Descendant of the Crane

by Joan He

[Chelsea]

I think the first half of this book was a 2/5 and the last a 4/5 so I kind of rounded it off. In the beginning everything was so shaky. I didn't feel like I knew the characters at all, some were randomly introduced with no explanation, and I didn't find them very interesting until the second half.

Plus I honestly had no idea what was going on with the plot at first. Why did this man with a cane randomly come into play? I get the seer told her about him but she just goes and gets him and he agrees easily. All too smooth. And all too boring. I didn't really have any clue about the Eleven they kept talking about because there was really no details given. I didn't feel like I was immersed in the world, just skimming over it.

The second half got better though. More action, a better plot, some twists and turns. Everything you'd want in a fantasy. I didn't find that the promised "Chinese inspired" world was seen until the second half. Maybe because the lack of plot and character depth threw it off but I was glad to see at least a little of it.

A decent start to a series and I'll probably continue with hopes that the writing gets better.