It was a slow start - so first half of the book I was not sure. I enjoyed forbitten love story as well as teen girl saving the world. Monsters vs humans story was good too. Second half of the book was going much faster with action and I liked it more. I qish she started a bookwith that intensity. Overall I loved reading it and qould recomand it to anyone who like Selection or Red Queen

The narrator was amazing. I enjoyed the story as well. It was a new take on an old tale and I really liked it. The characters were written well and naturally my favorite character was one of the animals.

Guardians of Dawn: Zhara follows a young, subservient, girl named Zhara and her journey to find self love and freedom from her oppressive stepmother. Zhara is a magic wielder in a world where magic is not only for bidden, but also very dangerous to possess as magic welders are in danger of demonic possession.

This book includes:
- LGBT characters
- disability representation
- monsters
- a prince pretending not to be a prince
- secret magic
- betrayal
- secret societies
- evil stepmother
- arranged marriage

I enjoy the dynamic between Zhara and her friends however, sometimes the “inside jokes“ became tiresome and the story was predictable. However, the intended YA audience would probably enjoy the “banter.”
I recommend this book to fans of Percy Jackson.

I received this audiobook as an arc. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.

3.5 ⭐️

🪷 𝐆𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐚𝐰𝐧: 𝐙𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚
𝐁𝐲 𝐒. 𝐉𝐚𝐞-𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝟖.𝟏.𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑


Filled with magic and monsters, 𝐙𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚 lives in a realm where magic has been forbidden and magicians are considered evil. Zhara has magic, she just doesn’t understand it and she must hide it. That is until she joins forces with the Guardians of Dawn - those who will use magic to protect the realm against the true monsters. I hope the characters and the storyline develop as the series continues, but it has many exciting facets to expand upon.

🎧Thank you to @macmillan.audio for the complimentary audiobook.

I love S. Jae-Jones. Wintersong was a book that spoke to my heart.

But I couldn't help feeling this book was slow and hard to stay interested in. It had an interesting premise, it had really interesting inspirations, and it was clear the author put care into its creation.

I just wish I wanted to devour the book - I took small bites and kept having to reheat it.

I had a hard time with the timeline of this book. Sone things went on and on and then miraculously only a couple hours passed. Other things sped by and I had no clue how characters had gotten to where they were.
That being said, i still felt drawn into the story and will definitely read more by the author.

This was perfectly fine. The description calls it a mix of Sailor Moon and Cinder but I'm not familiar with either of them. However, I did get a slight Cinderella retelling, which I'm guessing is where the Cinder read-alike is coming from. Jones isn't breaking any molds with this story but I always enjoy Asian-inspired fantasies. The characters were enjoyable, yet predictable, but narrator Katharine Chin did an excellent job making them believable.

3.75 stars

First off, you tell me Sailor Moon meets Cinder and I’m first in line to read this! Definitely Cinderella tones. Much more so than Sailor Moon. I think we’ll begin to see more of a Sailor Moon influence by book 2? *crosses fingers*
Zhara lives under her step mother who hides her magic in exchange of her being subservient. As step mothers go, she’s pretty crummy but she’s even worse to her own blind daughter.
While trying to keep her powers at bay, Zhara comes in contact with a group of misfits who she joins while trying to continue her duties to her step mother.

I really enjoyed this and am looking forward to the second book. I think there is a lot of promise going forward into the series.

The narrator Katharine Chin did an amazing job bringing this story to life.

I was instantly drawn to this book because of its beautiful cover and synopsis!

This book has fantastic world building! The magic is very interesting. And the characters have great depth and development by the end.

I enjoyed the different representation from all sides. It really made it feel relatable.

The lore and the history are intriguing and sucked me in right away wanting to know more.

I reccomened this book to any fantasy readers!

Thank you to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for allowing me to read an early copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Zhara, named after the main character, is so cute! I loved the way the author intertwined comedy into the story and had a main character that also serves as comedic relief. After reading several darker/serious fantasy books, this was a very nice respite.
It has been compared to Sailor Moon and I could totally see that!
In this universe, magicians are burned alive, and we follow the story of Zhara, a magician, and His Grace Han. They are introduced very early in the story by a book swapping meet-cute. Han switching his book of magic with Zharas romance novel. The magicked people of the world are slowly turning into demons and they believe they figured out why.
The story did lose me for a smidge in the middle but it picks back up quickly. Especially when the love interest garners ground and you learn about several manipulative characters. Really good read and a palette cleanser.
I ESPECIALLY loved the cat, Sajah!! My favorite fictional cat so far actually!!
I love the magic system, the story line and I honestly can't wait for the next book!

