Loved this book. very eager to see the full series as to be able to consider it for assignment as part of various fantasy courses i teach

Life got in the way and I could not finish the book. Thanks to the publishers for the chance to read the book.

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC for early review.. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.

A Cinderella retelling swirled together with magical girls a la Sailor Moon, steeped in Chinese and Korean mythology, the first book of the Guardians of Dawn is a fun, cute, and heartfelt romp filled with romance and danger.

I will say, this reads way more like Middle Grade than it does Young Adult. The dialogue and the "cuteness" of it all just felt so young and light, and I didn't have an issue with that. Even the more intense, scary scenes still felt punctuated by lighthearted humour, which helped keep the consistent tone of hopefulness afloat.

I think the world building of Zhara is a little clunky, a little too heavy on exposition, but the action and intriguing characters help keep the pace going. In a world where magicians are wiped out and now monsters have come to attack once again, Zhara must hide her powers and identity from everyone, including her sister. With the help of her horrid stepmother, she keeps a low profile, until meeting the crown prince in disguise and starting off on her magical journey, accompanied by her feline familiar.

The romance was very sweet and youthful, and I found myself more interested in that than the monsters, demons, and conflicts of the magicians. I loved how Han was an avid enjoyer of romance novels and bonded with Zhara over that fact. I loved the easily dodged love triangle tropes by making the bride-to-be a very blatant lesbian. I loved Han's fussy and prissy assistant and all their groaning and griping. Overall, I think this is a goofy, lovable start to a series where we will eventually see many young girls come into their power and form strong friendships, and I'm looking forward to reading book two.

3 stars for Guardians of Dawn: Zhara. I feel like a lot people will really enjoy this book! I loved the world building in this story. Overall I just wanted to connect to the characters more so I would become more invested in the story. I’m sure this gets better as the series goes on!

I really really enjoyed this. I was able to pick up on the nuances that referenced favorite fairy tales. I liked the characters a lot. However personally pacing is usually what knocks stars off for me and I found this to be a bit too slow. I would continue reading these books tho, they were fun enough that I wasn't reading too critically.

"Guardians of Dawn: Zhara" by S. Jae-Jones is a captivating YA fantasy that immerses readers in its richly crafted world, featuring an engaging plot and a cover that immediately grabs attention. While the characters are entertaining and make for a pleasant read, they often lack the depth needed to forge a strong emotional connection. Despite this, the book's intriguing storyline and striking cover make it a noteworthy read.

I was unable to complete this book, regretfully. I had myself pick it up numerous times before giving up. I really enjoyed Wintersong, so I was excited to read the Guardians of Dawn series. The idea behind it is excellent, but the way it is carried out is so disappointing. This book feels more like middle-grade than young adult. The lack of nuance in the character's portrayal makes them appear flat, and the dialogue seems awkward. I might give this author another chance in the future with another series.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin Press for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I really like the world that Jae-Jones created and the diverse cast of characters. I am definitely looking forward to the next book.

Overall it was an enjoyable read. The world building was intriguing, detailed, and complex. However characters tended to feel a bit one dimensional and not have enough depth to them to really enjoy them. At times the pacing of the plot felt a bit slow as well.

Witty and engaging.

I was given a free copy in exchange for a review.

Zhara was an excellent switch from my usual fantasy reads. I enjoyed the cast of characters, the easy to picture scenes, and the dense plot.

There were many well placed clues. I highly recommend this to fans of saviour origin stories.

I hear the book is described as Sailor Moon meets Cinder, and I'd say that is very accurate!

I LOVED S. Jae-Jones's WINTERSONG and SHADOWSONG, so I was delighted to get my hands on a copy of GUARDIANS OF DAWN: ZHARA. Unfortunately, the story fell a bit flat for me. Some cute moments, but struggled to connect with the story overall. Still important representation though!

The Guardians of Dawn: Zhara is one of those books which quickly picks you up. I loved the world building and magical feeling you immediately get. This is abook about duty, love, heart, and family. About all the things, and sacrifices, we will make for our family. It feels a bit on the younger YA side, but because of that felt nostalgic to me. Who hasn't, at some points, felt like they were limited in our potential to dream? And so when we have the opportunity to spread our wings, sometimes we will do everything we can to do so. One of my favorite elements has to be the humans versus deities in terms of power and cruelty. All the things we would do, or not, if we had more power, if our tomorrow was ensured.

Oh, I really enjoyed reading this book! I've enjoyed her other books before, and this book sounded just as good, the comps were so intriguing to see how they could come together! This world with the Guardians of the Dawn, and the magic that there is, with the rules, yeah, it was so interesting to watch!

Zhara was immediately someone who I cared to read about. Her situation was pretty rough, her stepmother was awful, and she has magic, which is banned. It's a hard life, and I was rooting for her to find something better!

When she got connected with the Guardian's of the Dawn, thanks to Han-who was cute and adorable and I loved him and their banter-yeah, it really opened things up. I had such a great time watching her make these connections with these people, learning more about magic and the history of the world.

That ending was epic! This is based on a Sailor Moon-esq team up, meaning we're going to be following another character in the next book. And I'm so excited to see how that's going to play out, given the ending of this book! It's going to be so fantastic to read!

