The Iron Will of Genie Lo by F.C. Yee | Book Review

The Iron Will of Genie Lo
by F.C. Yee
Series: The Epic Crush of Genie Lo #2
Published on January 14, 2020 by Amulet Books
ISBN: 9781419731457
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 304
Genres: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult

The fate of the heavens is at stake in this hilarious and highly-anticipated sequel to the The Epic Crush of Genie Lo, from the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Rise of Kyoshi

Genie Lo thought she was busy last year, juggling her academic career with protecting the Bay Area from demons. But now, as the Heaven-appointed Guardian of California, she’s responsible for the well-being of all yaoguai and spirits on Earth. Even the ones who interrupt her long-weekend visit to a prestigious college, bearing terrible news about a cosmos-threatening force of destruction in a nearby alternate dimension.

The goddess Guanyin and Genie’s boyfriend, Quentin Sun Wukong, do their best to help, but it’s really the Jade Emperor who’s supposed to handle crises of this magnitude. Unfortunately for Genie and the rest of existence, he’s gone AWOL. Fed up with the Jade Emperor’s negligence, Genie spots an opportunity to change the system for the better by undertaking a quest that spans multiple planes of reality along with an adventuring party of quarrelsome Chinese gods. But when faced with true danger, Genie and her friends realize that what will save the universe this time isn’t strength, but sacrifice.

I remember first reading The Epic Crush of Genie Lo and how I couldn’t put it down. I was craving the sequel immediately after finishing and now we’re here two years later and I’m… content.

The Iron Will of Genie Lo was what I needed from this series in many ways. It still held some of the humor and shenanigans of the characters that I loved about the first book. But having re-read Epic Crush right beforehand, it’s hard not to notice that this sequel doesn’t quite land all the jokes. The story doesn’t have the same flow. Although it’s definitely a solid book 2, it’s missing that special something that made me love the first installment so much.

While the first book centered more on leading up to the epic boss showdown, Iron Will brought things back to Earth in some regards by merging Genie’s conflicts (her parents, picking the right college, boy trouble) with the divine. I appreciated the new view of her world and that of Sun Wukong and the other divine beings. Guanyin is everything, love her! And both Genie and Quentin were great… on their own.

So if you’ve read Epic Crush, you know there was definitely a romantic spark between Genie and Quentin, and now they’re dating. I didn’t mind the romance subplot but it didn’t really seem necessary? At least in as large of a capacity as it was here. Some of their moments didn’t quite feel right, and definitely made me think they were forced more than natural to the story. Like, clearly a fight with your boyfriend isn’t as important as saving the world. It’s like they were trying to hard.

And I hate saying that because both characters on their own are fantastic. Genie is queen of the relatable protagonists. Epic Crush was SO good. But Iron Will… I don’t know what happened! I hardly have anything else to say about it because it didn’t really make me feel any sort of way. I enjoyed it quite a bit. It’s a solid sequel and I’m bummed the series is over. But it wasn’t quite on par. It didn’t strike the same chord.

Don’t get me wrong, I still highly recommend this duology without question. Book 2 was just missing that energy that makes a book unforgettable.

I look forward to where F.C. Yee’s work goes next. In the meantime, make sure to check out this Chinese myth-inspired exciting duology.

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About Austine

I'm a 20-something research proposal developer with a background in the life sciences and education. Reviewer of books since 2011, amateur photographer by day, and aspiring author by night. I believe animals (and books) are better than people.