Song of the Crimson Flower
by Julie C. Dao
Published by Philomel on November 5th, 2019
Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Fantasy, Romance
Format: ARC
Source: Kindly provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
Summary from Goodreads:
From the acclaimed author of Forest of a Thousand Lanterns comes a fantastical new tale of darkness and love, in which magical bonds are stronger than blood.
Will love break the spell? After cruelly rejecting Bao, the poor physician's apprentice who loves her, Lan, a wealthy nobleman's daughter, regrets her actions. So when she finds Bao's prized flute floating in his boat near her house, she takes it into her care, not knowing that his soul has been trapped inside it by an evil witch, who cursed Bao, telling him that only love will set him free. Though Bao now despises her, Lan vows to make amends and help break the spell.
Together, the two travel across the continent, finding themselves in the presence of greatness in the forms of the Great Forest's Empress Jade and Commander Wei. They journey with Wei, getting tangled in the webs of war, blood magic, and romance along the way. Will Lan and Bao begin to break the spell that's been placed upon them? Or will they be doomed to live out their lives with black magic running through their veins?
Review
Song of the Crimson Flower is a story that reads like a beautifully woven fairytale.
Song of the Crimson Flower follows the story of a daughter to a wealthy nobleman, Lan, and a poor physician's apprentice, Bao. After Lan rejects Bao, he leaves heartbroken and ends up crossing paths with a witch who places a spell upon him that will only love can break. Lan, regretting the way she treated him, vows to help him break the spell.
I absolutely adored this book, from its characters to the story, everything came together so wonderfully that you just couldn't help but fly through it. Though it is a part of the Rise of the Empress series, it can be read as a standalone. While the characters from previous books in the series make appearance, it is fun to read about the adventures and action Lan and Bao face in this particular story. While I love fantasy with a bit more action than this book provided, it was actually enjoyable to read the way the characters were brought together and how they combatted the obstacles laid before them together.
Another aspect of Song of the Crimson Flower I throughly enjoyed was the romance between Lan and Bao. Though Bao has loved her more years, Lan calls him out for loving an idealized version of her he conceived then the real person herself. Through the trials and tribulations of their journey, he comes to know the real Lan. I did enjoy reading the romance between Lan and Bao, however I personally enjoyed reading Wei and Yen's story a bit more as they were a bit more captivating to read.
If you enjoy tender characters and a heartfelt story then I recommend checking out Song of the Crimson Flower.
Rating
★★★★
About the Author
Julie C. Dao (www.juliedao.com) is a proud Vietnamese-American who was born in upstate New York. She studied medicine in college, but came to realize blood and needles were her Kryptonite. By day, she worked in science news and research; by night, she wrote books about heroines unafraid to fight for their dreams, which inspired her to follow her passion of becoming a published author. Forest of a Thousand Lanterns is her debut novel. Julie lives in New England. Follow her on Twitter @jules_writes.
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