Six Crimson Cranes Book Review

 Six Crimson Cranes

by Elizabeth Lim

 Release Date: July 6, 2021

Genre: Fantasy

Age Range: Young Adult

Series: Six Crimson Cranes

Goodreads Avg. Rating: 4.22 stars

At the start of the book, I was very unsure because of our main character. I was willing to keep going as this duology has received such praise.

This book takes place in the kingdom of Kiata, which has an Asian-inspired culture. We begin at the capital city but will see a few other places through the book. The descriptions of each are quite well done. Here though behind the royal palace is the Holy Mountain. This is where the gods imprisoned all demons before leaving our world. The magic of the mountain is strong enough though to pull new demons into its depths even still. While we do not get to see the gods we do get to meet dragons. They are not often on land with mortals but one will be important to our main character. There are stories told throughout the book that give us a view of the people's beliefs.

As for the magic of this land, it is a bit complicated. Not the system itself so much as the dealings with it. In this kingdom magic is forbidden and mostly extinct. Anyone possessing it is sentenced to death for fear that they will turn into a demon. There are sorceresses in other lands but not in Kiata. Dragon magic is a little different as it is elemental and stronger than human. Each dragon has a pearl and they can gift part of it if they so wish. This makes them highly sought after for the magical boost it would give.

Our main character is Shiori, the only daughter and youngest child of the Emperor. She is sixteen at the beginning of the book and proves to be every bit of that teenage mindset. Understandably, she would be against an arranged marriage but she has had eleven years to get used to the idea or get to know her betrothed. Shiori is very impulsive and stubborn. These traits work in her favor as well as against each other. Throughout the story, I was very impressed with Shiori's growth as a character. While still young she was no longer a slightly irritating pampered child.

Shiori is one of the few born with magic. After ruining her betrothal ceremony she swears to have witnessed a dragon. This catches her stepmother's attention, even if Raikama does not acknowledge that she believes Shiori. Soon Shiori learns that she is not the only one at the palace with magic. Before she can reveal anything her stepmother casts a curse turning the empiral sons into cranes. Shiori remains human but must not utter a word or for each sound made one of her brothers will die.

Being a YA there is a touch of romance in the book. It is quite adorable. The most you get is Shiori denying that she is having feelings toward him more than friendship. It feels much more accurate to the ages than many YA romance plots are.

As for the ending of this book, I almost feel it would have been better if it had ended a few chapters earlier. However, this one allowed Shiori to show how strong she had become. The ending was sad after the twist was revealed. This is only the first book so the overall story was not wrapped up. Shiori is departing already at the end.

Overall this was a lovely story. The world is interesting and our main character grew so much. Then there was the feeling of being a folktale through the whole book. I will be interested to see how the story comes together in the conclusion.

You can find this book from the below retailers:

Amazon                  Barnes & Noble