First off, yes, this does share the same universe as the Six Crimson Cranes duology but you don’t need to have read that to follow this one. In fact you might be better off because you won’t be trying to remember if you have briefly met a character before.
Tru’s father was lost at sea five years ago, and her father’s absence combined with her mother’s gambling habit quickly thrust the family into poverty. Tru and her two sisters do what they can to help and keep the family together by both legal and illegal means. Tru is an art forger/con artist, painting art in style of dead artists so she and her broker can sell them off as recently found pieces.
Tru loved to make art as a child but she has avoided making her own since her father disappeared – when she lets herself lose focus or create her own pieces, she draws the future and this is something she very much wants to avoid. However, when her mom’s mounting gambling debts put them in a precarious position, Tru’s only way out is a deal with a dragon – he will protect her and her family, and in return, she’ll marry him and use her gift to help him overthrow an authoritarian and tyrannical king.
Overall, it was a nice, diverting YA fantasy novel. It was pretty straightforward- the turns and twists are all well-choreographed, and very much the norm within the genre but if you just want an entertaining novel with dragons and aren’t worried about a groundbreaking story, this fills the time well, it’s actually a stand alone novel (even with the shared universe), and Tru is an enjoyable narrator.
3.5 stars, rounded down.