I loved this duo! I am new to Elizabeth Lim as an author, and will certainly return for more titles. One of my favorite tropes is the retelling of a fairy tale. While Unravel the Dusk, and it's prequel Spin the Dawn are not true retellings, they gave me a feeling of connection to fairy tales and princess stories. The closest similarity I could sense was Aladdin, as the duology includes a Jinn, voyages on a flying carpet, and a tiger. Maia is a wonderful heroine who is feisty, kind, and ambitious. In Unravel the dusk, her story that began in Spin the Dawn continues.. She faces challenges and adversaries that her strengths are called upon to meet both on the battlefield and inside her own mind. Edan is a constant presence even as Maia wavers in her belief that a happy ending could be a possibility for their love. I truly loved the ending, and was somewhat surprised but also very pleased by how the initial conflict, presented in Spin the Dawn, was resolved. Highly recommended!

This book, much like Spin the Dawn, is such a lyrical book. Elizabeth Lim has such a fine way with words, and every scene she describes makes me wish I was in her story. The opulence of the scenes is incomparable. The journey that Maia is on is just *chef's kiss*. I truly enjoyed reading this and cannot wait to have a finished copy on both my shelf and the library shelf.

First and foremost, a special thank you to Netgalley and publisher for providing me with an ARC of this marvelous book! The opinions below are my own.
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Pros
1. The writing: Luscious, brilliant, beautiful, and exciting.

2. The characters: Fully fleshed out characters with unique personalities that did not ever go OOC.

3. Relationships: Beautiful and complex relationships between lovers, family members, and friends were represented in this story.

4. Folklore: I've heard people say that they felt the magic system was lacking, but I truly feel like the author did this on purpose. This was not a book where we dive into the inner workings of magic, but instead portrays magic as divine, mysterious, and beautiful. Magic is more described than explained, and for a purpose- to keep its mysterious nature.

5. The Ending: Decent wrap-up, but it could have been better!

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CONS
1. The writing: More can be said with less! I frequently dock stars (or half a star) for flowery writing that is unnecessary. There were quite a few scenes in this book that I found myself skimming over because it took me away from the main plot and did not substantively add to character development. I understood that the main character, Maia, was struggling with her inner demon. No need to talk about it every two pages or go off on a plot tangent to prove how much she was struggling with it. Stick to the main scenario/plot line and develop the character, please!

2. Characters (Lady Sarnai): I understand that my dislike of Lady Sarnai is completely subjective, but nonetheless, I wanted to write about her. I understand that she was to portray a female warrior raised among men and very harsh conditions. She was written to be an unflinching and ruthless leader who did not bend to the desires of others.... BUT- she come off as self-centered, a snob, and, to be quite frank, an asshole. I hated how Maia kept bending to Sarnai's will to the point that I started wishing Maia embraced the darker side of her powers just to put Sarnai in her place.

3. Relationships: The lovers. I very much enjoyed the courtship and flirtation in the first book, and even the part where both lovers declared their love for each other (and this is saying a lot coming from someone who abhors cheesy love scenes). This book, though... I'm so glad they spent most of their time apart from each other because when they were together they kinda made me want to gag. It isn't as bad as other books *cough* Sarah Maas Throne of Glass *cough* but it could definitely have been toned down with.

4. Pacing: I'll be honest and say that this book dragged for me when compared to the first, with scenes that were not really necessary and to the point where the beautiful writing started grating on me a bit.

5. The Ending: (Totally biased) I think a there was a little too much that happened that was convenient for the story to have a happy ending. I would have liked for a more complicated ending.

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And that's a wrap!

Kindly,
Monica

Find me on YouTube: Little Bad Books

Absolutely wonderful!!! I LOVED the first book with its stunning imagery and beautiful storytelling, and was overjoyed to see that the sequel lived up to the first! Beautiful!

Unravel the Dusk is the second half of the duology that begins with Spin The Dawn. It’s a fairly gentle read even with the genre typical violence, Since it feels like a fairy tale you just know that if the characters remain brave and true and keep showing all the fairy tale virtues that things will be okay in the end and good will prevail. If you’re in the mood for a escapism and a sweet romance I recommend this series highly.

**I was provided an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for honest review.**

Unravel the Dusk is the sequel to Elizabeth Lim's well-received Spin the Dawn, which was marketed as Mulan meets Project Runway. As a sequel, this novel is very much difficult to review without spoiling the first book.

Unravel the Dusk picks up shortly after the end of Spin the Dawn. Lim addressed all of the questions I had at the end of that novel, and wrapped up what I believe is a duology in a satisfying way. I did enjoy the plotlines of Spin the Dawn more, but I thought Lim was clever in how she resolved the issues raised in Spin the Dawn during the telling of Unravel the Dusk.

