An Asian Inspired Fantasy Standalone - Immortal by Sue Lynn Tan

I have always been a fan of Asian-inspired fantasy books with mythical elements woven into them. They’re always fun to read and can be quite informative. Most authors I’ve read so far have done a great job of doing justice to the historical stories they take on, and this book follows a similar approach.

The story follows our protagonist, Liyen, who is the heir to a kingdom ruled by her grandfather. However, right at the beginning of the book, he dies—and it's a little bit her fault. Basically, he sacrifices himself to save her. His death not only leaves her with guilt but also forces her into a position of power she isn't ready for.

A World Ruled by Immortals

This world is divided into four realms, three of which are free from immortal rule. However, Liyen's realm is still controlled by these all-powerful beings, who demand absolute respect and do not treat mortals well. Liyen’s grandfather had always dreamed of freeing their kingdom from their rule, but his death puts that dream at risk.

Now, Liyen is suddenly thrust into power, but she is neither prepared nor fully accepted by the court. Many of the court members distrust her and are waiting for an opportunity to remove her from the throne. It becomes clear that if she doesn’t act quickly, she could be dethroned before she even has a chance to prove herself.

Amidst all this political tension, she meets the God of War, the male lead of the story. At first, he seems like someone she might be able to rely on, but then he betrays her—or at least, that's how it appears. Liyen never fully trusted him to begin with, but just when she was starting to let her guard down, he does something that shatters that fragile trust. This betrayal causes everything to spiral further out of control.

Liyen’s inner monologue regarding her trust issues with the God of War quickly became frustrating. I completely understood why she was wary of him—it made sense for the plot—but her thoughts constantly circled back to the same point. No matter what he said, she always found a way to twist it into another reason why she shouldn't trust him. After a while, it felt repetitive and unnecessary.

The Romance

While the romance had potential, the transition from distrust to love felt rushed. The slow burn started well, but just when it seemed like it was developing naturally, it suddenly jumped to her realizing she loved him. It wasn’t exactly insta-love, but the emotional shift happened too quickly for it to feel believable. One moment, she couldn’t trust him at all, and the next, she was deeply in love.

A Plot Twist

One of the highlights of the book was the major plot twist. It was completely unexpected, which I liked, but at the same time, it felt like it came out of nowhere. Usually, when an author includes a twist, they leave small clues throughout the book so that when the reveal happens, readers can look back and see the hints. Here, there were no hints at all. It felt like the author came up with the twist while writing rather than planning it from the start.

That being said, I didn’t really mind this lack of foreshadowing because the twist itself was still interesting. It didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book, but it could have been executed better.

The Ending

While the first half of the book was well-paced, the ending felt incredibly rushed. It was as if the author suddenly realized they had to wrap up all the plotlines and tried to tie everything together as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, this didn’t work out well. The conclusion felt forced, and the resolutions didn’t feel satisfying.

Since this is a standalone fantasy book, I understand that everything had to be wrapped up within a single novel. However, fantasy stories are rarely standalone for a reason—they often require more time to fully develop the world and characters. This book would have benefited from being a duology instead of trying to fit everything into one installment.

Because of this rushed pacing, the ending didn’t feel earned. As a reader, I felt like I was just supposed to accept whatever was happening, even though it didn’t fully make sense. It was frustrating because the story had so much potential, but it wasn’t given the time it needed to reach a satisfying conclusion.

Final Thoughts

This book had a strong premise, an interesting world, and some great plot elements. However, its rushed execution, repetitive inner monologue, and abrupt romance weakened the overall impact. The story had the potential to be truly amazing, but it needed more time to develop.

That said, if you enjoy Asian-inspired fantasy and don’t mind a few pacing issues, you might still enjoy this book. While it wasn’t a perfect read for me, it had enough intriguing elements to keep me engaged until the end.