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biancakerrie's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
isabelbrieler's review against another edition
4.0
At its barest bones, Descendant of the Crane is much like many other fantasy novels. An abnormally young Queen (Hesina) ascends to the throne on the heels of a conspiracy (the death of her father), and sets about unraveling said conspiracy along with the help of an assorted crew of other teenagers.
However, where most of the other books that follow this blueprint blend together, Descendant of the Crane shines. Hesina is an immensely relatable narrator and every time she hurt, I hurt. When she cried, I cried. The rest of her motley crew (her brother, her adopted siblings, and a convict) is fleshed out to perfection, making their sufferings throughout the book very affecting. (If it seems like I'm focusing too much on the sadness, it's because this book absolutely broke my heart in the best way, and boy am I still feeling it.)
The plot takes turns that are unexpected and never extraneous. The setting is beautiful and vividly depicted. Relationships grow believably and emotionally. Hesina struggles with her country's persecution of the sooths (a magically gifted subset of people) and this exploration of what to do when your sense of morality conflicts with seemingly everyone else is at the core of the story.
Hesina has just become a monarch, but I loved that, unlike most of these characters, she was extremely competent. There were many forces at play that she had little control over, but her promise as a ruler is never clearer than during her interactions with the Crown Prince of a rival nation. The backbone of the plot of the book is the mystery of the death of Hesina's father, and although other plotlines make up the heart of the book, this mystery's twists and turns keep this book engaging.
As genres, I love period dramas and fantasy for their court intrigue plotlines, and Descendant of the Crane featured enough of this to make me happy, while still being more of an action/adventure type fantasy novel than I was quite expecting. Nonetheless, the action was exhilarating, and I wouldn't change a moment of it.
I think I may never recover from this book. I will be eagerly awaiting its sequel (I'm counting on you, Joan He. I need closure!) and I highly recommend it to lovers of fantasy, incredible heroines, and mystery.
ARC provided via NetGalley.
However, where most of the other books that follow this blueprint blend together, Descendant of the Crane shines. Hesina is an immensely relatable narrator and every time she hurt, I hurt. When she cried, I cried. The rest of her motley crew (her brother, her adopted siblings, and a convict) is fleshed out to perfection, making their sufferings throughout the book very affecting. (If it seems like I'm focusing too much on the sadness, it's because this book absolutely broke my heart in the best way, and boy am I still feeling it.)
The plot takes turns that are unexpected and never extraneous. The setting is beautiful and vividly depicted. Relationships grow believably and emotionally. Hesina struggles with her country's persecution of the sooths (a magically gifted subset of people) and this exploration of what to do when your sense of morality conflicts with seemingly everyone else is at the core of the story.
Hesina has just become a monarch, but I loved that, unlike most of these characters, she was extremely competent. There were many forces at play that she had little control over, but her promise as a ruler is never clearer than during her interactions with the Crown Prince of a rival nation. The backbone of the plot of the book is the mystery of the death of Hesina's father, and although other plotlines make up the heart of the book, this mystery's twists and turns keep this book engaging.
As genres, I love period dramas and fantasy for their court intrigue plotlines, and Descendant of the Crane featured enough of this to make me happy, while still being more of an action/adventure type fantasy novel than I was quite expecting. Nonetheless, the action was exhilarating, and I wouldn't change a moment of it.
I think I may never recover from this book. I will be eagerly awaiting its sequel (I'm counting on you, Joan He. I need closure!) and I highly recommend it to lovers of fantasy, incredible heroines, and mystery.
ARC provided via NetGalley.
teiira's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
megsbookishtwins's review against another edition
5.0
Disclaimer: I received this free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
When Princess Hesina’s father dies, she is suddenly thrust into power. She is now the ruler of an unstable country, nearly at war with its neighbouring country, full of political corruption, and a country that has outlawed and oppressed soothsayers, magic users, for centuries. While others think her father died of natural causes, Hesina believes he was murdered. A trial ensues but her entire court is filled with deceivers and those using her father’s death for political gain. In order to find out the truth, Hesina commits a treasonous act, punishable by death – she enlists the help of a soothsayer.
Descendant of the Crane is a Chinese-inspired fantasy that is by far one my favourite Untitledreads so far of 2019 – and will probably stay as one of my favourite books, especially fantasy, of all time. If I could, this would get far more than five stars from me. It has everything you would want in a fantasy – an immersive and descriptive world, a thrilling court of politics, lots of betrayal and deception, and intense mystery, a masterfully crafted story, and a brilliantly complex and flawed protagonist.
It is a slow-paced book, which doesn’t always work for me but Joan He managed to create such a turbulent atmosphere where one wrong move by our characters could have drastic consequences which made this a thrilling and suspenseful read.
What I loved most about this is that finally, we have a ruler that really understands power and rule. Hesina also truly grapples with what it really means to be a good ruler too. Placate the majority and continue with the status quo in order to protect your own rule or commit to change and progress and challenge that oppression and hatred despite the consequences? She questions everything she does and, frankly, it is refreshing.
“What is power? Hesina had thought it was wielding the knife, or getting someone to wield it for her. Now she realized it was neither of those things. Power was yielding. It was taking the bloodstained knife out of a thousand frenzied hands and making it her alone.”
The political intrigue in this book is masterfully done. I adore books that feature political intrique, it is a surefire way to make me love a book. I loved how Hesina handled the politics, the deception, and the dangers of court. It was truly invigorating and kept me fully invested despite the slow pace. Descendant of the Crane featured so many twists and turns, morally ambiguous characters, betrayal and deception, and so much conflict. You think she’s done with the reveals and THEN YOU READ THE EPILOGUE. shit.
