A beautifully illustrated fairytale set in ancient China, delightfully told. As in such classic stories it concerns the battle between good and evil, in this case complete with a handsome Emperor, two potential wives, one of whom is very wicked, an evil sorcerer and a magical dragon! It tells the story of how the Emperor chose his wife and such tasks are never simple when there are evil plots interfering, trying to gain power to the detriment of everyone else.

I really enjoyed this great story, the superb illustrations and their presentation in this fantastic book. I have no hesitation in highly recommending it.

Whilst this is a lovely story to share with your own child, I highly recommend this book to primary teachers, too! It could also easily be used in schools for a wide variety of purposes ranging from studying fairy tales from other countries, to RE, PSHE and citizenship discussions - and being inspirational for Art and Drama!

I loved this book. The illustrations are amazing. I loved it that the emperor fell in love with the right woman because he saw past her surface beauty (and sometimes non-beauty.) And yet there's still the requisite violence of a traditional fairy tale. I think this would be a great book to read along side one of the more mainstream Cinderella stories and do a compare and contrast. Definitely at the top of my to buy list.

A beautifully illustrated fairytale set in ancient China, delightfully told.

I've always loved fairy tales and mythology so this title plus its cover called to me. I immediately requested it and was pleased when the publisher approved my request. The artwork in this story is just gorgeous. There's not a lot of detail but what there is complements the text nicely. The color and shading had a watercolor feel yet also reminded me at times of Impressionism. I could sit and just look at the pictures. In fact, I did so in my classroom at rest time (class of 4 and 5 year olds) and one of my 4 year old boys loved the pictures, kept saying they were beautiful. He also had questions about some of the pictures and was excited to see dragons in some of the pictures. We didn't have a chance to read the text.

Later, at home, I read the text. It's definitely not for preschoolers, but more appropriate for 7 or 8 years on up. The length and subject matter would likely bore most younger children. It's a love story with treachery and morals and a bit of action mixed in. It's pretty heavy on morals, it could have used a lighter touch and there were a fair number of typos and wrong words. The story is original and not a retelling but has the feel of an old fashioned fairy tale. It follows a traditional format with trials to be overcome and a princess to be won. One woman is lovely but evil and proud while the other is lovely, kind, and pure. The emperor is brave and strong, the women physically lovely, and there are sorcerers, magic, and dragons. The action is a little slow and the characters lack depth but it's a decent enough story and I loved the illustrations. If you don't mind the moralizing and the slow pace, it's not a bad story and the illustrations are gorgeous.

Review will post on Feb. 14th 2015 at 8AM.

Fantastically written with gorgeous artistry! A great book for preteen-aged girls with wonderful morals. View my book review: https://becomingabookworm.wordpress.com/2015/02/14/book-review-the-emperor-his-bride-and-the-dragon-robe-by-lisa-sankar-zhu/

This was a great book, I really enjoyed it.

This is a beautifully illustrated fairy tale that takes place in China. The emperor is looking for a wife and has sent for the most beautiful women from both the east and west of China, to choose from for his empress.

As with most fairy tales there are many hidden lessons within the story, for us to teach others about. In this case it's honesty, kindness and inner beauty. The emperor was a very wise man and I loved how he came to chooses his wife. That he not only wanted a great wife for himself, but also his people. So many positive messages there.
I can't wait to read this again with our nine year old daughter to see what her thoughts on the story will be.

I thought this story was sweet. The pictures are beautiful and it has a pretty good flow. I love how the Emperor is so intelligent. He wants a beautiful wife, but is willing to forgo physical beauty for someone with stunning inner beauty.

My wife is a lower grade teacher and I could see this book in her classroom as a read-aloud book. It would be a good novel to use when talking about how we treat people 'lower' than us and the value of honesty.

'The Emperor, His Bride and The Dragon Robe' by Lisa Sankar-Zhu is a fairytale sent in ancient China. I don't think it's authentic, but that doesn't make it any less enchanting.

When a young emperor comes to power, he is given a robe covered in dragons that seem to come to life and come to his aid. Sometime after this, he decides he needs an empress. He chooses two women, one from the East and one from the West (of China). They are both outwardly beautiful, but one of them is quite a bit less lovely on the inside. It all comes down to a confrontation that leads to an epic fight.

