Six Crimson Cranes

Book Title: Six Crimson Cranes

Author: Elizabeth Lim

Series: Six Crimson Cranes #1

Date Started: May 13th 2021

Date Completed: May 16th 2021

Genres: Fantasy, Historical, Adventure, Romance

Quality Rating: Four Stars

Enjoyment Rating: Five Star

Final Rating: Four Stars

Review:

◆ Thanks to NetGalley for this eBook copy for review ◆

While it took a bit of time to win me over, I utterly loved Six Crimson Cranes. The fact that it's based on my favourite fairytale (though I'm familiar with the Irish version, traditionally known as 'The Children of Lir' and some other European variations) always helps, but this time Lim is retelling the beautiful Japanese version. I'm not well informed about what differs between the traditional versions of the two tales, but there was plenty familiar and plenty new to explore.

My initial reservations about this book came from Shiori being written with the intelligence of a twelve-year-old when she was apparently sixteen - there were several points in the first half of the book where her internal dialogue didn't make sense, was incorrect about information that Shiori had clearly been given, and just plain cliched or not thought through (phrases like 'don't say I didn't warn you,' 'why won't anyone believe me,' 'I must have imagined it' were scattered through needlessly). By the halfway point, there's a noticeable shift in Shiori's persona but I still don't think it was really necessary and I'm still not convinced it was a deliberate choice to paint her as so naïve to begin with.

That being said, the fact that from around 32%, I read the rest of the book in one sitting tells you all you need to know. It's not often I'll stay in bed late into the day reading, but Six Crimson Cranes had my full attention and I didn't want to put it down. Some of the twists were a little obvious, but the final one, while predictable, was still very satisfying. The slow-burn romance was engaging (and In liked that it doesn't weigh Shiori or her story down), the magic gradually becomes more layered without being too overly complex, and I loved how Lim weaved the tale into a much bigger epic at the end, with potential for more to come.

Lovers of fairytale retellings, of Asian folklore, and especially those in love with this particular tale in its various iterations like myself, will adore this book. It's full of lush Asian mythology and culture, compelling world-building and magic, and an entertaining cast of characters. Lim's finale strongly suggests there're more adventures for Shiori on the way, but she doesn't need to leave this one half-finished in order to make you want it immediately.