Overall, I enjoyed my reading experience of Unravel the Dusk and was grateful to have the opportunity to read it early.

It's official: Elizabeth Lim is one of my favorite authors. This book killed me. I'm not kidding. I actually cried. ACTUAL T E A R S. For those of you who don't know me, that's an extremely rare occurrence, especially at something in a book. And yet, here I am, still sniffling as I try to gather my jumble of emotions into a coherent review that tells you how much I loved this.

This was even better than I was expecting it to be. How is that possible, you ask? I'm not really sure. But oh my gosh, this book blew me away. I felt nearly every single freaking emotion it's possible to feel while I read this. How did she do that?? How did she make me care so much for these characters and for this world?

As this is a sequel, there isn't much I can say without going into spoilers but I can say this much: this book is more than beautiful descriptions, lush landscapes, and one of my favorite book romances (it definitely has all of that though). At its heart, it's a story of what it means to be human. It is a story of growth and loss and pain and change. When I finished 'Spin the Dawn' last year, I didn't know how to feel about the ending. I could see the potential, but I was worried the author wasn't intending to take the story in the direction I hoped she would. I had nothing to worry about. She exceeded my expectations and handled this book beautifully.

I am <i>still</i> freaking out that I was blessed enough to receive an ARC of this book. I can already say with 100% certainty that this is one of my favorite books of the year and that I will read anything this woman writes. I'm serious.

Spin the Dawn is one of my favorite books, and as soon as I saw that the sequel was on here I jumped to the opportunity to read it. Lim left us wanting more with Maia at the end of book one, and I just couldn't wait to know what would happen next. It was more than just her trying to show that women can do the same as men, it was about never giving up on your family and your dreams.

One of the main topics from the first book that I was really excited to see was the enchanted scissors. They were such a thrill, and I couldn't to see what would happen with it, and Maia would use them. Of course Lim had us captivated in the first chapter, she does so well at capturing the audience and having me at the edge of my seat wondering what is happening next. Even though it has been awhile since I read Spin the Dawn it was easy to be like "oh yeah" Maia did this so she could do that, and it was easy to keep up with what was going on.

5/5 stars and lots of excitement to have gone on this journey again.

This duology is just so fantastic! I adored where this sequel went in terms of the plot and the Chinese legend. The journey that Maia takes in this novel is harrowing, and my heart broke for her through the entire book. This duology is a wild ride from start to finish-so captivating with an adorable romance to boot! I recommend this series so very highly, and I cannot wait to see what Elizabeth Lim comes out with next!

*Thanks to the publisher for providing my copy of this book via Netgalley!*

Sorry this was posted for the wrong book please disregard this. I will update soon.
Sorry this says I have to at least add 100 characters to this.

Thank you, NetGalley for the e-arc!


In UNRAVEL THE DUSK, Maia is dealing with the demons inside of her, as well as protecting those she loves. I absolutely adored the world-building and action scenes in this installment. I also loved the tales centered around Chinese myths. But unfortunately, this suffered from second book syndrome, for me.

The bad:

First, we don't see much of Edan until much later in the book. I also did not feel connected to the characters as much I did in book one. This may be because of the lack of Edan and the romance felt very thin. I wanted to feel that tension again, but I couldn't find it. I did not feel disappointed with the ending, but it also wasn't satisfying, if that makes any sense. It felt rushed and a little weird.

Sequels are hard to write. Reading them is always a chore for me, but my expectations are always too high. Unfortunately, this was a miss for me.

I really liked this book, I think that it is even better than the first one. There is more action, adventure, and Maia being an all around badass. If you like fantasy then this book is one to check out, it gives readers a fresh and new twist on the beloved story of Mulan.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I loved every page of this brilliantly, breathtaking sequel to Spin the Dawn. Poor Maia is cursed to become a demon and has sent the love of her life away for his protection. She must assist in the marriage of the unwilling Sarnai to the heinous emperor.

Maia's struggles with her newfound powers that are destined to take away everything from her are a thrill to read about as are the thrilling battle sequences.

Spin the Dawn made my favorites last year and incredibly Unravel the Dusk improves on its brilliance.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy to review.

Gosh I ADORE this book so much!

I honestly loved this book so much more than the first (even though I gave them the same rating.) I think Elizabeth Lim has such a way with words, the writing in this was just incredible and there were so many quotable moments that I adored. The characters went through SO much in this, I was just rooting for them the entire time. I loved everything about this book but the one small detail that made me give it a four star instead of a five (which it is SO close to being!) was that some phrases in this book were repeated a lot. The reader was reminded often of certain details which I found a bit annoying since we, the reader, understood that already and didn't need a reminder quite so often.

