogue.
I feel the need to thank Feitian again for another wholesome novel.
This is such a brilliant story!
It reminded me of some parts of the plot as well as the character’s development and dynamic in Dinghai Fusheng Records-an historical novel written by the same author.
I felt as if I was reading the modern sci-fi version of this novel, even though Astrolabe Rebirth was written a few years before Dinghai.
However, I became so fond of the main characters and curious about the plot and mysteries about the figure of the “Father” that I binge-read all the middle part of the story.
So many scenes got me really emotional but ESPECIALLY the ending and the epilogue.
I feel the need to thank Feitian again for another wholesome novel.
October 25, 2025
3.5 stars
This had so much potential that was only sometimes realized. The worldbuilding is intricate and clearly was meant to reflect innate truths of humanity, but the events happened too quickly for most of this to linger. Due to the need for so much to happen in such a short period of time, much of the story was "told" rather than "shown".
I still enjoyed moments of it though. A-Ka is a sweetheart who was easy to root for. I liked seeing Heishi grow throughout, and they had some tender, introspective moments that helped me believe their connection.
While the events of the end were somewhat inevitable, I still found them moving, though I would have loved a more extended epilogue.
This had so much potential that was only sometimes realized. The worldbuilding is intricate and clearly was meant to reflect innate truths of humanity, but the events happened too quickly for most of this to linger. Due to the need for so much to happen in such a short period of time, much of the story was "told" rather than "shown".
I still enjoyed moments of it though. A-Ka is a sweetheart who was easy to root for. I liked seeing Heishi grow throughout, and they had some tender, introspective moments that helped me believe their connection.
While the events of the end were somewhat inevitable, I still found them moving, though I would have loved a more extended epilogue.
September 29, 2025
Read Little Mushroom instead.
September 26, 2025
The pacing was a disaster, everything was crammed in at once and instead of letting me actually understand the world, it just dumped piles of names, events, and exposition in my lap and expected me to keep up LMAO.
The so-called romance between A-Ka and Heishi was pathetic. There was no development and no real emotion... literally no reason to believe they gave a fuck about each other. It was all told to me instead of shown, like I was supposed to swallow “they’re in love” without ever seeing them actually fall in love. Their bond had no foundation.
The characters themselves were flat as hell. One-dimensional cardboard cutouts shoved around the plot with no real purpose.
I didn’t feel anything. And that’s the most damning thing I can say about a book... it was so fucking shallow and lifeless that I just didn’t care.
The so-called romance between A-Ka and Heishi was pathetic. There was no development and no real emotion... literally no reason to believe they gave a fuck about each other. It was all told to me instead of shown, like I was supposed to swallow “they’re in love” without ever seeing them actually fall in love. Their bond had no foundation.
The characters themselves were flat as hell. One-dimensional cardboard cutouts shoved around the plot with no real purpose.
I didn’t feel anything. And that’s the most damning thing I can say about a book... it was so fucking shallow and lifeless that I just didn’t care.
May 3, 2021
It was very difficult for me to finish this. Though written well, it just didn't hold my imagination to make me continue it.
August 4, 2025
I’ve read a couple of books by Fei Tian Ye Xiang and they’ve been a hit and miss with me. This one is more of a hit. It’s a stand-alone sci-fi set in a unique world of Astrolabe. The City of Steel is a dystopian place for humans, enslaved by Father, an AI that rules the city with camera surveillance, robots and human clones. It’s a miserable, polluted place, where humans are likely to meet an untimely end for violating strict rules.
A-Ka is 16 and has just begun working as a technician mending robots and clones, a job he has unique aptitude for, but he dreams of freedom. He’s found his way out of the city, and is building a mecha for himself in secret to escape. One day, he rescues a man from the sea, preserved in a sleeping pod. He has no memories, so A-Ka names him Heishi.
The two mean to go their separate ways, but fate intervenes in the form of a clone uprisal, and the two are swept along with it. They find themselves outside the city, fleeing with humans and clones to the other side of the continent where free people live.
