This book was beautifully written. Any time I see a book by Elizabeth Lim I know I am in for a treat and this book did not disappoint. The characters are always so real and the images this author inspires with her words will stay with you long after you have put the book down

This is the first book I have read by the author and I found it quite interesting. I enjoy mythology from different cultures and like how the author played up those aspects in her story. The sisters loyalty and connection to each other and the drive from that connection made this a lovely story to read. Thank you to netgalley for a proof to read.

I have not read Six Crimson Cranes so I can't say anything about how it ties into that. I really enjoyed the relationship between the two sisters and how their love for and desire to protect each other drove the plot of the book. All the characters are well written and I particularly enjoyed seeing how they all viewed the prophecy and how that shaped their relationships with each other and how the curse brought them together. The setting was well done and beautiful. I loved the way the mythology was used in the story, the magical aspects were so captivating. All around this was a great book and made me even more excited to read Six Crimson Cranes. I have read a couple of Lim's other books and all around think shes a wonderful author and I look forward to reading more of her books.

What I did read of this, I enjoyed. I will pick it up properly eventually, as being pregnant made it difficult to read anything. I highly recommend Elizabeth Lim’s books. They are so good.

Plain and simple: Elizabeth Lin can do no wrong. Loved this book! Her stories are so emotional and deep and lush.

I think me and Elizabeth just don't mesh well. I have tried several of her books and I always end up feeling meh about them and never finish the series. This is a case of just not for me but may work for others so I will still recommend.

I enjoyed reading this one. But I didn't love it as much as I did previous books by this author. But I'm still going to pick up books by this author in the future.

Elizabeth Lim is a writer that can do no wrong for me. One of my favorite duologies is actually in this same universe, The Blood of the Stars.

To know if this book is for you, do you like these things: (?)

-A fast paced story that is set in a very fresh fantasy landscape based in Asia and islands surrounding the area?
-Are you okay with bittersweet endings, not everything needs to be so so happy, tied with a gorgeous bow?
-Do you like when a female character is dead set on ending her lifelong enemy? Like she has a one track mind for revenge?

I love this. Everytime I read something by Elizabeth Lim in the the Legends of Lor'yan, I find my soul getting a bit lighter and much happier. Next stop: finally reading Six Crimson Cranes and Dragon's Promise, now that I have the context of a key character.

I highly recommend delving into this world, and I think this stand alone is a great place to start.

✨Book Review + Favorite Quotes: Her Radiant Curse ✨

We are introduced to the story of Channari, and how she, as an infant, was to be sacrificed by the gods in order to save her mothers life. Only this does not happen and a curse is cast, so on the eve of her sisters 17th birthday, “one sister must fall for the other to rise”. While her sister Vanna is beautiful, she will have a monstrous face unless she brings her sister back to the goddess. Channari will do everything in her power to protect her sister, even if that means sacrificing herself.

As always, Lim has a way to weave Chinese mythology and folklore into the story , and her world building unravels seamlessly without feeling like it’s too much to understand at once. I enjoyed this prequel origin story as the character we got to know in Six crimson Cranes. It feels like I got to understand her more and why how she came to be the cold hearted character we meet when we start the Six Crimson Cranes duology.

Here are my favorite quotes from the story:

✨ I was not born a monster. People forget that. The crueler ones sneer and tell me I'm demon spawn. They think words will hurt me, but they are closer to the truth than they know.

♥️My face, which has trapped me somewhere between beast and woman.

✨I am as monstruous as she is beautiful. Our power is equal in that way.

♥️For so many years, I've been focused on saving her life. I forgot how many times, in little ways, she's saved mine.

✨A promise is not a kiss in the wind, to be thrown about without care. It is a piece of yourself that is given away and will not return until your pledge is fulfilled.

♥️ The threads of past and present are already irrevocably stitched and cannot be undone. But the threads of tomorrow may yet weave a different path.

Thank you to @tbrbeyondtours & @elimpix  for a chance to read the arc, and participate in this tour. To view the full schedule please check my link in my profile.

#HerRadiantCurse #TBRBeyondTours #ElizabethLim

Thank you so much, Random House Children's, Knopf Books for Young Readers and NetGalley, for the chance to read this book in exchange of an honest review.

Channi is forever changed when her father offers her in sacrifice to the Demon King and now she's cursed with a serpent face. The only person who doesn't see her as a monster is her beautiful sister, Vanna. Now Vanna has to marry to enrich the coffers of the village leaders in a contest and with her cunning and intelligence, Channi is the only one who can protect her from her suitors' violence. But the bethrotal contest goes wrong and Channi has to fight to protect her sister and save themselves from a evil unleashed in the world, that could destroy their bond forever.

Her radiant curse is a brilliant fantasy novel, mixing elements from classic tales like Beauty and the beast, Asian folklore, The selection and more in a thrilling story about two sisters and their deep loving bond.
Elizabeth Lim is absolutely fantastic in writing an complex, rich and lush worldbuilding, with an enchanting atmosphere and wonderfully brilliant characters, who shine at every turn. Channi and Vanna have a beautiful bond and I loved how it was one of the main theme in the whole book, besides the complexity of beauty and its dark aspects.
The story is whimsical and intriguing and I loved it so much.

Vanna and Channi are sisters, but they couldn't be more different - while Vanna is blessed with a strange glowing beauty, Channi has been cursed with the face of a snake and poisonous blood. As Vanna's seventeenth birthday approaches, Channi grows desperate to prevent her promised death at the hands of the demon witch Angma.

I did not realize until about halfway through this book that it is a prequel to Lim's Six Crimson Cranes duology, an East Asian-influenced retelling of the Six Swans that's been on my TBR for a while now. However, this book stands alone well and I didn't lose out by not having read those first.

