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Cheng Jinxi is a young man, having just reached adulthood but found guilty of murder. A dozen or his relatives mysteriously died overnight, and despite officer Liang Yuanfeng insisting it's impossible for Jinxi to commit murder and with proof to back it up, Jinxi admits to the murders and is sentenced for life.

For the following years, Liang Yuanfeng visits Jinxi in prison often. Perhaps it's out of guilt, or because he truly believes in Jinxi's innocence...or perhaps there is more reason behind this strong draw he feels towards the boy.

Years later, a horrifying incident that borders the supernatural triggers Jinxi's release. They need his help with the case, and his unique powers will be paramount in saving the 20 some lives that are at risk. Liang Yuanfeng partners with Jinxi...and feelings bloom.

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Okay so the summary is really hard to write without literally giving away all the twists and turns and going into way too much depth. First and foremost, this book is NOT a murder mystery. There are mystery aspects to it, but it's ultimately a book about regret, redemption, karma, and death.

That might be why it took me so long to read. I was expecting a good murder mystery BL, but ended up with a pretty depressing book where EVERYONE (and I mean every single character in this book without exception) regrets something so deeply it borders on excessive.

Let's start with the good. I love the natural relationship between Jinxi and Yuanfeng. I like Jinxi's niece and her found family with Jinxi, Yuanfeng, and yuanfeng's uncle. At the end, this book is a sweet story about found family and the love that can be found beyond blood.

Now the problems...

So I had a lot of trouble following the story because of the translation choices. One of the biggest problems I found was that the translator chose to keep all of the "uncle" and "brother" honorifics. For example, characters would call each other "brother" or "uncle" and use those honorifics when mentioning their family members and in flashbacks. I understand some people really like this, but this book is an example of that not working well.

I had to literally draw a relationship chart because there were SO many uncles and brothers I couldnt figure out who was who. And in one case (this man is Jinxi's brother-in-law's brother, but Jinxi just refers to him as "elder brother" and his name was mentioned twice in this 300+ paged novel) I was so confused I couldn't tell who Jinxi was referring to at all.

"Not my real brother. My sister's brother, Cheng Jinxi." - Lu Yifang, Jinxi's sister's husband's brother's wife.

I think even the translator might have gotten confused by the relationships. This should've said "My sister-in-law's brother" instead. But throughout the book, sister and brother-in-law were just called "sister" or "brother" making the relationships incredibly confusing.

This is where localizing "brother" to a person's name would help. I even got confused about who is related to who because characters would call another character "brother" (probably a translation of "ge" which could mean blood related brother or just a good friend who is male and older). Before anyone says "well get better at Chinese then," I'm Cantonese native and have taken 10 years of mandarin in school lol. I know Chinese. As a native, I think it would've been better to go on a more localized route.

Sometimes the translator decided to have two different speakers' dialogue in the same paragraph. At times, this can work, but I always prefer when a new speaker means a new paragraph exactly because it gets confusing on who is speaking if you're not clear. Which is what happened several times. If the speakers have a very clear character voice, it could be easier to tell, but with the limited dialogue and the somewhat rigid speech translations, it can be rather confusing at times.

Now for other issues... The narration is translated beautifully. Love the descriptions chosen for portraying a character's regret and the beautiful imagery used. But some lines still ended up being more stilted or confusing. There was a scene where a character turned around twice to face the same person and I was very confused. I had to reread the passage several times.

As Cheng Jinxi climbed the stairs, he stopped after a few steps, turning around to look down at Liang Yuanfeng. "You don't need to come up."

Liang Yuanfeng halted his steps, looked up at Cheng Jinxi, and replied with a serious tone, "I told you: wherever you go, I'll be there."

"I might not be able to ensure your safety," Cheng Jinxi said, and his expression was emotionless.

"I know," Liang Yuanfeng responded with a gentle look. "If I die here, it's something I deserve."

Cheng Jinxi stopped climbing and turned to face him...

(when did he stop looking at Yuanfeng so he could turn around to look at Yuanfeng again?)

Another issue came from stilted dialogue that sounds too rigid.

"Will you keep company with Yingqin?"

That's a rather rigid sentence. "Will you keep Yinqin company?" Is much more natural. I feel like the dialogue was unfortunately weaker than the narration, but at the same time, there isn't a lot of dialogue in this book. Most of the book is expressed in narration and flashbacks.

Oh, the flashbacks. I lost myself in the reading several times because I couldn't tell when a flashback ended and there was so. Much. Of. Them. A lot of background information is given in flashbacks, so a majority of the middle of the book were flashbacks after flashbacks after flashbacks. The story pacing dropped because we kept getting flashbacks jammed between scenes, some happening one right after another.

