The Dragon’s Promise immediately follows the concluding scene of Lim’s spectacular Six Crimson Cranes as Shiori travels to the dragon kingdom to fulfill her promise to return the broken pearl to its owner. Nothing ever goes to plan for Shiori and her companions. As the plot unravels, Shiori recruits new friends while bidding farewell to other longtime allies. While Shiori seeks answers regarding the pearl, the threat of the demon Bandur looms ever nearer as the two plot threads become woven. Fans of Lim’s previous duology will enjoy the hints of old magic, ancient geography, and timeless villians. Meanwhile, readers of Cranes will enjoy frequent references to Shiori’s adventures under the bowl. The Dragon’s Promise covers a lot of ground– both literally and figuratively. The early worldbuilding set up an intriguing alliance that ultimately doesn’t pan out. Thus, the main storyline doesn’t truly pick up until the second half. The expansive and magnificent world feels smaller as travel is frequently rushed between destinations. Nonetheless, Cranes enthusiasts will enjoy the hours spent with Shiori and friends in their epic quest to save Kiata. VERDICT– Cranes readers will not want to miss Shiori’s follow-up adventure.

First I would like to thank Netgalley and Random House Children's Publisher for sending me the E-ARC in return for an honest review.

This was one of my highly anticipated releases of the year!! I love Six Crimson Cranes so much, and will always cherish that book, and the love that blossomed between Takkan and Shiori. I love the second book for the vast world we get to see, especially Ai'long the awaited dragon kingdom where Seryu is from. I wish we had been able to explore it more, instead of being whisked away so fast.

Now for something that made me hard to finish the book, and I won't go into detail but at a point the book felt too similar to Spin the Dawn, and if I hadn't read it before, I think I would have enjoyed it a bit more. Luckily for me the ending picked up again and gifted an ending fitting of the story and the love between our two main characters. I really will miss them all, and the lore and history of their world, especially Kiata. I loved seeing things through the eyes of Shiori as she discovered her purpose in life from all the changes she has encountered. I really can't wait to read what else Elizabeth Lim writes next, as her worlds are full of wonder.

Elizabeth Lim weaves such enchanting Chinese fairytale stories, and this duology was no different! I loved Six Crimson Cranes so much, and I was excited to pick up The Dragon's Promise. While I did overall like this sequel, it didn't quite live up to my expectations (similar with Unravel the Dusk, the sequel to Spin the Dawn).

I think my biggest issue with this book is that the plot felt like several tangents strung together. It just didn't feel cohesive to me, and I didn't see a ton of character development because of it. I also got really annoyed with Kiki—her dialogue was immature, her mistakes drastic, and her help too convenient. Also, where was the romance in this book?? And that ending. I don't get it.

That all being said, I still liked this book. It has some cool underwater scenes and some great parallelism to the first book. The writing is magical, and I love Shiori's relationship with her brothers. But at this point, I'm realizing I have more negative things to say than positive, and it hurts my heart to rate it 3 stars. I really did enjoy reading it, but it was a bit of a let down.

Writing Aesthetic/Style: 5
Plot/Movement: 3
Character Development: 3
Overall: 3

Thank you, Knopf Books and NetGalley, for the ARC!

A satisfying conclusion to a magical, fairy-tale inspired YA duology! But this certainly feels longer and more plot-heavy than its predecessor. The strength of The Dragon's Promise absolutely lies in its excellent world building, as I loved learning more about Kiata and its lore and its magic. The dragon kingdom in particular was fascinating! However, the plot was a tad disjointed, which definitely impacted my enjoyment: as a direct follow up, this book feels like it is tying up loose ends from Six Crimson Cranes but struggles to tie those threads together cohesively. We travel to one location, pick up new objects/information, travel to the next location, get new objects/information, etc. I think some of this comes from this book's broader scope, since the first book focused on one girl's journey to lift her curse, while this one is about traveling to return the pearl to its owner and about returning magic to the land. And this focus on plot felt like it hindered character development, which I wanted more of. Some of the new characters I adored - especially Gen and Elang, who I would love to see more of! And I love any scene featuring Takkan. The ending was sweet and had me teary-eyed. I think this would be best read directly after finishing the first book, for The Dragon's Promise to have the full emotional impact and so you don't forget any important character and plot reveal information that could come back here. I'm also left wondering if Elang will get a spin-off novel - I would love to see him find his pearl! Overall, I'd recommend this to folks who loved the first book to see how Shiori's journey ends, just be prepared for a long one!

