Sophie's Reviews > The Night Ends with Fire

The Ballad of Mulan and the Romance of the Three Kingdoms meet the likes of The Poppy War and Six Crimson Cranes in this first part of K.X. Song's upcoming duology: “The Night Ends with Fire” is a tale of magic, adventure, war, love, corruption, betrayal, oppression, freedom, feminism, wuxia (martial arts) - and do not forget dragons! This book really ought to spread like wildfire when it comes out because let me tell you: it is deserving of every praise it receives!

Women were yin—weak and fickle, governed by their flighty emotions. Men were yang—rational, calm, and unyielding. We were told as children that women could not lead, fight, or govern, for they were too easily swayed, prone to hysteria and fitfulness. But I had proven them wrong.

[ Contains some spoilers. ]

PLOT SUMMARY
In the lands of Tianjia, war between the Three Kingdoms of Anlai, Ximing and Leyuan is brewing. Told through the first-person narrative of 18-year-old Hai Meilin from Anlai (our Mulan in this tale), we find her father does not want to answer his summons to fight as he believes it won’t benefit him. In this version, he is abusive, has made the family destitute through his gambling and addiction to opium and is heavily relying on Meilin's dowry when she weds. Upon discovering her fiancé is also abusive, Meilin decides to enlist in the war in place of her father as a man under the alias Ren.

She is allocated to the Seventh Company where the leader is none other than the dashing Liu Sky (Shang equivalent), Seventh Prince of Anlai, who had saved her previously. As well as this, Meilin has brought with her a mysterious newly-acquired jade necklace that her late mother wore, unbeknownst that this is a spirit seal containing the Dragon, Qinglong (Mushu equivalent), providing her wisdom and the power (lixia) of water. Now, she has to conceal she is a woman and a spirit medium, for risking revealing her true identity would mean death! Women are not permitted to fight in wars, and the practice of black magic and spirit mediums as well as the worship of spirits have been banned.

But soon Meilin discovers she is not the only spirit medium, a man named Sima hellbent on revenge wields the power of a Phoenix through a scarlet seal. A thief steals the seal and breaks it but it comes back in pieces as it cannot be easily destroyed. Sima has found one piece on one shore; Meilin must find the other two pieces to stop him.

OVERALL THOUGHTS
What an incredible story to read! I could not put it down. Like Meilin’s greed being the driving force behind Qinglong’s powers, my own greed to read and know more propelled me quickly through this book. The pacing was ideal with plenty of description. A few times I laughed, a few times I gasped. The world-building was excellent: K.X. Song has a way of transporting you into this world and exploring aspects of both the spirit realm and reality, as well as providing historical information about the history of the Three Kingdoms.

Also, she very kindly provides us with a map which I always love as it helps me imagine things better!

Split into three parts, there were plenty of twists and turns: some I did not see coming (view spoiler)[like the mother’s murder (hide spoiler)] others, probably a lot of them, were predictable but enjoyable to see (view spoiler)[– that iron is a weakness to all lixia not just the Phoenix’s, that Sky’s father is the one who murdered Sima’s wife and child, that Lei was not to be trusted and was that thief she saw (hide spoiler)].

Had this been a single book, I would have rated it a 4 for the ending because it felt anticlimactic and also rather sad after everything that Meilin has been through. Knowing that the story is to be continued, that there is a second book in the works made this even better. Otherwise, I would have screamed haha! I do prefer being able to read a book as a standalone rather than wait for its conclusion later but I am excited to see the direction this story goes. She’s best get her revenge because I am rooting for her.

RETELLING OR REINVENTING?
This story is primarily based on the legend of Mulan. As Song mentions in her author’s note, most of the Western culture is familiar with the story of Mulan through Disney’s film Mulan from 1998 (as well as its sequel Mulan 2 in 2004) and the live-action of the same name from 2020. That is certainly how I know of it, being brought up with Disney films all my life.

