Wow! The imagery, the colors, the scenery, the outfits, the food. This book is so rich with culture and flavors and texture it’s just so good. I am really enjoying Elizabeth Lims writing style and I currently have her other duology in my library audiobooks holds which I’m super excited to read as well. It was just such a lovely story. Though there were moments where I would fall out of intrigue and there were moments of dullness for me I guess… I did really enjoy it and my fairyloot edition is absolutely stunning.

so much was packed into 600 pages it left me reeling at the end. speaking of, the ending was absolutely beautiful. i feel like this book kinda unnecessarily went on forever, but i didn’t mind too much as i absolutely adore the writing of this book and the one that came before it. i appreciate how well the characters were thought out as well. i don’t think the plot was as interesting a concept as the book before it, though.

Elizabeth Lim’s gorgeous follow up (and conclusion) to the Six Crimson Cranes duology was another intricately crafted and vibrant tale of identity, family and learning to embrace your power that I genuinely fell in love with! 

It picks up immediately after the events of Six Crimson Cranes and sees our Protagonist, Shiori journey into the watery realm of Dragons (Ai’long) and risk untold danger into the forbidden land of Spirits (Lapzur) to fulfill a promise to her stepmother —and the action is pretty much non stop the entire time.

If you’re familiar with any of Lim’s previous books then you’ll know just how dreamy and immersive her world-building can be and Shiori’s world of demons, dragons and magical paper cranes is no exception. But, if you’re not all that familiar then you’re in for a treat as this vividly detailed and sweeping, fantasy is chock full lush descriptions and loveable characters that fans of fairytale retellings and East Asian mythology will definitely adore. As this is a sort of prequel to Lim’s previous duology which references the events which take place here, I do think for newbies who haven’t read them —you’d be best starting out with this duology (Six Crimson Cranes, The Dragon’s Promise) to get the most enjoyment. 

We don’t actually spend much time in the Dragon Realm (only about the first third of the book) but fans of Lim’s The Blood of Stars duology will be delighted to know we encounter a familiar fan favourite from that series during Shiori’s time there and his scenes were just soo delightful! 

We also get to see more of Seryu, the dragon mercurial dragon prince Shiori befriended in Six Crimson Cranes and I loved getting to explore his character on a deeper level—and learn more about the dynamics and culture of the dragons. 

Kiki (shiori’s magical paper crane companion) is still one of my favourite characters and loved her witty banter, antics and dynamics with a few of the other characters. 

The opportunity to delve into Shiori’s stepmother’s past was really interesting and definitely added a poignancy and depth to her actions in Six Crimson Cranes. I truly felt for her here, and it seemed definitely help Shiori gain a deeper understanding too. 

Overall, another spellbinding, fairytale inspired YA Fantasy that I urge everyone to check out—after you’ve read Six Crimson Cranes, that is!)

"Twilight crept over the Holy Mountains. The Moon was a crown faint against the coal-black sky, but the breach glowed a deep, visceral red."
This was an amazing follow-up to Six Crimson Cranes, and I was absolutely in love. I couldn't set this book down for long - I kept picking it up to read another chapter or two. Seeing how much the characters grew - both in Six Crimson Cranes to The Dragons Promise and in The Dragons Promise on its own - was so endearing to read. Everything about this book was pure magic, and I definitely recommend it if you've read Six Crimson Cranes.

Enjoyed for the most part - but the plot felt somewhat rushed and disjointed. Thankfully Takkan continues to be an amazing book boyfriend, even when Shiori is a bit of a disaster.

Those familiar with the Wild Swans inspiration will recognize a few additional details.

Overall, lovely sequel but didn’t quite live up to the first one, for me.

I think I'm in shock a little as I write this--I literally finished this book 2 minutes ago. I want to make it clear that I don't think this book was bad, but I do think it was underwhelming/disappointing. This picks up right after Six Crimson Cranes so I had to play some mental catch up in terms of what happened in the previous book. I also think that y'know, if you title the book The Dragon's Promise and then only about 1/4 of the book takes place in the Dragon Kingdom, and then we don't see another dragon for a solid 70% more of the book, the title may be a bit of a misnomer. I also didn't like the lack of

Seryu, and I didn't understand why he didn't stick around?? Maybe I missed something

. 

In terms of plot, it's fairly straightforward--go to point a for the purpose of b, but there were a lot of unnecessary, small bits that added up over time to make the book drag. It also lacked a lot of the charm of Six Crimson Cranes, but that is in part due to the higher stakes in this book. Other reviewers have touched on the villain and the lack of nuance and development that the "antagonist" of the first book had, and I agree. I think that overall I'm just disappointed because this book didn't live up to Six Crimson Cranes for me. There were definitely some good parts, and Takkan is a gem, but there were just some elements that didn't gel together for me.

The Dragon's Promise is the epic fairytale conclusion to the Six Crimson Cranes duology - an accompaniment to The Blood of Stars duology. It's filled with lots of high-stakes adventure, tons of incredible (dragon and demon) magic, and even a sweeping romance.

One thing to note before reading this review is that it will contain spoilers for all of the books in this collection (Six Crimson Cranes AND The Blood of Stars). I had to do a bit of digging to find out that these were all interconnected, which made some of the character arcs and a bit of the world-building a little more understandable upon finishing the story.

Before learning about the way the duologies connected, I was greatly confused by Bandur's presence in Six Crimson Cranes. Since he was such a huge part of The Blood of Stars, it immediately seemed strange that he was the number one "villain" in The Dragon's Promise. However, what I found to be true was that similar to The Grishaverse and the way each of the three series in that collection come together and share villains and characters, these books by Elizabeth Lim do something very similar. They're not only set in the same world, but you'll regularly see familiar names, magics, and other elements.

This book started out incredibly strong, with Shiori and Seryu getting into lots of trouble in the dragon's realm. There were some great fights, fantastic magic, and character introductions that led me to believe there will be more stories told in this universe over the coming years. Part of me wished that the entire book had taken place in that particular timeline. The dragons are so fascinating and I absolutely loved Seryu from start to finish. I didn't want to "say goodbye," so to speak. It almost felt as though that entire portion of the story could have been its own book.

However, that period of time was very necessary for the remainder of the tale. While I believed that we would have a bit of a love triangle (Shiori/Seryu/Takkan), I was grateful for the fact that our protagonist stayed true to the love she "left back home," returning to Takkan and cultivating a really wonderful relationship through the remainder of the book. There were so many moments where I thought, "you need to TALK with him," and then, rather than a terrible miscommunication trope, she actually did talk with him. I absolutely loved that. It made the romance something really enjoyable and sweet.

There were a few things about this book that really stood out to me and I loved:
- It was beautiful to learn more about Raikama/Channari's life. She's such a fascinating character and despite being the "villain" for the majority of the first book, this book allowed us to understand her so much more.
- KIKI! This paper bird is the love of my life, I swear. She's adorable, sassy, hilarious, and just so much fun. I love the impact she has on Shiori and the way she stepped up to the plate in so many ways throughout this book. She really is a star character.
- Shiori's brothers. We got to know so much more about each of them and I just adored their willingness to sacrifice for their sister and each other. They were so precious and Hasho is my very favorite of the bunch.
- The "I used magic and so my hair turned white" trope. It's niche, but it's a thing, and I kind of love it.

While this didn't necessarily hold the same kind of power the first book did for me, it was a really wonderful story and it had a strong finish. I really look forward to seeing what Elizabeth does next in this world. I think there are so many incredible tales to come from the land of dragons and demons, magic and myths.