Dani ❤️ Perspective of a Writer > Recent Status Updates

Xander needs to embrace August more!

I really love this tight setup, small crew and quirky premise. The ghost station they find is really creepy and now they’re stuck! Can’t wait to see what happens next.

Very twisty, very fun! She knows teen readers tastes!

Woah! This is so fun and full of twists and turns! Plus lovely scenery.

The end is a touch exciting and a bit of a drag. Good in some ways and poor in others. Really for adult readers to my mind.

Not bad a start! I like the girl and her love of her family. She’s a little dim but can’t have a totally cold protagonist. The magic is interesting... not sure how helpful her magic is TBH.

Wow that was a long part 3 and much of it was boring telling of very dry events. I did love the eruption rescue. And her rewards were stellar! Her little (huge!) lie to the dragon most humorous since the outcome is so stupendous. I did really like the baron and his family. Galia was a bit of a brat though. And the 3 dragoneers visit was neat too.

Part 2 over. Haha the apprentice mail run was fun! I liked how the dragon couldn’t understand her and she just pressed on. Then the dramatics with Santeel’s parents coming. Her mom seemed to know what was going on but her dad was too snooty haha.

Ahhhh nooooooooo Lodger!!!!!! That made me tear up. And she’s his heir too! She gets to learn to fly dragonback because the Lodger requested it!

But you can tell an old man wrote this as she goes off about digestive issues in a letter. A 14 year old isn’t likely to do that. I wish this were truly written for a middle grade to teen reader.

Very strong world building though. If you want a bunch of dragon lore it’s here. Not very exciting. We’ve got a secret music box gift and her new job with the Lodger. Oh and the dragon scale thieves she gets kicked out for neglecting the Lodger. Very slice of life. Very adult even if the girl is 14. I wish more things happened and less telling.

Part 1 over. I’ve taken to skimming the extreme description setup in each scene. It’s long and tedious. I wouldn’t suggest this to middle grade readers because of it though it’s not unreadable just too adult of writing. A dual and a scandal for our girl. I liked the one and rolled my eyes over the other. Very adult stuff to me.

Thank goodness a much shorter chapter! We get a rather overwrought tour of the Serpentine but it’ll suffice. I’m eager to finally get to the start of the story! Eiiiii dragoon’s...

GAHHHH chapter 1 finally done! The setup is odd, makes the story feel it’s dragging more than it is. I like that her persistence paid off. Not a fan of the writing. Too much description and too many pages for something to happen. Still I like the girl, a lot! And the boy she met was nice!

Awww I love how real Bao felt, feeling extremely shy and anxious. And their romance actually didn’t feel rushed! I loved his aunt’s snarky mouth and Wei and Yen’s romance.

Awww the kids in the village were cute! They learn the truth about bloodpox and the black spice from a villager who escaped a labor camp.

7 - YAY! School is starting! I didn’t know if I would enjoy this but it’s so fun and I love how she looks villainess but actually is quite a sweet girl. Also I love how she’s changed her relationships with the love targets and rivals.

6 - seems her brother realizes about her needing to seduce people around her...?! And what was up with Sophia’s parents?! Why did her brother ask if they truly were fortunate? Odd, but I love how Sophia and her fangirl over books!

5 - She meets a new girl Sophia with white hair and ruby red eyes who likes the same romance novels she does! It’s cute how she insists they be friends and learns she’s a rival for her brother ‘s affection who is another target haha.

I love how awkward Bao is and how the curse is changing. Also the romance between Yen and Wei is super sweet.

Uh wow! The witch likes to jump to conclusions! This was fun though... her curse was oddly specific and the girl really gun ho to assuage her guilt. Though her desire to help is genuine. Now they get to meet the Empress!

I enjoyed section 3 of the book! The death of someone important really livened things up. I like the use of the fae and khimaer but the plot was mostly character driven and quite boring at times. I also felt Eva was a bit of a whiner.

6 - Glen was so fierce! Funny N met him getting lost and being mistaken for a contestant. Haha she forfeited cause she head butted him which is against the rules. But she’s so genuine she congratulated him when he won the tournament. I just love her spirit and can’t wait to read more!

5 - the ghosts in the hotel was so fun! I love the little ways N’s magic works for her! Like with the manager’s glasses... and I love the way the ghosts were trying to make her have fun. 😂 Simon was stuptified by what she did!

4 - N finds a sad little fairy called a Clough. She heals him with herbal tea and they romp after mushrooms. Simon is looking for a star mushroom that is very rare. At night N sees big cloughs in the sky but little Clouey can’t keep up! So she yells Wait and amplified it with her magic. She always uses it for friendship. It sends her back a Sshroom!

3 - this chapter with her new demon friend Rosetta is my favorite so far! They play together and R teaches her a light spell! In practicing R gets better at her magic! Her parents are happy and buy from Simon. Love friendship chapters.

2 - awww she’s so adorable! She makes a bet with Simon that not all demons are stereotypical!! Haha love this! The first two she noticed... but the last one was a race that ran around apologizing for living. She was nice to one and they were brave enough to that her! Personally I think it’s just her, cause even Simon goes against his nature.

I teamed up at the end. I didn’t like Julia as a person but she was certainly a struggling teen dealing with sibling death, depression and anxiety, being privileged compared to her parents, and maturing, seeing the world with more grown up eyes. I appreciated that going to Mexico gave her the opportunity to give her parents a break! They didn’t realize their secrets hurt her so.

Her mother gets her way and Julia is sent to her grandma’s in Mexico. She seems to get a tiny reality check about her parents and feels less overwrought. We learn a lot about her Mexican heritage which I love!

Okay mental health confirmed. Depressed as I thought too. Suicide isn’t something I want to read about TBH. I do appreciate the positive therapist example. I actually don’t think her parents are out of control. They definitely aren’t ones to be called liberal or enablers but they aren’t so bad you can’t survive until college. I liked Conner but he wasn’t healthy for her either.

There she finally brought up mental health... yeah your a depressive Julia! She resists the traditions of her heritage so hard. It’s painful to read. At least she has finally been more proactive about asking about her sister. It seems obvious to me her secret life based on what Julia has learned but now we’re waiting for her to confirm it. It’s a little boring.