The Dragon's Promise by Elizabeth Lim

Title: The Dragon's Promise

Series: Six Crimson Cranes #2
Author: Elizabeth Lim
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Young Adult Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Knopf Books for Young Readers; August 30, 2022

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

From the New York Times Bestselling author of Six Crimson Cranes comes a thrilling new adventure! A journey to the kingdom of dragons, a star-crossed love, and a cursed pearl with the power to mend the world or break it... Fans of Shadow and Bone will devour this soaring fantasy. 

Princess Shiori made a deathbed promise to return the dragon's pearl to its rightful owner, but keeping that promise is more dangerous than she ever imagined. She must journey to the kingdom of dragons, navigate political intrigue among humans and dragons alike, fend off thieves who covet the pearl for themselves and will go to any lengths to get it, all while cultivating the appearance of a perfect princess to dissuade those who would see her burned at the stake for the magic that runs in her blood. The pearl itself is no ordinary cargo; it thrums with malevolent power, jumping to Shiori's aid one minute, and betraying her the next—threatening to shatter her family and sever the thread of fate that binds her to her true love, Takkan. It will take every ounce of strength Shiori can muster to defend the life and the love she's fought so hard to win.

One of my most anticipated sequels of 2022 was Elizabeth Lim’s follow-up to Six Crimson Cranes, which was one of my favorite reads from last year. I appreciated everything that story did to reimagine the original tale, The Six Swans—with dragons, a wisecracking paper crane, actual cranes, and more—it was one of the best kinds of retellings out there, but it was also just a good story in its own right. And after the way it ended, I was more than looking forward to The Dragon’s Promise.

The Dragon’s Promise picked up where Six Crimson Cranes ended with Shiori undertaking a quest, to keep the promise she made to her late stepmother. I admired her determination to see it through to its end, despite the dangers it posed to her as well as everyone she loved and cared about.

I liked the story. Some parts lagged for me, or were a little repetitive in what happened. That being said, the main conflict of the story was really good. There were slight political and superstitious angles to it (partially fueled by fear) and, given the world building done prior in book one, it was understandable. It was far more pronounced here, and it added even more stakes to the story.

There weren’t too many new characters here, and they didn’t stick around long once their part of the story was over. While they were present, I liked them, even the ones that were on the more antagonistic side of things.

Shiori’s brothers were great as usual, and I liked them for the fun sibling dynamic they had going on, as well as how dependable and supportive they were.

Shiori’s tale has always been a highlight of these books for me. During the events of Six Crimson Cranes, I sympathized with her a lot of the time. She was still herself here but more confident, especially when it came to her love life (it was cute), and I appreciated the loyalty and devotion between Shiori and Takkan. It was also great to see her more assured in her duty as a princess. She had her mistakes, of course, but she also had her moments.

All-in-all, I liked The Dragon’s Promise. It tied up all the loose ends in a way that made sense and offered a satisfying payoff for everything that happened. And as a whole, I enjoyed the duology.

 

About the author....

Elizabeth Lim grew up on a hearty staple of fairy tales, myths, and songs. Her passion for storytelling began around age 10, when she started writing fanfics for Sailor Moon, Sweet Valley, and Star Wars, and posted them online to discover, "Wow, people actually read my stuff. And that's kinda cool!" But after one of her teachers told her she had "too much voice" in her essays, Elizabeth took a break from creative writing to focus on not flunking English. Over the years, Elizabeth became a film and video game composer, and even went so far as to get a doctorate in music composition. But she always missed writing, and turned to penning stories when she needed a breather from grad school. One day, she decided to write and finish a novel -- for kicks, at first, then things became serious -- and she hasn't looked back since. Elizabeth loves classic film scores, books with a good romance, food (she currently has a soft spot for arepas and Ethiopian food), the color turquoise, overcast skies, English muffins, cycling, and baking. She lives in New York City with her husband.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Knopf Books for Young Readers) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!