Reviews

Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton

dawnwich's review against another edition

4.0

This is not a major work like Among Others, but it is charming. When I told my husband it was a regency romance about dragons, he compared it to Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and asked if it was a parody. It's not like that at all, it's just a good regency romance where the characters are dragons. Most regencies would be vastly improved if more of the characters breathed fire and ate each other.

lilybellreader's review against another edition

dark funny reflective slow-paced

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

3.75

tamarant4's review against another edition

adventurous emotional lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.75

You can make your way by your own wits and claws, while I must always be dependent upon some male to protect me. Wits I may have, but claws I am without, and while hands are useful for writing and fine work they are no use in a battle. [p. 63]

Patriarch Bon Agornin dies, and his children gather at the deathbed to distribute his wealth amongst themselves. Penn the cleric hears his father's confession; eldest sister Berend and her husband Daverak take more than their share; Avan, enraged by Berend and Daverak's behaviour, mounts a legal case against them; Selendra is compromised by another cleric, Frelt; and Haner is dispatched to live with Berend and Daverak, away from her beloved Selendra and the only home she's ever known.

So far, so Victorian. Walton acknowledges a debt to Trollope, and adds that 'this novel is the result of wondering what a world would be like…if the axioms of the sentimental Victorian novel were inescapable laws of biology'. Bon Agornin and his children are dragons; the wealth to which Berend and Daverak help themselves is the flesh of his body (dragons only grow when they devour another dragon); and Selendra's 'compromise' happens when Frelt gets close enough to trigger a full-body blush, traditionally linked to marriage.

This is an entertaining comedy of manners, with doomed romances, buried treasure, disapproving mothers and loyal servants: and the darker sides of those elements, sexism and class privilege, oppression, servitude, snobbery, and (unlike Trollope) cannibalism. Set against this, there's a strong thread of radical thought, as Selendra in particular begins to question why the servant class must have their wings bound and be denied dragon-flesh. Selendra is probably my favourite character, though Sebeth (Avan's lover, lower-class and 'no maiden... head to toe an even eggshell pink') has a poignant and fascinating history, and a very satisfactory resolution.

Yes, there are humans (the loathed Yarge) but they are mentioned only in passing, apart from one scene at the end of the novel with an Ambassador. The focus remains on the dragons, with their railways and their hats, their legal and physical conflicts, and -- as the last line of the novel tells us -- 'the comfort of gentle hypocrisy'. A delightful pastiche with some thoughtful world-building.

I have owned this novel for over a decade: I read it as part of my 'Down in the Cellar' self-challenge, which riffs on the metaphor of to-be-read pile as wine-cellar rather than to-do list. I enjoyed it a great deal, and can't say whether I regret having ignored it for so long, or whether I'm glad to have read it at a time when it granted me some much-needed uplift.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism

Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual harassment

davechua's review against another edition

4.0

A very original fantasy where Dragons reside in a world of bizarre Victorian values; still hard to picture some scenes where they're supposed to wear bonnets and hats. Still, a short, worthwhile read.

sayyestotess's review against another edition

dark funny lighthearted medium-paced

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

5.0

Well this book certainly is what it is advertised to be: a Victorian novel where the characters happen to be cannibalistic dragons. Word of warning: if you are thinking of reading this book because you like to hear about dragons doing dragon things; do not read this book! You will be deeply disappointed with all the talk of legal cases and little ceremonial hats. However, if you are tired of rereading Jane Austin, give this book a shot. 

Consider it a sort of parody of a Victorian novel, one that takes It’s comic premise very seriously. Honestly I’m annoyed that I liked Tooth and Claw as much as I did. Now I have to explain to people why a book about anthropomorphic dragons got a 5 star rating from me. But what can I say? It’s good. 

silvernfire's review against another edition

adventurous emotional fast-paced

4.5

silvernfire's review against another edition

adventurous emotional fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

celiapowell's review against another edition

4.0

This is basically Jane Austen-with-dragons - and as unlikely and faintly ridiculous as that premise sounds, I really liked it. The cannibalism aspect of the dragon society makes the idea being a penniless relation rather more alarming. A few scenes were a bit too reminiscent of Price and Prejudice for me, but overall this was a fantastic story, engaging and witty.

gretchenfletch's review against another edition

adventurous challenging slow-paced

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

2.75

n_caleary's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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? Yes

4.75