Hesina is right up there with some of my all-time favourite characters. She is a brilliantly complex and flawed character. She is a ruler but also an oppressor. She makes hard and sometimes wrong decisions that tend to have disastrous consequences. While she wants to change her country for the better, she fears her own people’s resistance to change – she feeds their hatred and prejudice because she is scared to confront them and their prejudice. I loved watching her learn and grow throughout the book.
Also, the romance is so lovely.
Overall, Descendant of the Crane is an impressive and powerful debut, and I will read ANYTHING Joan He writes. Listen to the hype, this book definitely delivers.
When Princess Hesina’s father dies, she is suddenly thrust into power. She is now the ruler of an unstable country, nearly at war with its neighbouring country, full of political corruption, and a country that has outlawed and oppressed soothsayers, magic users, for centuries. While others think her father died of natural causes, Hesina believes he was murdered. A trial ensues but her entire court is filled with deceivers and those using her father’s death for political gain. In order to find out the truth, Hesina commits a treasonous act, punishable by death – she enlists the help of a soothsayer.
Descendant of the Crane is a Chinese-inspired fantasy that is by far one my favourite Untitledreads so far of 2019 – and will probably stay as one of my favourite books, especially fantasy, of all time. If I could, this would get far more than five stars from me. It has everything you would want in a fantasy – an immersive and descriptive world, a thrilling court of politics, lots of betrayal and deception, and intense mystery, a masterfully crafted story, and a brilliantly complex and flawed protagonist.
It is a slow-paced book, which doesn’t always work for me but Joan He managed to create such a turbulent atmosphere where one wrong move by our characters could have drastic consequences which made this a thrilling and suspenseful read.
What I loved most about this is that finally, we have a ruler that really understands power and rule. Hesina also truly grapples with what it really means to be a good ruler too. Placate the majority and continue with the status quo in order to protect your own rule or commit to change and progress and challenge that oppression and hatred despite the consequences? She questions everything she does and, frankly, it is refreshing.
“What is power? Hesina had thought it was wielding the knife, or getting someone to wield it for her. Now she realized it was neither of those things. Power was yielding. It was taking the bloodstained knife out of a thousand frenzied hands and making it her alone.”
The political intrigue in this book is masterfully done. I adore books that feature political intrique, it is a surefire way to make me love a book. I loved how Hesina handled the politics, the deception, and the dangers of court. It was truly invigorating and kept me fully invested despite the slow pace. Descendant of the Crane featured so many twists and turns, morally ambiguous characters, betrayal and deception, and so much conflict. You think she’s done with the reveals and THEN YOU READ THE EPILOGUE. shit.
Hesina is right up there with some of my all-time favourite characters. She is a brilliantly complex and flawed character. She is a ruler but also an oppressor. She makes hard and sometimes wrong decisions that tend to have disastrous consequences. While she wants to change her country for the better, she fears her own people’s resistance to change – she feeds their hatred and prejudice because she is scared to confront them and their prejudice. I loved watching her learn and grow throughout the book.
Also, the romance is so lovely.
Overall, Descendant of the Crane is an impressive and powerful debut, and I will read ANYTHING Joan He writes. Listen to the hype, this book definitely delivers.
bananathemuffin's review against another edition
3.0
This book should not have taken me a month to read. I just could not force myself to get through the first half of it at a reasonable pace. It was slow and honestly boring up until about the halfway point.
Overall it was okay. I found the murder mystery aspect of it to be interesting. And I have a weak spot for stories that include an ancient network of tunnels that comes into play later in the story. And this book has that so it made me happy.
I can tell I'm getting older because I roll my eyes every time I read that the general of the entire nation's military forces is only seventeen years old. I can deal with kings and queens being crowned in their teens, but who in their right mind leaves a nation's army in the hands of hormonal teenagers?
I also found the romance to be a bit forced. It seemed to come out of nowhere. Literally nowhere. Hesina just suddenly liked Akira and for seemingly no reason. I didn't feel anything towards their relationship. Normally I'm rooting the lovebirds on, but I was just "eh" towards it in this story.
Overall it was okay. I found the murder mystery aspect of it to be interesting. And I have a weak spot for stories that include an ancient network of tunnels that comes into play later in the story. And this book has that so it made me happy.
I can tell I'm getting older because I roll my eyes every time I read that the general of the entire nation's military forces is only seventeen years old. I can deal with kings and queens being crowned in their teens, but who in their right mind leaves a nation's army in the hands of hormonal teenagers?
I also found the romance to be a bit forced. It seemed to come out of nowhere. Literally nowhere. Hesina just suddenly liked Akira and for seemingly no reason. I didn't feel anything towards their relationship. Normally I'm rooting the lovebirds on, but I was just "eh" towards it in this story.
dragonsmaidan's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.75
elisabettamariagiuseppa's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
SEQUEL NEEDED
Content Warnings
hannahinpages's review against another edition
2.0
DNF at 63%.
I rarely DNF, but I am so bored I literally cannot do it anymore. Disappointing as this has been on my shelf for years and I thought I could like it. Won't give it a one star because I didn't finish and because there's nothing glaringly terrible, the characters are just bland and it's boring.
I rarely DNF, but I am so bored I literally cannot do it anymore. Disappointing as this has been on my shelf for years and I thought I could like it. Won't give it a one star because I didn't finish and because there's nothing glaringly terrible, the characters are just bland and it's boring.
lightningsews's review against another edition
Not the right time. Would have loved it when I originally saved the book on my tbr years ago, but now there are other books that capture my attention better. Want to return to it someday