I’m so sad this duology is complete but it was a great conclusion!

While I love the characters, specifically Shiori (and her relationship with her brothers), I found myself not enjoying this one as much as the first.

What I liked: I loved Shiori and Kiki. Shiori is relatable and her loyalty is admirable. I also loved the world building! That was probably one of my favorite parts. And lastly, I loved the action scenes. They were fast paced and kept me on the edge of my seat.

What I didn’t like: there seemed to be multiple plots that weren’t layered together (a little disjointed), I was not a fan of the love triangle, and it seemed to drag on.

Overall I loved this duology and would give this one 3.5/4 stars ✨

plot: 3/5
pace: 3.5/5
characters: 3.5/5

writing: 4/5
enjoyment: 3.2/5

final: 3.4/5 stars

the dragon's promise was one of my most anticipated releases of the year ever since I read my arc of six crimson cranes last summer. however, it's safe to say that this was a bit of a disappointing sequel. also, just because I found this a disappointing sequel doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it, it just means that it didn't live up to my standards that I set because of how good six crimson cranes was.

here are the things I didn't like (later ill cover the parts I did enjoy):

the romance between Shiori and Takkan was a much bigger part of the plot in this book than it was in the first, which sounds like a good thing right? WRONG. WRONG BECAUSE THERE WAS AN UNNECESSARY LOVE TRIANGLE. WHAT WAS THE REASON??? WHY?

i've read a few love triangles recently, and I thought that I was starting to dislike the trope a little less. wrong. this book evoked my true hatred for it. the book is literally called "a dragon's promise" but seryu appeared in less than half of the book. he has always been and always will be my favorite character from this series, so seeing him leave so soon was disappointing. he also felt very out of character in many scenes at the beginning. if the author never planned on anything more than platonic to happen between seryu and shiori then she should've kept them as JUST FRIENDS. there was no reason that romance between them had to be hinted.

since seryu is my favorite, I will always root for him. if the love triangles hadn't been the way it was in this book, I think I would've enjoyed the scenes with takkan and Shiori more. I feel like I would've liked this book so much more if nothing more than platonic feelings were exchanged between seryu and Shiori.

the ending left me feeling unsatisfied, and overall underwhelmed.

the things I did like:

yes, takkan and Shiori's relationship did grow on my towards the end of the book. I'm also glad that her brother's also appeared more towards the end. I enjoyed the plot line with the broken pearl and the tie in of dragon's and demons.

shiori and takkan contrasted one another really well, so I feel like it would've been a much more enjoyable book had I been team takkan from the start. the writing was the same as the first, elegant and descriptive, but also well flowing. I certainly wasn't expecting some of the twists that occurred towards the end, but it did feel overdone at times.

overall, I am disappointed that this book didn't live up to the first, but it wrapped up the series and Shiori's story well.

The Dragon's Promise picks up immediately after Six Crimson Cranes. Shiori is set on keeping her promise to return the dragon's pearl to its owner. As she tries to fulfill the promise, she is faced with new and old opponents as her journey takes her to the realm of the dragons and places beyond it.

Shiori's growth occurs in the first book, and as such, there doesn't seem to be much character development here. Her actions are inspired by some of this growth as she tries to keep Kiata and the people she loves safe. At other times, the Shiori from the beginning of the book would appear. This meant some of her decisions, especially those in the dragon realm, frustrated me.

The world-building remains one of my favorite aspects of the duology. While much of the story takes place in Kiata and within the palace walls, it expands with the new places Shiori visits. If I could, I would have liked to stay in some of them just a bit longer.

The writing also remains captivating, but the focus on tying up loose ends distracted me from enjoying it. Rather than a single story, it feels more like three distinct ones connected by Shiori’s promise. The plot languishes in the middle but picks up considerably after.

While The Dragon's Promise is filled with magic and adventure, it doesn't exude the same fairytale-like quality of its predecessor. The world-building and beautiful descriptions are the novel's strengths but are overshadowed by the plot and inconsistent pacing. I would still recommend it, especially for fans of the first book and those who enjoy adventures. (3.5 stars rounded to 4 stars)

An enchanting and emotional ending to the Six Crimson Cranes duology!

