Tittle           : The Dragon's Promise (Six Crimson Cranes #2)

Author        : Elizabeth Lim

Pub Date    : August 30, 2022

Pages          : 400

My Rating   : ★★

The Summary

Princess Shiori promised on her deathbed to give the dragon's pearl back to its rightful owner, but doing so is riskier than she ever thought. She must travel to the kingdom of dragons, deal with political intrigue involving both humans and dragons, thwart thieves who are desperate to obtain the pearl while maintaining the appearance of a perfect princess to deter those who want to have her burned at the stake for the magic that runs in her family. The pearl itself is not your typical goods; it pulses with malicious power, leaping to Shiori's aid one moment and betraying her the next, threatening to destroy her family and sever the fated thread that ties her to her true love. To protect the life and the love she has worked so hard to obtain, Shiori will need all of her strength.

My Review

In all honesty, Six Crimson Cranes deserved to stand alone even though I thought the first book was only merely average and left a lot of unanswered questions that I had expected the second book to address. Instead, it just made me feel disappointed.

I really value it when you create new worlds and tell stories that are steeped in mythology and culture. She just has such a sure touch with the magic she conjures, so I'll always be tempted to purchase her works.

There is far too much happening for just one book, and it felt much longer than it needed to. The plot of this novel was boring and haphazard. There were either too many subplots or too many unresolved problems, which gave the impression that I was being hurried from one subplot to another.

Its uneven pacing occasionally made it feel crowded and out of place. It looked as though the author was coming up with plot twists on the fly. Moreover, it appeared as though the author was under duress to finish this sequel since some ideas from the first volume were repeated here.

Even though there isn't a true love triangle in the story, it is hinted, which I found to be almost as annoying as dealing with one. The characters in this book don't seem to be strong enough to carry it off, even without a love triangle. I never warmed up to the characters, and I frequently felt cut off from what was happening on the page.

Instead of being happy that the story is over now that the book is completed, I still have a lot of unanswered questions. And as an outcome of those unexplained causes, nearly every answer to a particular problem seemed random and forced.

Overall, this is a disappointing end to a duology that had a lot of promise but was regrettably divided up, and I still stand by my opinion that if the first book could be the only one more focused, It will be more fantastic!

Series Review:

Six Crimson Canes: 3/5 stars

The Dragon Promise: 2/5 stars

Six Crimson Canes Duology: 5/10 stars

My ratings score:

★★★★★ Fantastic! Made me go through a lot of emotions & the entire book is incredibly beautifully done! 

★★★★ Memorable! Despite its shortcomings, this book was incredible and taught us a lot. 

★★★ Good work! Nothing particularly remarkable, but still nice.

★★ Meh... Mediocre with great room for improvement.

★ Extremely Poor.

Tittle           : Six Crimson Cranes (#1)

Author        : Elizabeth Lim

Pub Date    : July 06, 2021

Pages          : 481

My Rating   : ★★★

The Summary

The sole princess of Kiata, Shiori'anma, is hiding something. Her blood is infused with forbidden magic. Shiori usually manages to keep it under wraps, but on the morning of her wedding, she loses control. Her error initially appears to be a lucky break, preventing the wedding she never wanted. But Raikama, her stepmother, is also drawn to it.

The little princess is exiled by the witch Raikama, who also transforms her brothers into cranes. Shiori is warned not to discuss it with anyone because doing so will result in the death of one of her brothers.

Shiori, who is silent, wordless, and alone, searches for her brothers while learning of a sinister plot to take the crown. Only Shiori has the power to restore order to the kingdom, but in order to do it, she must put her faith in a paper bird, a fickle dragon, and the boy she battled so hard not to wed. And she must, at all costs, embrace the magic she has been trained to forswear throughout her existence.

My Review

A fantasy retelling of an Asian folktale, Six Crimson Cranes. The narrative shows a young royal facing unforeseen difficulties and learning to deal with them. The map is a beautiful work of art, and the cover is outstanding.

Unfortunately, I can't say that I'm completely certain of how I feel about this. It was simply a fantastic daydream for me. I'll confess that the story's unexpected turn set it apart from many other books of a similar genre I've read. That was really fantastic, for sure.

This book had a great beginning, but once the characters left the castle, the plot lost all meaning and the book started to drag. I also believed that the characters weren't given enough focus, even though that less time was spent on action. There were only a few cursory descriptions of the characters' motivations; there were no character-deep dives into what they were thinking.

My favorite part of the story was the unique and fascinating universe that Elizabeth Lim created. The beauty of the world is stunning. I enjoyed how the author created her world with wonderful detail. My interest is maintained by the magic system. I loved feeling so original, genuine, and unfiltered. I experienced a peculiar sense of belonging to that place and this story. It was an experience like no other.

Everything in the writing was outstanding. fascinating, seductive, and stunning. I found that the language is simply so gorgeous, and I thought it complemented the worldbuilding brilliantly. One of the main elements that I think everyone would agree on is that when people choose this kind of genre, they expect the world and how dreamy it is. And writing on the senses is something Elizabeth Lim excels at!

It clearly has a YA flavor, so if you're hoping for characters with more nuance and an intense relationship, this certainly isn't the book for you. However, this one is worth reading, especially since it's a unique YA reader fantasy!

My ratings score:

★★★★★ Fantastic! Made me go through a lot of emotions & the entire book is incredibly beautifully done! 

★★★★ Memorable! Despite its shortcomings, this book was incredible and taught us a lot. 

★★★ Good work! Nothing particularly remarkable, but still nice.

★★ Meh... Mediocre with great room for improvement.

★ Extremely Poor.

Tittle           : Starry Eyes

Author        : Jenn Bennet

Pub Date    : April 03, 2018

Pages          : 421

My Rating   : ★★★

The Summary

Best friends who later became best foes Zorie and Lennon had developed a skill at dodging one another ever since the homecoming dance from the previous year. The fact that their families are the contemporary Californian equivalents of the Montagues and Capulets doesn't hurt either.

But Zorie and Lennon end up lost in the forest after a group camping expedition goes wrong. Alone. Together.

What might possibly fail?

Zorie and Lennon are forced to talk things out with one other while trying to get to safety because they have no other company. They do this by making clever jabs and insults. However, the likelihood of making it out of the woods unscathed decreases as everyone fights one another and the natural forces.

And as the two venture further into the untamed countryside of Northern California, emotions and secrets come to the surface. Can the rekindled love between Zorie and Lennon endure in the real world? Or was it really the effect of the enchantment of the sparkling stars and the crisp forest air?

My Review

This book is undoubtedly adorable. I adore Zorie and Lennon. They are essentially the kind of pair we all wished for when we were teenagers.

Although the premise is quite intriguing, I am regrettably not enough intrigued by it, especially as the story progresses. The narrative is somewhat dull and suspenseful.

Although it mentions sex (which, for me, is safe enough because it's not graphic), friendship, family, loyalty, and betrayal, it still adequately captures all I would wish for.

The novel is ideal for modern YA and a fantastic fit for anyone seeking a humorous story without too much heartbreak.

My ratings score:

★★★★★ Fantastic! Made me go through a lot of emotions & the entire book is incredibly beautifully done! 

★★★★ Memorable! Despite its shortcomings, this book was incredible and taught us a lot. 

★★★ Good work! Nothing particularly remarkable, but still nice.

★★ Meh... Mediocre with great room for improvement.

★ Extremely Poor.