As someone who grew up loving Sailor moon I can definitely see the inspiration and truly wish this came out sooner! It was such a fun read and the characters were really fleshed out and you can tell how much time the author has put in the world building. Can’t wait to read the next book!

Guardians of Dawn: Zhara, written by S. Jae-Jones, is a captivating and mythical fantasy adventure that transports readers to a world of magic, danger, and ancient prophecies. This enthralling novel weaves together elements of mythology, intricate world-building, and complex characters to create an immersive reading experience that will leave readers eagerly anticipating the next installment.

This story has excellent Sailor Moon vibes which I really loved which other reviewers have mentioned. Its magical and keeps you sucked in until the very end.

So I truly did love the beginning of the book. I thought the pacing was great and the premise was very interesting. The characters seemed to have lots of potential in terms of growth and development. About 35% in I started lagging and couldn’t find myself wanting to pick it up. I took a break and read something else and then got back into it and made it to 60%. I don’t know what lakebed but the pacing was suddenly off and the characters seemed to just have the same defining characteristics that didn’t add much to the story. I understand it’s YA and that they’re allowed to be young and innocent so that’s not entirely the issue. It was like everything was slow in terms of plot but also like world building info dump which was difficult to get through.
I chose to DNF it seeing as it wasn’t really catching my interest anymore.

Thank you for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I read an eARC of Guardians of Dawn: Zhara by S. Jae-Jones. Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martins Press.

I think comparing this to Sailor Moon doesn’t quite set the right tone. Think of this more as the setup to a magical girl book series with the Cinderella twist for romantic spice.

This book has a lot to do. It not only has characters to set up, but an entire world that we’ll be working within for whatever happens next in the series. Through this story, we get to know Zhara, our Cinderella, who keeps the house for her stepmother and sister working and also makes all the money in the house from the apothecary. She feels compelled to do this as she is a magician, something she’s been since birth, but that is condemned by her government, as magicians can be overtaken by demons and become abominations. Things that destroy and kill everything around them. When she was little, her stepmother hid Zhara away when the Kestrels came to execute her father. Zhara also feels guilt as when she was younger, an accident with her magic since she was never trained, left her stepsister blind.

Zhara one day runs into a handsome student whom she gets the “Good looking giggles” for when she’s waiting to see the new volume of her favorite romance serial. Unable to buy the serial herself, the handsome stranger buys it for her, but switches it with the book he bought instead. A book that turns to be all about magic. A book Zhara wants to learn from, but a book that should have been destroyed years ago with all the magicians.

Later, when the student sneaks back into the Palace, it turns out he bought the student clothes and is actually a prince. He bought the book to hopefully teach his brother so that his little brother won’t be found out by anyone in the castle, as the Prince’s own mother was executed for being a magician when the Prince was young.

On another day, looking for a little lost boy. Zhara finds him, but he feels strange to her magic, and after some cryptid words, turns into an abomination. During the fight, in which the Prince joins, Zhara is covered in fire and somehow reverts the boy back to his original form, and he is no longer possessed, a feat not seen since the Fire Guardian.

This book is thick with information and plot. At some points, it does drag its feet a little, and you might want to wait until the second book is out if you want to really enjoy the story as it is. There are points I love where there is long conversations about the history, plot, and magical system of the book, which I love, but can be overwhelming to others.

The writing style is easily accessible, and can seem juvenile at times, though to me that just adds to the magical girl feel of the book. It also weaves in modern-day references, one is about a popular boy band, but once again, while that is a little cringe, it’s also right on the nose for magical girl stories and the genre.

Overall, I had a lot of fun with this book and am looking forward to sequels.

I would like to thank the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I want to start off this review by stating that I really enjoyed this book. There were, however, some things that I did not love as much as the rest of the book, and therefore I rate it 4/5. I will go more into depth about those later.

