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A review by naideraid
The Last Dragon of the East by Katrina Kwan
2.0
*Thank you to the publisher via Netgalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review*
Before I get into the review, I will say that the vibe the cover gives off absolutely does not match how intense the book can get inside. But more fool me for judging a book by its cover.
Now, the positives: I think the initial concept (seeing the red strings of fate that tie people together) is very fun. The prose, too, really shined at times, especially when it came to describing the environments. There were some really lovely descriptions that added to the atmosphere of the book.
Unfortunately, that was really all I liked about this. This book is listed at 320 pages on Goodreads and it needed more for what it was trying to do, doubly so because of the shortness of the book, the pacing of the plot felt very, very uneven. The story is divided into 1 POV--Sai's--and brief interludes detailing the story of the 3 dragons. If the story had stuck firmly to Sai and the dragons rather than delving into a romance, I think the page count could have worked as a sort of folk tale/retelling-type of story. However, with the romance and single POV, this was way too short. Especially since the Fated Mates trope has an element of insta-love, it would've been way better and more interesting to see that from Sai's POV and Jyn's.
Speaking of Jyn, she was another problem I had. She feels very, very half-baked as a character. (Diversity win! The brooding, grumpy, cardboard cut-out of a love interest is a woman!) Actually, that's being a bit unfair, it's not that she's a cardboard cut-out per se, she's simply not fully actualized. Especially because from Sai's POV, she comes across as someone with an inconsistent character. Even when, later, we learn her reasons why, it still doesn't fully flesh her out. This is largely due to the fact that the bulk of the emotional work for a good portion of the book is done via Sai feeling her emotions through their bond. It took the hard work out of building up their relationship organically. I really think this book and story would have benefitted from chapters in Jyn's POV, possibly instead of the short folktale-like chapters in between Sai's POVs.
Lastly, and this is two points in one, the villain felt very generic in a way that didn't really add anything to the story. And my god did I hate the ending. I won't spoil anything, but a choice the author made really sat uncomfortably in my gut. In fact, there was another instance a little earlier in the story that also made me a little queasy, but the ending definitely didn't work for me at all.
Overall, while there were some beautiful writing moments, the uneven pacing and characters didn't work for me.
Before I get into the review, I will say that the vibe the cover gives off absolutely does not match how intense the book can get inside. But more fool me for judging a book by its cover.
Now, the positives: I think the initial concept (seeing the red strings of fate that tie people together) is very fun. The prose, too, really shined at times, especially when it came to describing the environments. There were some really lovely descriptions that added to the atmosphere of the book.
Unfortunately, that was really all I liked about this. This book is listed at 320 pages on Goodreads and it needed more for what it was trying to do, doubly so because of the shortness of the book, the pacing of the plot felt very, very uneven. The story is divided into 1 POV--Sai's--and brief interludes detailing the story of the 3 dragons. If the story had stuck firmly to Sai and the dragons rather than delving into a romance, I think the page count could have worked as a sort of folk tale/retelling-type of story. However, with the romance and single POV, this was way too short. Especially since the Fated Mates trope has an element of insta-love, it would've been way better and more interesting to see that from Sai's POV and Jyn's.
Speaking of Jyn, she was another problem I had. She feels very, very half-baked as a character. (Diversity win! The brooding, grumpy, cardboard cut-out of a love interest is a woman!) Actually, that's being a bit unfair, it's not that she's a cardboard cut-out per se, she's simply not fully actualized. Especially because from Sai's POV, she comes across as someone with an inconsistent character. Even when, later, we learn her reasons why, it still doesn't fully flesh her out. This is largely due to the fact that the bulk of the emotional work for a good portion of the book is done via Sai feeling her emotions through their bond. It took the hard work out of building up their relationship organically. I really think this book and story would have benefitted from chapters in Jyn's POV, possibly instead of the short folktale-like chapters in between Sai's POVs.
Lastly, and this is two points in one, the villain felt very generic in a way that didn't really add anything to the story. And my god did I hate the ending. I won't spoil anything, but a choice the author made really sat uncomfortably in my gut. In fact, there was another instance a little earlier in the story that also made me a little queasy, but the ending definitely didn't work for me at all.
Overall, while there were some beautiful writing moments, the uneven pacing and characters didn't work for me.