Gallant

 Book Title: Gallant

Author: V.E. Schwab

Date Started: February 9th 2022

Date Completed: February 20th 2022

Genres: Horror, Adventure

Quality Rating: Three Stars

Enjoyment Rating: Three Star

Final Rating: Three Stars

Review:

◆ Thanks to NetGalley for this eBook copy for review ◆

I found this honestly pretty underwhelming. I'm really glad Schwab is growing and developing her stories into what she's always wanted to write, and I support her journey in that. Her new stuff is just less my thing, and that's okay - the gothic ghostliness is fun I just personally don't often click with it. I will say, though, that there was a lot of internal monologuing, spookiness and pretty writing and not a lot of anyone doing anything until the end.

Gallant is a class in doing a Ghosty House 101. It's not so much a mystery because there's no real reveal (it dips more into fantasy than thriller), but if you love a Gothic ghost story you're looking in the right place. Looking back at it, it really reminded me of Coraline, Mexican Gothic and a handful of other Gothic stories - and maybe that's why I wasn't a massive fan. It ticked all the boxes but didn't really provide anything else.

And, while I appreciated having a mute protagonist, the book didn't really do much with it. And it doesn't have to - normalised representation is good too - but it felt like there was wasted potential in a story that delves so much into fantastical possibilities. Or, failing that, even just thinking about it more past that sometimes people ignore her because they can't read sign language.

Overall, I think I may start giving Schwab's ghost stories a pass; I've tried a handful now and they're just not my thing. Very much support her growth as an author, but I think pushing myself to read stuff that I'm just not interesting isn't worth it - life's too short!

The Dragon's Promise

 Book Title: The Dragon's Promise

Author: Elizabeth Lim

Series: Six Crimson Cranes #2

Date Started: February 27th 2022

Date Completed: February 9th 2022

Genres: Fantasy, Adventure, Romance, Historical

Quality Rating: Four Stars

Enjoyment Rating: Five Star

Final Rating: Five Stars

Review:

◆ Thanks to NetGalley for this eBook copy for review ◆

This duology has been a joy to read; the stunning fantasy, the complex characters, the vividly immersive adventure. It has quickly become one of my favourite series of all time and I can't wait to get some pretty hardcovers to go on my shelves (anyone know how to get the US editions to the UK because I'm in love) and read more of Lim's work.

I adore the Asian mythology weaved into what is in its own rite a wonderfully exciting and magical fantasy adventure. As I gushed about when I read Six Crimson Cranes, the fairy tale of The Wild Swans is my favourite fairy tale of all time, so to see it reimagined with full respect to the original as well as boundless imagination to its potential to expand is always a delight when I come across it. And, while the main homage to that fairy tale was wrapped up at the end of the last book, there are still elements dotted throughout The Dragon's Promise, where we get to dive even deeper (pun absolutely intended) into the Asian fairy tales and folklore that inspire a lot of this book's narrative.

Something that is often hit or miss for me is the romance in fantasy adventures; The Dragon's Promise got it perfect for me. I loved how Lim let her characters be tempted by the cliches we're so used to (hiding the truth from significant others, sacrificing themselves completely needlessly, being generally idiotic because 'I care about you too much,') and then had them consciously realise that's dumb and move on to do better. The characters are then so much more tactile, they have healthy relationships even when they're strained, and they recognise the consequences of their actions - that's good storytelling folks!

And that's not mentioning Shiori as the heroine herself. Lim runs a pretty concise masterclass of how to write an active protagonist. Taking into account the fantasy elements and the fact Shiori has magic at her fingertips, it is still her active decisions that move the story forward, which makes it all the more exciting and Shirori all the more impressively brave and beloved.

This whole book was just so satisfying because it acknowledged and took elements from all of Shiori's adventures (has it really only been two books?) to impact her actions in the finale. She really has learnt a hundred lessons, and she really has changed because of it. In only two books, Shiori and her companions feel like such real human beings (and a variety of other magical creatures) to me. I think it was a perfect ending - and yet I don't want it to be the ending. Here's hoping Lim sends some new characters our way to fall in love with soon.