As Heishi regains his memories, he remembers his purpose: rebooting Astrolabe to remove everything that has gone wrong with the system since it was initiated. But Father has the same command system, and may get there first, rebooting the system to its liking. Humans and clones must work together to help Heishi to shut down Father before the AI destroys everything. But the reboot requires a special human component, and that’s A-Ka, the only human Heishi has learned to love.
This was a good story. It was hasty, the world-building was shoddy, and descriptions were confusing if they existed, but the core story was interesting. It wasn’t much of a romance, but A-Ka and Heishi learned to love each other through their hardships. It has some sad moments that were slightly weakened through miraculous twists, but the ending was very good.
A-Ka was a great protagonist, downtrodden but resourceful and resilient. He gained a miraculous ability, but it wasn’t overused. Heishi remained distant, but as he gained his memories and learned about humans, he became more interesting. There were some good side characters too, with proper purpose for the story. I would’ve wished for more romance, but the story was satisfying as it was.
A-Ka is 16 and has just begun working as a technician mending robots and clones, a job he has unique aptitude for, but he dreams of freedom. He’s found his way out of the city, and is building a mecha for himself in secret to escape. One day, he rescues a man from the sea, preserved in a sleeping pod. He has no memories, so A-Ka names him Heishi.
The two mean to go their separate ways, but fate intervenes in the form of a clone uprisal, and the two are swept along with it. They find themselves outside the city, fleeing with humans and clones to the other side of the continent where free people live.
As Heishi regains his memories, he remembers his purpose: rebooting Astrolabe to remove everything that has gone wrong with the system since it was initiated. But Father has the same command system, and may get there first, rebooting the system to its liking. Humans and clones must work together to help Heishi to shut down Father before the AI destroys everything. But the reboot requires a special human component, and that’s A-Ka, the only human Heishi has learned to love.
This was a good story. It was hasty, the world-building was shoddy, and descriptions were confusing if they existed, but the core story was interesting. It wasn’t much of a romance, but A-Ka and Heishi learned to love each other through their hardships. It has some sad moments that were slightly weakened through miraculous twists, but the ending was very good.
A-Ka was a great protagonist, downtrodden but resourceful and resilient. He gained a miraculous ability, but it wasn’t overused. Heishi remained distant, but as he gained his memories and learned about humans, he became more interesting. There were some good side characters too, with proper purpose for the story. I would’ve wished for more romance, but the story was satisfying as it was.
August 14, 2025
“I am the Eliminator, the child of the Creator, I am here to pass judgment upon you all” this line is HARD and you can’t tell me otherwise.
This was interesting. Sci-fi still isn’t my favorite genre, and it probably never will be one I particularly enjoy. This I did enjoy though. The world building is very interesting. The whole Astrolabe is made based on a supercomputer. Almost everything is built and controlled by lines of code and I find that a very interesting concept.
I think the story is good for one volume but I was a bit confused at times. The romance is barleeeeyyyy there. The emotions and the way they interact with each other is a tell tale sign of love, but you don’t get much else than this.
I do believe that this is one of Fei Tian Ye Xiang’s earlier works and you can definitely see his writing improve with his later works like Legend of Exorcism, Dinghai Fusheng Records and Riverbay Road. For this being an earlier work is his, I do like it. My opinion can be biased though, considering I don’t typically read Sci-fi.
My favorite character has to be Percy and A-Ka. They’re both such good characters and I really enjoyed reading about them. A-Ka is such a protector and I love that about him.
A bit of the end made me cry (I’m an emotional being) and I’m actually quite happy with the ending.
Overall I give this a 3/5 cause though I did enjoy it, it wasn’t my favorite Danmei.
This was interesting. Sci-fi still isn’t my favorite genre, and it probably never will be one I particularly enjoy. This I did enjoy though. The world building is very interesting. The whole Astrolabe is made based on a supercomputer. Almost everything is built and controlled by lines of code and I find that a very interesting concept.
I think the story is good for one volume but I was a bit confused at times. The romance is barleeeeyyyy there. The emotions and the way they interact with each other is a tell tale sign of love, but you don’t get much else than this.
I do believe that this is one of Fei Tian Ye Xiang’s earlier works and you can definitely see his writing improve with his later works like Legend of Exorcism, Dinghai Fusheng Records and Riverbay Road. For this being an earlier work is his, I do like it. My opinion can be biased though, considering I don’t typically read Sci-fi.
