This book is long. Very long. It clocks in at around 1,000,000 words in the English translation, including all of the extras. It is formatted a lot more like a road or adventure novel, or even a narrative within a narrative akin to the Mahābhārata than a stereotypical romance novel, and while it's core IS about the romantic relationship between the protagonist Xie Lian and the love interest Hua Cheng, the romance serves a thematic function that carries through the novel: the love of one person, the belief of one person, the care of one person is enough to make life worth living. In a
...
narrative where the failings and foibles of literal gods expose them to be as petty, corrupt, foolish, and fallible as humans, where the weight of expectation and self-denial for "the good of everyone else" can LITERALLY be crushing and soul destroying, the idea that it's the small actions and willingness to try and help the person next to you is enough is pretty impactful imo. That small moments can change your life forever, for good or ill, and can have a profound affect on someone else. It's about desire vs expectation, letting people follow their own paths, for good or ill, vs trying to take responsibility for fixing the whole world, and committing to the illusion of righteousness and importance vs doing things that materially help other people's lives.
It's also about how embracing your romantic and sexual desires can set you free and be a source of strength, rather than being something you must repress in order to gain standing and power. The romance isn't meant to be realistic, or ideal -- tbh, none of MXTX's relationships are. They're about what works for two particular people, and how their weirdness lines up with each other's to settle down in compatible cringe for the rest of their lives. In the case of HuaLian, the inherent aspect of worship in their dynamic and their codependency would be bonkers for a real couple. In this case, they're a God and a Ghost, the "rest of their lives" is pretty much forever, and the all-consuming devotion doesn't feel out of place when working on that kind of a timescale. I also found it pretty refreshing that most of the conflict wasn't between the main lovers -- they have their misunderstandings, but the core conflicts in the novel are about the personal internal beliefs that hold someone back or hurt them in order to live up to the expectations of others (or those they've imposed on themselves to be A Good God/Son/Prince/Leader/etc). Love gives the strength to set someone free!
The present - flashback - present - flashback - present nature of the story I found makes for an impactful narrative, because things introduced early on in the narrative become more poignant and are given new context as the story unfolds. I also tend to like in media res starts, so YMMV. Are there parts that could have been cut that would have left the core themes intact? Probably. As a webnovel, there are very different pacing norms than in typical western published novels, and if you havent read very many of them, its a definite adjustment. There's also a lot of Chinese folklore and references to Daoism in the novel that aren't obvious to a non-Chinese audience automatically. (Associations of yin and yang energies, many festivals, monsters and supernatural elements). There's also some narrative elements that are more typical to chinese works (i.e., Xie Lian has a lot of interior asides that are more snarky and comedic, and that's an intentional narrative framing device common to chinese media in order to point out ridiculous/absurd things, rather than the author intentionally portraying "judginess" as part of XL's character. see more here: https://www.tumblr.com/elberlight/682322476548620288/hi-i-hope-youre-feeling-alright-i-just-wanted)
There has been a LOT of discussion about the orientalism/racism in the novel, especially in the Banyue arc, and the artist for the Manhua (the comic adaptation) has come under fire for colorism. (Banyue means crescent moon, if the implied association isn't clear). YMMV on whether or not that is enough to keep you away, particularly considering the CCP's detention of Uyghur people in Western China.
I loved this book, and I know many people who felt similarly. However, it's not for everyone. The narrative structure is even different than MXTX's other works, and can be offputting. Additionally, it was written for a mainland chinese audience, and it shows. I think if you're willing to do a little research and keep an open mind, it's a great story.
Nov 18, 2022
Tian Guan Cifu
(Manga)
add
This book is long. Very long. It clocks in at around 1,000,000 words in the English translation, including all of the extras. It is formatted a lot more like a road or adventure novel, or even a narrative within a narrative akin to the Mahābhārata than a stereotypical romance novel, and while it's core IS about the romantic relationship between the protagonist Xie Lian and the love interest Hua Cheng, the romance serves a thematic function that carries through the novel: the love of one person, the belief of one person, the care of one person is enough to make life worth living. In a
...
|
