Special thanks to Clarion Books for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I'm on the fence with my rating on this one because it wasn't the worst thing I've read and there were enjoyable moments but also, my disappointment knows no bounds, lol. I will keep it to 3-stars for now!

TL;DR: Dragonfruit was one of my most anticipated 2024 titles and despite having an intriguing premise, I'm sad to say that the execution fell short. While there were elements I enjoyed, everything in the story felt surface level—from the world-building, characters, and the plot, all of it felt undercooked. To me, what made this more disappointing was how passively it read. There was no tension because everything was miraculously solved in one page, only for the characters to find a solution to their main problem that came practically out of left field in the end. Overall, I'm sad that this didn't work for me.

This is a book that I have been beyond excited to read because not only is the cover illustration a stunner with its vibrant colours and easter egg details, but the premise also sounded unique and intriguing. Also, if it isn't obvious, it's about dragons and I always love a good tale about those fantastical creatures; plus, it's a bonus if those tales are from a non-Western perspective. Unfortunately, I found the execution of this story to be massively underwhelming and if I'm being very honest, quite bland. Throughout the read, I was continuously bothered by something that I couldn't put my finger on until a little over halfway through when I realised that there was simply no tension and therefore, no stakes in their story. No spoilers here but there was SO MUCH going on in Dragonfruit with smaller storylines including a cowardly cousin, this world's version of pirates, and a childhood friendship turned insta-romance mixed into one giant overarching plot. It is almost as if the author couldn't decide which elements to include, so she just threw them all in and tried to make it work. The result was a very scattered plot, a poorly developed world and one-dimensional characters that I found difficult to care about. The character development in particular is something I wish had been given more attention because there was a lot of potential there and it would've gone a long way to make this book great, even if the plot itself ended up being mid. We are also told a lot and never shown things happening which made any change or progression come across as not only very convenient but also too sudden.

That's not to say that there wasn't anything enjoyable. Seadragons make a regular appearance and I loved the tidbits we get about their wondrous, yet dangerous, nature. The author also once again proves that if people can make money off a thing, they will do their damnedest to make it happen, even if it means killing innocent creatures. Even though the culture and society weren't well developed, I did like that the author made Tamarind a matriarchal society because it's not a choice we see often in fantasy. The themes of family and forgiveness are a big part of the story, especially the former and although I mentioned having difficulty caring about the characters, I did enjoy some of the relationships. The relationship between Sam and his grandmother, the reigning queen, was tender and full of love. Sam was a good son/grandson and it was wonderful to see him wholeheartedly embrace a softer, more loving, and caring nature. I also enjoyed the friendship that developed between Hanalei and Rosamie and how they went from mild rivals (at least according to Rosamie) to good friends by the end. We love girls/women supporting each other and I'm glad that their relationship went in this direction. The element I loved most was the tattoo animals that appear on a person's body and that can come to life. This gave us the most adorable furry winged friend, Fetu and dare I say it, even an awesome spider friend, Viti. As a lover of tattoos, this part of the story was unexpected but fantastic and I wanted to know so much more about it!

Overall, although this wasn't the book that I had expected it to be, I'm glad to have finally read this author (as they've been on my radar for a while). While this might not have been the book for me, I think mid-teen young readers could enjoy this or readers who want to try a new genre and don't want heavy world-building or other elements to distract them.