However, as previously mentioned, the narration is sometimes written beautifully. The scene when Jinxi and Yuanfeng kissed for the first time was gentle, soft, bittersweet, and breathtaking. (I actually held my breath while reading!) Those big scenes really drew me in and was definitely the strength of this book.

Ultimately, despite its flaws, The Wizard is still an interesting book that questions your understanding about the value of a person's life and who has the right to judge who lives and who dies. It's a story about finding a place to belong, creating a familial bond beyond blood, and the power of forgiveness. I think the themes of this book are all very fascinating and the supernatural powers, although not thoroughly explained, gives this world a mystical air. They don't take away from the story, but rather, contributes to it greatly.

Story: 2.5/5 - confusing story because of the writing, but it's a complete story that I feel doesn't need a continuation.

Characters: 3/5 - the strong points of the book are the inner turmoils, the battles inside the characters' morals and guilt.

Writing: 2/5 - it's not unreadable. It's just very confusing at times. Some scenes are described very well, while others left me quite confused.

In short, the story is unique and compelling.

We have Wu Xingxue, a normal man who lived in what seemed to be luxury as an aristocrat. We learn very little about this life, just that he could open his palm and his servants would give him exactly what he wanted without asking. But that life is thrown upside-down when he wakes up in a foreign body, chained by invisible fetters in a foreign place.

His subordinates are here, speaking to him and leaking bits of important information to both Wu Xingxue and to the reader. This body belonged to an archfiend they called "Archon." He was all-powerful and struck fear by simply speaking...and is even scarier when he's quiet. They're in a year that Wu Xingxue doesn't recognize, and perhaps even this world is a foreign dimension away from his home...who knows?

As Wu Xingxue gathers information piece by piece (by urging his little subordinates) the spire he's trapped in suddenly shakes. A flower blooms under him and the vision of a man he doesn't recognize appears before him...before the floor under him is swallowed up and he falls.

At the bottom of the spire, he wanders with the help of his subordinates and eventually finds a sarcophagus. Inside it rests what looks like an empty body of the man he saw before the collapse. The subordinates scream, calling the man the immortal, Xiao Fuxuan, the very celestial who guards the spire and was thought dead.

Xiao Fuxuan awakens shortly after. The subordinates thought Wu Xingxue had turned the celestial into his puppet, but that's far from the truth. Wu Xingxue could tell that the Xiao Fuxuan before him may be a lingering remnant of his soul or the real deal.

The tower fully collapses. Xiao Fuxuan and Wu Xingxue escape with two of Wu Xingxue's subordinates, thus starting a story about adventure, hidden identities and 300 years of yearning.

Story and characters? A+. I love a good story about yearning and longing, one-sided deep, excruciating love. Wu Xingxue is our eyes and ears, learning about this world and about Xiao Fuxuan with us. But at the same time, he seems oddly fearless and upfront, not afraid to ask Xiao Fuxuan for his help. Xiao Fuxuan is the typical stoic top. He doesn't talk much, but seems to have a soft spot for Wu Xingxue. The small snippets about how his eyes follow Wu Xingxue, or linger on his skin, or how he frowns when he gets hurt...it's pretty clear who had been *longing* for 300 years here.

The little bits of romantic tensions between the look in their eyes, the touch that stirs their hearts...these little things really bring the characters to life.

Their relationship is a nice mystery that I'm dying to bite into. This author's pacing is always tantalizingly delicious, offering snippets into the two's past through deep gazes and low grunts.

As the story progresses, we get more mini mysteries and hair-raising reveals. Fiends that lie deep underground an island clan. Statues of acolytes and missing people. It's quite reminiscent of the unlimited flow genre. They face a puzzle that's both equal parts intriguing and horrific, and the main characters piece clues together to reveal a horrifying truth. Except! These are cultivators. An archfiend and an immortal, no less. It's a mix of horrorific mystery and kickass cultivation battles. Honestly? The best mix out there.

Now, the only issue I really had was the writing.

Please note that I did not read the original Chinese novel so I don't know if this is the translator, the editor(s), or the original writer. Also please note that I also read this while I was running on a fever from the gross holiday flu...so take it how you will. I'm also not telling anyone to send hate to the localization team. The writing isnt that bad, it's just a little confusing and I think the loc team might want to consider the audience a bit more...(Also it's entirely fine to disagree with me. Opinions are opinions. No need to send hate anywhere.)