Loved reading this book and I can't wait to continue on!

In the enchanting kingdom of Zanhei, 16-year-old Zhara grapples with the burden of concealing her magical abilities from the oppressive peacekeepers, known as the Kestrels. Her life is fraught with challenges, from serving her harsh stepmother to caring for her blind sister, all while fearing the relentless persecution of magicians. When Zhara's fears are realized and the Kestrels intensify their hunt for magic wielders, she finds herself thrust into a perilous journey after an encounter with a mysterious stranger. This encounter leads her to the Guardians of Dawn, a clandestine organization dedicated to safeguarding magicians. As Zhara delves deeper into the world of magic and resistance, she uncovers the true extent of her powers and the grave threats facing her and her newfound allies.

Throughout the narrative, rich with East Asian influences, Zhara and her companions undergo profound growth, discovering truths about themselves, their pasts, and their connections to one another. With its diverse cast and compelling characters, this tale weaves a spellbinding tapestry of adventure and self-discovery, imbued with magic and intrigue. This captivating fantasy will enchant readers with its compelling protagonist and leave them eagerly anticipating the next installment in this series.

DNF’d at 30% and I feel awful about it but I just couldn’t get into it. Thats not to say that it is bad, just not for me. If I do try to pick this back up I will re-review it!

2,5 ⭐
My 14yo self might love this book, but the first two chapters (teens reading smut, etc) might contradict the idea.
First, I think the market was overclaim. I was sold by the mention of sailor moon and turned out the story is below my expectations.

The premise is pretty simple. Zhara is a young woman with magical ability in a land where magic was unacknowledged. Her magic turned out to be crucial and greater than what she can imagine. Suprise, turned out there are magicians everywhere. And where there are magicians, there are demons too. Zhara and her friend tried to fight the abomination. She found love and family and group where she belonged to. A light whismical romanfantasy for teens.

It doesn't really suit me.
I found the characters cringey and lack of depth. Xu was the most interesting one. Everyone else's felt one dimensional and typical. Don't get me started with good looking giggles or whatever that is.

The story telling isn't gripping enough to invest with the characters and the plot.

It has such a great potential with the setting and magical ability and the beasts and the abomination. Sadly, for me, it wasn't well executed. The world building is the most exciting idea of this book.

What really turned me off is at the end of this book, the author chose to portray, I believe, one of the KPop idol group. The author didn't even change the group name. I don't know if that's wise to include real life idols in a commercial book. And... I'm not a fan. The exaggerating description of how handsome and awesome was not selling. And Im confuse how in the end they suddenly have a big role toward the plot and follow Zhara's next journey like what's for. It's understandable if u want to put them in a plot as performers, but to include them all the way to the next adventure sounds very childish imo. Nope nope

Im giving this book a second chance bcs I'm still going to read Ami. But if I see those 7 boys out of nowhere I might dnf early.

Thank you for the arc in exchange of honest review.

Jin Zhara is a magician in a land where they're illegal. She lives like a slave in her drunk and abusive stepmother's house to pay her for the kindness of not turning her in when they took her magician father away. All she cares about is making sure her little sister has the best life possible and reading the latest installment of her favorite romance novel. She's tricked herself into thinking that's all she wants until she meets a handsome stranger who opens her eyes to the fact that there are still magicians and danger around every corner.

I had a hard time deciding how I felt about this book. It's definitely engaging and has some great moments, but it always felt like something I've read before. Then there's the fact that Jin Zhara is written in such a way that she feels too much like a martyr willing to let people take advantage of her, especially her stepmother. I get why Jae-Jones made the choice to let her main character let someone step all over her, but it bothered me to see her so willingly submit to things she didn't need to out of some twisted sense of fealty to a woman who doesn't deserve it. It made me cheer when she finally stood up for herself and admitted what she wanted, which is great except for the fact that it happened after about 90% of the book.

Overall, I'm intrigued by the world this book introduces and like the characters enough that I'm looking forward to seeing their further adventures, I'm just not sure if I'm going to go out of my way to recommend it.

Happy thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the read!

<i>I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

I skimmed most of this book.

It was hard to get into. It's repetitive. The magic system had potential but never lived up to it. The history of this world lurks in the shadows because so much of it has been erased. That could've been so cool and instead it just functions as a convenient plot device.

The characters are flat and immature. They monologued a fair amount in order to move the story along. I couldn't connect with any of them and I didn't have to care because the plot was completely predictable. None of the "twists" were unexpected. The narrative is repetitive.

I wanted to like this book. I've liked previous works by Jae-Jones so I had hopes for this one. You can see the inspiration being drawn from a number of other stories but they never mesh into something unique and new. It's disjointed and lacks a spark.

I can't see myself recommending this one.

Loved this story - and the sweet romance between Han and Zhara. THe author slowly releases information on the characters and the magicl problem - in such a way that my interest was kept throughout. There is not a lot of action happening in the story - but I think that will change in th next book of the series. I enjoyed spending time with these characters and look forward to reading more of them.

This was a fun read. I liked the characters and I liked the world that the story took place in. I never read anything like it before. It’s worth the read.