A good ending for this duology. 

The character development was intentional and well paced, the worldbuilding was consistent and the relationships emotional and well planed. 

I absolutely loved this book!

A thrilling sequel to Six Crimson Cranes and a nice ending to Shiori's journey. 

I spent a little longer than I'd've liked to finish this book due to school and life stuff in general... but also because some parts of the book were a little bit slow. That might just be a personal preference, though. 

I think Seryu's storyline ended to quickly. I felt robbed of an ending where he fought alongside Shiori, Takkan and her brothers 🥲 I loved him a lot and was super sad to see him go in just the first half of the book 😭 The way they closed the curtains of his stage made it feel like it was the end of the book already, haha. Shiori's time in Ai'long and her time in Kiata felt like they were split into two different arcs, which overall wasn't the best pacing choice. (I think that's why it felt draggy in certain areas :'D)

I love Shiori and Takkan's relationship, but I think Shiori acts a little too mature in the romantic relationship aspect considering how she has no prior dating experience and she's only 17. Just a little pet peeve of mine that didn't affect my rating of this book; I know a lot of fantasy books have this type of characterisation anyway.

As always, I'd like to appreciate the worldbuilding, especially since I rarely see Asian takes on typical fantasy tropes (made-up names inspired by real-life things, mythological beings inspired by legends etc) that are usually used in Western settings. (I'm sure that non-English books must do this too, based on their own culture, but this is one of the first times I've seen this in an English book.)

I liked the conclusion to Shiori's journey. It was bittersweet, yet felt more sweet than bitter because of the character reactions and the nice little bows tied onto each character arc. 

Overall, I preferred book 1 more due to its pacing and the plot structure, but I enjoyed this book as well. Goodbye, Lor'yan. I enjoyed traversing your land alongside Shiori <3

Liked the first book much more than this one. Really wish dragons were more involved especially Seryu and his cousin since the book is called the dragon's promise. I loved reading about Raikama's past and I will be reading the book about her that will be releasing because I need to know more about her. Honestly, Raikama was still the most interesting character and the one I really wanted to learn more about. There were def parts that felt unnecessary and I skimmed certain sections because of it. The big fight with Bandur also felt quite rushed compared to everything leading up to it that felt dragged out so I agree with some other reviews that the pacing was off throughout.
I didn't care for how throwaway the half dragons felt. They were some of the more interesting characters but weren't developed. 
And spicy opinion, I didn't care for takkan. I don't remember how I felt about him in the 1st book but in this one, I didn't care for him at all. I loved why he was chosen as the betrothed but his character was boring for me in this one. I don't think I cared about the romance much at all in this. I would've preferred more focus on the "action" parts of the book-would've preferred more time in the dragon realm, would've preferred more expansion on Shiori's magic, would've preferred more Raikama backstory, etc. 
Not a bad sequel, still enjoyed a lot of elements of it, but I would've been satisfied with the first book and a book solely about Raikama. Maybe even a novella solely about the dragon realm.

I enjoyed this book more so than the first, probably because the plot has already been established, making easier to understand some of the complex explanations.

I understand that the MC's character-development is part of the plot, though I would like to say I don't really enjoy it. She can be a bit too stubborn and overbearing to read.

The romance is fine, simply, WHERE CAN I GET MYSELF A TAKKAN?!?!?!?!

Now I have some spoiler questions I need answers to at the very bottom of my review. 

I really enjoyed this book though, not as much as the first. I love all the characters, places, and don't get me started on the food description 🤤.

If I wasn't so in love with Shirori and Takkan's relationship I wouldn't have minded if the relationship between Shirori and Seryu happened. I adore Seryu, he is one of my favorite characters and I wish we got to see more of him in the latter half of the book

While I enjoyed Shiori’s reunion with her brothers I thought it felt a little lack luster, though a lot has obviously happened in the months she’s been gone and she showed up with not so great timing. Shirori's reunion with her father however angered me. I have very mixed feelings for her father's character. You would think he'd be happy to see his ONLY daughter after so long and after her being lost with her brothers but instead he berates her....Wth?

I adore Shirori and Takkan's relationship. It is equal parts sweet and romantic while also being passionate and shows how much they deeply care for each other. Also How many times can two people be almost married?!

I adored Qinnia. Even though we don't see her very much or learn much about her, what we do see and what we got made me love her. It didn't feel like she was added just to be added, she had a place in the book and it wasn't forced.

Now onto my dislikes.


I didn't enjoy how long and dragged out the trip to the Dragon's kingdom was. While I enjoy Seryu I thought the whole thing could have been shorter and it would have gotten the same point across about her misadventures and adventures there.

(This is going to be so hard to explain my feelings without spoilers)

While I enjoyed the ending I was worried about certain things happening and my fears were partially true. I didn't really care for the solution that ended up taking place, but I rather that than the worse thing I thought was going to happen. I do like how the author incorporates Seryu into the ending and the solution that is figured out for Shirori.

I felt like the ended was a little rushed and I wanted to see more from the epilogue.

For some reason I cried like a little baby at the end of this book and I have no clue why. Yes some things that happened were sad but jeez I didn't think it was all that sad.

My spoilerly questions

Who tricked the guardian demon/dragon (I can't remember his name) into killing Vanna? 
And why does Hasho still have a bird arm and can talk to birds. Is it because he was cursed by Bandur? But if that's so wouldn't it heave been fixed when the demon/dragon changed her brothers back into humans?