Love Between Fairy and Devil (Novel) Vol. 2 by Jiu Lu Fei Xiang: review

5/5 stars on Goodreads

Love Between Fairy & Devil vol. 2 by Jiu Lu Fei Xiang

Volume 2 concludes the love story of the orchid fairy Xiao Lanhua and Demon Lord Dongfang Qingcang. Xiao Lanhua spent most of the previous volume without a body of her own, having accidentally killed it. Dongfang Qingcang promised her a new body, and at the end of the volume, created her one out of living clay.

Things are never that easy though, when dealing with an evil entity. Xiao Lanhua learns to her horror that the body isn’t meant for her but for the Scarlet Lady, the former god of war, who defeated the demon lord. He wants revenge and since she’s dead, he needs to bring her back in order to have it. He means Xiao Lanhua to prepare the clay body with her special abilities for the lady. Problem is, she’ll die in the process.

The second volume is mostly about Xiao Lanhua trying to avoid her fate. She tries to flee from him several times, only for him to bring her back. But every time he arrives just in time to save her from a mortal peril, after which he’s very nice to her, which messes with her head and heart. It brings her very low. It doesn’t help when she learns that the safe haven she’s been trying to flee to is no more and she’s been abandoned.

Dongfang Qingcang is on a more straightforward path. He’ll take the demon realm back, bring the Scarlet Lady back to life, defeat her and then rule the demon realm. There’s no room for Xiao Lanhua in that plan. But things don’t go his way. He gains back his emotions, including the ability to love, not that he pays attention to it. Nor does he question why he always goes after Xiao Lanhua and never punishes her, even though he’s an evil demon.

And then he gets what he wanted, the Scarlet Lady back. But turns out, revenge isn’t important anymore after all. He wants Xiao Lanhua, only it’s too late for her. What follows is a redemption arc—of sorts—for Dongfang Qingcang. He needs to change drastically and it almost happens, at least when it comes to her.

This was a good conclusion for the romance. With only two volumes, it was a very short book compared to other Chinese fantasy, but it didn’t need to be longer than this. I felt for Xiao Lanhua, who only wanted to live. It wasn’t easy for her to know that the man she loved, despite trying not to, only needed her as a disposable medicine. And it was very difficult to root for Dongfang Qingcang as a romantic interest when he remained evil throughout the story and was responsible for what happened to Xiao Lanhua. But the author really made him work for the happily ever after, and in the end it felt earned and as it should be.

There are three extras, two of them about side characters. Third one is about Xiao Lanhua and Dongfang Qingcang living their happily ever after. Sort of. And it may be, she’s been changed by him a little too, at least when it comes to adventures.

As I noted in my review of the previous volume, the original story is very different from the TV adaptation. There are similar elements and some characters, but the original story is more straightforward and less soapy. I’m not sure if either of them is the better one. Both have a good romance and a lot of twists and turns. If you’ve seen the adaptation, I recommend the book too.