Reviews with content warning for Death - Dragon Pearl

Although I've put off reading this book for years, it has always been one of my most anticipated middle-grade fantasies. I'd read a short story that was set in the same world with these same characters and I enjoyed it a lot so I was sure I'd have fun reading this. Sadly, this just didn't work for me and I was disappointed by how disconnected I felt the whole time. I know I'm not the target audience though and looking at it from that perspective, I do believe this is a story that many young readers would still enjoy. There's action, space adventure, magic and mythical creatures, and a race to uncover the mystery connecting a brother's disappearance and the legendary fabled Dragon Pearl.

Without a doubt, my favourite part of this was the world-building and I thoroughly enjoyed reading how Lee wove Korean mythology into a fantastical sci-fi world. It was easy to picture the Thousand Worlds from the dry dust bowl that is Min's rural home to the vibrant city teeming with corrupt police, pirates and mercs, and the battle cruiser that transports her to the Ghost Sector. This is a world where humans exist alongside supernaturals such as dragons, goblins, tigers and fox spirits that were assumed to have disappeared long ago. I enjoyed reading about the magic and I particularly enjoyed the Charm power of the Gumiho. For the most part, the writing was also enjoyable and flowed well, if not a little too quickly at times.

Sadly, there was something about the writing that also kept me from feeling more connected to the story. I think it might have to do with how so much happens so quickly that it leaves little time to absorb what's happening before moving on to the next thing. Also, I was immersed in the world but I had a difficult time caring about the characters and I particularly struggled to connect to Min. I appreciate her drive and need to find answers especially because her brother is her favourite person but she's very rash in her decision-making and she has a sense of impatient entitlement that didn't work for me. I know young people are immature and make silly decisions but essentially, much of her character didn't make sense to me and I found myself asking <i>"how?!"</i> and <i>"but, why?!"</i> so often that it ended up taking me completely out of the story.

Additionally, we're introduced to a slew of characters who both help and hinder her progress but they simply exist to push her story along, and I think that was a wasted opportunity, particularly when it came to Min's friendships. The main mystery was resolved in a satisfying enough way and I liked how the ending sets the story up for more adventures in the Thousand Worlds.

Overall, I'm bummed that this wasn't as enjoyable as I expected it to be but I'm glad that it's finally off my TBR and no longer hanging over my head, lol.

Content Warnings

green_amaryllis's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

atlantiareads's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This book had a pretty slow start, and I feel like some of the story could have been been edited out. But overall I quite enjoyed the book. Min was a great female lead character and was quite a lovable character.

All in all this book was a fun read that left me wanting to know how Min planned to shape the universe after the events of the book.

Content Warnings

buttermellow's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Content Warnings

asahome's review against another edition

Go to review page

2.0

Girl lies to everyone around her without serious consequences and still gets what she wants most in life regardless of how she hurts others.

I love learning about new cultures and pantheons. The discussion around the spirits was interesting and I loved the idea of terraforming similar to Earth 2. It makes my little heart pitter patter. A lot of the characteristics were based on Korean beliefs and I have not studied that before.

I liked the stark contrast between the places she's describing. I liked the way the tech operated with flow as it worked well within the story. I struggled a little bit with the term "luck" being applied all over the place. It felt a little arbitrary that everything bad happened because of luck. It made it feel like the characters had no agency.

I liked the representation where, universally, pronouns were displayed to help communication. Min knew to look at the symbol to ensure she spoke to or about someone correctly.

I hated she got what she wanted most while not dealing with fallout from her lies. It didn't matter if she hurt her friends, abandoned her family to clean up her mess, or put the lives of an entire ship in danger. This is not only wrong, but also perpetuates stereotypes about the fox spirits. And her magic has no limits? That doesn't make any sense. She's allowed to engage her magic when she's unconscious and incredibly ill. The only mention she makes of problems with the magic is after holding it for MONTHS without end (a skill she's barely used before now) is a slight tiredness in her bones she hadn't noticed before. Come on! Jun's note was never mentioned nor how it was supposed to communicate something to his family. Then why have the note?

Content Warnings by Dragon Pearl by Yoon Ha Lee - Book Trigger Warnings
Representation:

Korean* characters (author openly identifies)
Non-binary side character
Brief mention of a poly relationship (m/m/m)

Content Warnings

meshell's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous medium-paced

My kiddo and I enjoyed this story together - I'm familiar with Yoon Ha Lee's work from Ninefox Gambit (and the Machineries of Empire series, which I liked!) and I enjoyed sharing this kid friendly adventurous coming of age tale.

It also inspired us to read more about Korean mythology and how it was connected to this novel as well. There is also an educator's guide available for this book from Disney Books.

Content Warnings

wheelygoodreads's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Content Warnings

goldendreams's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

More...