This prequel to Lim’s bestselling Six Crimson Cranes duology tells the story of Channi, who is offered up by her father in sacrifice to the Demon Witch when she is two years old to save her mother, on her deathbed after birthing a second daughter.

But it is not Channi that the Demon wants; it is Vanna, newly born and somehow in possession of half of a dragon pearl, which gives her otherworldly, radiant beauty, and a magical ability to charm everyone in her orbit. The Demon, who possesses the other half of the broken pearl and desires the power of both together, curses Channi with the face of a serpent. The only way to break the curse, she tells Channi, is to sacrifice Vanna. She will return on Vanna’s 17^th birthday to collect her prize.

Chianni is determined to save her beloved sister, and that sets the course of her life. When the time comes, Chianni must use every part of her physical and mental power to rescue Vanna from the Demon, setting off a chain of intrigue, battles, alliances formed and destroyed, and a (very light) potential for romance. But behind everything she does lurks the demon’s cursed promise: one sister must fall for the other to rise.

Fans of the Six Crimson Cranes duology will love this well written, fast paced and original backstory, set in the same mythological Asian world of Lor’yan. Channi figures in that duology as the much reviled, but ultimately heroic stepmother, and other significant characters in this tale will be familiar as well. Readers will be glad to have this satisfying tale to round out the series. A must-have for any library with the duology already on the shelf; but also a worthwhile purchase for anyone to boost their fantasy collection. It is a fine stand-alone, or could be read before the previously published books; either way it will certainly gain Lim more fans.

Reviewed by Jenny Martinez Nocito, Maine State Library, Augusta