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A review by hebifry
A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Where to start... this book had all the promise in the world. Historical fiction with a fantasy twist. Feminist female lead defying expectations. Dragons, for Christ's sake. And yet it's a 2.5 for me (rounded down because it made me so irritated).
At first I was rooting for Lady Trent. She's tried to study dragons her whole life, it's clearly a passion that she can't ignore. But once she actually gets the opportunity, she is so insufferable that it's painful to read about. The majority of the book is not even about dragons, it's her issues with the villagers, an unfamiliar land, not being included as a woman, etc. And that would be all well and good if there was actually any growth there at all. But she doesn't grow even slightly! In fact, her arrogance continues to put people in danger until the very last page.
I went into this expecting something like Phyrne Fisher and got colonialist, priveleged, whiny British woman instead. The way she talks about the land she is a guest in and the villagers is guillotine worthy. She is constantly disrespecting them, insulting their culture, even ridiculing their religious leader in some instances. And this is where I felt that the realism was the most egregious. I understand the tone of the book, but it's for a modern audience. Do we as readers really want to root for someone as awful as Lady Isabella Camherst? If she had tried even slightly to show respect to them, it wouldn't have been such a dealbreaker, but from her first day, she just hates everything about it. She can't find a single thing or person that she likes in the entire village. Her older voice writing the story insists that she is simply naive but I can't imagine it improves much and even if it does, it should improve IN the first book. Long series are not an excuse for having zero character growth in your first book.
And if her aristocratic arrogance wasn't enough she also has so much internal misogyny, it was hard to read. A serious case of Not Like Other Girls syndrome. There is not a single female character (besides herself of course) that is shown to have a brain. Her mother is strict and catty, her maid is unfeeling and rude, her friend is frivolous and stupid, etc. She just hates every woman she meets for truly no reason.
If there's one positive, I would say that naturalist lens in viewing dragons was very inventive and well-written. Those were my favorite aspects of the book. I would not recommend this book but would love to see this idea explored elswhere.
At first I was rooting for Lady Trent. She's tried to study dragons her whole life, it's clearly a passion that she can't ignore. But once she actually gets the opportunity, she is so insufferable that it's painful to read about. The majority of the book is not even about dragons, it's her issues with the villagers, an unfamiliar land, not being included as a woman, etc. And that would be all well and good if there was actually any growth there at all. But she doesn't grow even slightly! In fact, her arrogance continues to put people in danger until the very last page.
I went into this expecting something like Phyrne Fisher and got colonialist, priveleged, whiny British woman instead. The way she talks about the land she is a guest in and the villagers is guillotine worthy. She is constantly disrespecting them, insulting their culture, even ridiculing their religious leader in some instances. And this is where I felt that the realism was the most egregious. I understand the tone of the book, but it's for a modern audience. Do we as readers really want to root for someone as awful as Lady Isabella Camherst? If she had tried even slightly to show respect to them, it wouldn't have been such a dealbreaker, but from her first day, she just hates everything about it. She can't find a single thing or person that she likes in the entire village. Her older voice writing the story insists that she is simply naive but I can't imagine it improves much and even if it does, it should improve IN the first book. Long series are not an excuse for having zero character growth in your first book.
And if her aristocratic arrogance wasn't enough she also has so much internal misogyny, it was hard to read. A serious case of Not Like Other Girls syndrome. There is not a single female character (besides herself of course) that is shown to have a brain. Her mother is strict and catty, her maid is unfeeling and rude, her friend is frivolous and stupid, etc. She just hates every woman she meets for truly no reason.
If there's one positive, I would say that naturalist lens in viewing dragons was very inventive and well-written. Those were my favorite aspects of the book. I would not recommend this book but would love to see this idea explored elswhere.
Content Warnings
Minor: Xenophobia and Colonisation