My favorite character has to be Percy and A-Ka. They’re both such good characters and I really enjoyed reading about them. A-Ka is such a protector and I love that about him.
A bit of the end made me cry (I’m an emotional being) and I’m actually quite happy with the ending.
Overall I give this a 3/5 cause though I did enjoy it, it wasn’t my favorite Danmei.
October 6, 2025
Firstly, I don't think this was inherently a bad story, and I'm still glad that I read it. The last few chapters were absolutely beautiful. However, I definitely did struggle to get through the story overall, and because of that would only recommend to folks who are looking for a single volume danmei to read, or just really enjoy sci-fi -- specifically earlier works where the overall plot of the story holds more weight and relevancy over anything else.
I didn't mind most of the characters, honestly, and for the purpose they served I felt like there was enough to them to push the story along. But again, the plot definitely overshadowed them, and because of that a lot of moments early on that should have been emotional or emotionally driven were left feeling weaker and unmoving compared to ones towards the end of the book. Compared to other works by Fei Tian Ye Xiang, this one definitely felt on the weaker side. In fact, due to the nature of the plot, it felt more serious aligned, leaving little room for character growth and minimal world building as it pushes readers along.
That's not to say there aren't little moments here and there to make you laugh, though. Such as Heishi scaling up a skyscraper with a plunger, which would have been delightful to see if this had been in donghua form. Or, one of my personal favorites from Ch.13, page 256:
"Heishi had on a strange expression as he passed a girl selling flowers on the roadside, as if he couldn't figure out why she would harvest the genitals of plants living in the wild only to sell them to her own people at a higher price."
While I do wish there had been a little more depth to it at least with the characters, it still had a satisfying end. I think if a reddit post I read about it hadn't attributed it to being closer related to older sci-fi novels, I wouldn't have been able to make the connection and more so would have been left with the impression and misunderstanding that maybe FTYX is just weaker at writing sci-fi novels. But after having that cleared up, I can definitely see what the user was pointing at, and it did give me a stronger sense of appreciation for the novel.
So with that, as a tldr; in good faith I can only recommend this book to folks who are looking for a single volume danmei to read, and/or enjoy sci-fi works where the plot is held in higher regard. If you decide to pick it up, definitely keep an open mind. This work is not written like how one would think most danmei are or should be.
I didn't mind most of the characters, honestly, and for the purpose they served I felt like there was enough to them to push the story along. But again, the plot definitely overshadowed them, and because of that a lot of moments early on that should have been emotional or emotionally driven were left feeling weaker and unmoving compared to ones towards the end of the book. Compared to other works by Fei Tian Ye Xiang, this one definitely felt on the weaker side. In fact, due to the nature of the plot, it felt more serious aligned, leaving little room for character growth and minimal world building as it pushes readers along.
That's not to say there aren't little moments here and there to make you laugh, though. Such as Heishi scaling up a skyscraper with a plunger, which would have been delightful to see if this had been in donghua form. Or, one of my personal favorites from Ch.13, page 256:
"Heishi had on a strange expression as he passed a girl selling flowers on the roadside, as if he couldn't figure out why she would harvest the genitals of plants living in the wild only to sell them to her own people at a higher price."
While I do wish there had been a little more depth to it at least with the characters, it still had a satisfying end. I think if a reddit post I read about it hadn't attributed it to being closer related to older sci-fi novels, I wouldn't have been able to make the connection and more so would have been left with the impression and misunderstanding that maybe FTYX is just weaker at writing sci-fi novels. But after having that cleared up, I can definitely see what the user was pointing at, and it did give me a stronger sense of appreciation for the novel.
So with that, as a tldr; in good faith I can only recommend this book to folks who are looking for a single volume danmei to read, and/or enjoy sci-fi works where the plot is held in higher regard. If you decide to pick it up, definitely keep an open mind. This work is not written like how one would think most danmei are or should be.
