-
Access Our
Best Book Club
Books of 2025!
In this shimmering Chinese-inspired fantasy, debut author Joan He introduces a determined and vulnerable young heroine struggling to do right in a world brimming with deception.
Tyrants cut out hearts. Rulers sacrifice their own. Princess Hesina of Yan has always been eager to shirk the responsibilities of the crown, but when her beloved father is murdered, she's thrust into power, suddenly the queen of an unstable kingdom. Determined to find her father's killer, Hesina does something desperate: she enlists the aid of a soothsayer—a treasonous act, punishable by death… because in Yan, magic was outlawed centuries ago.
Using the information illicitly provided by the sooth, and uncertain if she can trust even her family, Hesina turns to Akira—a brilliant investigator who's also a convicted criminal with secrets of his own. With the future of her kingdom at stake, can Hesina find justice for her father? Or will the cost be too high?
"With complex world-building and character development, readers tired of cookie-cutter stories will find some surprise twists here." - Kirkus Reviews
"Descendant of the Crane is my favorite kind of story: lyrical, romantic, politically complex, but most of all, driven by an iron-willed heroine who will do what must be done—no matter the cost." - Kristen Ciccarelli, internationally bestselling author of The Last Namsara
"A beautiful debut with thrilling politics and strokes of magic, set in a lush world that feels real and weighted with its own complex history." - Lori M. Lee, author of the "Gates of Thread and Stone" series and contributor to A Thousand Beginnings and Endings
"Joan He has penned a lovely and intriguing tale of secrets, family, and betrayal. You'll be drawn in by this marvelously vivid world… and keep turning the pages for the plot twists!" - Traci Chee, New York Times bestselling author of The Reader
"Deep world-building, magical family secrets, and intricate palace politics—Descendant of the Crane soars from page one. Its twists and treacheries kept me guessing until the very end." - Rachel Hartman, New York Times bestselling author of Seraphina
"Hesina is a heroine for the ages––brilliant, determined, and fierce. It is impossible not to root for her." - Laura Sebastian, New York Times bestselling author of Ash Princess
This information about Descendant of the Crane was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Joan He was born and raised in Philadelphia but still, on occasion, loses her way. At a young age, she received classical instruction in oil painting before discovering that stories were her favorite kind of art. She studied psychology and Chinese history at the University of Pennsylvania, and now splits her time between Philly and Chicago. She is the New York Times-bestselling author of The Ones We're Meant to Find and Descendant of the Crane, her young adult debut novel.
Name Pronunciation
Joan He: hee
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
.gif)