Zhara is a really enjoyable character. She’s sweet and works hard, but it’s clear from the start that there’s more depth to her and that she regrets some of the things she’s done in the past. I feel like this was a very good introduction to her as a character, and she develops well throughout the story.

The other characters, however, lacked that depth that Zhara has. Han is mainly introduced by his broad body, and even when we are first introduced to his character’s point of view, the focus seems to remain on that and not much else. At the same time, however, Han seems to be fully unaware of his appearance and his good looks, even though it’s very apparent that he spends a lot of time on training his body for aesthetics.

The story was good! Although it leans a bit on some typical YA tropes, I still really enjoyed the process of learning about the monsters plaguing the world and learning at the same pace as Zhara herself did. The pacing of the book is just right. It manages to keep your interest at all times with enough action, but also not to the point where you are completely overwhelmed and some funny moments in between.

What stood out most to me in this book was the writing. The story reads easily, but the author includes a note at the start of Zhara that introduces their way of introducing unknowing characters. This felt very refreshing, as she uses gender neutral terms and pronouns for strangers until their gender is explicitly stated. The way they do this feels so natural as well, it’s not as if the character straight up states “Oh btw, I’m a boy”, but instead it is mentioned in casual flowing conversation, without it standing out. I also loved the inclusion of Xu as a non-binary character.

An honourable mention to the Bangtan Brothers. Every time they were mentioned I was laughing out loud.

Thanks to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for the eARC!

This book was sold to me as Sailor Moon Meets Cinder and those are two properties I adore!

Does it meet up with those expectations? Absolutely! This is a world where magic is forbidden but don't worry there's plenty of FORBIDDEN magic! I do have to warn that there's some body horror here.

First off I will say that the tag line of cinder meets sailor moon sold me on this book as those are two of my favorite things. I will just say this lives up to it. I absolutely adore this book. I don't want to give too much away but it has everything, action, romance, some mystery, a touch of body horror, lots of magic. The world building is great and fed to you in small amounts and not just dumped at once. The characters are great and likeable, they also play off each other very well. I highly recommend this book if you are looking for a ya book full of fun, magic, and adventure.

This book is absolutely Cinder meets Sailor Moon (which is kind of hilarious, since Cinder was originally Sailor Moon fanfiction, but I digress.) It also gave me major W.I.T.C.H. vibes!

I was captivated by the lore and worldbuilding and laughing to myself at the good-looking giggles. This definitely leans hard into YA, but does start to get a bit darker by the book's end. I really enjoyed the queer representation too! I'm not sure if this will be a trilogy or even more books, but I can't wait for Yuli's book. It sets up the rest of the series so nicely.

*Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

I really just did not enjoy this and I only finished because it was an ARC. The moment I started this I knew it was going to be a struggle to finish and I was right. The book had three different ways for the cat to meow within the first couple pages, I already knew it would be a bit rough. This just did not feel YA and was written very middle grade to me along with the characters. They all had these “quirks” but they all just felt very juvenile along with the overall writing. I also know this was supposed to have a cinderella inspired theme, but it just felt too directly cinderella instead of a loose retelling. I really wanted to love this book, the whole premise sounded great and the cover is gorgeous, but I just feel it is being wrongly advertised. I also feel like this could’ve used a couple sensitivity readers because the disability rep just did not sit right with me. I know this book will be loved by many because it has so much potential, but for me I think it just was not what I was expecting and just felt very young to me.

For once, I agree with the marketing. Guardians of Dawn: Zhara very much feels like a mash up between Sailor Moon and Cinder with heavy influence from Chinese culture/lore. There's also some subtle and not so subtle pop culture references woven throughout the story that is done in an amusing way. Overall this was a light, enjoyable, and easy read, but did not quite live up to my expectations. A lot of the dialogue felt cringy or generic. The characters themselves all felt like walking stereotypes and it comes off very awkward in some scenes. I didn't really hate/like any, but this made it hard to really connect with any of them. The characters just felt too young for the age they were supposed to be representing. The world building and lore is well done, however, and that is what kept my interest most. I will more than likely pick up the sequel since I did have enough fun while reading to ignore all of the flaws.

Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

*Sucks teeth*

Not sure how I ultimately felt about this one. The first few pages made me so glad to have been able to get this ARC, but as the story went, I felt less and less sure.

**MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD**

-To start, I LOVE the premise.
-I definitely noticed the cinderella inspired bits, but the way in which they were used in the story felt too on the nose-especially her leaving her shoe at the ball.
-Zhara's character confused me. She went from super confident and flirty at the start to then thinking she was worthless by the end.
-Zhara was the GUARDIAN OF FIRE and yet she pretty much never uses fire. The moments when she was able to use/not use magic were WAY too convenient.
-Things happened a little too easily, like the first attack by the abomination...which lowers the stakes of finding out the truth behind what was happening
-There were too many "Han is a dolt" moments, especially surrounding lines of poetry with heavy euphemisms or dialogue with Xu. It was also hard to believe because come on, he's a 17 year old boy, and poetry was supposed to be his thing...?!
-Another caveat to the above, who is this book for? At times, it felt MG and others YA and still others Adult.
-The "big reveals" didn't feel big at all. The moment the northern princess was described as having red hair, I knew she was the magician Zhara had seen in the pits. And I knew she would ultimately be another guardian.
-I sort of wish the plot had just been the romance between Zhara and Han because that's where the story shined best while the whole abomination/rising of the demons plot was thin at best
-I wish the "I don't just want to live, but thrive" phrase wasn't inserted in at random moments. Maybe I was annoyed by this phrase because it didn't jibe with the Zhara in the beginning? She just suddenly says this phrase midway through the book and then repeats it every other chapter
-My biggest critique is the twist at the end with Zhara's sister locking her up in the kitchen....like WHAT?! There was no hint of any of the hatred she expressed in that moment laced throughout the book. It always seemed they loved each other and I just couldn't believe that the sister would betray Zhara like that because she was a magician
-This is one of those books that you also can sense halfway through that nothing is going to happen because there's going to be a sequel, which is annoying. The most exciting part of the story comes at the last 50 or 75 pages and it didn't hit me in the way it ought to have. WHAT happened at the ball? WHAT happened to the Chancellor? We don't get any of this but for a few lines in the epilogue
- I wish it had been a standalone, just beefed up a bit.

Yeah. One of the best aspects of this book was the writing--it was very easy to read in that sense, but as for the plot and characters...**shrugs**

This book was a kinda fun ride and full of magic, fun, twists and turns. I did enjoy parts of it. I felt there were too many characters and the theme was often dropped.

ARC provided via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I have mixed feelings about this one. While the world building and plot were interesting and rich, the pacing was quite problematic. As I got closer and closer to the end, I became worried and then almost certain that I was headed for an epic cliffhanger. When suddenly everything was resolved, too neatly in the last chapter.

Also, while I enjoyed many of the characters (especially the cat!), the romance was quite instalove (which I enjoy if done well), and the male lead didn't particularly make me swoon.

The epilogue segues into a sequel that I am interested enough to continue on with.

Time was spent crafting this book and it can be seen within the simplest interactions. The main character, Zhara, is a magician traversing life in a world where magicians are burned alive for existing. Unfortunately she has seen first hand the loss of such a magician- her father. Zhara is afraid of her magic, living as a servant for her step mother and step sister, but soon starts making connections. One of the connections she meets is Han. He is a sweet, innocent, tall, strong boy who blushes and after a few encounters becomes a close ally of Zhara. Zhara and Han meet many other fully fleshed out characters and end up getting mixed up in serious magical business

Through these friends and adventures Zhara grows into her magic and learns about her culture and destiny. This book reminded me of Graceling and Cinderella- it's fantasy with incredible characters, a dash of romance, and magic.