August 31, 2025
This is the worst book I've ever read, to be honest. For a danmei set in a sci-fi story about a conflict between humans, clones, and robots, the author didn't seem to know much about technology, mechanics, politics or war. Even the romance was not believable for me. The main characters interactions are cliche and reminded me of a soap opera. The world building and plot were full of holes and not explained well. The side characters were inconsistent and uninteresting. The action scenes were all over the place. The whole book read like a rough draft where important details would be explained as an afterthought, as if the author forgot to put it in where it was supposed to be and didn't want to go back to fix it. With so many danmei untranslated, I don't know why Seven Seas decided to publish this one.
January 21, 2026
Update: I changed it to 5 stars because this book has been my Roman Empire recently and I genuinely can’t get it out of my head.
“I went to all of the places that you spoke of, but I cannot sense you. The sunlight, the wind, the rainwater, the snowflakes, the great land and its various inhabitants—and none of it contains your essence.”
4.25 stars. This book genuinely surprised me. I picked it up out of curiosity because it looked very unique and I didn’t expect much out of it, but I will definitely be reading more from this author. For some reason, his writing reminds me a lot of C.S. Lewis.
The reasons for the .25 is because the time jumps in this felt a little bit out of the blue. They made sense eventually and played in really nicely, but the six month one in the first third of the book really jump-scared me. I mean, it ended up feeling like it fit really well, but it definitely got me in the moment. The second reason is because while the world was painted beautifully for the readers, I really wanted a map. I may create one during my re-read, but it would’ve definitely helped out a lot if one was provided, even if the author is great at creating the image for you.
But pretty much everything about this book felt so beautiful. The word and lore was absolutely stunning throughout and made the yapping worth it because I love when a book has good world building and lore. And even though the lore (and world too, but lore for the most part) took me a few times of reading the pages over and over to get, it made it worth it when it all came together.
I loved the natural growth between Heishi (Zoroaster) and A-Ka, rather than the classic tension. I also loved how everything started with A-Ka finding Heishi in a chamber on the beach and waking him up, then ended with Heishi finding the chamber on the beach with A-Ka and waking him up. And the reason for A-Ka being in the chamber stemmed from their journey back in time (to when A-Ka first found him) when Heishi implanted the “Cocoon” program in the chamber, inadvertently saving A-Ka’s life.
I also adored how, the whole book, Heishi didn’t consider himself human or capable of having emotions despite showing them basically the whole time (which is so human in itself, if you ask me) and ended up being capable of growing them due to the nature of the one who wakes him up having the emotions the Creator was waiting to evolve. A-Ka constantly asking Heishi about emotions and Heishi dodging the question only to ultimately accept them was amazing.
Then, of course, Feiluo (rip). Him and Percy were just… oh, too cute of a father-son duo. And Feiluo dying?! Excuse me, no thank you. Idc if Karna shares a chip with him and has all his memories and thoughts and can play the part, I will still be crying because Percy knew! He knew as soon as they returned, and still hugged him and was grateful. And A-Ka crying and mourning while Heishi hugged him was so cute and just sad.
Then there’s the festival bit (I think my favorite sequence) coming full circle starting with Heishi only going because A-Ka wanted to, followed by the dinner and their first kiss. Then the “year later” with the kids asking Heishi if he was gonna go and Heishi saying that if he found who he was looking for, he would. Then that quote (I wrote at the beginning) following.
Overall, this book was wonderfully elegant and I would even say poetic. I will definitely be giving it a re-read with tabs because I didn’t have the right colored tabs (or enough) this time around. The world building and lore was amazingly crafted, weaved together with the relationships shown throughout really pulled it all together.
“I went to all of the places that you spoke of, but I cannot sense you. The sunlight, the wind, the rainwater, the snowflakes, the great land and its various inhabitants—and none of it contains your essence.”
4.25 stars. This book genuinely surprised me. I picked it up out of curiosity because it looked very unique and I didn’t expect much out of it, but I will definitely be reading more from this author. For some reason, his writing reminds me a lot of C.S. Lewis.
The reasons for the .25 is because the time jumps in this felt a little bit out of the blue. They made sense eventually and played in really nicely, but the six month one in the first third of the book really jump-scared me. I mean, it ended up feeling like it fit really well, but it definitely got me in the moment. The second reason is because while the world was painted beautifully for the readers, I really wanted a map. I may create one during my re-read, but it would’ve definitely helped out a lot if one was provided, even if the author is great at creating the image for you.
