I absolutely loved A Forgery of Fate! It’s a beautifully written romantic fantasy with all the elements I adore - magic, danger, betrayal, and a cursed dragon lord. While it does lean into some familiar tropes, Elizabeth Lim weaves them together with such rich storytelling that it still feels fresh and engaging.

Truyan Saigas is a compelling protagonist, a con artist turned reluctant heroine who can literally paint the future. Her journey from struggling to keep her family afloat to navigating the treacherous world of dragons, gods, and deception was fascinating. And while her marriage contract with the mysterious dragon lord is undeniably cliché, their dynamic is electric, with tension, secrets, and some truly heart-wrenching moments.

One of the strongest aspects of the book is the twist - I didn’t see it coming, and it added so much depth to the story. The stakes suddenly felt much higher, making the latter half of the book even more gripping. However, my biggest critique is the pacing. The book moves quickly, and while that keeps things exciting, I sometimes wished there was more time to fully explore the world and relationships. The climax, especially, felt a little rushed when I wanted to sit in the tension just a bit longer.

That being said, A Forgery of Fate delivers on its promises - romance, adventure, and high-stakes intrigue set in a beautifully crafted world. If you love Beauty and the Beast retellings with a fresh, magical spin, this book is definitely worth the read. I just wish it had slowed down in a few key moments! Solid 4 stars.

✧˖°. ⤷ I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review, and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Netgalley ARC

A Forgery of Fate takes place in the same stunning world I loved from the Six Crimson Cranes series.

I was excited to see some familiar characters in this book! I even went back to The Dragon’s Promise (SCC #2) and reread a few sections to refresh my memory. A Forgery of Fate is a standalone, but I definitely think it hits harder having read Six Crimson Cranes.

Truyan is my favorite of Elizabeth Lim’s lead characters so far. I love her blue hair and spicy noodle obsession. She’s funny, smart, and willing to do whatever it takes to protect her loved ones.

I loved the romance and friendships developed in this book. They were so sweet and pure.

I hope Lim continues writing books in this beautiful world she’s created! There are still a few characters whose storylines I’d love to explore.

I loved just about everything in this novel.

The setting was gorgeous and very well detailed. I could see the vivid colors and the world on land and in the ocean. Most of the characters were well developed. I wish I had gotten a little bit more from her mother and The Dragon King. I could feel the tension and slow burn between Tru and Elang. I also wish they had more time together, since he was away a lot. This novel is loosely based on Beauty and The Beast, but with its own spin. I understand the exchange of marriage and finding her father between her and Elang, but I felt the storyline of her father being captured was weak. It was more focused on Elangs mission. I loved the way she described Tru's moments of her drawing and the description of those moments. The climax at the end was very satisfying with the defeat of The Dragon King. Also, the conclusion of Tru and Elang at the end was very unique and I loved it so much. The writing was beautiful, and I am excited to read more of her books. For me it was a solid 4/5!

I always enjoy reading Elizabeth Lim’s books. She is wonderful at write magical worlds and having great romance. Highly recommend.

I have enjoyed most of Elizabeth Lim's books, so I was excited to receive an e-arc for this book. I like that Lim returns to the familiar world that she built, but the reader need not have read her previous books to love this one.

A Forgery of Fate, as the author describes it, is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, with other fairytales and myths tied in. I found the story engrossing and enjoyable, even if a little predictable in places (I predicted one big "reveal" before its time). The characters are multi-faceted, with a few being a bit morally gray, but the story really comes together by the end. I think that teens looking for a dragon lore love story would appreciate this novel. Thank you publishers and Netgalley for the free e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

After Tru Saigas lost her father to the sea, she becomes an art forger to support her family. When her mother's gambling debts put Tru and her two sisters in danger, she agrees to wed a mysterious Dragon Prince named Elang. Elang is a half human and half dragon in exile who is interested in Tru because she has a secret ability to paint the future. Elang thinks that Tru can help him break the curse on him and aid him in his mission to depose his evil dragon grandpa. Tru agrees under the condition that her mom and sisters are protected, educated and compensated with wealth for her involvement in his plan. She joins him in A'landi, the underwater land of the dragons, and faces a lot of danger and betrayal. Throughout the story, their relationship develops and there is great banter and yearning between the characters. The action sequences are exciting and the world building is great. The storyline has aspects of the Beauty and the Beast fairytale.

This is my favorite Elizabeth Lim so far. This is a standalone novel, but it is set in the same world as her other books: Her Radiant Curse and Six Crimson Cranes and features characters first mentioned in The Dragon's Promise.

