Seraphina: A Spontaneous Read that Ended up Being Really Great

Friday afternoon, my son and I walked down to the library. Look, I'm not saying that a selling point of this house was its proximity to an adorable local library - but three minutes minutes away is a dream! We take the dog with us and then take turns going inside to get books. He sat on the porch with her while I scoped out the YA fantasy section, then it was his turn to pick a book on the history of Japan (he loves history).

This book was a completely spontaneous, random pluck from the shelf that I ended up *loving* It was high fantasy - fantasy in another world where magic and dragons exist, kings and queens rule, and the main character Seraphina is hiding a dangerous secret. I go through phases where I burn out on dragons - the OG fantasy creature - but I was in the mood to give it a try.

What did I love about this book? So much! I appreciated that the author didn't draw out Seraphina's secret, or keep it from the reader, for too long (that can get annoying when you've figured it out and you're just waiting for them to get to it).

The book takes place just as the tentative treaty between dragons and humans is about to expire. Some view is a success others - particularly religious zealots - hate "soulless dragons" and want the treaty abolished. In the middle of it all is Seraphina, a Music Mistress at the royal court who is also secretly half-dragon. There was plenty of action - riots in the streets, church services that could reveal her secret, spying in the city, run-ins with a handsome bastard prince...oh, and romance! I'm a sucker for a romantic subplot.

Anyone who's every felt that they had to hide a part of their identity, or pretend to be someone else, will appreciate this book and the main character's plight. Dragons appeared in human form and as dragons, and the author went with the "emotionless" trope. But each dragon character was so fully drawn they didn't seem cliched to me.

There was a sensitive handling of mental health issues - surprising to me - and plenty of representation. Not only were people of color amply shown on the page, with powers and skills of their own, they were not "lesser" in terms of society and rank (I'm looking at you, high fantasy book I read that had *one* character of color who was...a housekeeper). I didn't see any overt queer representation, but there was disability representation.

Sometimes, when you pick up a random book without having read any reviews, it can be hit or miss. This one was a total hit - I read it one night! - and I'm going to add the sequel to my library holds list.

How does everyone feel about dragons? Love 'em, hate 'em, or eh?

Dena

A note about partnerships - As many long-time followers know, I used to blog in general and about feminist-related and fashion-related stuff. My hands are kind of tied - or perhaps I should say my pen is stilled - in those areas for the time being.

But I do still love fashion, and am lucky enough to have a few partnerships. They help me pay for the extras that are tougher to afford as a single mom - like Red Sox tickets! I recently started working with Birdies, a woman-founded company - whose shoes I already owned and loved. If you shop through this link and use code DENA_M_LANDON10, you can take 10% off! And I get a little back :) Thanks, as always, for your support.