<b>“It is not magic but the magician that is a weapon to be wielded.”</b>

Guardians of Dawn: Zhara is a magical adventure set in a unique world with ancient spirits and demons.

In this first book in what will be a series, we follow the story of Zhara, an orphan who struggles to support her step mother and sister after the death of her father. Her parents were killed during the war because they possessed magical abilities, and since then, all magic is forbidden upon penalty of death. Zhara must hide her magic, lest she befall the same fate. After a run in with Han, a Prince and Heir of Zanhei disguised as a scholar who is seeking help for his magical brother, she discovers the hidden world of the Guardians of Dawn. The Guardians help Zhara and Han, and Zhara begins to understand the reaches of her own abilities and how far she is willing to go to save those who betrayed her.

This was a truly fun and enchanted story. I loved the characters and the budding relationship between Zhara and Han. The supporting characters create a lovely found family as they work to uncover secrets, battle demons, and save the ones they love. One element I really liked was the diverse approach to gender in this story. Characters are not gendered until they introduce themselves, and we have a very well-represented binary character who appears throughout the story. We also have a wide range of relationship types represented in this story as well. The magic system in this book is well-envisioned, and follows the traditional elemental magic systems of fire, wood, wind, and water.

I especially loved Zhara’s growth throughout the book. She starts off as a meek and subservient character, working to support her step family and hide her magic. She definitely grows into her abilities over the course of the story, and I hope to see more of her arc in future installments. I look forward to reading more in this unique world!

I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Publishing/Wednesday Books for providing me with an electronic advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

First of all I would like to thank netgalley and the publisher St. Martin’s for granting me a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

This is one of the books I’ll be categorizing as ‘’I loved the premise but i’m not entirely sure about the execution. I mean ‘’sailor moon meets cinder’’ ???? my interest was piqued from the very beginning. But while I ended up really loving the characters and connecting with several of them aswell, I found myself unable to understand some of their actions. Without heading into spoilery territory, I was baffled by a certain character’s betrayal and how the main character reacted to this. Zhara’s definitely a better person than me cause I wouldn’t have been able to forgive them but ok.

To get back to the ‘’not sure about the execution’’ part I mentioned earlier, I really missed some kind of depth I guess? Some parts of the story felt like an info dump and the magical system definitely could’ve used more explanation, especially since it’s a very unique concept of magic, one I hadn’t really seen before.

I did really enjoy the way gender identity was handled in this novel though! Very refreshing to see gender neutral pronouns being used when a character was introduced for the first time, despite them being described with a certain trait that could be linked to a specific gender. Loved how they/them pronouns wede the norm until stated otherwise.

Finally I was a bit shocked to see this wasn’t a standalone tbh! In my opinion this would’ve worked fine as one. Felt like the last part after the epilogue was added to make it work as a series and sadly that’s the exact part that felt kinda unnecessary and confusing to me. I’m curious as to how the series will further advance and if we’ll get a more in depth explanation of this unique and wonderful magic system :)

There are lots of adventures and dark secrets in this book! The author does a wonderful job creating a beautiful world and magic system. Zhara is a girl who processes magic but it is outlawed. We watch the FMC struggle with her past and current events that are happening in the story. She is definitely a character people love to root for. Han is the perfect cinnamon roll character! Him and Zhara are the perfect pair in the book, really bringing out the best in each other. You do get small hints of Sailor Moon but the story for the most part is entirely its own. This book for me was setting the foundation for what’s to come in the series.

Overall I really liked this book. I'm excited for the next one. I feel like the characters will keep developing and will come into their own as the series progresses. It was a fun read and people who like to watch shoujo anime would like this book.

I loved the author’s previous series, but unfortunately this novel just got lost in immaturity for me.

The characters were difficult to connect to and so much of the dialogue felt forced. I was hoping to be able to recommend to my students who enjoyed the Lunar Chronicles, but I’ll have to keep looking.

