#guardians of dawn: zhara

[therubyreader]

I know Guardians of Dawn: Zhara is based on Sailor Moon but, this might be too niche, does it remind anyone else of that old JetX show (originally a comic book series) W.I.T.C.H.? In both the protagonists are elemental guardians of abstract concepts (dawn and the veil respectively) and it look like the Guardians of Dawn are going to be an all girl team too

[readinginmars]

"Because for the longest time I did not know I could dream," she said. "That I could wish - want - for things beyond what I needed. A roof over my head, clothes on my back, and food in my belly."

Guardians of Dawn: Zhara - S. Jae-Jones

[theaologieslibrary]

I’m OBSESSED with the edges on the Illumicrate edition of Zhara!!

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 3/5

Book Blurb: Sailor Moon meets Cinder in Guardians of Dawn: Zhara, the start of a new, richly imagined fantasy series from S. Jae-Jones, the New York Times bestselling author of Wintersong. 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.

Review:

In a world where magic is forbidden a girl trying to appease her mother's cruel whims and protect her blind younger sister all the while keeping her own magical gifts hidden suddenly finds herself on an journey like no other from facing off against monsters, going on dates with a charming man who just happens to be the prince, and finding her own worth. Jin Zhara has had a difficult life, from dealing with the grief of losing her parents to living with an abusive stepmother and working to make ends meet all the while taking cate of a blind younger sister that she might have accidentally blinded when she couldn't control her own magic, did I mention that she has magic that is strictly forbidden from and could have her executed if anyone finds out? The only thing that Zhara does find happiness in is a romance book series that she's been trying to get her hands on. She has a chance encounter with a handsome young man named Han who gets her in contact a secret magical liberation organization called the Guardians of Dawn. Soon Zhara finds herself awakening powers she never knew she had and facing off against demons that have begun plaguing the city. This is the first book in the series. This was a mixture of Cinderella meets Sailor moon and it was a fun read. The romance was cute and both Zhara and Han were an overall cute couple. The magic, demons, and such were a unique part of the story and the conclusion leaves off in a nice way to start the beginning of the second book.

*Spoilers: Zhara finds out she is the Guardian of Fire and she successfully faces off against a corrupt politician who was possessed by a demon. Han reveals his identity as the prince and both Zhara and him confess their feelings for each other and when the battle is over they decide to go off together to warn other guardians that the demons have awaken and are on the loose. Yulana, the princess that was suppose to marry Han is actually a lesbian and is also the guardian of Wind and can astral project (she is interested in the courtesan Jiyi who knows about magic and was helping Zhara).

*Thanks Netgalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[sjaejoneswriter]

Hi! This is a random question and you’ve probably heard it before, but it’s about that magical girl series you were writing, Guardians of Dawn? I’m really confused. This was a book I was really excited to read two years ago, and it never came out. Does anyone know if it was being put on hold?

With the imminent (?) death of Twitter, I decided to dust off my old Tumblr account and...wow do I have a lot of asks to go through. Mea culpa, mea culpa, I know I have been gone for literal years.

HOWEVER, yes, Guardians of Dawn is still happening—in fact, the first book will be published August 2023! You can add it to Goodreads here.

[read-with-el]

Guardians of Dawn: Zhara: 3/5 stars

This was overall very sweet! It has a cinderella-type story, with secret magic and societies. The two main characters Zhara and Han are initially drawn together by accident but they later realize they have some secrets in common. I initially was reading an ebook copy but was struggling to get drawn in so I switched to the audiobook. I personally found this experience better (I probably would have dnf’d it if not for this).

I enjoyed the world building and the magic system (and the history behind it). Ultimately I felt the book fell a little short. Zhara and Han both felt a little one-note and jokes about their personalities were used over and over again and each of them came off as younger than their stated ages to me. I think my favorite character ended up being the cat (in all fairness—the cat is definitely more than “just there”; it plays a role). I think this had a great set-up, but just wasn’t there in the execution. Unsure of whether or not I will continue the series.

[luminouslumity]

Like I said, I've been waiting years for this book to come out! So whether it's good or bad, I'm just glad it's here now!

