Netgalley & the publisher kindly provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review ❤️

Spoiler free review!

I had mixed emotions about this book!!! For the first part of it, I was pretty sure I was going to dislike it and rate it about two stars. There was a lot going on - from dragons to bizarre curses. However, along the way, I really found myself enjoying this book and yearning to get back to reading it! Mostly, I’ll be honest, this was down to Hakkan - I LOOOOVE HIM. But I also really admire Shiori. Any negative thing I have to say about this book (I’d like to learn more about the dragons, and spend more time with the brothers…) I am absolutely positive will come true in the following books in the series so I’m finishing it very happy and glad I read it indeed!

4 Stars!

This is not a book that you can read in multiple sittings. I tried to keep it down to a minimum once I began. I had to know what would happen next. Despite trying to make mental predictions of all the possibilities, I still did not anticipate the number of twists during the narrative.
Shiori is a carefree child at the beginning, at least in her mind. She does not have many responsibilities, is pampered and usually gets her way. This changes quite abruptly. First, she ends up making a blunder while trying to cover up the fact that she has illegal magic powers. This draws her into her stepmother's daily routine, and unable to remember when their relationship soured, Shiori starts to have her own suspicions.
These suspicions lead to an accusation and then subsequently to a completely unimaginable situation that has her and her brothers thrown out of the palace, unable to return. This is just the beginning of their troubles. What happens next is both captivating and harsh to watch unfold. The finale (for this book), as I mentioned earlier, was unexpected but bittersweet. It made me immediately impatient for the sequel. I would recommend it to the readers of the fantasy genre. There are dragons and various forms of magic in this world, making it a very colourful one.
I am unaware of the complete original tale, but that did not impact my reading of this retelling.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

Shiori is a princess with a secret; she has magic and this is expressly forbidden. Events lead to her uncovering a dark secret about her stepmother Raikama is when her world is turned upside down and Shiori and her brother's must fight not only to reclaim their lives but to save their people.

I absolutely loved this book. The world and character building was enchanting and the fairy tale elements were beautiful. I couldn't actually put this book down and finished it in one sitting, The only negative is that I need to know what happens next right now; 2022 and the next book can't come quickly enough!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review

I really loved Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim so when Six Crimson Cranes was announced I knew that I had to read it. And I’m so happy that I got a chance to read it early because it’s now one of my favorite reads of the year.

R E V I E W

I already loved Elizabeth Lim’s writing in Spin the Dawn and I was enchanted by her talent once again. Six Crimson Cranes is beautifully written and felt magical. It wasn’t too flowery and flowed easily. The writing really fit the atmosephere of the story perfectly.

The pacing was definitely on the slower side (especially in the beginning) but I didn’t mind as I was still very invested in the characters and the plot.

”Find the light that makes your lantern shine.”

Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim
I really loved the main protagonist Shiori. Her curiosity, her determination and how big her heart was made her a delightful and lovable character. I also really enjoyed the connection to her brothers and how much she loved her family. The entire cast of characters was amazing though: from Shiori’s quirky paper crane Kiki and her other friends, to the villian and the charming love interest. All of them were fleshed out and very intriguing.

I had never heard of the Grimm brother’s story of The Six Swans and I actually quite enjoyed reading a retelling without knowing the source material. The East-Asian inspired setting paired with magical creatures, forbidden magic and forgotten tales made for an unforgettable and whimsical fantasy novel. The worldbuilding was amazing and I really felt transported to this different world.

The main themes of the story were definitely the familial relationships and Shiori’s resilience. I enjoyed the romance a lot but I also really loved that her brothers and Shiori’s own character development were such a big part of the story.

“Fear is just a game, Shiori, I remind myself. You win by playing.“

If you’re a fan of fairytale retellings, quests, dragons and the arranged marriage trope, you definitely need to add Six Crimson Cranes to your tbr. This gripping YA fantasy will enchant you. The fact that the US and the UK cover are both absolutely stunning doesn’t hurt either. I’m currently waiting for my UK copy to arrive because I just needed to have both editions.

I gave Six Crimson Cranes 4.5 ★ and cannot wait for the next book in the series.

OMG OMG OMG!
This books was just EVERYTHING! I loved the characters, the detail, the setting, the magic, the plot and every single word of this book. This was so cleverly written and the ending was sad and I definitely didn’t expect it. I will definitely be rereading this in the future and cannot wait for the next book in the series. I can’t explain how much I loved this book and I can’t see how anyone could not rate this a 5 star!