The world building is captivating and magical, it's well described and well written too.
The characters are my most favorite thing in this book, it's very well developed and will make you love and root for them throughout the story.

I also like the addition of some new side characters, although I wish I know more about their background story especially Gen and Nahma.
While I love most of the things in this book, I also felt some things can be develop more.
The plot is all over the place and the pacing is slightly too fast because it was trying to fit so many big events in one book.

I wish the story is longer instead of being a duology, to make rooms for more exploration in different realms and more time for the characters not too rush things to solve the problems in Kiata.

Regardless, I really like how everything wraps up at the end, the ending made me shed a tear and I'm satisfied with how it ends.

Overall, this is a very enjoyable book to read. It brings out so many emotions, I laugh, I cry and I smile while reading this one.
I'm really looking forward to read more books from this author!

A massive thank you to Netgalley, Random House Children's, Elizabeth Lim as well as TBR and Beyond Tour for granting this review copy to me and letting me be a part of the book tour.
I'm leaving this honest review voluntarily!

I loved this conclusion to Six Crimson Cranes! In my opinion, there’s nothing more satisfying than a good fantasy duology. Shiori has such a big heart and is a relatable protagonist as she tried to protect the ones she loves while also honoring the promises she’s made in the past. The book is almost segmented by location, which slows the pace but makes for excellent worldbuilding. The action sequences are so fast-paced that it makes up for any other lull. And of course, I loved all of the other characters and seeing how the dynamics have changed after the curse and the spirit world.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

I absolutely loved 'Six Crimson Cranes' by Lim. This book was probably my most anticipated YA fantasy of this year and it left me a bit disappointed. I loved the way the last one ended and this book left me feeling like I wished it would have been a standalone. The first act of this book took way too long and by the time Shiori returned home, it had a much different tone and sort of felt like a different book altogether. I did enjoy the plot in the first part, but it felt inconsequential in the later chapters.

One thing I disliked about this sequel was that the brothers, who seemed so pivotal in the first book, were barely included at all. I missed the strong familial bond that the first one had. Shiori also felt like a different character. She felt less multidimentional. It was also full of plot conveniences and by the time the ending came around it felt like it was brought together way too quickly.

Perhaps this was an issue with too many ideas but wanting to finish it in a duology? It felt like certain plotlines were abandoned to quickly and other were thrown in to spice things up. While Lim is no doubt a good writer, this definitely wasn't as strong as Six Crimson Cranes. The worldbuilding definitely was the strong point, but the characterizations and arcs didn't hold up to the first.

The Dragon’s Promise by Elizabeth Lim is the finale to Six Crimson Cranes and one of my most anticipated books this year. I adored Six Crimson Cranes and really couldn’t wait to dive into Shiori’s story. However, I don’t know if it was my anticipation or the writing itself that caused my lower rating. In The Dragon’s Promise, Shiori and her brothers are home, and Raikama’s death weighs heavy on them all, especially Shiori. With the promise to return the pearl to its rightful owner, Shiori sets off with Seryu to the dragon’s kingdom, leaving all she loves behind and not knowing if she will return. The story follows her adventures in the underwater realm and the peril she faces with the demons in the mountain.

I love Shiori, and I still do. She is such a strong character. Her love and loyalty to her brothers and the growing love between her and Takkan is beautiful. Her growth over the series is truly evident here in all that she faces to protect Kiata. I love her magic and Kiki, her paper crane. Kiki is fantastic, and basically the inner voice of Shiori. Despite loving Shiori, the story itself struggled.

While I love all the characters and the world Lim has created for them, I did not enjoy this story. There was a lot of rehashing and repetition that occurred. Shiori’s trip to the dragon kingdom is roughly half the book, and as it was alluded to in book one, I expected a majority of the plot to take place here. However, it was disjoined. The events in the dragon kingdom do not bear much weight to what is happening in Kiata. The story with Bandur was truncated and at the same time drug out. Multiple chapters end the same way with little forward progression in the story. As a result, I found myself asking if Shiori’s story could have been down in a longer standalone book instead of a duology.

