They provide such an amazing lead up and hint into one of the biggest reveals in the book and after it happened, it seemed so obvious and of course nothing else could be! I loved the quotes from ‘One’ and ‘Two’ at the start of each chapter, the two individuals who overthrew the old empire. There is so much detail put into the world building. The prose is absolutely stunning, and was everything I wanted.

In an absolutely stunning tale, this intricate political fantasy weaves an exciting and intriguing murder mystery.

But as the investigation deepens, scapegoats are found and lost, a war is brewing on the edge of the Kingdom, and Hesina no longer feels she can trust those closest to her – they were after all, also closest to the King. With the information from the seer, a trial is held to investigate the King’s death. But Hesina’s loyalty to her father and her own desire to discover the truth lead her betray her kingdom and find a seer to help her uncover the murderer. If she’s discovered, she’ll be branded a traitor and sentenced to death. Hesina, convinced her father has been murdered, goes to see a seer, someone with magic who are vilified in the kingdom. What an incredible debut from He and what I hope is the start of many more books from her.ĭescendant of the Crane follows Princess Hesina in the wake of her father’s death – or murder. What a story! What an ending! What an everything! I was in shock at the end of this book, just in awe of what I’d read.

As a genre it produces slow and detailed, powerful and emotional books – and Descendant of the Crane was all of these and more. So I think I’ve only now realised that political fantasy might be one of my favourite genres to read. In this shimmering Chinese-inspired fantasy, debut author Joan He introduces a determined and vulnerable young heroine struggling to do right in a world brimming with deception. With the future of her kingdom at stake, can Hesina find justice for her father? Or will the cost be too high? Using the information illicitly provided by the sooth, and uncertain if she can trust even her family, Hesina turns to Akira-a brilliant investigator who’s also a convicted criminal with secrets of his own. Determined to find her father’s killer, Hesina does something desperate: she engages the aid of a soothsayer-a treasonous act, punishable by death… because in Yan, magic was outlawed centuries ago. Princess Hesina of Yan has always been eager to shirk the responsibilities of the crown, but when her beloved father is murdered, she’s thrust into power, suddenly the queen of an unstable kingdom. Title: Descendant of the Crane by Joan He

Descendant of the crane joan he