Now, I cannot say anything about the historical accuracy of this tale, so I understand if those who are from the culture do not find some of the tale appropriate. For me, this was a refreshing take on the story I do know.

You can certainly see that Song has based a lot of this tale on the live-action Mulan. There are plenty of scenes that harken back to this. To name a few: our heroine knows martial arts before she even enlists, she trains at night herself away from the men, the bathing sequence, the presence of a phoenix.

But there are many differences too. While I am aware some people did not finish even reading it because it felt too much like “Mulan fanfiction”, the point of a retelling is to tell a story again but it should have some unique qualities of its own. And unique qualities it did, especially past the halfway point, because even I at one point was beginning to think it was a little too similar.

Song has created a whole new dynamic through the inclusion of forbidden magic and the Cardinal Spirits with their seals. Cardinal Spirits are the four spirits representing and controlling the time of day, seasons, elements and directions. These are:
🠚 Xuanwu - north, tortoise
🠚 Zhuque - south, phoenix - fire - gets power from vengeance
🠚 Qinglong - east, dragon - water - gets power from greed
🠚 Baihu - west, tiger
These are based on the mythological sacred animals of the Vietnamese culture. The two that are covered the most in this tale are Qinglong and Zhuque. Hopefully, we will get to see more of the other two and learn more about their elements and what fuels their power. It could be assumed that Xuanwu’s element is earth and Baihu’s is air.

I personally like dragons and including a sea dragon in this story is everything! Again, the dragon Qinglong, is not like Disney’s Mushu in any way. Consider him less funny and more sinister and cryptic.

OTHER INSPIRATION
There are a few stories/themes or events that are similar to this book.
<< The Poppy War >>
• avoids arranged marriage (Meilin enlists in war / Rei secretly studies for the Keju, national test)
• can harness the powers of a mythical creature (Meilin with the sea Dragon / Rei with the Pheonix)

<< Six Crimson Cranes >>
• avoids arranged marriage (Meilin enlists in war / Shiori accidentally sabotages her betrothal ceremony)
• wields forbidden magic (Meilin with lixia / Shiori with magic)
• expectations of family (Meilin is to marry / Shiori is the only princess and is expected to be dutiful)
• underwater dragon who teaches her how to harness her magic (Meilin’s Quinglong / Shiori’s Seryu)
• must destroy instrument which powers their enemy’s magic to resolve issues (Meilin must destroy Sima’s magic seal / Shiori must destroy Raikama’s dragon pearl)

THEMES

“They would never let a woman get away with something like this.”
“Something like what?”
“They would never let a woman hold on to power.”

The main themes are:

<< Expectations, position and struggles of a woman in a patriarchal society >>
Meilin has all the societal norms against her as men control everything: if she marries, what she owns belongs to her husband and her father gets a dowery. Throughout most of history, women were forbidden from having their own identity to own or do things, from publishing a book to even the right to vote.
The tale of Mulan is folklore but there have been instances where women have managed to enlist to fight on a family member’s behalf, keep an eye on the man they love, or escape an abusive household (in Meilin’s case, it’s the latter). If she enlists as a man, there are very severe consequences to this, ultimately death.
Women have also been unfairly trialed and burned at the stake for claims of witchcraft. This is something Meilin fears she will face if she is discovered as practise in magic is forbidden.

<< Desire to belong >>
Meilin struggles to belong. Even when she starts to make friends she struggles to belong because she is lacking in skill like the others. (view spoiler)[To add further complication, when she reveals she is a woman, Tao and Sparrow do not know how to react but consequently, she loses the brotherhood and friendship they once shared – and is ultimately betrayed by them. This particular act made Sparrow go from one of my most favourites to least – instantly! (hide spoiler)] Sparrow claims Meilin is like a brother to him, not knowing Meilin is a woman.
She constantly feels alone, with only her thoughts for company.

CHARACTERS
I really like the way Song has made these characters. Pretty much all of them are flawed, as they should be! This adds a great deal of realism, that not everything is straightforward.