A Forgery of Fate by Elizabeth Lim is a stand-alone fantasy retelling of Beauty and the Beast with a perfect blend of Asian mythology.

This novel focuses around Truyan “Tru” Saigas, a forgery artist trying to collect enough money to pay off her mother’s gambling debts and keep a roof over her sisters heads, while still reeling from her father’s disappearance 5 years before.

When Tru is unable to pay back the debts, she is forced to marry Elang, the Demon Prince, to help save her family from harm under one condition. She uses her power of Sight to help defeat the Dragon King. When Elang mentions that he may know her father’s whereabouts, Tru knows she has no other choice. While pretending to be happily married to Elang, Tru tries to focus on her powers and master a precise painting of the Dragon King. But, could it be she starts to see Elang differently than the cold-hearted beast he comes off as? Will she believe in herself enough to help save those she cares about?

I am a big fan of retellings and anything with mythology always piques my interest and this book did not disappoint! It was so well written, has a strong female heroine, and simple but beautiful world-building. Tru is such a strong and engaging character and I loved seeing Elang’s development alongside Tru. The twists and emotional journey this book take you though is worth it. If you’re a fan of Beauty and the Beast styled romance with a high-stakes plot, you’ll enjoy this exciting fantasy book. I would recommend this book to mostly YA readers but also great for adults.

I am never let down by Elizabeth Lim.

A Forgery of Fate is a very fun retelling of Beauty and Beast. I loved watching the relationship between Tru and Elang develop. It was also fun to return to the dragon realm and see some familiar characters.

I am definitely purchasing a copy when this one comes out!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this e-ARC of A Forgery of Fate!! I enjoyed this story, the worldbuilding was incredibly descriptive and fantastical, and the plot was engaging and immersive. Amazing read

A story of friendship, deception, love, family, and faith. Though coined as a beauty and the beast story with an Asian spin (which it is), this is truly a story of friendship that grows into love.

Tru is an art forger fighting to save her mom and sisters from life on the streets - or worse- by selling her paintings with the help of a simple street conman acting as her dealer and mentor. When one of her paintings catches the eye of the demon prince, Elang, Tru gets swept into a whirlwind of a con that leads her to new and dangerous worlds. The demon prince is rude and cold, but Tru’s wit and banter makes their exchanges lively despite Elang’s best efforts to keep her at bay.

I adored this story and the characters. The pacing is fast and the story was captivating. Though this is technically based on a love story, the plot doesn’t suffer for it. I highly recommend for anyone that wants a fun fantasy fairytale.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an ARC copy of this book! I loved it and couldn’t stop reading!

Thank you Netgalley and Random House for the eARC of this novel!

This book blends the story of beauty and the beast together with Asian mythology and I loved it. This book is lighthearted at times, but the conflict definitely has stakes. Reading this was a magical experience. I felt a bit like a child reading a fairytale for the first time.

The magic system, the imagery, the characters: I loved everything!

The Forgery of Fate by Elizabeth Lim absolutely swept me away! The gorgeous world-building, magical atmosphere, and characters I instantly fell for made this impossible to put down. Tru is the kind of fierce, determined heroine I adore, and the romance? Pure slow burn perfection. Elizabeth Lim’s writing is simply beautiful, heartfelt and enchanting from start to finish. Highly recommend for fantasy and fairy tale lovers!

I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it.

*Spoilers*

At this point, anything that Tran Nguyen will illustrate I will be reading.
I adored Spin the Dawn/Unravel the Dusk and A Forgery of Fate was equally as enchanting and enjoyable!

A Beauty and the Beast retelling with banter, forced proximity, fake dating/marriage, he falls first, and all my favorite tropes. I wished there was more spice, (but I also didn't realize this was YA until I finished). I loved the story, I loved the characters, this was such a fun read.
My only complaint is that I wish we had more romance between Elangi and Truyan. I felt like the transition from enemies to lovers for Elang was quite abrupt with him ruining a lot of the tender moments between the two of them and being hot and cold towards Tru. However, I still loved this book and loved the interactions between our two main characters. The lore was amazing and so thorough, and the dynamics between the Saigas family were so accurate and so real. Each of the members of Elang's court were relatable and had depth, and Shani had a beautiful and fantastic character arc over the entire book.

There is much to love here and I highly recommend this novel to all!

I really enjoyed this!

This was a lovely mix of a Beauty and the Beast retelling with Asian mythology. The writing was engaging with vibrant characters. I loved the strong intelligent FMC and strong mysterious MMC, along with their colorful cast of supporting characters (who knew a water demon could be so fun?)