But pretty much everything about this book felt so beautiful. The word and lore was absolutely stunning throughout and made the yapping worth it because I love when a book has good world building and lore. And even though the lore (and world too, but lore for the most part) took me a few times of reading the pages over and over to get, it made it worth it when it all came together.
I loved the natural growth between Heishi (Zoroaster) and A-Ka, rather than the classic tension. I also loved how everything started with A-Ka finding Heishi in a chamber on the beach and waking him up, then ended with Heishi finding the chamber on the beach with A-Ka and waking him up. And the reason for A-Ka being in the chamber stemmed from their journey back in time (to when A-Ka first found him) when Heishi implanted the “Cocoon” program in the chamber, inadvertently saving A-Ka’s life.
I also adored how, the whole book, Heishi didn’t consider himself human or capable of having emotions despite showing them basically the whole time (which is so human in itself, if you ask me) and ended up being capable of growing them due to the nature of the one who wakes him up having the emotions the Creator was waiting to evolve. A-Ka constantly asking Heishi about emotions and Heishi dodging the question only to ultimately accept them was amazing.
Then, of course, Feiluo (rip). Him and Percy were just… oh, too cute of a father-son duo. And Feiluo dying?! Excuse me, no thank you. Idc if Karna shares a chip with him and has all his memories and thoughts and can play the part, I will still be crying because Percy knew! He knew as soon as they returned, and still hugged him and was grateful. And A-Ka crying and mourning while Heishi hugged him was so cute and just sad.
Then there’s the festival bit (I think my favorite sequence) coming full circle starting with Heishi only going because A-Ka wanted to, followed by the dinner and their first kiss. Then the “year later” with the kids asking Heishi if he was gonna go and Heishi saying that if he found who he was looking for, he would. Then that quote (I wrote at the beginning) following.
Overall, this book was wonderfully elegant and I would even say poetic. I will definitely be giving it a re-read with tabs because I didn’t have the right colored tabs (or enough) this time around. The world building and lore was amazingly crafted, weaved together with the relationships shown throughout really pulled it all together.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 2, 2025
dnf @ 55%
I wasn't really feeling this one as much as I wanted to. The story was at times a little hard to follow, characters weren't fleshed out and felt one-dimensional, and things were just kind of happening to where it felt like I was reading a first rough draft rather than a finalized version. The romance was also severely lacking so I couldn't even look forward to that. There were a couple of things I liked, just not enough for me to continue this.
I wasn't really feeling this one as much as I wanted to. The story was at times a little hard to follow, characters weren't fleshed out and felt one-dimensional, and things were just kind of happening to where it felt like I was reading a first rough draft rather than a finalized version. The romance was also severely lacking so I couldn't even look forward to that. There were a couple of things I liked, just not enough for me to continue this.
January 10, 2026
Honestly, this is a solid 4 stars for me… but I’m lowkey annoyed by how many negative reviews this book has, so ⭐️
A-ka is such a lovely character and even though we didn’t get a ton of romantic moments, we did get lots of good scenes with Heishi and other characters.
If you don’t like sci-fi or hate standalones and YA then I truly don’t know why you’re here putting yourself through this for no reason. Like, what were you all expecting in 300 pages?
It’s a really strong YA sci-fi that manages to do a lot in very few pages.
Choose your battles people 🧍🏻♀️
A-ka is such a lovely character and even though we didn’t get a ton of romantic moments, we did get lots of good scenes with Heishi and other characters.
If you don’t like sci-fi or hate standalones and YA then I truly don’t know why you’re here putting yourself through this for no reason. Like, what were you all expecting in 300 pages?
It’s a really strong YA sci-fi that manages to do a lot in very few pages.
Choose your battles people 🧍🏻♀️
August 1, 2025
It was a boring boring book with too much focus on worldbuilding and bland exposition and unoriginal plot (try Matrix and Terminator have a child and Star Wars is a surogate parent), and too little emotions, humor, chemistry or interesting characters or any heart, really. And yeah, the ending can be heartstrings pulling, but that’s only the last pages and I suffered enough.
