Heaven Official's Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu (Deluxe Hardcover Novel) Vol. 1 (Heaven Official's Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu (Novel)) Hardcover – December 3, 2024

This review is mainly for those who are unfamiliar with the Chinese fantasy (xianxia) or BL (danmei) genres as a whole, like me. If you stumbled across this book because it's bestselling, but think you'll probably pass because these genres aren't "your thing," I encourage you to reconsider. It is a saga that transcends its genres the further you read. It is HUGE in Asia and quickly gaining traction globally, and is widely considered to be the best of its genre, and there's a reason for that! The story, characters, setting, and visuals (in the adaptations) are all fantastic.SFF is my favorite genre, but second is classic literature, and this actually contains some elements of the latter, which most fantasy (at least Western fantasy) does not. Men can probably enjoy the story too because there is so much else going on and it's definitely fantasy, not primarily romance. I'm older than the typical audience for this and have read A LOT of books, and this has edged past my other favorite book, The Count of Monte Cristo--yes, I love adventure/drama epics! My only complaint with the book is with the writing style in the beginning, which I explain below.There is also an excellent and thorough Chinese and xianxia guide in the back. If you're new to the genre, be sure to read this guide, because it will be much clearer that way.THE STORY (no spoilers)When I read the entire novel (not just this book 1), I expected adventure, mystery, romance, and humor. And there is plenty of all of that. What I didn't expect was ethics, philosophy, and intense drama. And the entire story is not just "from one adventure to the next," as it seems at first, but is all shown to be closely related at the end, like zooming out from one part of a weaving to see the entire tapestry. This surprised and impressed me as well. Many literary devices are masterfully used throughout.The original web novel is five books, which will be 8 printed books. This printed Book 1 covers just the first half of the web novel's Book 1, and it stays pretty lighthearted. The novel starts out slowly and then steadily increases in speed. The adventurous parts are greatly enjoyable and a fun ride. The dramatic parts (which are mostly in the web novel's Books 2 and 4, describing Xie Lian's past) are extremely intense, to the point that many recommend it's better to take some breaks here and there while reading them. But like all good drama, it lends a great deal of depth that brings the whole story to a different level. (The 17+ label is because of these parts.)This is my favorite summary of the whole story, by a fan: "The story is about Xie Lian's journey, and how he learned to love himself again, through the effort of a man who never had loved himself." Xie Lian and Hua Cheng's relationship and romance is a very organic slow build, and it's not at either extreme of being the full focus or just jammed in awkwardly, but it is still at the very clear heart of the story. There have only been a few romances I've encountered that are built on something much deeper than normal, and this is one of them; it can be called epic without exaggeration, and most romance stories now seem shallow by comparison. It's hard to imagine this kind of relationship being able to occur outside of this fantasy setting, which is probably why it can go to such a different level. And even though I'm not (yet) a general "BL" fan, this relationship is now one of my favorites.It is sweet and healthy, with no toxic elements and very high mutual respect, and just highly endearing. (Though there is one aspect that would be creepy outside its narrative.) Some problematic tropes are inverted; for example the influence of 'sex pollen' is rejected, age boundaries are maintained, and magically-induced dubcon (just of kissing) is halted. It apparently doesn't follow the usual BL tropes which cater to a heterosexual audience, and is instead more realistic in its portrayal of a same-sex relationship, which is great if true. It also is not explicit (unlike the author MXTX's other two books) which seemed to actually fit very well with the story--even though it was apparently because its webnovel platform had gotten more strict with censorship, which is a shame.The supporting characters are given a lot of focus as well, with a lot of time spent on their stories, which Xie Lian ends up being quite involved/entangled in; they are actually what drives the present-day plot in addition to Xie Lian's own journey. These characters are nuanced; there is bad in the "good" ones and good in the "bad," as well as growth as the story progresses. And they are all really well fleshed out characters who have their own strong fanbases among readers.The book is gripping and moving, and as I got further in, I REALLY got pulled into the story and it was hard to focus on the rest of my life. This is apparently a common reaction to this saga. While reading, I didn't do anything but work and the most necessary chores and family activities. I don't do well without enough sleep but I still stayed up too late several times. And even while doing other things (like an all-day D&D session) my mind kept wandering back to the book. I felt like I was between worlds. And when I finished, I felt hollow and bereft, and at a loss of what to do next, wishing the story could just go on. (This also is apparently common.) None of that has happened to me with a book in a very long time. So I'm trying to fill the holes