Author: S. Jae-Jones
Series: Guardians of Dawn #1
Genre: YA Fantasy/Mythology
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Publication Date: August 29, 2023
Edition: 416 pages, Kindle Edition
Source: NetGalley
Synopsis:
Magic flickers.
Love flames.
Chaos reigns.
Magic is forbidden throughout the Morning Realms. Magicians are called an abomination, and blamed for the plague of monsters that razed the land twenty years before.
Jin Zhara already had enough to worry about—appeasing her stepmother’s cruel whims, looking after her blind younger sister, and keeping her own magical gifts under control—without having to deal with rumors of monsters re-emerging in the marsh. But when a chance encounter with an easily flustered young man named Han brings her into contact with a secret magical liberation organization called the Guardians of Dawn, Zhara realizes there may be more to these rumors than she thought. A mysterious plague is corrupting the magicians of Zanhei and transforming them into monsters, and the Guardians of Dawn believe a demon is responsible.
In order to restore harmony and bring peace to the world, Zhara must discover the elemental warrior within, lest the balance between order and chaos is lost forever.
Love flames.
Chaos reigns.
Magic is forbidden throughout the Morning Realms. Magicians are called an abomination, and blamed for the plague of monsters that razed the land twenty years before.
Jin Zhara already had enough to worry about—appeasing her stepmother’s cruel whims, looking after her blind younger sister, and keeping her own magical gifts under control—without having to deal with rumors of monsters re-emerging in the marsh. But when a chance encounter with an easily flustered young man named Han brings her into contact with a secret magical liberation organization called the Guardians of Dawn, Zhara realizes there may be more to these rumors than she thought. A mysterious plague is corrupting the magicians of Zanhei and transforming them into monsters, and the Guardians of Dawn believe a demon is responsible.
In order to restore harmony and bring peace to the world, Zhara must discover the elemental warrior within, lest the balance between order and chaos is lost forever.
Sailor Moon meets Cinder in Guardians of Zhara , the start of a new, richly imagined fantasy series from S. Jae-Jones, the New York Times bestselling author of Wintersong.
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I think I went into this book with too-high expectations. The synopsis gave me a different idea of the book. I didn't see how anything in this was like Sailor Moon, beyond reincarnation. And comparing it to Cinder is also weird since that is a Sci-fi retelling of Cinderella. I did see aspects of Cinderella in this book though.
All that aside, this book was far too slow paced in my opinion. It took several chapters for this book to get its legs.
The characters felt, for lack of a better word, generic. I had no idea the two main characters, Zhara and Han, were supposed to be 18 or nearly 18. When Han's age was mentioned I was shocked. I thought he was supposed to be 16 at the oldest. I know with how popular YA books are, a large part of the audience who reads them is older than the target age. However, he did not behave like someone who was almost 18. There could be an argument about him being sheltered, and the same for Zhara, but it didn't seem believable to me that they were that age.
The magic system was a little confusing as well., it didn't have the depth that I prefer. I am a huge fan of elemental magic, but the magic in this book felt a little "bare bones" to me.
There was also a reference to a K-pop group, and while I listen to and love K-pop, it took me out of the story when it was mentioned. I dislike when pop culture is referenced in Contemporary books, so when it happens in fantasy, I like it even less.
There are things in this book I know readers will love, there was just a lot that didn't work for me.
All that aside, this book was far too slow paced in my opinion. It took several chapters for this book to get its legs.
The characters felt, for lack of a better word, generic. I had no idea the two main characters, Zhara and Han, were supposed to be 18 or nearly 18. When Han's age was mentioned I was shocked. I thought he was supposed to be 16 at the oldest. I know with how popular YA books are, a large part of the audience who reads them is older than the target age. However, he did not behave like someone who was almost 18. There could be an argument about him being sheltered, and the same for Zhara, but it didn't seem believable to me that they were that age.
The magic system was a little confusing as well., it didn't have the depth that I prefer. I am a huge fan of elemental magic, but the magic in this book felt a little "bare bones" to me.
There was also a reference to a K-pop group, and while I listen to and love K-pop, it took me out of the story when it was mentioned. I dislike when pop culture is referenced in Contemporary books, so when it happens in fantasy, I like it even less.
There are things in this book I know readers will love, there was just a lot that didn't work for me.
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