January 12, 2022
3.92/5
A thrilling and enjoyable sci-fi read.
There is this one review I saw on nu page that I agree with, wish it had two more chapters maybe giving more room for romance. The world building in this novel is immaculate and as expected of Feitian ge, the plot is well executed.
The way the trust between Heishi and A-Ka developed during their whole adventure felt so natural. It's about ending an era of robots and creating new world in same world, humans and clones civilization flourishing, made me think a lot about mankind for hours
A thrilling and enjoyable sci-fi read.
There is this one review I saw on nu page that I agree with, wish it had two more chapters maybe giving more room for romance. The world building in this novel is immaculate and as expected of Feitian ge, the plot is well executed.
The way the trust between Heishi and A-Ka developed during their whole adventure felt so natural. It's about ending an era of robots and creating new world in same world, humans and clones civilization flourishing, made me think a lot about mankind for hours
July 27, 2021
El mundo me encantó, y la acción a sido interesante.
Solo le veo de fallo que la historia a sido apresurada, como comprimida.
Me ha costado mucho encariñarme con los personajes por ello.
Esta novela me recuerda a la típica película que ves por la televisión de manera random una tarde.
Interesante pero del tipo que acabas olvidando.
Solo le veo de fallo que la historia a sido apresurada, como comprimida.
Me ha costado mucho encariñarme con los personajes por ello.
Esta novela me recuerda a la típica película que ves por la televisión de manera random una tarde.
Interesante pero del tipo que acabas olvidando.
September 20, 2025
Where do I even start with this one?
Lots of info-dumping, one-dimensional characters, too many deus ex machina moments, and a main couple with like no chemistry resulted in a story that I just flat-out did not care about by the end. Basically every trope or character archetype utilized here has been done a millions times better somewhere else.
Our protagonist, A-Ka, acts in ways that are entirely baffling to me. Supposedly, he and the rest of the humans in the city are essentially raised from birth to serve the robot overlords, and people live and die at the pleasure of these machines. You would think that, due to how he was raised, A-Ka would have some level of confusion when traveling to large cities of human populations roaming freely, but no, he seems to be very confident of what's going on at all times.
I feel like Astrolabe Rebirth would have benefitted by being a longer story with more space for world-building and for the characters to have the emotional arcs that they needed to feel fully fleshed out.
What's crazy is that the last volume of danmei I gave 5 stars to was by the SAME AUTHOR, so I'm a bit baffled as to what went wrong here.
This was also my first attempt to branch out into danmei that wasn't fantasy or historical in nature, and, well... Can't say it went as positively as I would have hoped.
Lots of info-dumping, one-dimensional characters, too many deus ex machina moments, and a main couple with like no chemistry resulted in a story that I just flat-out did not care about by the end. Basically every trope or character archetype utilized here has been done a millions times better somewhere else.
Our protagonist, A-Ka, acts in ways that are entirely baffling to me. Supposedly, he and the rest of the humans in the city are essentially raised from birth to serve the robot overlords, and people live and die at the pleasure of these machines. You would think that, due to how he was raised, A-Ka would have some level of confusion when traveling to large cities of human populations roaming freely, but no, he seems to be very confident of what's going on at all times.
I feel like Astrolabe Rebirth would have benefitted by being a longer story with more space for world-building and for the characters to have the emotional arcs that they needed to feel fully fleshed out.
What's crazy is that the last volume of danmei I gave 5 stars to was by the SAME AUTHOR, so I'm a bit baffled as to what went wrong here.
This was also my first attempt to branch out into danmei that wasn't fantasy or historical in nature, and, well... Can't say it went as positively as I would have hoped.
November 22, 2025
[Dropped] This is honestly just one big hot mess, and I can’t force myself to finish this one. I had trouble grasping anything or anyone because everything really is just crammed together to make a story. No world building. The book just keeps throwing information at you, and expects you to know what is going on. The romance really is just nonexistent, and I was reaching the middle of the book. There really is no connection between the two characters and there is no chemistry. Just the author trying to push two characters together, and when we do get scenes together it just feels flat. Everything just feels flat really. Just skip this one and save yourself the disappointment.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 78 reviews