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popthebutterfly 's review for:
Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor
by Xiran Jay Zhao
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc and physical copy from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor
Author: Xiran Jay Zhao
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Muslim Chinese MC and side character, Chinese side characters
Recommended For...: middle grade readers, fantasy, Chinese, Chinese history and mythology
Publication Date: May 10, 2022
Genre: MC Fantasy
Age Relevance: 12+ (racism, micro aggressions, possession, violence, death, scary moments)
Explanation of Above: There is some racism and micro aggressions shown throughout the book toward the MC. Possession by ancient ancestor is shown. There is some small violence and death in the book. There are also some scary moments that might scare some younger readers.
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Pages: 340
Synopsis: A middle grade contemporary fantasy that follows a young boy as he journeys across China to seal the underworld shut and save the mortal realm.
Zachary Ying never had many opportunities to learn about his Chinese heritage. His single mom was busy enough making sure they got by, and his schools never taught anything except Western history and myths. So Zack is woefully unprepared when he discovers he was born to host the spirit of the First Emperor of China for a vital mission: sealing the leaking portal to the Chinese underworld before the upcoming Ghost Month blows it wide open.
The mission takes an immediate wrong turn when the First Emperor botches his attempt to possess Zack’s body and binds to Zack’s AR gaming headset instead, leading to a battle where Zack’s mom’s soul gets taken by demons. Now, with one of history’s most infamous tyrants yapping in his headset, Zack must journey across China to heist magical artifacts and defeat figures from history and myth, all while learning to wield the emperor’s incredible water dragon powers.
And if Zack can’t finish the mission in time, the spirits of the underworld will flood into the mortal realm, and he could lose his mom forever
Review: For the most part this was a great book! I loved the storyline, it was unique and had a very interesting premise. I thought that the magic system and how the information was overlaid to Zachary was also interesting and well done. It’s a fun read that I think most kids would highly enjoy and one that I think that could use to help learn about the Chinese Emperors. The characters are also well developed and the world building was as well.
However, I had issue connecting to the book. I thought the book was a bit too fast paced and it took me a bit to get into it because of that pacing.
Verdict: It was great! Highly recommend!
Book: Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor
Author: Xiran Jay Zhao
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Muslim Chinese MC and side character, Chinese side characters
Recommended For...: middle grade readers, fantasy, Chinese, Chinese history and mythology
Publication Date: May 10, 2022
Genre: MC Fantasy
Age Relevance: 12+ (racism, micro aggressions, possession, violence, death, scary moments)
Explanation of Above: There is some racism and micro aggressions shown throughout the book toward the MC. Possession by ancient ancestor is shown. There is some small violence and death in the book. There are also some scary moments that might scare some younger readers.
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Pages: 340
Synopsis: A middle grade contemporary fantasy that follows a young boy as he journeys across China to seal the underworld shut and save the mortal realm.
Zachary Ying never had many opportunities to learn about his Chinese heritage. His single mom was busy enough making sure they got by, and his schools never taught anything except Western history and myths. So Zack is woefully unprepared when he discovers he was born to host the spirit of the First Emperor of China for a vital mission: sealing the leaking portal to the Chinese underworld before the upcoming Ghost Month blows it wide open.
The mission takes an immediate wrong turn when the First Emperor botches his attempt to possess Zack’s body and binds to Zack’s AR gaming headset instead, leading to a battle where Zack’s mom’s soul gets taken by demons. Now, with one of history’s most infamous tyrants yapping in his headset, Zack must journey across China to heist magical artifacts and defeat figures from history and myth, all while learning to wield the emperor’s incredible water dragon powers.
And if Zack can’t finish the mission in time, the spirits of the underworld will flood into the mortal realm, and he could lose his mom forever
Review: For the most part this was a great book! I loved the storyline, it was unique and had a very interesting premise. I thought that the magic system and how the information was overlaid to Zachary was also interesting and well done. It’s a fun read that I think most kids would highly enjoy and one that I think that could use to help learn about the Chinese Emperors. The characters are also well developed and the world building was as well.
However, I had issue connecting to the book. I thought the book was a bit too fast paced and it took me a bit to get into it because of that pacing.
Verdict: It was great! Highly recommend!