with related art, videos, fanfic, fan groups, etc, and will re-read this as each of the printed books is released, as well as MXTX's other two books, and more danmei in general. The extra chapters set after the book's end helped to ease the sting as well.THE WRITING/TRANSLATIONI feel there are problems with the writing (or translation) style, mainly in about the first third of the novel. But stick it out because it gets better, and the story itself is worth it. In these early parts, the wording is very informal, and the phrasing is clunky and often stiff and simplistic. Sometimes it flows more naturally and is crisp, engaging and more appropriately formal, but this isn't consistent. According to some fans who have compared the original Chinese to this translation, the phrasing problems are in the translation, while the more informal dialogue matches the Chinese (but I've seen conflicting statements on this).It does improve as it goes on, however. In my first reading I thought that it might have just been my perception that changed the further I read; that I might have just gotten used to it, or was so engrossed in the story that I stopped noticing. But I'm re-reading it now and I can definitely say that the writing gets much better. There is also another possible factor on top of this, which is that in her postscript, the author describes some early struggles with this story, and that could also possibly account for some of the stilted feel at the beginning.The author has recently released her final version of this novel in Chinese (she's been working on it for years). This final version has some polishing and plot revisions (nothing significantly changing the storyline though) and 100,000 added words. What we now have published in English is not the final version, but publishers were told that this wasn't guaranteed to happen and they should go ahead with the version that they had been sent.THE ADAPTATIONSNote: This is updated periodically for the latest information.Like a lot of Westerners, I found this story through the donghua (animated series). Then I read the artistically stunning manhua (comic), and finally read the novel. I feel that the best order is the book first, and then the other two, because the book provides more detail that will increase the enjoyment of the manhua and donghua. However, some people have said that they preferred the other formats over the book (at least this first part of it), in part due to the writing style. The donghua is subbed on Netflix and excellently dubbed on Crunchyroll (which you can use for free for the first month). The manhua used to be on an official English webcomic platform but no longer is, so it can only be read either on the Chinese publisher's site (Bilibili), or a scanlation site. They both stick very closely to the book, but are not yet completed.The manhua and donghua lend exquisite visuals that greatly enhance the story. But the book's prologue made some things a lot more clear to me, particularly Xie Lian's past; though on the flip side, the donghua reveals things about Hua Cheng's past much earlier than the novel. In the book there are more details mainly in the interactions between the deuteragonists, revealing Xie Lian's inner thoughts about Hua Cheng, and some expressions/interactions between them that aren't as clear in the manhua and donghua. Conversely, some of the overt intimate gestures in the manhua and donghua aren't in the book, maybe since those formats don't show all the inner discourse, so those gestures compensate. And the donghua shows Hua Cheng's POV frequently, whereas the book is all from Xie Lian's POV.A live action TV series (C-drama) called Eternal Faith has finished filming but is not yet released. There is also a currently airing audio drama which is based on the final version of the novel (the other adaptations are based on the previous version).For more information about all the adaptations and the final version, visit this page: https://www.reddit.com/r/tianguancifu/wiki/faq/There has been concern about heavy censorship of the adaptations due to China's strict censorship laws, but so far they haven't been. In fact as I said, they are MORE overtly romantic so far than in the book, though the upcoming live action show will most likely be heavily censored. And it's likely that any kissing will be censored in all adaptations (except the audio drama), although because the animation studio is Japanese, they may release some extra uncensored content for non-Chinese audiences, as they've done with some other danmei stories. I do wonder if some of the side stories will be cut out of the adaptations to shorten them, which is common with book adaptations. The manhua has cut some scenes, but the donghua has not, and in fact added some scenes to a backstory that were not in the book.PRINT/PRODUCTION QUALITYThis is about as high quality as a paperback book can get. I usually get books on Kindle and wasn't sure if I'd want to keep the paperback, but I definitey am because it is gorgeous, as the customer videos show. While it is much higher quality than standard paperbacks, I do wish that it were more similar to the very elegant editions offered in some other languages, which are mostly hardback with more traditional and less cartoony cover art (though I do like the art on ours), a more formal title font, and even gold or silver foil. They also include extras such as prints, pins and bookmarks, and some have interior color art. (Look up the Vietnamese and Russian editions for a comparison.) Some also have box sets for every 2 books. I am hoping that we will get a special edition set more like these at some point.