Overall The Dragon’s Promise was not my favorite read of the year. Despite that, I did enjoy parts. I loved Takkan and Shiori’s continued relationship, her brothers are amazing, and how the story wraps up is beautifully written (like brought me to tears). If you enjoy Asian folktales and legends, I highly recommend it. Lim has seamlessly crafted her own story weaving in threads from Asian culture. The Dragon’s Promise is a beautifully written, slower-paced novel about one girl’s heart and soul and where they belong.

Six Crimson Cranes was my favorite fairy tale retelling. However, much, except for one detail I was waiting for, was finished in the first book.

Did Six Crimson Cranes NEED a sequel? No. Did I enjoy it nonetheless? Absolutely.

Now, it was not quite as great as the first. Elizabeth Lim, after Spin the Dawn, is kind of known for her sequels that don't quite match up to the first. That was the case with this, but I still liked getting to read it.

The way the plot was divided up was a bit strange. The first 30 percent is so, so different from the last 70. Personally, I liked both parts, but they didn't seem to fit together well.

Whereas the first book was paced very nicely, unfortunately, this one tended to drag.

Nevertheless, this story still had beautiful prose, characters I cared about, and a plot that finished and twisted the fairy tale into something I won't be forgetting any time soon. (Oh, and a character from the Blood of Stars duology makes a pretty big cameo, so that was fun, too!)

Shiori is a freaking beast! I love her so much! She’s not perfect but the mistakes she makes along the way only make her more determined to complete her journey! Kiki is back and the best side-kick! I love her character and how much she loves Shiori.

This book was non-stop adventure above and below the sea! I always love expansive worlds and this one did not disappoint. We got to see so many new places and Shiori spent a lot of time in the sky as well. It kept me on my toes the entire time. Dragon’s and Demon’s were also a fun part of this second adventure. We got to meet more of both and leaned a lot about Shiori's stepmothers past.

Family! I love how supportive Shiori’s brothers are of her. They don’t hesitate to help her when she needs them! I love how many characters accompany Shiori on her journey's. The cast of characters really help to shape this story. The ending was perfect!

I definitely recommend this YA fantasy duology.

Maybe it's because I trudged through the last 60% of this book with a massive headache, but I did not enjoy myself. I...wanted to like this book. As the conclusion to the Six Crimson Cranes duology, I was hesitantly hopeful that it would improve some of the things that irked me about the original, and we would receive a satisfying end.

Instead...we got whatever all this is.

A Dragon's Promise had way too much going on and gave itself way too much to tackle in the number of pages it had. It was trying to tie up so many narrative threads, and it just got caught in its own knots. The pearl, the wraith, the dragon realm, the war with the priestesses, the demons in the mountain, Raikama's past, Gen, and more, and more, and more. Every time I turned the page I felt like some new character or issue had cropped up, but none of them were properly explored. The only part of this novel I did enjoy was Shiroi's time in the dragon realm, and even that was like...I'll harken back to the review I wrote of the first book--you're going to introduce a realm of magic and shapeshifting dragons and the princess is going to choose the human instead? a-whaa? I like Takkan as a character, but for Shiori to end up with him still makes little sense to me when this is supposed to be a YA fantasy epic. I said it before, I'll say it again: who goes into this series, with a dragon on the book cover, and doesn't declare themselves Team Dragon?

Additionally, neither of my pet peeves from the previous book were cleared up. Shiori still passes out or is rendered unconscious too many times in the span of one book, and the pacing is still all over the place. There were several points that I felt could have been the conclusion of the book, but it just kept going, and going, and goi-

**STAR BREAKDOWN**
Cover: ★★★★☆
Story: ★★☆☆☆
Characters: ★★★☆☆
Overall Rating: ★★☆☆☆

<i>"Then laugh", he said in all seriousness. "I've missed the sound of you."</i>

Thanks to Penguin Random House for the eARC!

I liked Six Crimson Cranes, and the ending got me very interested on what other adventures these characters would find on their paths, but I don't think I really connected with the characters in the first books. Here, however, I found myself deeply loving all the characters, and caring a lot about them and their relationships. While the main problem of the story is solved quite fast for my liking, I didn't find this to be a problem this time. I was actually rooting for the characters to get over it and finally be happy. THEY DESERVE IT!

