Princess Hesina of Yan has always been eager to shirk the responsibilities of the crown, but when her beloved father is murdered, she's thrust into power, suddenly the queen of an unstable kingdom. Her inner conflict between whether to do what is good for her family and friends or her people plays a big part in the story and you can see how much she thinks about every decision she takes, how she weighs the good and the bad and, in the end, she always takes a risk for what is right. Truthfully, 2017 me, the person who sold DOTC in a 1 book deal to its original pub, was pretty idealistic.

If you read them differently, who am I to force you to arrive at my destination, to make something canon when it isn’t even on the page?It's actually one of the better, more creative YA fantasies I've read, taking influence from Chinese culture and exploring morally grey areas in a story full of political machinations and twists.

Her imagery is gorgeous and has your mouth watering at the idea of strolling through a persimmon garden even if you’ve never eaten a persimmon before. Descendant of the Crane also features a compelling cast of characters with complex relationships that leave you unsure of how you feel about the events of the narrative. Now the catch is that these sooths are thought of as bad people, and by even acknowledging them as human beings you are guilty of treason. There is a little romance in there, but it is not over the top and it plays perfectly in the whole story.Determined to deliver justice, she decided to start a trial to find the murderer and become the next queen. There wasn't a heavy emphasis on romance (which I thought was good) but there was a lot about family.

I am curious about the names, and why some are Chinese but Hesina's is, I believe, an alternate spelling of a Muslim name, and Lillian is a very Western name. The court is not some simple engine that applying pressure here, pressure there, could propel in the direction of her wishes. The imperial doctors say the king died a natural death, but Hesina has reason to believe he was murdered. The summary for this was incredibly intriguing—billed as an Asian GoT, with twists, turns, politics, war and feminist agency, I was beyond hooked. I had hardened myself to wonder before I started this book, but my knee-jerk skepticism was quickly knuckled under by my admiration for the way He has craftily drawn on several familiar tropes and recast them into something altogether fresh and memorable.They’d follow the points of views of characters you haven’t yet met (while bringing in the old cast), and complete the bigger story that’s introduced in the epilogue of DESCENDANT OF THE CRANE. I genuinely hoped there would be a chance of preserving my original vision (3 total books) and selling companion books 2 and 3 to the same pub and continuing the story, if I could just prove that there was an audience for book 1. Due to previous historical events, the sooths were generally despised and shunned from society and there were terrible punishments for them and those who sympathised with them.

If you liked my first book, Seraphina - particularly the politics, palace intrigue, and mystery - then I'd encourage you to give this one a try. This gorgeous, Chinese-inspired fantasy is packed with dizzying twists, complex characters, and intricate politics. By then, the fear of Soothsayers—the relic emperor’s henchmen—and their magic had knitted itself into the bones of Yan and seeped through generations, and so the Eleven expunged everyone with Sooth magic in their blood from existence.

Thank you so much to Joan He for sending me an advance reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review! The ending of the book leaves enough space for a second one (fingers crossed) or some companion novels (fingers crossed).