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notapenguin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Death
broccoli_j's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
A good ending for this duology.
The character development was intentional and well paced, the worldbuilding was consistent and the relationships emotional and well planed.
I absolutely loved this book!
The character development was intentional and well paced, the worldbuilding was consistent and the relationships emotional and well planed.
I absolutely loved this book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Death, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: War
Minor: Pregnancy
eetishmeh's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
A thrilling sequel to Six Crimson Cranes and a nice ending to Shiori's journey.
I spent a little longer than I'd've liked to finish this book due to school and life stuff in general... but also because some parts of the book were a little bit slow. That might just be a personal preference, though.
I think Seryu's storyline ended to quickly. I felt robbed of an ending where he fought alongside Shiori, Takkan and her brothers 🥲 I loved him a lot and was super sad to see him go in just the first half of the book 😠The way they closed the curtains of his stage made it feel like it was the end of the book already, haha. Shiori's time in Ai'long and her time in Kiata felt like they were split into two different arcs, which overall wasn't the best pacing choice. (I think that's why it felt draggy in certain areas :'D)
I love Shiori and Takkan's relationship, but I think Shiori acts a little too mature in the romantic relationship aspect considering how she has no prior dating experience and she's only 17. Just a little pet peeve of mine that didn't affect my rating of this book; I know a lot of fantasy books have this type of characterisation anyway.
As always, I'd like to appreciate the worldbuilding, especially since I rarely see Asian takes on typical fantasy tropes (made-up names inspired by real-life things, mythological beings inspired by legends etc) that are usually used in Western settings. (I'm sure that non-English books must do this too, based on their own culture, but this is one of the first times I've seen this in an English book.)
I liked the conclusion to Shiori's journey. It was bittersweet, yet felt more sweet than bitter because of the character reactions and the nice little bows tied onto each character arc.
Overall, I preferred book 1 more due to its pacing and the plot structure, but I enjoyed this book as well. Goodbye, Lor'yan. I enjoyed traversing your land alongside Shiori <3
I spent a little longer than I'd've liked to finish this book due to school and life stuff in general... but also because some parts of the book were a little bit slow. That might just be a personal preference, though.
As always, I'd like to appreciate the worldbuilding, especially since I rarely see Asian takes on typical fantasy tropes (made-up names inspired by real-life things, mythological beings inspired by legends etc) that are usually used in Western settings. (I'm sure that non-English books must do this too, based on their own culture, but this is one of the first times I've seen this in an English book.)
I liked the conclusion to Shiori's journey. It was bittersweet, yet felt more sweet than bitter because of the character reactions and the nice little bows tied onto each character arc.
Overall, I preferred book 1 more due to its pacing and the plot structure, but I enjoyed this book as well. Goodbye, Lor'yan. I enjoyed traversing your land alongside Shiori <3
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Death of parent
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
Minor: Pregnancy and War
Please look up content warnings if you are concerned! It's possible that I missed a few. Stay safe!kayceeisbookish's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Minor: Grief, Pregnancy, War, Death, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.75
Liked the first book much more than this one. Really wish dragons were more involved especially Seryu and his cousin since the book is called the dragon's promise. I loved reading about Raikama's past and I will be reading the book about her that will be releasing because I need to know more about her. Honestly, Raikama was still the most interesting character and the one I really wanted to learn more about. There were def parts that felt unnecessary and I skimmed certain sections because of it. The big fight with Bandur also felt quite rushed compared to everything leading up to it that felt dragged out so I agree with some other reviews that the pacing was off throughout.
I didn't care for how throwaway the half dragons felt. They were some of the more interesting characters but weren't developed.
And spicy opinion, I didn't care for takkan. I don't remember how I felt about him in the 1st book but in this one, I didn't care for him at all. I loved why he was chosen as the betrothed but his character was boring for me in this one. I don't think I cared about the romance much at all in this. I would've preferred more focus on the "action" parts of the book-would've preferred more time in the dragon realm, would've preferred more expansion on Shiori's magic, would've preferred more Raikama backstory, etc.
Not a bad sequel, still enjoyed a lot of elements of it, but I would've been satisfied with the first book and a book solely about Raikama. Maybe even a novella solely about the dragon realm.
I didn't care for how throwaway the half dragons felt. They were some of the more interesting characters but weren't developed.
And spicy opinion, I didn't care for takkan. I don't remember how I felt about him in the 1st book but in this one, I didn't care for him at all. I loved why he was chosen as the betrothed but his character was boring for me in this one. I don't think I cared about the romance much at all in this. I would've preferred more focus on the "action" parts of the book-would've preferred more time in the dragon realm, would've preferred more expansion on Shiori's magic, would've preferred more Raikama backstory, etc.
Not a bad sequel, still enjoyed a lot of elements of it, but I would've been satisfied with the first book and a book solely about Raikama. Maybe even a novella solely about the dragon realm.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
lanid's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Minor: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, Violence, and Body horror
mpbookreviews's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
tense
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
kirstenf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Death of parent
Moderate: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Grief
Minor: War
grets_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, Xenophobia, and Grief
natashaleighton_'s review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
- 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
5.0
Elizabeth Lim’s gorgeous follow up (and conclusion) to the Six Crimson Cranes duology was another intricately crafted and vibrant tale of identity, family and learning to embrace your power that I genuinely fell in love with!
It picks up immediately after the events of Six Crimson Cranes and sees our Protagonist, Shiori journey into the watery realm of Dragons (Ai’long) and risk untold danger into the forbidden land of Spirits (Lapzur) to fulfill a promise to her stepmother —and the action is pretty much non stop the entire time.
If you’re familiar with any of Lim’s previous books then you’ll know just how dreamy and immersive her world-building can be and Shiori’s world of demons, dragons and magical paper cranes is no exception. But, if you’re not all that familiar then you’re in for a treat as this vividly detailed and sweeping, fantasy is chock full lush descriptions and loveable characters that fans of fairytale retellings and East Asian mythology will definitely adore. As this is a sort of prequel to Lim’s previous duology which references the events which take place here, I do think for newbies who haven’t read them —you’d be best starting out with this duology (Six Crimson Cranes, The Dragon’s Promise) to get the most enjoyment.
We don’t actually spend much time in the Dragon Realm (only about the first third of the book) but fans of Lim’s The Blood of Stars duology will be delighted to know we encounter a familiar fan favourite from that series during Shiori’s time there and his scenes were just soo delightful!
We also get to see more of Seryu, the dragon mercurial dragon prince Shiori befriended in Six Crimson Cranes and I loved getting to explore his character on a deeper level—and learn more about the dynamics and culture of the dragons.
Kiki (shiori’s magical paper crane companion) is still one of my favourite characters and loved her witty banter, antics and dynamics with a few of the other characters.
The opportunity to delve into Shiori’s stepmother’s past was really interesting and definitely added a poignancy and depth to her actions in Six Crimson Cranes. I truly felt for her here, and it seemed definitely help Shiori gain a deeper understanding too.
Overall, another spellbinding, fairytale inspired YA Fantasy that I urge everyone to check out—after you’ve read Six Crimson Cranes, that is!)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Grief and Death of parent