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3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
Disclaimer: This review contain spoilers.
I had high expectations for this book and unfortunately I was a little disappointed. It wasn’t exactly bad, the story and the world it’s set in are pretty good (the former is a little boring at times) but to be honest I really dislike the main character. And again, she is not badly written, she just annoys me. The rest of the characters are fine, not all of them as people but as written characters.
The biggest offences are thou, on one hand the pacing, things happen very quickly and many important stuff happens of page and we are told it happened because the main character (whose point of view we follow for like 90% of the book) is knocked out. She does have tendency to get herself into situations that will eventually end up in it.
On the other hand we have the intent on part of the author to redeem of the “One”, I don’t mean for what he did long ago but what he did to Hesina. Because he wanted her to learn the lesson, how about you actually teach her when she was a kid and then explain the situation to her, like a responsible adult. In general the everyone in this book could work on their communications skills.
The thing I liked in this book though are the relationship between Mei and Sanjing and the romance between Akira and Hesina. Both were very well done.
And, even though the ending was very frustrating, a liked it in the end.
I had high expectations for this book and unfortunately I was a little disappointed. It wasn’t exactly bad, the story and the world it’s set in are pretty good (the former is a little boring at times) but to be honest I really dislike the main character. And again, she is not badly written, she just annoys me. The rest of the characters are fine, not all of them as people but as written characters.
The biggest offences are thou, on one hand the pacing, things happen very quickly and many important stuff happens of page and we are told it happened because the main character (whose point of view we follow for like 90% of the book) is knocked out. She does have tendency to get herself into situations that will eventually end up in it.
On the other hand we have the intent on part of the author to redeem of the “One”, I don’t mean for what he did long ago but what he did to Hesina. Because he wanted her to learn the lesson, how about you actually teach her when she was a kid and then explain the situation to her, like a responsible adult. In general the everyone in this book could work on their communications skills.
The thing I liked in this book though are the relationship between Mei and Sanjing and the romance between Akira and Hesina. Both were very well done.
And, even though the ending was very frustrating, a liked it in the end.
I wanted to like this so bad, and on some levels I did, but on a lot of levels, I just didn't. I loved the setup and foundation of the story, but I think He just had too much to fit into one book. It took me a while at the beginning to keep all of the names and situations straight, and by the time I got those down, I felt like so much more had been introduced and I just couldn't keep up. This may have been more of a personal issue, as I have heard so much love for this book, but I overall did not have a great time reading.
Hesina is princess of Yan, a country that had ones been terrorized by the magic sooths, which are now outlawed. When her father, the King, dies, she is convinced that his death was not of natural cause and goes out of her way to find the real killer. But what she hasn't accounted for was the politics of the court, intrigues and betrayals playing their part in uncovering the truth.
First of all, this book is not a comforting, fun little fantasy book. It is Hurt/NoComfort, bawl your eyes out, talk about in therapy stuff. But it is a great book. My favourite part was without question the worldbuilding. The east-asian inspired setting of Yan, where the rules are dictated by eleven mysterious revolutionaries of the past is explored in depth, with all the lore, history of oppression and connecitons to its neighbouring countries, is what makes the sotry of Hesina so easy to get captivated by. Supported by a very pretty, descriptive writing style, I found myself speeding through the almost 500 pages in less than four hours.
I also fell in love with the characters. Hesina is a great protagonist with a lot of agency and not without faults. The rest of the cast mainly consists of her family, a wild mix of real siblings, bastards and adoptees, all of which got their moment to shine. Then, there is also the thief, who Hesina conscripts to help her uncover the Truth, Akira, with whom Hesina also develops a bit of a romance. Though there wasn't a lot of focus on that, I enjoyed their dynamic and would have wanted to see a bit more - maybe in the next book?
All in all, "Descendant of the Crane" was not at all what I expected. It was dark and sad, and very quick-paced, but it all took place in such a detailled world, with well developed character and in a beautiful style that I had no choice but to love it. It ended on a pretty open note - which I actually prefer, because now I can just pretend they all lived happily ever after. Nevertheless, one of the best endings I read in a while. I cried a lot.
First of all, this book is not a comforting, fun little fantasy book. It is Hurt/NoComfort, bawl your eyes out, talk about in therapy stuff. But it is a great book. My favourite part was without question the worldbuilding. The east-asian inspired setting of Yan, where the rules are dictated by eleven mysterious revolutionaries of the past is explored in depth, with all the lore, history of oppression and connecitons to its neighbouring countries, is what makes the sotry of Hesina so easy to get captivated by. Supported by a very pretty, descriptive writing style, I found myself speeding through the almost 500 pages in less than four hours.
I also fell in love with the characters. Hesina is a great protagonist with a lot of agency and not without faults. The rest of the cast mainly consists of her family, a wild mix of real siblings, bastards and adoptees, all of which got their moment to shine. Then, there is also the thief, who Hesina conscripts to help her uncover the Truth, Akira, with whom Hesina also develops a bit of a romance. Though there wasn't a lot of focus on that, I enjoyed their dynamic and would have wanted to see a bit more - maybe in the next book?
All in all, "Descendant of the Crane" was not at all what I expected. It was dark and sad, and very quick-paced, but it all took place in such a detailled world, with well developed character and in a beautiful style that I had no choice but to love it. It ended on a pretty open note - which I actually prefer, because now I can just pretend they all lived happily ever after. Nevertheless, one of the best endings I read in a while. I cried a lot.
This book was the best book to keep me out of my reading slump. It had the perfect amount of surprises and I genuinely could not guess what was gonna happen next. Every question gets answered and it’s such a good read.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
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
adventurous
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is one of my favorite reads this year! The story about Hesina and her kingdom is very beautifully written and it deserves so much more attention. Everyone should read this!
Synopsis: Descendant of The Crane is about Hesina, princess of Yan, who suddenly becomes queen when her father passes away. Her first act as queen of an unstable kingdom is finding out who killed her father, and to unconver the truth she seeks out a Soothsayer (hated by all in Yan, immortal, some of them have magic abilities) to help her find the truth. Her friends and family help her along the way, but she also has a kingdom to run...
I love how human Hesina is despite her upbringing as a princess. I also love how complicated all the characters close to her are. No one is just who they are, they bring something to the story that makes it that much better. I love how we get to know her dad better at the same time Hesina does. Her reactions are almost the same as you as a reader. Love. That.
(Have I mentioned I love this book?
Synopsis: Descendant of The Crane is about Hesina, princess of Yan, who suddenly becomes queen when her father passes away. Her first act as queen of an unstable kingdom is finding out who killed her father, and to unconver the truth she seeks out a Soothsayer (hated by all in Yan, immortal, some of them have magic abilities) to help her find the truth. Her friends and family help her along the way, but she also has a kingdom to run...
I love how human Hesina is despite her upbringing as a princess. I also love how complicated all the characters close to her are. No one is just who they are, they bring something to the story that makes it that much better. I love how we get to know her dad better at the same time Hesina does. Her reactions are almost the same as you as a reader. Love. That.
(Have I mentioned I love this book?
....I thought this was supposed to be a standalone? But it clearly needs a sequel... nothing was resolved...
the main character was so passive, she barely did anything. Things just kept happening to her and she had to react to it, which she often did surprisingly poorly.
Ugh it was just a frustrating book. I don't know why I bothered to finish it.
the main character was so passive, she barely did anything. Things just kept happening to her and she had to react to it, which she often did surprisingly poorly.
Ugh it was just a frustrating book. I don't know why I bothered to finish it.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I really enjoyed the characters, their relationships, the universe. The book surprised me multiple times and I am happy with the ending. I look forward to reading more from this author!