Book Review: The Dragon’s Promise

By Elizabeth Lim 

2 Stars 

The Dragon’s Promise is the sequel to Six Crimson Cranes, following the adventures of Princess Shiori as she attempts to return a cursed pearl to its owner. With the help of a magical cast of characters, Shiori must navigate the fantastical lands of her world — from the underwater world of the dragons to the ghostly lands where demons reside, and to her very homeland — all while fighting demons and preventing the pearl from slipping into the wrong hands. Despite being completely immersed in the first book of the duology, the sequel, The Dragon’s Promise, failed to hold my interest for most of the events. While the worldbuilding was as rich as in the previous novel, the plot felt repetitive and all over the place.   

Most of the characters were not as compelling as in Six Crimson Cranes and felt one-dimensional; had the author explored their stories a little bit more, it would have made for a stronger book. I also did not understand why certain characters were introduced, only to disappear for the rest of the book. I did, however, enjoy the ending, which wrapped up all the plot points that were left open in the previous novel and concluded Shiori’s adventures quite nicely. The romance between Shiori and Takkan was also written well. Overall, though, it felt as though the novel was excessively long and did not do justice to the first book in the duology, Six Crimson Cranes. Unlike the first book, The Dragon’s Promise lacked the careful pacing, compelling characters, and interesting plot that made Six Crimson Cranes so well-written.

Reviewed by Amal 

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