Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

To Shape a Dragon's Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose

38 reviews

rberdan's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful informative slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

This one took me a while to read, but I did ultimately love it and I’m looking forward to the next. 

I must agree with the Mary Sue critique some of the other reviewers had, but I don’t think it bothered me as much because I did also feel that there was nuance to this. In particular, keeping in mind that this feels YA/Middle Grade, the way things came easily to Anequs were also surfacing alongside deeply colonial worldviews and anti-IIndigenous racism, so what came through at the same time was a means of surfacing Indigenous ways of knowing as equally valuable and valid relative to “Anglish” ways. I chose to appreciate that over being irked by Anequs being painted as so clever and right without consequence. 

I absolutely adored Sander and appreciated how other side characters were brought to life. I think there’s even more room for some of them to grow in future books and I’m interested to see where that goes. 

I’m a white settler, so I can’t speak to this from lived experience, but the way racism and colonialism played out in the book were very true to what I see in community. As such, some parts were very heavy and I needed some breaks for the sake of my spirit. 

The dragons were delightful and I’m excited to see more of them. 

Overall, this is a great read with a lot going on at a societal level. It’s a lot to follow, but I was never really bored. I’m definitely looking forward to the next. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Genocide, Racism, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Gun violence, Hate crime, Slavery, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, and Classism

Minor: Injury/Injury detail

cozyscones's review

adventurous tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Racism, and Colonisation

Moderate: Genocide, Homophobia, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Death of parent, and War

nofrigatelikeabook's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I absolutely loved this! Dragons and steampunk! Part school story blended with the best kind of alternate history-the kind that holds a mirror up to our own. 
Wonderful characters!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Genocide, Racism, and War

Minor: Hate crime, Homophobia, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Murder, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail

jainabee's review

adventurous challenging emotional inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

After reading the hardcopy once and listening to the audiobook twice, my appreciation for the rich complexities and top notch storytelling is even stronger. Magnificent. Listening to the wonderful character voices and accents performed by Charley Flyte brought out the intercultural class differences and complex social nuances more distinctly. 

So much happens so quickly in this first installment of the series that I missed a few important details which deepen the characters—such as the look that Frau Kuiper gives Anaqus right before her skiltakraft final. The look that Anequs cannot interpret in the moment. I think I know what it means now, but it took three reads! The complicated social and political layers of this story are profound—and quite relevant to contemporary issues.

Another aspect that took me this long to get (I am white from a colonizer heritage and this tale is told from an Indigenous POV—there’s probably a LOT MORE that I don’t get) is the stylized language throughout the book. Though most of the places and objects in the book are all places and objects that would be familiar to most contemporary readers, they all have abstracted names; English is Anglish, a penny is a pennik, a photographer is a lichtbildmacher, radium is strahlendstone, etc… why all of this confusing terminology??? Other than sustaining the tone of the alternate reality, it also puts a reader who has been educated in a typical American school in the same confusing position as the Indigenous protagonist. The words and customs that the colonizers all take for granted are almost as baffling to the reader as they are to Anequs. If the author had simply used words any typical American would understand, the reader would not be able to empathize with the confusion and frustrations and other obstacles that Anequs must move through.

The final layer I that understood more this time I wrapped in spoiler alerts in the content warning section.

I can barely wait for the next installment!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Forced institutionalization, Colonisation, War, and Classism

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Genocide, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Slavery, Religious bigotry, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Suicide, Medical content, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Finally, the third time through this story brought into sharp relief the themes of abduction and imprisonment that the characters of color all experience. Theod narrowly escaped indentured servitude, after being accused and tried in court for “stealing" a dragon, by becoming a legal ward of Frau Kuiper, Liberty is indentured to Frau Brinkerhoff and explains the unspoken complexities of paying her way out, and Anequs may appear to be making a choice, however she comes to realize that her entire village and island could be eradicated if she fails to assimilate. Locked doors, vehicles with smoked windows, and even her corset all remind her of how she cannot escape her predicament. Even Frau Kuiper—who seems to have some sympathy for the protagonist—threatens to let the enemies of Anequs destroy her dragon and raze her village if she fails the expectations of the “darling of the Jarl."

ethuiliel's review against another edition

challenging inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime and Colonisation

Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Biphobia, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Mental illness, Miscarriage, Slavery, Suicide, Lesbophobia, Abandonment, and Pandemic/Epidemic

kimapede's review

adventurous informative inspiring tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Biphobia, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Lesbophobia, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Homophobia, Suicide, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail

wishbea's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Racism, and Sexism

Moderate: Genocide, Gun violence, Slavery, Violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Homophobia and Suicide

theirgracegrace's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Flying in with a masterpiece, Moniquill Blackgoose sets up a world with this first instalment of the Nampeshiweisit series. The story centres around Anequs, a young Indigenous woman who discovers a dragon egg on an island near her home. When it hatches, the dragon bonds to her, and the Anglish settlers of her land order that she join a local dragoneering academy.

My favourite part of this book was the worldbuilding! Blackgoose builds a world like our own, but without a Roman Empire or Christianity, the Europeans have a distinctly Norse flair that matches well with the themes of resistance against colonialism. Each character has distinctive features, mannerisms and traits that make them real and powerful parts of the narrative.

Eagerly awaiting the next book of this series, particularly in light of the final handful of chapters!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Medical content and War

Minor: Cursing, Infidelity, Vomit, and Cannibalism

dragonstuck's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism and Racism

Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, and Classism

Minor: Biphobia, Genocide, Gun violence, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Slavery, Transphobia, Lesbophobia, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

star_charter152's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Racism, Sexism, Xenophobia, Lesbophobia, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Bullying, Genocide, Hate crime, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Mass/school shootings, and War

Minor: Animal death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Slavery, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail