Ever since the release of Spin the Dawn, Elizabeth Lim climbed to the top of my favorite story tellers. Her affinity for fairy tales is evident in her own stories, borrowing beloved elements from classic tales, and weaving them into new and enchanting ways. Six Crimson Cranes, which takes place in the same world as her STD duology, is reminiscent of Ella Enchanted, with the main protagonist cursed and unable to talk about it.

Another positive facet of Lim’s work is that her female leads are independent and headstrong. I would argue that this is a coming of age story, since her characters must mature, grow, and persevere against the odds.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a strong female lead, spellbinding adventure, and captivating writing.

Elizabeth Lim brings her expertise in stunning character development and exciting plot twists to Six Crimson Cranes! Six Crimson Cranes transports readers to a land where magic flows, strong and steady, but is outlawed. Princess Shiori knows that she must keep her own powers a secret or risk damaging the relationship she has with her father, and her kingdom. When her path crosses with a dragon after a chance meeting, Shiori quickly embraces the powers that lay hidden within. As she practices forbidden magic and avoids the boy who she is to be married to, Shiori find betrayal -- magical betrayal -- at the hands of her stepmother. Cursed and alone, Shiori must find a way to save herself, her family, and her kingdom.

Shiori does not want to get married, but as the only Princess of Kiata, she has been promised to Takkan for years. She runs away from their betrothal ceremony following her magical paper crane Kiki. She meets a dragon Seryu who agrees to teach her how to use her magic, Magical people have not been present in Kiata for a long time and it is not allowed to practice magic. Seryu suspects that Shiori’s step-mother is also magical. When Shiori finds out that her step-mother has magic, her stepmother curses her and her brothers. Her brothers become cranes and she becomes an anonymous peasant girl with a wooden bowl stuck on her head so no one can tell who she is. If she speaks, her brothers will die. Together they figure out how to break the curse, but it opens up other mysteries- is her stepmother evil after all or is something else at work here? Overall I felt that this book had too many extra plot threads that I was not interested in and felt that the story was overly complicated. It could have been streamlined into a more coherent story, I really enjoyed Lim’s Blood of the Stars duology so this was a letdown for me.

Where do I begin? I loved this book! I haven't read the author before, but I will be now. Have already downloaded one of her past books. Such a fun, fresh tale with so many twists and turns. Kept me guessing the whole way, never knowing who to trust. The characters grow throughout the story and start discovering who they are and what is most important to them. Includes themes of love, family, friendship and misjudgment. I will recommend this to all my reading friends for sure!

As a result of my various committee appointments and commitments I am unable to disclose my personal thoughts on this title at this time. Please see my star rating for a general overview of how I felt about this title. Additionally, you may check my GoodReads for additional information on what thoughts I’m able to share publicly. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this and any other titles you are in charge of.

ARC received from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Seeing the premise of this book and Juliet Marillier commenting on it I had to get my hands on this book. I am really happy that I gave it a chance and worked on actually being able to read it on my kindle instead of having to drag my laptop out and around with me to read. This book was a really interesting set up with a slightly disappointing ending. I felt like everything was just a little too rushed. I would have loved more time with the ending and less time just hanging out in the middle. Despite all that I really did enjoy the story rooting for the hero and glad that the heroine got the growth she needed to be far less annoying. I would highly recommend this for people who love Juliet Marillier's work because it is from the same source material and conjured up the same feelings of wonder and worry that her book did in me as a teen with far less of the adult themes.

this was such a sweet book and I can see this appealing to a younger audience! Ms. Lim does it again!

This book was a lovely reimagining of a favorite fairy tale. I love the life Lim breathed into her characters. Takkan is my absolute favorite, and I couldn't help but cheer for Shiori's bravery and love for her brothers. I wish the brothers had a bit more development. We catch glimpses of their individual personalities, but they only ever seem to interact with Shiori as a group so we never really get a sense of who they are as individuals. I'm definitely looking forward to the sequel.

While I certainly loved Lim's debut duology The Blood of Stars, this new story is on another level entirely.

Evocative, lush and utterly mesmerizing, Six Crimson Cranes was like being pulled into a magical fairy tale both unique and yet familiar. Shiori was probably the most realistic female protag I've come across in quite a long time. Devoid of all the caricatures that plague YA today, she was fresh, human and beautifully executed. I cannot wait to see more of our princess. And Takkan, what can I say--#newbookboyfriend.

I knew Lim was an excellent writer but she really upped her game in all things with this story. The characters, the settings...the food (I'm hungry now) and heartfelt bond of family and friendship were simply amazing.

Highly recommend!

This book was so good! I wasn't sure in the beginning but the more I read the more I became invested. I really enjoyed the main characters and the plotline was very different. I will be recommending this book to all of my friends.

Six Crimson Cranes has a stunning cover. The story is just as stunning. Shiori, a princess with six brothers, has a secret. She is able to do magic, which is forbidden in her kingdom. When her stepmother, Raikama discovers Shiori’s secret, she banishes Shiori and turns her brothers into cranes. For every word that Shiori speaks while banished, one of her brothers will die. Shiori searches for her brothers, and uncovers a conspiracy for the throne.

Shiori is witty and fierce, and I loved her from the first time I read about her. She’s strong and loyal to her family. I loved her determination and cleverness throughout the story. The story is well written and the world is lush with dragons and hidden magic. I loved the twists and the characters. The romance is amazing and feels genuine. This story has the same magic that Elizabeth Lim’s other series, Spin the Dawn had. Definitely check this one out if you are looking for a clever and magical fantasy.

I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.