Zhara is a fantasy book that is marketed as Cinder meets Sailor Moon. Jin Zhara has to hide her identity as a magician in their world where magic is forbidden and all who are found to be magicians are executed. Without anyone to guide her, Zhara is left to only hide her glowing hands with no idea what powers she possesses nor how to control them. With an encounter with a mysterious but handsome boy, Han, Zhara finds herself whisked away into the secret society or magicians and daring to dream for the very first time. However, when magicians start turning into monsters, Zhara and Han, along with the others, are forced to face this plague before it takes everyone they love away from them.

Firstly, I loved the worldbuilding of this book. I think it's incredible that the author is able to take inspiration from real places and historical events and turn them into a detailed fictional realm. There are also some really wonderful and beautiful quotes in there as well. The characters were also really fun, but they lacked a cohesion that made it harder for me to follow along. I felt like I could not understand them on a deeper level, but perhaps the character building will come along just fine in the rest of the series. I also found a lot of the description very repetitive, so I just could not immerse myself in the story because of that. I can see why this book is labelled as Cinder meets Sailor Moon, but it just does not feel like the Sailor Moon that I know.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for sending me an e-copy of this book for an honest review!

🦇 Book Review 🦇

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

❝ She had always imagined her magic as a steady flame within her, and the world around her as her kitchen. Elements were ingredients to be played with, like dough beneath her fingers. Zhara held her breath and concentrated, applying her magic to the mixture in her hands like heat to a pot of water. ❞

❓ #QOTD What was your favorite cartoon growing up? ❓

🦇 Magic is forbidden by punishment of death throughout the Morning Realms, after corrupted magicians turned into abominations and razed the earth 20 years ago. Jin Zhara must hide her magic—that is, until a strange run-in with a blushing boy named Han leads her to the magical liberation organization the Guardians of Dawn. As new members of the Guardians, Zhara and Han work together to restore harmony to the world, even as chaos begins to reign.

💜 S. Jae-Jones is proof that books are their own sort of magic. She's spun together the familiar threads of Sailor Moon, Cinder of The Lunar Chronicles, Avatar the Last Airbender, and cultural mythology to produce Guardians of the Dawn. The story's mythology takes little time to grasp before you're thrown into the adventure alongside Zhara and Han, who (for lack of a better word) are adorable together. The book touches lightly on more intense themes: familial obligation, grief, identity, to name a few. The secondary characters (namely, Xu, Han's genderfluid best friend, Yulana, and Jiyi) offer far more than support; they're an absolute delight.

🦇 Unfortunately, the writing comes off as a little juvenile at times (namely with 'The Good-Looking Giggles' and Han's himbo-esque nature), so I would place this at the younger end of YA. Perhaps more frustrating was the naiveté and ignorance of both Zhara and Han. My brain was piecing together clues not revealed until 10 chapters ahead, and not because of the dual POV or omniscient narration (the reveals for Yulana, Sajah, and even the Chancellor were set up a little too well). The worldbuilding, while gorgeous, is a little basic (which is why it's so easy to dive into, making that a double-edged sword). While a cute, mythology-based tale, I really think this story (and possible series), has a lot more potential.

🦇 Recommended to anyone looking for a bit of nostalgia through a magical retelling. The entire time I was reading it, I got HARD Cinder and Sailor Moon vibes. It wasn't until after I started writing my review that I noticed both were mentioned in the story synopsis. There's a hint of Avatar the Last Airbender in there, too!

✨ The Vibes ✨
👠 Cinderella Retelling
🐱 Animal Sidekicks
💫 YA Fantasy Fiction
🔥 Elemental Magic
📚 Book Loving MC
🏮 Culture-Infused Mythology
🌈 Queer and Disability Rep

🦇 Major thanks to the author and publisher for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book. @stmartinspress @wednesdaybooks @sjaejones #GuardiansofDawnZhara