I seriously enjoyed this book. I enjoyed the Spin the Dawn duology but this book, in my opinion, is so much better than her other work.
The world building and character growth in this book is intense. It’s so well described and I feel as though I could picture the destinations in my head so vividly.

Shiori as a character has some insane character growth. We start of meeting the princess with a slightly spoiled attitude who isn’t willing to give people a chance, we end with a girl who learns that people are worth giving a chance and not to judge on face value, a girl who’s willing to risk herself for everyone around her and I honestly have so much respect for her as a character.

I went through an emotional wringer in this book. I was angry, sad, excited and absolutely everything in between. This is how I know I’ve read a really good book. I can definitely see myself slumping hard after reading this, I enjoyed it that much I’m not ready to leave yet.

I adore the Eastern mythology mixed with magic and adventure. I was sucked in from start to finish and it’s definitely opened me up to a whole new range of reads.

I fully recommend this book for YA Fantasy lovers, those who love an intricate story and people who like to read Eastern inspired novels.

LOVE IT.
You can never go wrong with an Elizabeth Lim book. I loved her duology and Six Crimson Cranes didn’t disappoint me.
I can’t wait to read the sequel!

SIX CRIMSON CRANES was a gorgeous story inside and out. If you love fairytales then you have to give this one a go. Plus it loosely links into the world of SPIN THE DAWN which is very satisfying.

A really sweet and fast-paced read.
Would definitely recommend to anyone on the younger teen side or anyone looking to dip their toe into the fantasy genre.

Even though younger YA books aren't usually my cup of tea I absolutely love books with Asian inspired mythology or setting and the myth Six Crimson Cranes is based on is one of my favourites so I had a really fun time reading this book.

Easy and approachable to read, the pages just fly by and I think we see some great character development in Shiori. It reminded me of the movie 'The Swan Princess'. I think if you liked Shadow of the Fox by Jullie Kagawa or Forest of a thousand Lanterns by Julie C Dao, I think you'd definitely enjoy this.
I was expecting a little more involvement with the dragons based on the synopsis given but I have a feeling that that's definitely on its way.

Six Crimson Cranes is a book that once you start you simply cannot put down. This is a book I absolutely flew through and it's definitely a new favourite.

Shiori is such a powerful and brave character. We see her start off as a determined and rebellious girl intent on getting what she wants but throughout the story, she goes through so many hardships and transforms beautifully. It's honestly heartwarming to watch. The magic and worldbuilding? Absolute chef's kiss. Lim establishes Shiori's kingdom for us and lets us into the world of magic before expanding it bit by bit so that we don't get overwhelmed. There is inter-kingdom politics, politics between magical worlds and the kingdoms and it can all be a lot to take in but the author sets it up beautifully. I thoroughly enjoyed the slow-burn romance and the twists that came into Shiori's love life. Praise god, the best part of this book is well built and developed antagonists and villains who aren't just evil for the sake of it. Oh and I absolutely freaking adore Kiki, someone get me fiercely loyal pet like her, oof.

You can find the full review for this book on my blog :)

I greatly enjoyed my time reading this book. Lim does a fantastic job of building a likable main character and a fantasy world that's easy to understand. I found myself wanting to go back to the book each time I set it down for more than a few hours, a sure sign to me that I was enjoying the story very much.

I loved the secretive nature of all magic within the book and how we mostly see it through Shiori and Kiki. It was a creative way to show how much Shiori has hidden from her family and how much she continues to hide from the world. The use of dragons is common mythology among Asian cultures, and I loved that it was part of this book. Seryu's explanations for why dragons are rarely seen and why he's such a small dragon were highly amusing to me. Each secretive piece we learned about magic only made me more interested in what power the dragons truly had and what that meant for the demons that had been sealed in the mountains.

Throughout the book, I was thoroughly invested in Shiori's quest to save her brothers and her struggle to communicate without speaking to anyone. Watching the way she adapted to the world and still made herself heard without a voice was compelling and kept my attention the whole time. I was rooting for her and waiting for the time when she would break her curse and reunite with her brothers.

