Elizabeth Lim

Shiori is a princess with six brothers. She has made friends with a dragon and has some magic which is illegal where she lives. Her stepmother seems to have magic too and disguised Shiori and turns the brothers into cranes.
As she tries to survive away from home, she tries to figure out what is happening, who to trust, and how to undo the curse that is harming her family. She needs to speak her stepmother's true name. However, if she talks at all a brother or hers will die with any words. Epic story with several parts as each challenge is faced and overcome.… (meer)

Oh gosh, watching the 2020 Disney remake is what finally took this off my TBR pile and I'll tell y'all, save yourselves the $30 and read this instead. It's an #ownvoices read that feels authentic to the characters and themes of the original 1998 film, but with added Chinese mythology.

Reflection starts off with the Huns bearing down on the troops in the Tung-Shao Pass, but instead of Mulan getting injured, Shang takes the hit. He's dying, but China needs him so Mulan and the Li family guardian go to Diyu, the Chinese underworld to find his spirit and bring him back. I really liked a point where Mulan had to find Fa ancestors and whoops that's definitely a way to call into question Ping's identity.

Similarities to the 2020 remake:
-a lady enchanter
-Mulan considering who her "true" self is

Things Reflection does better:
-lady enchanter is a worthwhile opponent who goes on to do whatever she wants to do
-soldier camaraderie on screen, can differentiate characters
-actual Chinese mythology and values, as written by an author of Chinese descent
-references to the source material that don't feel shoehorned.
-Mulan ties her hair back when she needs to
-Mulan's strength is her cleverness, not magical qi.

I don't know if I would've rated this as high had I read it before the movie, but I still liked it plenty!… (meer)