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cskye's review
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Listen, ok. Listen. Have you ever watched Indiana Jones and thought “gee, for an archaeologist he sure doesn’t care much about the context of the artifacts he discovers?” Have you ever watched an adventure movie and scoffed as the heroes flawlessly translate ancient texts into completely sensible modern poetry? Do you have wish-fulfillment fantasies about going back and transcribing the Cotton Vitellius manuscripts before the fire? Do you fucking hate every memory of the Victorian antiques trade? Do you think period novels would be better with dragons?
Then have I got the book for you!
I am not exaggerating in the slightest when I say that this book had me on the edge of my seat with my tension and anticipation, and also that the main plot is the characters’ efforts to preserve and translate an ancient epic. Marie Brennan studied folklore and anthropology, and while her interest in these things have been clear in recent works, they shine through in this one. She has put tremendous care into every aspect of the ancient society she portrays - from odd-seeming poetic devices to inscrutable idioms to common scribal errors in the language, I can genuinely only compare her work to Tolkien’s, in detail if not in scale. The process of preservation and translation is given the same care, as the characters are frustrated by damaged tablets, unfamiliar metaphors, and hapax legomena.
Also it’s a book about the explosive political tensions that mount as recently-encountered dragon people begin establishing their first embassy with pseudo-Victorian England.
The act of translation that occupies the main force of the novel matters, as human and dragon work together to discover the history of their species, in metaphor if not in fact, and it is genuinely, really thrilling. Also there’s some explosions and a few mild cases of breaking and entering.
But mostly it’s about translation.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Fire/Fire injury, and Hate crime
Minor: Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Murder, Misogyny, Police brutality, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Blood, Chronic illness, Classism, Death, and Toxic relationship
qtcarolyn's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury and Xenophobia
Minor: Misogyny, Murder, Death of parent, Hate crime, Death, and Violence
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