by: Rachel Hartman
In Goredd, the peace between humans and dragons is delicate at best. A treaty signed 4 decades ago has crumbled to be merely a formality as the distrust and unease grows. When the Prince is discovered murdered and beheaded, the suspicion immediately falls to the dragons. Seraphina, a half dragon and apprentice to the court musician, is just trying to fly under the radar. She keeps her dragon identity a secret. But she is soon discovered to have an amazing musical talent. As she begins to investigate the Prince's murder she discovers chilling details about her family and has to work even harder to protect her very dangerous secret.
Seraphina wins major points for creativity. Not only in the species of dragons and their background story, but also in the very nature of dragons themselves. I was also captivated by Seraphina's methods of dealing with her "mind pearls" or memories passed on to her by her mother. These little snippets of memory initially plague Seraphina and cause her to black out at the most inopportune moments.
In Seraphina's world, being a half-dragon is impossible. Who knows what could happen to her if she were to be discovered. Her father insists that she keeps a low profile and under no circumstances displays her musical talent publicly. The identity of her mother is unknown to the humans, and the identity of her father is unknown to the dragons. Seraphina, beyond having to live a lie, is incredibly lonely, with only the companionship of her tutor who knows her true identity. As a friendship develops between herself and Prince Lucian Kiggs, the discomfort of her lies grows.
With the amazing worldbuilding I found myself surprised that I just could not fully engage in the story. It's difficult to pinpoint exactly why I didn't love it, since all the elements were there. It could be a case of bad timing, or just the sheer length of the book at over 460 pages. I also found several of the supporting characters, particularly members of the court, difficult to keep track of.
Readers who have a real love of high fantasy will probably love this one. However, for those who are selective in high fantasy, this may not be a good fit.
I enjoyed reading your thoughts on this book. I've been mulling this one over for a while.....I am not 100% sure that I will read it or not. I want to and I really enjoy high fantasy books but I'm worried that this one won't live up to the hype....I can't pin point why but I just am. However the more reviews I read the more interested I am in reading it. Thanks for posting this great review!! Cheers!
ReplyDeleteIt is so imaginative and cool. I'm just not sure why I couldn't commit to loving it!
DeleteI'm going to be reading this one soon and I'm so glad that you really, really enjoyed this one!
ReplyDelete~Kailia @ Reading the Best
Sounds so good! I want to learn more about the world of Dragons Rachel Hartman created. Great review!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your review. Im going to add it to my TBR and give it a try. :)
ReplyDeleteJenea @ Books Live Forever
I have a copy of this one, and it's definitely close to the top of the pile. The interesting cover art alone was enough to interest me! Good to know that the plot is just as good!
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I see that you're currently reading Ilsa Bick's "Draw the Dark." I hope you enjoy it. That was the first book of hers that I read, and it really got me hooked on her writing!
I read "Ashes" earlier this year and LOVED it. I'm really enjoying "Draw the Dark" so far.
DeleteIt's refreshing to read a point of view that is not all rave about this book (even though you liked it)! I got it this week and I'm looking forward to reading it. As a fan of high fantasy I have big hopes for this one, I have to say.
ReplyDeleteI know others have just adored this book. It wasn't quite compelling enough for me to just love it. Which was a major disappointment. I had high hopes.
DeleteWhile 3 1/2 stars isn't awful, I had much higher hopes for this one. It is a shame that is was missing that special something to engage you. I will pass on this for awhile longer. Thank you for your review.
ReplyDeleteI did too. It was disappointing. I know that others have raved about it!
DeleteI love this series, thanks for an awesome review!
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