Zhara by S. Jae- Jones

Pages: 416

Publisher: Wednesday Books 

Released: 1st of August 2023 

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 abomination, and blamed for the plague of monsters that razed the land twenty years before.

Jin Zhara already had enough to worry about—appease 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.

What I Have to Say 

This was the perfect blend of a magical girl anime and fantasy novel. You could really see how the author was inspired by the magical girl genre and used it as the base of this great new series. I loved how she even included animal companions for the girls to have though I was a bit sad that they didn't talk. 

The language used was a big part of this book, with the author trying to give a nod to the more formal language that would be used in the setting. I thought it worked really well. Especially the honorific avoidance of personal pronouns. It added to the various characters relationships and tension. I also have to mention Xu, the non-binary character who I loved. 

I did feel that occasionally plot points were forgotten about for a bit, especially with Han and Xu getting out from the palace. There was so much emphasis on them dressing in disguise and sneaking out and then it was just ignored for half the book. 

It was a really strong start to the series though and I can't wait to read on. 

3 stars 

My thanks go to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for providing me with this gifted copy for review.