Shiori shows a lot of character development, and her focus is always in the same objective. But I loved seeing her in love, fighting for those she loves and more confident of herself. I loved her relationship with Takkan, I really did. I was shipping them and screaming every time they had a romantic interaction. And of course, Kiki! She's always amazing to read.

Surprisingly, this book almost made me cry, and I found the ending very pleasing! So yeah, I really enjoyed this ending of Shiori's story, and totally recommend it if you're looking for a different type of fantasy with really good characters and a DRAGONS!

Rating: 3.25/5 broken dragon pearls

Format: ebook. Thank you to the author and TBR Beyond Tours for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review!

To Sum Up:
This is the sequel to Six Crimson Cranes and picks up right where we left off in the previous book. This book is pretty much non-stop action that takes us all over a beautiful magical world, including the underwater realm of Dragons and the dangerous and remote birthplace of Demons. Shiori has to navigate these worlds on a series of dangerous quests but with the help of her brothers and beloved Takkan, she just might be the savior of all magic in Kiata.

Review:
I love this magical world and Shiori's relationship with her brothers! Those elements are still strong in this installment but I found the plot a little overly complicated. Instead of one main plot I felt like there were 4-5 mini plots within this book which made the structure and pacing feel a little weird. Because of the sheer amount of action I felt like there was less time for the love story and character development that I wanted to see but overall I think a lot of people will enjoy this one.

The Dragon's Promise demonstrated how family bonds could be deepened despite distance and tragedy. Since the beginning of Six Crimson Cranes, the characters have grown tremendously. Shiori's time in the dragon kingdom with Sheryu is highlighted in the book's first section, but she then departs, and we don't see Sheryu again. I liked him in the first book, so I was hoping for more. I enjoyed the brothers' bond with Shiori and their lasting protection and willingness to risk everything for each other. It warmed my heart to see their connections more potent than ever despite their time apart. The author's writing is terrific and conceptual, which is a lot because I've always struggled with visualization. The beginning was frantic, but it felt a little crowded and rushed. Following this, the plot felt more dynamic and reminded me of Six Crimson Cranes. The book's ending was intense, and I still have mixed feelings about it. I enjoyed this book, but Six Crimson Cranes remains my favorite.

Though newly reunited with her loved ones, Shiori must leave them to venture to the dragon’s kingdom to keep a heavy promise. In that underwater world, Shiori will learn secrets that will propel her to distant kingdoms and long-forgotten lands in a desperate attempt to restore balance to her kingdom.

Lim’s conclusion to this lovely duology is just as good as the first installment. I LOVED seeing more of Shiori and Takkan together, especially now that she can speak. I feel like Lim really brought her strengths into this book and it was a fun read. My one critique is that sometimes the descriptions were beautifully written but lacking details (like blocking, for example). All in all, if you liked SIX CRIMSON CRANES, you will definitely enjoy this conclusion!

Content warnings: violence

The dreaded second book syndrome- when the sequel to a truly fantastic book falls incredibly short. Six Crimson Cranes was a fantastic read and honestly would've worked perfectly as a standalone. Unfortunately, The Dragon's Promise in no way lived up to the excellence of Six Crimson Cranes. I had a few major problems. First, the characters who I loved in the first book fell flat. The 3D characters suddenly became 2D and I didn't care about their story or arc. More than anything, however, I thought the plot was incredibly boring. There was such a potential with an underwater dragon city, and instead the author used a setting boring in comparison. Unfortunately, this book majorly suffered from the second book syndrome and it basically ruined this series for me.

This follow up to 'Six Crimson Cranes' was honestly a bit of a let down. I really, really adored the first one and I think it might have been better suited as a stand alone. 'The Dragon's Promise' felt a bit like a standalone? Sure, we have the same characters from book one and the storyline/plot was interesting enough but it seemed to be resolved fairly quickly and a whole new conflict introduced. There were also hints of a love triangle that really fizzled into nothing? I enjoyed the characters just as much but I don't think there was enough time with the ones we already knew. New characters continued to be introduced and it could be confusing at times.

Overall, I did enjoy it but not as much as I thought I would. The worldbuilding and fairytale aspects were still my favorite part.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.