<< Meilin >>
↳ I love Meilin. A very well-fleshed-out character, indeed. I can see why some people would find her dull or naïve but I feel that is entirely the point. Meilin is portrayed most realistically:
🠚 She is struggling as a woman in a patriarchal society who desires more than to be subservient
🠚 She has endured a lot of trauma from her childhood and adulthood, the likes of which some of us can unfortunately relate to. For her, it is the loss of her mother (and the madness that took hold of her before that) and abuse from her father.
🠚 More importantly, she is not perfect by any means, even after her training - for example, she loses the duel to be selected as a squad leader and, despite archery practice, still manages to shoot someone in the thigh instead of the neck.
🠚 The dragon is unable to help her when she wants, whether it is because they have mentally shut one another out, or the jade is lost, but especially when she is handcuffed in iron.
🠚 Her magic (lixia) also works against her: if she overdoes it, it drains her emotionally and physically.
Essentially, everything she does, she has to work for it. I would argue it might be too repetitive in that regard. It would have been nice to see her win more victories. I did not like in the live-action Mulan that the heroine, like Song’s Meilin, already knows martial arts and I much prefer the cartoon that she learns along with everyone else and becomes very good at it.
*⁀➷ Favourite quotes
“I needed to prove that I, as a woman, could be better than the rest of them. That I too could belong. That I too could be free.”
"I was an aberration that should not exist. A woman, a warrior, a spirit medium."
“I told you not to underestimate me”

<< Liu Sky >>
↳ Sky is the greenest of green flags! His temper and his prioritising of duty are his main flaws. But ultimately, he is a gentle kind person who cares very much for his people. He is the first to discover Meilin’s secret and the first to accept her for who she is.
I like that when Meilin meets him, he himself is disguised as a young soldier, Master Liu, to survey the city. This shows the double-standard that only men can get away with such things. I am surprised Song does not mention this at all.
Overall, nicely written. I like him very much!
*⁀➷ Favourite quotes
• “Lady, I was looking for you.” – the first thing he says to Meilin. Ahhh, this reminds me of both Rhysand from ACOTAR and Howl from Howl's Moving Castle.
• "If yesterday he had seemed like a free spirit with his boyish, easygoing personality, today he looked the prince he was: unapproachable, out of reach. Dangerous."
• "He was all *duty this, duty that*. He believed you should accept the cards you’d been dealt in life and be satisfied. Well, easy for him to say. He was born a prince of Anlai, and I was born a girl."
• “I want to treat you right, Meilin.” – EXCUSE MEEE!

<< Cao Ming Lei >>
↳ Ooh I knew this man would become my absolute favourite the moment Meilin met him. Out of everyone, I found him the most fascinating. So handsome and charming yet enigmatic and indifferent toward people. He works for everyone yet works for nobody but himself. Sometimes a monster, sometimes misunderstood. Oh yes, I really like the complexity of Lei!
I love a morally grey character with a great backstory to explain how he has become the person he is. His witty banter as well as his duel with Meilin with that funny moment made me just like her: against all odds, despite the monster he can be, very attracted to him.
*⁀➷ Favourite quotes
• "a beautiful face, belying a heart of stone."
• "His eyes crinkled again. He was very handsome when he smiled, I thought; he was very handsome all the time. But that just made it easier for him to deceive."
• “I protect what’s mine.”
• “You have a very twisted sense of enjoyment.”
He shot me an insufferable grin. “But I think you do too.”
• “You’re lovely when you laugh” – this one made me MELT!

<< Other characters >>
🠚 It makes a refreshing change that her stepmother Xiuying is not your stereotypical one: she is very nice and they have “bonded over a common enemy”, Meilin’s father.
🠚 The women in this story all have a significant impact or role and I like this, but I wish there had been more women who broke the societal norm, for example, the inclusion of the witch in the live-action.

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I am honoured to have been selected as an ARC reader for this book, and I’d like to thank K.X. Song and NetGalley for the opportunity. This has not affected my opinion in any way.