Other than that, this is seriously one of the best sequels I have ever read. I adored every second I was back in this world and I can't wait for more in this series (if there will be more!) But even if this is the last book, I felt like it wrapped up very nicely and that another book isn't necessary (but I would love one regardless!) I highly recommend this series, it is such a unique YA fantasy that I just adore and cannot wait to reread in the future!

Ohhhh boy. Y’all buckle up for a wild ride! Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions are my own.

When we last left Maia, she was becoming a demon and that’s where this book starts, more or less. In true style, this book starts with the wedding of Sarnai and the emperor and that entire failure. In an attempt to be spoiler free, let me say that it is a dousy to say the least. That being said, it sets up for an epic battle at the end and it helps Maia be able to face her future.

Maia has to fight her demon self and come back to Edan, her family and the nation and that fight makes the wait worthwhile. I will say that the beginning of this book is so fast paced that I didn’t even realise how much I read until I stopped for a minute, but that a certain event in the middle SLOOOWS it down. That event is also super short so it really makes you wonder why it took such a toll on the pacing. It is made up to us by the end though so I suppose all is forgiven. It’s the ending we truly deserve after all the heartbreak we suffer.

As I said, this is spoiler free so I can’t actually talk about much here, but I will say that, in my opinion, it’s the perfect sequel.

Spin the Dawn was my favorite YA book of 2019, and I've been anxiously waiting to read the sequel. First, the covers of this series are almost unmatched. They are simply stunning. Generally speaking, I enjoyed getting back to Maia and Edan, and the characters are well written and believable. For me, there was too much fighting/adventure and not enough creativity. I understand that there needs to be a conclusion to her demon curse, but I wish there had been a little more tailoring. Those magic scissors are the stuff of dreams!

Rating ~2.5-2.75

"If dying is this beautiful, then I wish I were a tree too. I'd be happy to die and be reborn in the spring."

It was better than the first book. But still, something was missing for me.

The Good:
Chinese Cultural Influence: I love myths and legends from other cultures, so some of my favorite parts of this book were when they spoke of the tales they had been told while growing up. Also, I enjoyed the world-building, even if I was not practically drawn overall storyline.

The Bad:
The Disconnect: Despite the fact that I wanted to love this book, I just never felt any real strong emotions toward the characters. Positively or negatively.
The Love Story:
The end of the thread is you, Edan, I wanted to tell him. It's always been you.
Again, it was just kind of there. The leads were a true ride or die pair and yet that never got me excited.

The Mixed:
The ending felt too happy, too easy, at least for me. After everything that happened for things to just work themselves out relatively perfectly seemed terribly odd. Like I'm not mad, I'm not sure I could think of an ending that would have been exactly better. But this ending just sat oddly.

So, if I had to equate this book to a feeling, I think it reminds me of the time I went to a buffet, grabbed what I thought was steamed custard bun only to bite into it and realize there was no custard inside. It was just a plain Chinese steamed bun. That is this book for me. It's an authentic bun, but it is just not the bun I wanted

I really loved this duology! This was a really great ending to the series. Honestly, at the end of the first book, I wasn't sure how everything would work out in book 2, going in with her becoming a demon. I thought it was a little over the top and wouldn't work well with the tale, but it actually ended up being really good. Maia is a strong character throughout, and even though she doubts herself immensely, her actions really show how brave and strong she is. She's such a solid character that never wavers in her devotion to her country and the people she loves, and very self-sacrificing. She was really admirable, all throughout the series. I think the only thing I didn't like about book 2 was that there wasn't as much about the beautiful garments and fantastic tailoring like the first book. I really loved all of that, and while I get that sewing really doesn't equivocate to a useful battle skill, I kinda missed it in book 2. She only mentions what the dresses look like a couple of times, and then she sews a few stitches here and there, but never any full garment of beauty like the first book. It's understandable given her situation, but I still missed it! Overall though, this was a great book, and I really enjoyed the whole series!

One of the best fantasy duologies I’ve read in a long time!! Amazing writing, wonderful characters. The world building makes you feel like you are there. This was a perfect ending, it did some scary things that made you think something was going to happen to the characters, but it wrapped up everything perfectly.

I was truly expecting this to be a trilogy for some reason, not a duology -- and it's rare that you read a book and think "actually, I do wish there was yet another book after this." I will admit that I thought the trilogy would be one book per mythical dress in the story (Stars, Sun, Moon), but now that I've finished the book, the duology of Dawn/Dusk should have made it obvious to me. I was delighted that this book further spun its way into exploring the weaver/cowherd myth as part of the backstory we get. The romance is still just as appealing, the pacing was good - although again, I wished for and thought (mistakenly) there would be a third book. Elizabeth Lim has a gorgeous way with words that is deeply enviable, and the characters and plot are engaging. I wished that we had more time with some of it - it didn't feel rushed per se, but I would have liked much more from the human antagonists and not just the magical ones. Overall I really enjoyed this, and will re-read again when it releases.