One thing that did bother me a bit were the names. Though I knew that the story wasn't strictly Japanese or Chinese, many of the names felt like a Westernized version of Asian names. Shiori, Seryu, and Reiji were the only names that felt truly authentic to me in that they were clearly Japanese. The others names felt like they could be from almost any Asian culture without truly being Asian in nature. As a Singaporean-Chinese reader, I felt that the representation of names could have been better if they were not so Westernized or given so much regional variety.

The story did drag a bit in the middle. I felt like some of the scenes in the castle could have been shortened or taken out. Shiori's interactions with Takkan were interesting but felt almost repetitive in its intent to build romance and connection between the two characters. I liked their relationship, but I wasn't entirely convinced this was the endgame romance for me.

Learning about the potential for a love triangle in the end left me feeling a bit conflicted. I loved Seryu as a character and found him much more interesting than Takkan, but his rare appearances made me feel like it wouldn't make sense for a love triangle to take place. However, I am interested in seeing how Seryu and Shiori's friendship grows in the next book and how that might affect the romance between Shiori and Takkan.

Sometimes you start a novel and know immediately that you are going to absolutely love and devour it – Six Crimson Cranes was one of those books! It completely transported me into a world of utter magic and fairytale.

Elizabeth Lim’s voice and storytelling style conjured up a whole world in my head which I found fascinating. From the mountains, forests, rivers and seas, from Iro to Gindara and the dragon realms and islands in between there was always a new landscape to get completely immersed and lost in. It’s definitely one I’m adding to my bucket list of fictional worlds that I need to travel to.

I enjoyed that this was more than just your average retelling of The Wild Swans. I’m more familiar with the Grimm version (The Twelve Brothers) but I enjoyed the way that the author stayed true to the Anderson fairytale by weaving it into a stunning narrative then filling it up with extra characters and additional plot points. There was plenty of action, drama and complicated obstacles for the characters to overcome. The whole narrative exuded a magical quality, almost like lots of little moments from my favourite Disney movies all weaved together like golden threads intermittently throughout.

Shiori’s character initially came across to me as quite childish and naïve, everything she was supposed to be as a Princess living a fairly sheltered life - but then following the curse and the hardships she faced, her character was given the space to grow and mature. By the end of the novel I was championing her due to how much she had evolved through all of her trials and tribulations. Kiki, the sentient origami crane was so adorable that I had to have a go at creating some of my own!

Seryu the dragon shapeshifter was so fascinating and I’m excited to hopefully explore a bit more of the Ai’Long Realm in the next book. Takkan’s role in the story brought a little bit of romance which I was completely here for, but I’m being a little sceptical of a potential love triangle appearing in the sequel… I could be barking up the complete wrong tree though so I guess I’ll have to wait for book 2 to find out!

Several years ago, I remember reading a Chinese proverb about how an invisible thread connects those who are destined to meet regardless of time, place or circumstance. As a big believer of fate and divine intervention etc. I was so taken by this idea and here, in Six Crimson Cranes, Elizabeth Lim incorporated it so beautifully into her storyline that it made me love this book even more. All of the magical elements and events relating to the threads of fate and Shiori’s weaving of the starstroke were so vivid that it definitely appealed to all of my reading tastebuds!

Just on a personal note, I found the ending to be slightly drawn with regards to one particular character. I appreciate that it was setting up for a sequel but I was way more interested in the outcome of the narrative between Raikama’s and Zairena’s characters because I found them so intriguing and hope we get to see them later in the series.

Overall, Six Crimson Cranes is one of my favourite fairytale retellings I’ve ever come across. Elizabeth Lim’s story manages to exude mysticism, drama and folklore from every page. Stunning!

[To be published on blog August 18th]

What you'll find in this book:
- dragons
- magic
- an adventure through terrains
- a sort or I-don't-like-you to I-might-like-you trope
- slow burn romance
- healthy sibling relationships

I've read Elizabeth Lim's book before (Spin the Dawn) and absolutely loved it. While not a big fantasy lover, SCC still had me very excited because of it being an Asian fairytale retelling, and I love fairytale retellings. SCC follows Shiori who is cursed by her stepmother into silence, which upon speaking will kill one of her cursed crane brothers. A retelling of the Six Swans set in an East Asian inspired world, this book was everything that I want in a fantasy.

Shiori has forbidden magic running through her veins. When she discovers the secrets of her stepmother, she is cursed into silence and anonymity, and her brothers cursed into cranes. Speaking even a single word would lead to the death of her brother. Casted away to a land away, Shiori is all alone, voiceless, with her brothers as cranes, while her mother takes reins over her home. We follow the journey with Shiori and her brothers as they try to break the curse and free her kingdom from chaos and war before its too late.