Thank you NetGalley for giving me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Actual rating: 4.5 ⭐️

I absolutely adored this book. I uses to love Sailor Moon as a kid, and the whole magical girl vibes and pet cat that follows her sound and helps her out brought a bit of that nostalgia while also remaining unique to this work.

Zhara herself was silly and badass which you wouldn't think would work but it does? I do have to say, her and Han give off that Cinder X Kai feel, which at first felt a lot like Cinderella energy, but nope. It felt specifically like them. Again. Not a bad thing.

What I loved about this was definitely the lore behind everything. The demons, the magicians, the very magic system itself... I loved the idea that to read spells you need to understand the language of flowers.

I'm definitely looking forward to reading the second book. Can't wait to get my hands on the rest of this series!!

3.75 Star round up to 4

It has it flaws but was over all an enjoyable read especially since I was in reading slump when I started it and got me out of it. I'll probably pick up the next book.

This book was described as Cinder meets Sailor Moon, which is a pretty accurate description! This is a Easy Asian inspired Cinderella retelling, but with so much magic and mythology added to it, that I mostly forgot that it was supposed to be like Cinderella except for a few specific times in the book. I'd call it 'lightly' inspired, which makes for a refreshing new telling of the story that allows it to really stand on it's own! It is VERY YA though, and on the younger YA side, so if you are not a YA fan, this won't be for you. I'd put it between Junior and YA, probably suitable most for early to mid teens.

The magic of the story was my favorite part. I loved learning about the Guardians of Dawn and how the whole magic system worked. It was unique without being overwhelming, which makes sense as this is a YA book. I know this is meant to be a series about all four guardians, so it would be interesting to see how much more is learned about the world/history and magic systems.

I really liked how visually descriptive this was. It reminded me a bit of Six Crimson Cranes in that element, so I truly enjoyed that aspect. The writing style and plot development was easy to follow, but was a bit slow at times, which made me sometimes lose track on the audio and have to back up. This is also very much a YA book. I normally like YA books, but this one did seem to be on the little bit younger end, which had some things come across as cheesy to me (but I'm not the target demographic, so this makes sense).

With that, I didn't really love the love story in this, mostly because I think I'm older than the target audience. There was definitely some cute aspects to it, but the "good looking giggles" and how much "dirty" things went past the MMC did get to be slightly repetitive. I honestly enjoyed the characters interactions in the group and all as friends, so probably would have actually preferred the story more had there not been the love story element to it. Again, I am older than the target demographic though, so I could see younger readers really loving that part.

The characters in general were all great and pretty well rounded. I loved the FMC Zhara, and while she could be naive at times, I still enjoyed her character a lot and appreciated her relationship with her sister and the friendships she made. Han was such a dimwitted jock at times, but had a good heart and provided some comedic relief. My favorite character by far was Xu (Might be spelled differently. I had it on audio so am not sure of spelling!). They were FANTASTIC and I loved the constant flirting with everyone and everything. They really deserved their own book!

I love how gender was dealt with in this book. First off, there is a non-binary character (Xu) who is one of the central side characters. We also aren't given many other characters' gender until they state or acknowledge it. I really appreciated this take on it and found it an interesting way to present gender (it also is a great example of how easily you can use third person singular with no issue.) There is a forward to the story from the author that talks more about this that I highly suggest reading as I think it was helpful to understand beforehand and then see how it is used in the novel! Bravo on this aspect of the story!

I had this one on audio and thought the narrator did a great job! I appreciate having a narrator who can really get the accents and words pronounced correctly, especially as a reader who is not of this background to help me learn how all the names should be said. I thought they were a great fit for the book!

And for any BTS fans - you might have some find some characters you know in the story!

Overall I found the book to be well done, if a bit slow with the pacing at times. While I wasn't the target demographic, so had parts I didn't enjoy as much, I do think this would be a really enjoyable read for the younger YA crowd!

The blurb convinced me to read the book - Cinder meets Sailor Moon sounded awesome. Overall I did find the pacing to be a bit slow and the characters to be a little immature. The “good looking giggles” and the character not understanding the “dirty” things got a bit old. I liked the characters interactions with one another and I did feel like the world building was excellent. Overall I found the book to be okay but ultimately I don’t think I was the target audience. If you enjoy younger anime I think it would definitely be a book you’d like.

I really loved this. It's not as lushly atmospheric as Wintersong and has more worldbuilding substance. It actually really strongly reminds me of Elizabeth Lim's style of writing, so if you enjoyed Spin the Dawn or Six Crimson Cranes you'll be bound to like this.

I really liked the characters and found their motivations and actions pretty consistently believable. The tone struck a nice balance a dark tale of missing magicians and monsters and a cheerful feel-good love story with a found family thrown in.