This is a straightforward YA fantasy adventure, with a sympathetic heroine who grapples with issues of identity and belonging. I liked the relationship between Channi and Vanna, which is complex and loving, as well as Channi's friendship with the snake Ukar and her relationship with Hokzuh. The world-building is lush and sweeping, and the climax was tense and emotional.

I guess the only thing I didn't enjoy was that some plot elements were left untied. Some certainly must lead into the duology, but others seem to be just dismissed as incidental, such as what will happen to Meguh's throne after the events of the story. Channi's final choices also felt a little unsatisfying after the journey she goes on, probably because it felt like she chose that path because it was necessary to link the ending up with the starting point of the duology.

This was an incredibly well-written prequel. I loved getting more of Channi's history and how she came to be in Kyata. I loved hearing about her sister as they were growing up. This was full of action and emotion and depth. Absolutely recommend!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my complimentary e-arc of this book. All opinions here are my own.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House children for the E-arc!
I am a big fan of Elizabeth Lim's works and am always excited when I see another book coming out! Following two sisters, one who has fought and trained their entire life to break her curse. Her father makes a demon deal, and she is cursed with a serpent face and the ability to talk to snakes. The premise of this is fantastic! Lim has always created intricate and unique storylines to follow. This is so many of the elements that I love about her writing and so many new fantasy elements that i just couldn't put it down.

The book was wonderfully written and a breath of fresh air. The story was unique and fun. I have not read her other books but I now want to.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy of this book! I didn't get that far in this one before I just lost interest. I love Elizabeth Lim, but it seems that her first books are more for me. Three stars because I'm not sure I'm the intended audience, and I can't pinpoint my disinterest.

Channi and Vanna are sisters, and for all their lives they've had each other. One beautiful, one cursed. Channi has trained her whole life in the forest with the help of Ukar, her snake friend, to kill the demon witch that cursed her and threatened her sister, and as they approach Vanna's birthday everything becomes more complicated. Demons, dragons, and evil kings are only a few of the enemies that Channi must defeat in order to save herself and her sister.

But the line between enemy and ally becomes hazy as Angma grows stronger and the sisters are separated. Working to find her way back to Vanna, Channi and Ukar make an unlikely ally in Hokzuh, who was prophesied to help her defeat Angma. Powerful magic is at work, and Channi will need to decide how hard to fight, and what for.

This author has such a beautiful way with words. I love her stories and the way she tells them. This is another winner!

I love Elizabeth Lim !!! Six of Cranes is amazing and I was so excited to read about the step moms back story! Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the opportunity to read!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children's, Knopf Books for Young Readers, and Elizabeth Lim for the opportunity to read Her Radiant Curse in exchange for an honest review.

Elizabeth Lim is a brilliant writer. After how much I loved her Blood of Stars duology and her Six Crimson Cranes duology, I was thrilled to find out about Her Radiant Curse. While this is considered a prequel to Six Crimson Cranes, it is also an enjoyable stand-alone or an alternative way to begin the Six Crimson Cranes duology. I love how all of Lim's Alandi works tie together somehow, and long-time fans get the enjoyment of Easter eggs and cameos therein. This novel features Channari, before she becomes Shiori's step-mother. Before she travels to Kiata, where magic has faded. Before the fate of her sister is revealed.

Upon the night of her sister's birth, Channi's father is on the brink of losing his wife. He opts to make a deal with the demon, Angma, to trade his older daughter for the life of his wife and newborn. But demons aren't exactly worthy of deal-making or their word. Channi loses her mother, gains a sister, and is cursed with a serpent face because of her father. At least she can talk to snakes, which is the only benefit of facing the ridicule from her father and the villagers. Without her snake friend Ukar, and of course her loving sister, Vanna, Channi wouldn't know what to do.

Angma promises to come back for Vanna on her seventeenth birthday to claim the special radiant light that shines within her, making her unique and valuable, as well as her life. Channi promises to keep her sister safe, killing all tigers, as that is the form Angma takes. Perhaps one day the tiger she slays will be the demon, but deep down, Channi knows it won't be until her sister's birthday. At seventeen, Vanna is pitched to the highest bidder to be married, her radiant light making her a valuable prize. Where Vanna goes, so does Channi, but when her father sells her to a cruel king and collector of strange creatures, the sisters are split up.

Finding kinship and aid with the dragon, Hokzu, Channi has hope that she will find and save her sister from Angma before it is too late. A dragon's secrets will determine all of their futures.

In a testament to the strength of sisterhood, Lim crafts a fantastic tale of loyalty. Between dragons, witches, and demons, this novel is full of fantasy flare, action, and adventure. As a long-time Lim fan, it was an incredible journey to see Channi's past and how she eventually comes to live in Kiata.  An incredible journey and I can't wait to see what Lim writes next.

Following the story of Shiori's stepmother, Her Radiant Curse was an incredible prequel to Six Crimson Cranes, I was a little skeptical when I picked this one up because while SCC was one of my favorite reads of 2022, The Dragon's Promise was one of my biggest disappointments. Fortunately, HRC gave me everything TDP didn't.

Her Radiant Curse is a story about grief and loss, prejudices, overcoming circumstances, and most importantly, a sister's love. It is also a magical adventure, full of curses, magical creatures and evil queens. All in all, this was a beautiful story across the board.

My only complaint would be that the book started to slow down a bit around the 60% mark, but the ending more than made up for it. If you, too, find yourself struggling a bit towards the middle of the novel, listen to me when I say: please, stick it out. You won't regret it.

---4/5 stars

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.