Tru has the ability to draw/paint visions of the future and finds herself in a fake marriage with a half dragon prince to break a curse placed by the Dragon King.

There is angst and longing, complex family dynamics, and so much heart in this book. I wish we had even more moments with the two main characters.

My minor complaints are: other gods in this world were briefly mentioned, but not explained, I would have liked a little more backstory about the Dragon King, and I’m still not quite sure of the rationale of the ending.

Overall, an engaging journey into an underwater world with adventure and romance.

4.5⭐️

*Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC for an honest review. All opinions are my own*

I want to start by saying that this book was EVERYTHING I love in YA fantasy. This book has fated lovers, retelling of a classic tale, great family dynamics, and fantastic world building.

This book tell the story of Truyan, a young art forger, trying to scape up money to provide for her family. Years ago Tru’s father was lost as sea, and takes up the responsibility of proving for her family, that is comprised of 2 sister and her mother, who has been coping through gambling. On the run from one of her mother’s debt collectors she stumbles into the garden of a demon prince… or so she thinks. We meet Elang, who isn’t a demon prince, but an exiled Dragon prince. She teams up with Tru so he might be able to over throw his grandfather, the Dragon King. Tru discovers that her painting comes with the sight, an ability to see the future through her art. Could this power help her conquer the king and find her father?

This is a beauty and the beast retelling with an underwater twist. I loved this book so much, and it was brought me to tears several times. The epilogue was insanely gorgeous and is what made me think this book was going to end up in my favorite books of the year.

There are no words to sum up just how perfect, and magical Elizabeth’s Lim’s writing is. From the detailed world building to every lovable character, she is a master at what she does. I’ve been a fan since Spin the Dawn, and I will always pick up her work.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Children’s/ Knopf Books for Young Readers for the this Advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher for sending me this arc in exchange for my honest review. A Forgery of Fate is an epic fantasy filled with palace intrigue, forging alliances between suspicious partners, mystical art, and dragons. Such a fun unique tale that kept me intrigued the entire book. I finished it in two days, I just couldn't wait to find out what happened next. The setting was lush and unique, the intrigue fun and kept you guessing, and the characters were intriguing.

I will always be a fan of Elizabeth’s work 🥹 she is an excellent story teller. I saw people call this beauty and beast meets six of crows. I can’t agree enough. I love the characters, story , and most of all the Asian folklore she weaves into each tale. 10/10 one of my favorites of this year besides six crimson cranes. Absolutely magical.

A beautifully written, YA fantasy novel about dragons, love, and perseverance.

I enjoyed this book a lot - it's a little slow in pacing but appropriate, given the main character's own path. The characters are charming, and realistic. Honestly her mom made me want to scream at some points, just because of how relatable the situations were. I liked that she didn't always get along with her middle sister, but when times are tough you band together and figure things out. Nomi sounds adorable.

All in all, I found this book wonderfully descriptive. The story flowed nicely and the MC was clever. There was enough nuance to keep me engaged, even if it's for a younger audience.

Set in the same world as Six Crimson Cranes and Spin the Dawn, A Forgery of Fate follows Truyan Saigas, a girl who can paint visions of the future. Her beloved father, a boat captain, disappears at sea and is presumed dead. Her mother winds up in significant gambling debt trying to survive with the loss of her husband. This leaves Truyan and her sisters to largely fend for themselves and try to scrape money together to survive. Truyan paints forgeries and sells them with her criminal associate and mentor, old man Gaari. Unfortunately, her mother's gambling debt becomes too significant and a Madam threatens to take both of Truyan's sisters and sell them to the highest bidder.

Seemingly in a twist of fate, Truyan encounters a half-human half-dragon lord, Elang, who proposes a deal. If Truyan marries him and pretends to be his Heavenly Match, the one who is fated to break his curse and recover his heart (which is his dragon pearl), and help him take down his vicious grandfather, the King of Dragons, Elang will protect her family from harm and provide them with a fortune. He also tells Truyan that her father may be alive, but trapped in the dragon kingdom under the sea.

Truyan and Elang don't get along. Their personalities are so different, but they have to pose as lovers while Truyan attempts to paint a future that will defeat the Dragon King and save Elang and his part of the dragon kingdom. The setting of this one is very cool, as it takes place almost entirely underwater. I was really enjoying the dynamic developing between Truyan and Elang until the twist. It's too much of a spoiler to put here, but it completely threw me off and to be honest I found it kind of weird! Wish I could explain more but don't want to spoil anything! Cool story overall though.