I loved the characters in this book. Shiori was a great MC and the relationship with her brothers was something so adorable. I loved how positive and strong it was portrayed as. While I do not remember all of the brothers' names, I liked each of them and the roles they played. Their love for Shiori and vice versa was perhaps the moving element of this book. Sure, in the middle, Shiori got a bit boring, but then the story picks up, as does her character.

Seryu, the dragon, was a character that really intrigued me and I wish we could get more from him. He was the type of character that you couldn't entirely trust but enjoy anyway. I wanted to know his ulterior motives but we didn't really get much of that in this book. However, he was still an integral part and I think will play a major role in book 2.

Takkan's character comes in a while later but honestly, makes his way to our hearts very fast. He was your regular soft-boy with a huge heart who loved stories and honestly, the most adorable. I loved the scenes between him and Shiori and how their relationship developed. I Loved the fact that their relationship was gradual and grew with chemistry and had proper development.

And lastly, the best character was of course Kiki. What an adorable little bird!!! Deserves all the love, Kiki dear!!

Lim's strongest aspect is always the plot I feel. From the world building to the characters, SCC provides all of them in a neat package. Right from the beginning, the author immediately shows us a vivid image of the world and its magic system. The author takes us on a journey that we can't help but follow - an adventure that only gets dangerous as the time goes by. There was not a dull moment where I felt like not continuing or bored. The stakes were kept high and mighty throughout, and secrets kept creeping up at different points, which made reading very surprising and exciting. The plot of course has a recurring fantasy theme, more if compared to Spin the Dawn and most fantasy plots, but that can be overlooked. It is the writing and scenes that make this book so good and fun to read. The climax was definitely surprising and I think very well handled, which adds so many more layers to the story.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading Six Crimson Cranes. I love retellings and fairytales and SCC has both of these in a balanced platter with magic and adventure! It is a very meticulously planned story and the author's seamless writing is simply the cherry on top. I'm looking forward to the sequel!

I enjoyed this so much! I've always had quite a few issue with the fairytale that this is based on, so I was a little trepidatious at first, but Elizabeth Lim clearly has some of the same issues because she fixed them all, and this turned out to be a great story!

The characters were definitely my favourite thing. Though I found Shiori herself a little insufferable at first, I really appreciated her arc of learning the value of hard work and doing things for other people, and I loved the determined, resourceful and resilient girl she'd become by the end. I also ADORED Takkan - the softest of soft boys, and new fictional crush material for sure!

The focus on family was also wonderful, and I loved the way Shiori and her brothers love and look out for each other. I've always felt this story places a slightly unfair burden on the princess compared to the brothers, so I loved seeing them all work together to break the curse, and the way the love and support was so clearly shared and reciprocated equally between them all. (I will say I could have done with the individual brothers being a little more fleshed-out, as they all slightly blended together for me at times/only two or three of them really felt like they had developed personalities.)

On the other hand, I wasn't so keen on either the plot or the worldbuilding. I found some aspects of the mythology of the world quite confusing and under-developed; I sort of felt like there were too many different kinds of magic, with enchanters/sorcerers/demons/dragons all separate things, and not quite enough explanation given of any of them. In a similar vein, the motivations and aims of the various antagonists were never quite clear to me either. The stakes also never felt quite high enough. Or rather - the stakes were incredibly high, but something in the matter-of-fact tone of the narration meant I never really /felt/ the urgency or tension until right at the end.

Overall, not a perfect book but still a great read and a wonderful retelling, and I'm excited to see where the sequel goes (particularly as it seems to be promising much more in the way of explanations about dragon lore!)!

Thank you very much to NetGalley and the publishers, Hodder & Stoughton, for a free ARC in exchange for a review.

From the first line of this book, I was hooked. As a child, I read the entire fairytale section of my elementary school library, and this book felt the culmination of all my childhood dreams. We all know that Elizabeth Lim is a fantastic writer, but this book has the most gorgeous, whimiscal prose. Lim has taken a familiar fairytale, The Six Swans, and expanded and recreated it. Under this beautiful fantasy story, as well, is a very real story of a sister afraid of growing up and losing her family to life.