One of my favorite things was the parallels Jae-Jones draws between magicians in this world and queer people in ours. There are queer characters in this world, and there isn't a big deal made about them. But what's really interesting is that magic is taboo and gets people shunned and prosecuted and even executed. The main character even "comes out" as a magician at one point to her sister (using those exact words) and it's a very 'coming out' sort of moment.

But my absolutely favorite thing was the inclusion of the Bangtan Brothers and how well Jae-Jones integrated BTS into her plot, even including some of their songs and well-known phrases. As an ARMY, it was a delightful surprise and I loved discovering all the easter eggs.

The story wrapped up well but left enough loose ends that I look forward to the next one.

The audiobook narrator did a great job and I really enjoyed her rendition of the characters and the story. She brought it to life and made it feel more real.

*Thanks to NetGalley, Wednesday Books, and Macmillan Audio for providing an early copy and early audio copy for review.

First off the cover is gorgeous!!! The narrator did a beautiful job bringing the story to life. I enjoyed their take on different characters and I was never confused on who was speaking. The story inside is just as beautiful. I loved the play/retelling of Cinderella but that not being the main plot points. There is so much more to this story than just another retelling. The magic system is beautifully done. I enjoyed the different cultural aspects of the book. I’m not well versed in Korean folklore to know how much came from it, but I didn’t need to be because the story flowed so well that you never felt lost in a new world.

Zhara is such an amazing character and I love when you get to watch them grow throughout the story. The cast around her is just as deep and colorful. I absolutely love the War Lords granddaughter. I hope she gets her own story line as this series progresses!

I alternated between the audio and digital versions of this book, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The unique magic system captivated me and I really liked the growth of Zhara's character. The romance was incredibly cute, and Han's character was particularly appealing. Overall, it was a good book, although it did feel a bit slow-paced for my taste. I would rate it 3.5 out of 5.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for this advance audio arc!

3.5/5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, Wednesday books and Macmillan audio for both the e-arc and alc.

I had slightly high expectations for this book due to it being compared to lunar chronicles which is one of my favorite series of all time. I would say it was a pretty solid book but not perfect. I felt like it did drag in some parts and was overall not fast paced which I do prefer for my books.

Zhara is a magician in a world where having magic is illegal and punished by death. Jin Zhara is stuck serving her stepmother's every whim no matter how cruel to help protect her blind stepsister all while keeping her magic under control. When magical monsters start to reappear she has to team up with the Guardians of Dawn to save her land.

I liked most of the characters in the book, especially Yuli who I hope to see more in another book in the series. I liked the magic system but I did wish for a little more into that. Overall it was decent. I just still have questions on how it all works.

For my audiobook arc I did really like the narrator and it kept me engaged the whole time.

I do recommend this book. It does read a bit younger for YA than I personally prefer but that’s not a bad thing just not for me.

I absolutely loved this book. It's very much a fairy tale wrapped in historical paper, dunked in asian culture. It's delicious. I loved the mc and she was both likable because she was clever and because she was naive, in the way you WANT a mc to be. She expects better from people than they give her and gives people credit who don't deserve it, refusing to condemn the person who says they love her in the face of utter cruelty.

Our heroine is a loving sister who is almost giving to the point where there is nothing left of her. She has very little self outside of her devotion to her sister, but throughout the story she blossoms and becomes accepting of herself, her strength (which at the beginning is completely untapped) and her weaknesses. She also develops a relationship with some disguised castle denizens and her community in a way she is lacking painfully at the beginning.

The narrator is lovely and does a stellar job, filling this role perfectly in my opinion and doing an excellent job of slipping from character to character. I would absolutely pick up another audiobook with her as my guide.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the advanced review copy of this book, the review itself is completely my own.

I’m not sure where the negative reviews for this are coming from (and everyone is entitled to their own opinion honestly) because I loved this book. I listened to it as an audiobook and it had the same hilarious themes as an anime would. It was funny and immature yes but serious at times as well. I couldn’t wait to get to the end to figure out if this was a standalone or if this would continue as a series. I was so happy to find out the ending is left open with potential for a sequel. Because I want to come back to Zhara and Han and most importantly Xu (because they were one of my favorite characters)

Zhara wasn’t a strong female protagonist for a lot of the book. She was weakened by her self image and she desire to be a “good girl”. This did get annoying but I understand that when you’re the victim of a narcissist you start to feel a certain way about yourself and life. It also took way too long for Zhara to figure things out and that was frustrating as a reader in general.

But overall I loved it. I’m glad that I am getting the illumicrate edition now that I’ve read the book and loved it. It’ll become a treasured part of my collection and I can’t wait for the next book.