[wondereads]

Weekly Reading Update (07/03/23)

Reviews and thoughts under the cut

Woven By Gold by Elizabeth Helen (8/10)

I immediately picked up the sequel to Bonded By Thorns since it was such a fun read. As with the first one, the romance is very strong and probably my favorite part of the book. Also, we get to know more about the princes (including the evil one) and their complicated pasts with their actions and one another. I felt like Rosalina was adapting a little quickly, but then I remember that she's spent months in the fae world at this point and it seems less unrealistic. As fantasy romances are wont to do, the plot is a little thin and drawn out, but I really only have two major gripes. One, the problem introduced at the end of book one is resolved almost immediately, which was a little unsatisfying, but it did introduce some characters and plot points. Two, the 'big mystery' concerning specifically Rosalina and her family is so obvious. Like, I get that they are not aware of the tropes of the genre they're in, but come on. Surely someone can at least suspect it?

The Wicked King by Holly Black (10/10)

The Wicked King is absolutely my favorite book of Folk of the Air. I just love magical politicking, and Jude does it so well. This sounds weird, but her time in the Undersea is a part that has always stuck with me. She's obviously miserable, but I think it's when I realized just how far Jude would go for her ambitions (and just how far Cardan would go for her) and I love it. Speaking of Cardan, the build in their relationship is so well done; a true enemies-to-lovers arc if there ever was one. As much as I know what's really going on with the twist at the end, it still hurt to read. I enjoyed this reread so much that I ended up changing my rating from a 9 to a 10 because I really can't think of anything to criticize about this book.

Everblaze by Shannon Messenger (9/10)

I think Everblaze marks a significant turning point in the Keeper books. This is the first time we start really interacting with species outside elves, specifically politically, and it's the first time doubt in the council comes front and center. The books are starting to explore what the worldbuilding actually means, and it means a lot of dubious things when it comes to control and privacy. The development at the very end (and I mean very, literally last page) disrupts the pattern that has been set in these books so far, and it definitely makes you want to keep reading. Fitz and Biana sufficiently redeem themselves in this one, but Dex is going to have to step it the fuck up before I even consider giving him another chance, especially since I already don't like his pushy romantic feelings for Sophie. As always, my favorite relationships lie in Sophie and Keefe and Sophie and Grady and Edaline, the latter of which really stood out this book.

The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black (9/10)

There are 308 pages in this book. I highlighted something 228 times. I remember when I read this book the first time I was a little disappointed that there wasn't much of the intense scheming that came with The Wicked King, and I take that back. Maybe Jude's plans are a little more straightforward this time around, but even knowing what was going to happen there was still an insane amount of suspense. The relationships in this book are so strong, and not just romantically. Jude and Madoc's fraught parent-child relationship in particular has me riveted; it's incredibly complicated and so good. But also romantically, Jude and Cardan are at the top of their game this book, and it's amazing to see Cardan so unashamedly in love. They deserve their happy ending and to take off their armor, one piece at a time.

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson (10/10)

I've been interested in this book for a while, but I was finally prompted to read it by the TV show announcement. And I can definitely say I wasn't disappointed. If you watch any sort of procedural show, this will be right up your alley. I loved how the actual investigation was laid out with Pip's notes and diagrams in the book. It made me feel like I was solving the mystery right alongside her. The focus is definitely on the murder, but I still got a good sense of Pip's personal life and how her obsession with the case was affecting her and her relationships. I won't lie, one of the most anxiety-inducing parts was her college applications, but maybe that's just me. I managed to predict who the killer was, but the actual story behind the whole thing made my jaw drop. I can't wait to read the rest of the series and see the show!

Guardians of Dawn: Zhara by S. Jae-Jones (5/10)

This book is not irredeemable. The plot is unoriginal but not nonsensical or boring, the magic is super interesting, and Zhara has a lot of potential as a character. However, most of the characters are one-dimensional and uncompelling and the writing is...not good. The unending focus on the romance when there were so many other interesting things going on was so frustrating. And then there was the unashamed insertion of what is clearly meant to be BTS (yes, worldwide kpop sensation BTS) that completely destroyed my immersion. Also, the disability rep is pretty dubious. I was pretty disappointed by this read, which sucks because I think it had a lot of potential.

Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater (10/10)

This book is like if Pride & Prejudice and Howl's Moving Castle had a baby, and I ate it up. This book perfectly blended a historical romance with engaging fantasy elements. Dora is a wonderful main character; she's lovable and engaging while still have a completely unique personality that really makes her stand out amongst a lot of fantasy romance protagonists. The love interest is suitably snarky while still being respectful and kind, especially to Dora. Their interactions are fun while still being incredibly romantic. The plot works well with the romance and characters, culminating in a very satisfying ending. Finally, I really appreciate the ending for Dora's issue in particular; it works well for her character and is, in my opinion, in good taste. I highly recommend this book, especially if you're looking for a light, quick read!

The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas (CR, 57%)

I'm kind of just reading this one to get through it. The stories are fairly interesting, but I was told it provides valuable context for Queen of Shadows, which is really the only reason I'm reading it. I'm not a huge fan of prequels; I don't like reading stories that I already know the ending of. So far, while some things have been interesting, like Celaena's training in the desert, it's very obvious that everything is building up to what I already know is going to happen. As such, I have really no interest in letting myself get attached to any of the characters, which is kind of affecting the quality of my reading.

[elliepassmore]

Zhara release!

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.

Bookshop.org

Barnes & Noble

This was a super fun read that really captures the lightness and fun of magical adventures while also managing to include more serious topics. The author herself said she wanted the book to feel similar to when she watched Sailor Moon as a kid, and I definitely think she achieved that!

There’s magic and teamwork and funny friends and learning to defeat villains, both big and small. It’s the first in a 4-book series. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing what comes next for this cast.

I actually thought this book wasn’t coming out until the end of August, so it’s a nice surprise that it actually came out last week!

For a more in-depth opinion, check out my review of Zhara!

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🦇 Guardians of the Dawn: Zhara Book Review 🦇

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

❝ She had always imagined her magic as a steady flame within her, and the world around her as her kitchen. Elements were ingredients to be played with, like dough beneath her fingers. Zhara held her breath and concentrated, applying her magic to the mixture in her hands like heat to a pot of water. ❞

❓ #QOTD What was your favorite cartoon growing up? ❓

🦇 Magic is forbidden by punishment of death throughout the Morning Realms, after corrupted magicians turned into abominations and razed the earth 20 years ago. Jin Zhara must hide her magic—that is, until a strange run-in with a blushing boy named Han leads her to the magical liberation organization the Guardians of Dawn. As new members of the Guardians, Zhara and Han work together to restore harmony to the world, even as chaos begins to reign.

💜 S. Jae-Jones is proof that books are their own sort of magic. She's spun together the familiar threads of Sailor Moon, Cinder of The Lunar Chronicles, Avatar the Last Airbender, and cultural mythology to produce Guardians of the Dawn. The story's mythology takes little time to grasp before you're thrown into the adventure alongside Zhara and Han, who (for lack of a better word) are adorable together. The book touches lightly on more intense themes: familial obligation, grief, identity, to name a few. The secondary characters (namely, Xu, Han's genderfluid best friend, Yulana, and Jiyi) offer far more than support; they're an absolute delight.

🦇 Unfortunately, the writing comes off as a little juvenile at times (namely with 'The Good-Looking Giggles' and Han's himbo-esque nature), so I would place this at the younger end of YA. Perhaps more frustrating was the naiveté and ignorance of both Zhara and Han. My brain was piecing together clues not revealed until 10 chapters ahead, and not because of the dual POV or omniscient narration (the reveals for Yulana, Sajah, and even the Chancellor were set up a little too well). The worldbuilding, while gorgeous, is a little basic (which is why it's so easy to dive into, making that a double-edged sword). While a cute, mythology-based tale, I really think this story (and possible series), has a lot more potential.

🦇 Recommended to anyone looking for a bit of nostalgia through a magical retelling. The entire time I was reading it, I got HARD Cinder and Sailor Moon vibes. It wasn't until after I started writing my review that I noticed both were mentioned in the story synopsis. There's a hint of Avatar the Last Airbender in there, too!