So I had a REAAAAALLY tough time reading this book. That might partly be because of the flu. But I felt like the writing was *too* flowery. (I did a quick look around other reviews that said pretty much the same. It's hard to be immersed in the book.)

The descriptions feel a bit vague or too flowery at times, especially during action scenes, so it becomes rather hard to imagine what exactly is happening on the page.

The sentences sometimes would be rather oddly phrased.

"Yunhai would remember for a long time to come the look Hua Xin gave him in that moment."

I reread the above sentence about 3 or 4 times before I realized what they were saying. It's fancy, but it made me stop reading just to figure out what is happening. It breaks up my cadance while I'm reading and disrupts the flow.

(example: "Yunhai would remember the look Hua Xin gave him in that moment for a long time to come." Would be easier to digest.)

This isn't a bad English kind of issue, but I think using less poetic or flowery grammar will just be easier on the reader.

I will say that I feel like halfway through the book, it gets easier to read. I'm not sure if it's because I was getting more used to the writing or if the descriptions became simpler. But still, a few of these "odd sentences" still stuck out to me throughout the whole book.

The next point is something I've been thinking about a lot.

Mind you, I'm relatively new to Danmei, but I did play a cultivation phone game for a little over a year. My husband is also a fan of wuxia novels so I hear a lot of terms from him.

When translating for a fandom that's familiar with certain themes, there are terms that are more often seen and easily recognized by the fans. (Isekai in a reincarnated in another world title. Truck-kun as the truck that sends them there./Qi deviation, the use of spirit or Qi in a cultivation setting.)

I found it incredibly odd that the translator/editor used words like glamour, thaumaturgy and somniamancy. There's a glossary at the end of the book to briefly explain the terms, but I think the terms may not match their descriptions entirely. (Thaumaturgy being the abilities used by celestials, but a quick google gave me the impression that thaumaturgy is more like anything magical, and the word has a Greek origin) I have no idea what these terms were in the Chinese original, but I definitely had to google what thaumaturgy was... (And I'm not quite sure if somniamancy is the right term when it comes to soul magic, either, when it means dream magic? Though the glossary explained it as soul magic through dreams. Still feels a bit off from the intended definition of Somniamancy based on how it's used in other literature?) (And also, not sure if this was a translation thing or if this was intended in the original, but the Hua "clan" is probably a sect? I might be wrong. But either way, clan and sect are rather similar with tiny nuanced differences.)

I understand the desire to make the writing flowery to match the original tone and setting...but thaumaturgy and somniamancy feel more like western terms being placed in an eastern fantasy, which felt a little off. It definitely kicked me out of the experience while I was reading.

To some, they may prefer using Western fantasy terms. It may be easier for them to understand and digest. And honestly, that's great for them. There is no right answer to this. Translation is not a one-to-one science. I just personally believe that something with an Eastern fantasy setting may benefit from using Eastern terminology, even if it means creating notes and a glossary to explain them. And this is why translation is soooo difficult. Not everyone is always going to be happy.

(I should also add...this is the first time I've had to dig through google for terms while reading because of the fancy vocab the loc team decided to go with. I admittedly never knew what hoarfrost-bitten meant before. Also I would appreciate it if they stopped using "zephyr" and instead just say "wind"...it's fancy, but every time I come across it, it feels unnecessarily flowery.)

I feel like these small tiny things unfortunately really disrupt the reader's experience.

That leads me to...is this a badly translated book?

My god, no!!! This is just a style I'm not particularly fond of. We see every little change of expression, the characters have their own distinct voices and tone, and the world is described beautifully (albeit sometimes in words that are too fancy for me). If you love this type of writing, 100% this is for you!

And I should note, I'm not sure if these choices were made by the translator, editor, or the adaptor. Adaptors go over the script and make adjustments, so anyone who touched the script could've made these decisions. Who knows...?

At any rate, I was just hoping to have something a little simpler when my brain is frying under a fever. And I'm someone who prefers Eastern terminology when reading a book about Eastern fantasy.

(and the translations for Global Examination were perfectly my level. I loved every second of that book, and was hoping this would be the same.)

Overall scores:

Story: 9/10 (good mystery, keeps me engaged. I want to know more. Mysteries overlap and truths woven together very well.)

Characters: 8/10 (Would like to see more character interactions between the two leads and character growth. Though it's probably because volume 1 is quite slow. Side characters are fun and very involved, which is always a plus.)

Writing [Seven Seas edition]: 6/10 (remember, this is personal taste. Please don't hurt me.)