It's a great read aloud story and the illustrations are just fabulous. The dragon robe gets introduced early and seems important, but then takes a backseat for awhile. The lessons of kindness and true beauty are loud and strong and readers will be cheering for the right future empress to win. It feels like a very classic Grimm fairytale and I really enjoyed reading it.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Lisa Sankar-Zhu and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this enchanting ebook.

I love fairytales and highly enjoyed reading the book. It has everything I expected from a Chinese tale and more. Beautiful women, splendid dresses, fierce dragons, evil mighty sorcerers, magic spells, martial arts fights and a very handsome Emperor, it's all there. The illustrations are stunning. When the sorcerer or the dragon appear, the artwork is just A-MA-ZING.

A charming Chinese fairy tale relating how a person's inner beauty shines through even when their outer beauty is scarred. This book will be even better when illustrations are added.

The emperor is dying. His youngest son has been chosen to be the emperor. His father gives him a special gift which will aid him when he needs help. What is the gift? As time passes, the new emperor decides he needs to marry. He sends his staff out to find the two most beautiful women. They return with two beautiful women. At first the emperor pays the women little attention. When he meets them for the first time he is immediately attracted to one of them. Due to the jealousy of the other, she calls her wizard. How does she do this? What does she want the wizard to do? The emperor has trouble deciding on a bride so he tests them. Why does he have trouble deciding? What test does he do? Will he be able to choose the right woman to rule by his side?

The fairy tale is set in ancient China. The tale flows throughout the book and keeps your interest. The illustrations add to the tale with beautiful colors and drawings throughout it. It explores what beauty is, good and evil, and more. This is a lovely and well done fairy tale.

The Emperor, His Bride and the Dragon Robe by Lisa Sankar-Zhu

The prince is ready to pick a wife and settle down. He decides to bring the two prettiest women to his castle and have them stay for a few months while he decides which one will be his new wife. They are common girls and have only their beauty and manners to present. It isn't beauty that influences the prince, though.

Net Galley allowed me to read this book for review (thank you). It has been published and is available as an ebook or paperback book now. (I just ordered the paperback version for my library.)

The prince has been given a Dragon Robe by his father on his deathbed. He told him to keep it close and it would protect him. He puts it away and thinks no more about it.

As he watches how the girls act and listens to their conversations he's struck by how different they are. One is prettier than the other but it's what's inside the person that counts. When the less attractive one uses magic to make the prettiest one ugly, she also reveals some of her character.

The prince is smart enough to see through that and picks the one with a gentle nature and a kind heart. The other girl is more than a little bit upset and she turns her wizard on him. The wizard wants to run this kingdom himself, so he tries to kill the prince. It's an amazing battle.

The illustrations are just gorgeous, the story line teaches you to be honest and not lie or cheat, and it ends happy ever after. What more could you want?

Although I don't know for sure if this was based on a known Chinese tale, it certainly reminded me a lot of the various Chinese dramas and stories that I have watched/read (although it was more child-friendly). It also reminded me of the European fairy tales that I have grown up with enforcing values about kindness and true beauty. The illustrations are absolutely gorgeous. If I had children, I would definitely be reading this one to them.

My 7 year old daughter loved this book. We put it on 'text to speech' at night so she had it as a bedtime story. Highly revommended

A short and lovely fairytale with some very nice graphics to go with.

I was captivated from the beginning. Set in China in a world of magic with dragons and sorcerers, the true meaning of beauty is explored in this children's tale where goodness of heart and honesty prevail over the external appearances. Taken figuratively, this story is ripe with lessons for one who reflects just like with classic fables, yet stands apart with a lovable female protagonist whose good character is creatively shown through her actions. The pictures are colourful while the story allows the imagination to fill in a whole world of details.

The drama that occurs seems comical in that the emperor himself created the setting for the clash of good and evil by courting two women at once! As the story goes on, he turns out to be clever and sweet, and devises an interesting test to see which of the two women will prove to be true in character. In fact, I found all the main characters to be uniquely human amid the fantastic setting. The tone reminded me of Confucian values through the emphasis of good character and service, and the depiction of the antagonists as humanly flawed rather than pure sources of evil.

Overall I really enjoyed the story. It is one that can easily be read aloud to children and makes me want to read it again.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this ebook from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the wonderful story!