Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for approving me to read this book, I’m rating it 4.5 stars rounded to 5.

We’re really thrown into the thick of a dire situation after book 1, the betrayals and secrets linger over our main characters like a storm cloud. In book 2 we see new alliances, unknown enemies and more political warfare. Our FMC Ying finds herself at the centre of things as her engineering skills are called upon once more, her sister is more of a main character in this book and I liked getting to see her growth. I’m not sure I’ll ever forgive Ye-Yang after book 1, but we do see a lot of remorse in book 2 and we see decisions made that maybe Ye-Yang can’t come back from.

I really enjoy how plot focused this book is with it’s solid pacing and unique story, the romance takes a back seat and I didn’t mind one bit. The ending felt a little open ended for me, but it is still somewhat satisfying. The betrayals in this book caught me off guard and it really makes you rethink all the characters intentions because who can you really trust.

Highly recommend this series for fantasy, political intrigue, unique storyline and complex characters who are wonderfully imperfect.

This book gave me everything and more than I could ever have dreamed after Of Jade and Dragons. I have fallen head over heels for these characters and there's always the worry that the second outing won't be as good as the first, but here those fears are completely irrelevant. The Blood Phoenix had me hooked right the way through and brought the story to a satisfying close. That said I am not above begging for a third book in this series!