** spoiler alert ** Silver Phoenix is not a romance, or an action adventure. It's an epic.

Ai Ling wants nothing more than to marry for love. Her parents did it, so when she is sent to suitors in hopes to gain their acceptance, it seems unfair. Almost as she wishes, each suitor turns her down. Then, her father is summoned to the Emperor's Palace after being exiled years before. He leaves, and does not return. Alone, her and her mother cannot survive with their meager wages, and thus begins the odyssey of Ai Ling as she sets out to return her father home.

On the way, she meets Chen Yung, a mixed blood who she feels like she can trust, unlike most of the other people she has encountered. Demons attack them on the way to the palace, and the Deities intervene. Without spoiling too much, let's just say this novel took me on a trip through the land of Xia, through forests and haunted towers, through the grand Palace of Dreams and remote villages.

By the end of the novel, I felt deeply for Ai Ling and Chen Yong--which I very rarely do.

Pon writes with exquisite taste. She brings the reader into the story, crafting a wholly original land built on ancient Chinese traditions. While at times the storytelling felt distant and aloof, she is able to bury into the most poignant moments with all the warmth of Ai Ling's spirit herself.

This is exactly the type of story that I needed to lift my spirits for a while--at least before I delve into Octavian Nothing.