✨ The Vibes ✨ 👠 Cinderella Retelling 🐱 Animal Sidekicks 💫 YA Fantasy Fiction 🔥 Elemental Magic 📚 Book Loving MC 🏮 Culture-Infused Mythology 🌈 Queer and Disability Rep

🦇 Major thanks to the author and publisher for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

[therubyreader]

My Review of Guardians of Dawn: Zhara by S.Jae-Jones

See a full list of my book reviews here

*Disclaimer: there will be spoilers later on in the review*

Review Word Count, non-spoiler: 812 Review Word Count Total: 1,576

Hello, it is once again, I. I know it’s been a minute since I’ve written a review but I’m back with a book that I’m not seeing a huge fandom for on here despite the fact I had to wait over a month for it to come off hold in library, so I’m going to need you all to start talking about it. Is this book a little over a month old and just picking up traction, yes, but I need someone to scream about this with me so you all get to get hear me.  

In Guardians of Dawn: Zhara, we are introduced to our titular character Jin Zhara (btw this story is based on various Asian cultures and mythology, so the last name goes first), a poor orphaned girl who lives with stepmother and blind stepsister in Zanhei, one of the Morning Realms under the control of an emperor from the north who took over the area when Zhara was a child. The emperor banned the use of magic since it caused the magicians and emperor to turn into abominations over time and had all magicians, including Zhara’s father, killed. Zhara, surprise, is a magician who has to live in hiding since as soon as a magician is discovered they are immediately put to death. All she wants in life is to be able to keep her powers under control, keep her blind sister safe, and pay off her family’s debts but that all changes when she meets a mysterious boy who could possibly lead her to the Guardians of Dawn, and underground magical organization with revolutionary tendencies.  

The book is meant to be based off both Cinder by Marissa Meyer and Sailor Moon so there are elements of the Cinderella fairytale woven in through the story along with characters from various Asian mythologies which I think created a very interesting world though a bit confusing to understand at times. This also might be because I’m not familiar with any Asian mythology and only vaguely understand how east Asian monarchies worked, but there were elements of the world that took me a while to grasp. There are of course the beginning elements of a Sailor Moon-esque story since it looks like each book in the series is going to focus on a different girl and a different fairytale, but I think this story more similar to the old JetX show and comic series, W.I.T.C.H., which I was in love with as a kid and never finished the comics (whoops), but I made a post about it explaining the resemblance a little more. Honestly, I think it’s a very solid basis for a story and I’m excited to see how the author is able to build out the world more in the next book when we meet a new character.  

While the plot of the book was very interesting, the characters, I felt, were a little lacking. I can’t put my finger quite on exactly why but there were some instances where I felt like the characters’ pre-established personalities were either being disregarded or leaned on too heavily. For example, we have timid Zhara suddenly cracking sexual jokes to Han despite literally every other page she hasn’t shown signs of having that sense of humor. I think the author was trying to have a female protagonist who was timid and weak but also not too weak because “girl power”, and I’m saying this as a feminist, you can be a little bitch and also girl boss (case and point: me). I personally think we have too many stereotypically strong female protagonists, having this girl who is shy and weak and unable to use her magic would’ve been a nice change of pace and having Zhara learn to find her own strength over the course of the book would’ve been a nice addition.  

Speaking of, there were parts of the story that just moved too fast. Without giving any spoilers, we go from Zhara not being able to control her magic to just somehow doing it on command, because reasons, and it’s never explained. Or how the last chapter of the book manages to condense six weeks down into two pages, which I will talk about a bit more in the spoiler section, but I honestly didn’t appreciate it.  

Though I will say, overall, I did enjoy the book and I’m excited to see how the rest of the series goes, it’s quite unfortunate that I found out about it the week it came out so now I have to wait an entire year for the next installment. Overall, I’d give it for the girls who were into shows involving a group of girl heroes from the 90s and 00s out of ten and I recommend it if you were a fan of that genre of TV when you were a kid. 

Spoilers 

I honestly don’t even know where to start, because there is a lot. I’m just going to do a rapid fire of minor annoyances to get the ball rolling. First of all, I think that the author focused too heavily on inside references within the world, I get that having them made the world more interesting but there was a point where I was like, “cool, can we be done now?”. For example, the Bangtan Brothers, so obviously a reference to the author’s love for BTS, which was a cute and fun reference at first, but it just kept going. And them turning out to be magicians helping the Guardians to me was too far, it felt like when a joke loses its funniness the more you repeat it. Same with the constant references to “A Maiden Who Was Loved by Death”, cool, I get it started Zhara and Han’s whole relationship, but it was inserted into every conversation, and I was over it. Also, the bookseller, Master Cao, being a traitor was very out of left field and the only hint we got was Zhara hearing a familiar voice one time in an out of context conversation with her stepmother, when literally up until his big reveal he didn’t do anything shady. And I get that he was good at being secretive or whatever, but it just felt a little weird. 