Shiori is a wonderful heroine, with beautiful relationships. I especially love Kiki and their interactions. Raikama is a fascinating character as well, and I hope we learn even more about her in the second book. Seryu is such a fun addition to the tale, (although with his green hair and dragonness, I kept picturing him as American Dragon: Jake Long, but that's on me) and he and Shiori will only get more interesting, I'm sure. And finally, rounding out the main cast are Takkan and Megari. Takkan is just wonderful. You can see exactly how he begins to care for Shiori, even though <spoiler> she can't speak and he can't fully see her </spoiler>. Megari is cute little sister of the cast, and is just delightful.

My only qualm with the story is at one point, there is a villain reveal and I genuinely had to go back and reread because I had completely forgotten that character ever existed. Which is likely the point, but Shiori's shock confused me for a moment because I couldn't remember the character!

If you love fairytales, dragons, paper birds, amazing women, adorable love interests, magic, or all of the above, I highly highly recommend getting your hands on a copy of Six Crimson Cranes. This book felt like recapturing my love for fairytales. Five stars.

Elizabeth Lim is officially on my radar. This book was stunning and genuinely felt like a modern-day story tale. What I wouldn't give to have this animated, it would be so stunning. Away from my sidetrack love of animation, this book is amazing would recommend it to everyone. Months later and I'm still thinking about it. If you were on the fence about reading it, do it, just trust me and give it a chance

I loved this book ! Elizabeth Lim has a way to write an enchanting story that keeps you hooked, it's always a great pleasure to read her stories. I can't wait for book 2 just as i couldn't wait for book 2 in her previous duology when i read it. She's one of my autobuy author now. I love the way she adds Chinese folklore without it feeling info dumpy. This was one of my favorite reads of the year so far !

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for e-ARC in exchange honest review.

4 stars

I really expecting this as I read Spin the Dawn Duology and it was given as a hint and regarded as a fairytale. First of all, it really looks promising. I love the duology hence hoping for Crimson Crane can do well as well.

At first, yada yada looks like a very familiar situation for me. A princess knows magic and had an evil stepmother. Then she met a dragon. Blah blah. I feel so familiar which I found a bit of bored🙄. But actually my interest got a little increase as soon as Shiori met Seryu the dragon. I love Shiori x Seryu part. I think that I want to know more on Seryu & his kingdom. However, we are not getting yet about Seryu. This is about Shiori and her 6 brothers.

The adventure is quite adequate to me. Not too simple, not too hard. Just so-so. Honestly, I got bored on the moment Shiori went to a castle and met her supposed future husband (forgot his name). Butttt, I love their romance. It's hard for me to love the romance part but this one is exception. Maybe it seems to look as an innocent love. I love that shit🥴. Tekken, I think his name. Yeah, I can see how they take it slowly to fall in love. Slow romance is also my jam🎶. I'm not always a big fan of enemies to lovers trope.

Fast forward to the last part left me shook. Like Ms Elizabeth managed to convince me that the one supposed to deem as evil is not actually evil??? Snape's energy is here!!! I love this shit when I can never ever predict this like I know there's plot twist but not this energy???. I was so convince, ma'am at the first place😳✋. And legit more shooking when the last one mentioned that evil name....... And so Book 2 is coming........


Overall, I enjoyed but I got bored at the first place hence the 4 stars. Still a good read anyway 🤗💐.


*****Reviewing in Goodreads seperately due to technical issues*****

Oh wow, now this was absolutely fantastic. I was already incredibly excited for this book, due to the stunning cover and having heard so much about Elizabeth Lim's other series (which I now absolutely must read!) but this book just blew me away.
The writing was breathtaking, I felt like I was reading an old fairytale at some points and I just love how Elizabeth weaved magic into her words. The plot was quite gripping, and I loved how everything tied together in the end but leaving enough opening for the next book.
I'll admit I bought the hardcover the day of release as I enjoyed it that much, and it is truly a stunning book!

Thank you so much for the opportunity to review this!

This book was absolutely beautiful and the world was gorgeous. This whole book had me gripped from the beginning and I knew that I would love it from the start. I loved the writing in this book as it was so beautiful to read. I laughed, cried and was shocked throughout this book as it was definitely a rollercoaster ride of a book. The characters were so amazing and I fell in love with them all and just wanted to know more about them. This book was everything I wanted and more. I definitely think Elizabeth Lim is a new favourite author of mine and I will 100% pick up any book she writes. I highly recommend this book.