Warning: This review contains spoilers.
Justinian Huang, known for his work with Sony Picture Animations on projects such as Over the Moon, the third and fourth installments of Kung Fu Panda, and Abominable, makes his author debut with The Emperor and the Endless Palace. Self-described as a “romantasy” novel representing both the AAPI and LGBTQ+ minorities, the story tells a fictitious version of a real-life Chinese Emperor from the Han Dynasty and his male lover, Dong Xian. This unique (and a little spicy) tale features a love that spans over many lifetimes.
The novel starts in the year 1740, though this is not when the lovers’ story together truly begins. In 1740, readers are introduced to He Shican, an innkeeper who wanders the forest unconsciously at night, and Huang Jiulang, a filial grandson who seeks the help of a doctor for his ailing grandmother. In chapter two, readers are brought further back in time to meet Dong Xian, an ambitious young man who provides sexual favors to solidify his spot in The Endless Palace in the year 4 BCE. It turns out that this is the origin of the star-crossed lovers, as Emperor Liu Xin and Dong Xian’s paths soon cross and tangle in a manner that does not allow them to let go, even centuries later.
Chapter three introduces River and Calvin in present times, two gay Asian men who are at a rave together. River is Chinese-American, while Calvin is his Korean-American blind date who wants to take him on an adventure. Losing sight of one another during the big event, River panics and comes across Joey, a beautiful and burly fellow Chinese-American. Joey takes care of River, almost as if he’s immediately drawn to him, and offers him his protective jade bracelet to calm him down. Once reunited with Calvin, Joey invites the pair to Cantonese billionaire playboy Winston Chow’s afterparty, and the story truly begins.
Huang’s background in filmmaking comes through in this novel, as his detailed writing makes it easy to visually picture each scene. Each chapter focuses on a time period, and it seamlessly transitions into the next. The plentiful dialogue also helps progress the story along quickly and naturally. With each transition to a different time period, the suspense and excitement for what’s to come continues to build.
However, the novel falls short when it comes to transitioning perspectives between characters. The story is told from three different perspectives: Dong Xian’s in 4 BCE, He Shican’s in 1740, and River’s in present times. The difficult part to understand is that these are not all reincarnations of the same person, and this is only revealed in the latter half of the book. The perspective change is caused by the person who remembers their past life, but with how quickly the story progresses and jumps between time periods, it can be difficult to keep up with their past and present identities without mixing them up.
Another point of frustration is the vagueness of certain aspects of the plot. Although it is said the star-crossed lovers were cursed out of the Emperor’s desire for revenge and they needed to find The Heirloom Seal of the Realm to break their curse, the novel does not explain how they were cursed, how the seal will help, or whether they have found the seal in the end to break the curse. Perhaps the ambiguous resolution is left open for potential sequels, however, the abrupt ending makes the novel feel like it’s incomplete or missing something.
There are realistic aspects of the novel that are delightful. In spite of all the protagonists being gay Asian men, they each come from different walks of life and have different outlooks, showing the diversity of AAPI and LGBTQ+ communities. River was not yet “out” at the beginning of the novel, but with Calvin’s encouragement, he finds himself coming out to his sister. In previous lives, Dong Xian was never ashamed of his sexuality, often using it to his advantage. And even for Emperor Liu Xin, he had no trouble showcasing his love for Dong Xian for his empire to see. These instances of unabashed confidence and queerness are truly the highlight of this rare gem of a novel.
While The Emperor and the Endless Palace is by no means a perfect book, it is a great first novel from Justinian Huang. After being introduced to Liu Xin and Dong Xian and their various lifetimes and love stories, readers will be left yearning for more of their tales.