Going back to the timing thing from the end of the book that I mentioned earlier, I was very annoyed with how the ending was so rushed. I get Zhara was in a coma, or equivalent, and was knocked out for two weeks but I mean give us time to process that Lord Chan was executed and then magic was made legal. Literally both of those things got like a sentence despite being monumental plot points, how is magic that was illegal because the emperor who controls the land suddenly is legal in one part of the empire suddenly and everyone is chill with it. And then they open a magic school for the region, and everyone immediately trusts it? I think this is something that should’ve been fleshed out a little more because, what?! 

And not to be a negative Norman about this whole thing, and though it doesn’t seem like it, I did genuinely enjoy the book. If this isn’t your first time seeing my blog then you’ll know I’ve been on a bit of a “fantasy books that are based on Asian mythology” kick of late, well as of this year, so this was definitely up my alley. The author combined various cultures and mythologies from across east Asia to create this complex world that was very interesting to read about and I’m more excited to explore it with the next books. I’m also a sucker for those superpower girl shows, I watched most of Sailor Moon when I was in high school (I still need to finish it, adding that to the to-do list) and my aforementioned love of W.I.T.C.H. that I also never finished, I’m really glad this genre is coming back into vogue. And I think we need more of the genre, give me more of these types of books please @/the universe! I’m also especially excited to see how the Guardians will work together as a team and how they’ll be able to combine their powers. I honestly wish we could’ve seen more of Zhara and Yulana working together and using their powers together but alas, we cannot always get what we want.  

Side note, I’m going to need someone who has a better grasp on Asian spirituality to explain to me the element of wood, I get it’s supposed to be like what we would consider earth, but like is it just for trees or the earth as a whole, someone help.  

I think the most upsetting thing about this book for me was that I’m going to have to wait a full year for the next one to come out, curse me and my ability to have found the book quite literally around the week it was published. There are so many possibilities for the rest of the series which I’m super excited about, I know the next book is going to be inspired by Beauty and the Beast, but the possibilities for the other two Guardians are endless. If you’ve read this book, please come scream about it in my inbox or just on tumblr as a whole because there is barely any content to consume and it’s upsetting to me.  

[readinginmars]

"The world is dangerous," Zhara said softly. "And I don't want to survive; I want to thrive."

Guardians of Dawn: Zhara - S. Jae-Jones

[bookishlyvintage]

Guardians of the Dawn: Zhara, S Jae Jones [thoughts]

[signourneybooks]

Zhara | ARC Review

Thank you to Titan Books and Netgalley for the review copy in exchange for an honest review. This does not change my opinion in anyway. Book: Zhara (Guardians of Dawn 1) by S. Jae-JonesRelease Date: August 1st 2023Tags: Fantasy | Young Adult | Cinderella retelling | Family | Magic | Disabled Side CharacterTrigger/Content Warnings: Violence | GoreOther books by this author I reviewed Wintersong…

[jolieeason]

Zhara (Guardians of Dawn: Book 1) by S. Jae-Jones

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books Date of publication: August 1st, 2023 Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Young Adult Fantasy, Fiction, Mythology, High Fantasy, Romance, Magic, Asian Literature, Retellings Series: Guardians of Dawn Zhara—Book 1 Purchase Links: Kindle | Audible | B&N | AbeBooks | WorldCat Goodreads Synopsis: Sailor Moon meets Cinder in Guardians of Dawn: Zhara, the…

[geeklyinc]

Guardians of the Dawn: Zhara Review: Bibbity Bobbity BTS

Guardians of the Dawn: Zhara Review: Bibbity Bobbity BTS

It’s no secret that I love Sailor Moon; it’s pretty much become my personal brand around here. So when I see a book pitched as Sailor Moon meets Cinder(ella) you KNOW I’m going to be onboard. I was incredibly delighted to find that while S. Jae-Jones’ Guardians of Dawn: Zhara is a little bit of …