Came in perfect condition, no rips or bends anywhere. The illustrations on the hard cover are relevant and mesmerizing. Wrapping around not only under the main cover, but also extending to the pages when the book is closed.The books contents are engaging and beautifully described, pulling you in and getting you invested in the characters. Cannot wait to collect the whole series in hard cover when it all comes out.

Like a lot of people here, I read the entirety of this series in an unofficial translation, and am elated to see that it's getting an English-language release. In short, all I can say is this: read it. It's been a year since I read it and I still can't get it out of my head - I reread my favorite parts of it all the time, and every single reread has me discovering something new. It's quite literally become my favorite book (and I've read a lot of books!)The love story in this book is absolutely stunning. One of the biggest strengths of the book is the slow-burn aspect; when it starts, it gives you a certain impression - I remember thinking, I get it, it's going to be this-and-that kind of love story - but things are slowly revealed that give the relationship incredible depth, making me feel so much for the relationship in a way that I really haven't found in any other novel. This is really the kind of series that's even better on re-reads, because you can see just how much the author thought through her choices before getting to the reveals, and certain scenes become so much more haunting or heart-wrenching! And wow, the reveals - I definitely recommend going in blind, because some of the reveals knocked me off my chair, and none of them just come out of nowhere.Another huge strength of this series is the side characters. I'm usually the kind of person that focuses on main characters and tolerates the rest, but every single side character in this has their place, their backstory, and their motivations, which are just as engaging as those of the leading couple (though they don't take away any thunder from the main two! In fact, they add a lot of parallels.)Some people might feel intimidated by the cultural barrier, since we seldom get translations from Chinese to English, but I don't think this should hold you back. There's nothing complicated, all the mythology of the book is weaved simply throughout the text, and the little pieces that aren't can be easily read in the incredible glossary and character guides that the publisher has included in the back. These guides aren't necessary, however; really, anyone can just jump in and start reading from chapter one. The language of the translation is also perfect and leads the reader right in with no problems; it illustrates things perfectly in English, while still letting the reader feel some of the unique rhythms of the original Chinese language version. This series was actually what inspired me to start learning Mandarin (though readers of this edition certainly shouldn't worry about that!)This book specifically consists of the first two arcs of the series. I was already hooked by the end of this book and I think it's an /excellent/ introduction, and on re-read it reaches the level of fantastic; for those curious, though, the next books are even better - so if all the reviews are confusing because it doesn't seem like much happened in the series yet, just wait! There are seven more books coming, and my personal favorite scenes are yet to come.And I still haven't even talked about the stunning art, which you can see in both the kindle and paperback editions!!!In short - even if this isn't the kind of thing you usually read or you don't usually read novels at all, even if you're unsure about understanding the Chinese elements of the story, even if you aren't sure you understand the point of the premise - I can't recommend this series enough. It's extremely popular for a reason, and you won't regret it!!!!