Dragons are the embodiment of fantasy.
Mythical creatures flourish in today’s book world, but dragons seem to be the pinnacle of contemporary fantasy, embodying with their wings, scales and breath of fire, all of our apprehension and fascination.
In Vancouver writer Rachel Hartman’s debut young adult novel, we meet shape-shifting dragons that can almost pass for humans. The interesting thing is that even though to the untrained eye they could pass for human, they have no idea how to socially blend in. You see, dragons in the kingdom of Goredd do not experience emotion and therefore have distrust of humans and vice versa. Both races live side-by-side, but underneath, tensions and previous resentment bubble to the surface.
Enter our hesitant hero, Seraphina, a young assistant to the court composer who is hiding a life-changing, controversial secret. Seraphina is embroiled in a murder investigation that threatens the forty-year-old peace between humans and dragons. Seraphina’s struggle to protect her secret becomes increasingly complicated…while its unearthing could mean her very life.
While not a newbie when it comes to young adult fiction, this is my first foray into the fantasy genre. With Seraphina, I am hooked! Readers who respond to a phrase such as “a saarantas might discern that it was quigutl-made” will devour all 400-plus pages just as I did. Dragon fanciers who wonder how the creatures survive the heat from their own fire would be delighted by this answer from a character who is an expert on dracomachia (the art of fighting dragons).
Fantasy novels are rife with made-up language and in this book it is developed in a very Tolkienesque way. For example, Ard is Mootya (dragonese) for “order, correctness” but also denotes a battalion of dragons, which, when thought through, helps the reader further understand the inner workings of the world that Hartman has imagined.
My recommendation would be to read the first three or four chapters and then review the glossary of terms and characters. If you are an old hand with this genre you might not need to but I found this very enlightening.
This book explores themes of love, compassion, spirituality, racism, hatred and politics in a fascinating, uncomplicated manner. There is plenty of action, as characters evade thugs, fight dragons and give chase through the medieval world of knights.
I would recommend this book to young and not so young adults.
After reading it I am definitely saving my pennies to buy the next in the series, Shadow Scale.
