Seraphina

-------------THE AUDITION-------------
4* Great introduction to four of the main characters. Story is in the paperback edition of Seraphina

-------------SERAPHINA-------------
4* Audiobook listeners be warned There is a Cast of Characters and a Glossary in the physical book. I was struggling a bit with the narrators voice and the non-traditional names so I checked a physical book out from the library. The lists are great. I'm going to start the audiobook over. I had gotten to disc 5 but now that I have a better grasp of the characters, the musical instruments, the new terms and the location I want to restart the story. // I am so happy I started over. Truly a beautifully written story.
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Has two narrators listed but I only heard one which is announced as Mandy Williams.
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4.5 stars
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Some things I had issues with or open questions about. Perhaps I will find the answers when I reread someday:

-- I didn't feel the benefit of the treaty to the dragons. (on re-read I understood better. During war they would of course defeat humans but at too great at a loss to them, too many deaths. And, they find humans interesting)
-- I don't understand why there is scholar exemptions and why Olma would be allowed to have one knowing his family history. (on re-read I understood what a scholar exemption is better. It's so they can observe human behavior without revealing they are dragons. It still seems unlikely that Olma would of been eligible though they didn't discuss what would make any dragon be eligible.)
-- How are their human looks determined?
-- Why was she allowed to sing at her father's 2nd wedding? I thought she was suppose to stay under the radar. She sung her mother's song. ( )

Seraphina has lived her life hiding the truth about who she is; a half-dragon. Her mother died in childbirth, and until that moment her father never knew that the woman he loved was a dragon in human form. Interbreeding is reviled, the products of such a relationship are despised abominations, sins made flesh. And so he hides that fact from all, even from Seraphina, until the truth breaks free.

She too tries to keep it hidden. She tries to keep her whole existence hidden in fact, out of sight and out of mind. But she is a gifted musician and when she becomes assistant to the court musician she can no longer remain overlooked.

I put off reading this book for a long time. I’m not sure if it was the cover or the fact that it uses a quotation by Chrisopher Paolini as a recommendation. But certainly I don’t like the UK cover. Look at it. Okay, the evil eye and the city wall background are fairly generic and do the standard job of letting you know that this is a mediaeval-esque fantasy. But the picture of Seraphina. I hate it. And I’m pretty sure she describes herself as having dark hair in the book. Not red. Also she goes to some effort hide her dragon scales, so you know, showing them off for everyone to see seems a little out of character. The US cover is much prettier, even if it is does echo Novik’s Temerarie series a tad too much.

And to use that quote by Paolini, who wrote such standard and by the numbers epic fantasy. That was almost enough to put me off. But I’d read so many positive things about it. And eventually I got around to reading it, in time for this year’s Once Upon a Time reading challenge. And I really enjoyed it.

In many ways it is a very simple story, well told. A coming-of-age story in many ways. Told in first person narration this is Seraphina’s story. Utterly and completely, the story of her coming to terms with who and what she is, with who her mother and father are, and what they went through. The typical teen story, albeit with the addition of dragons :)

And of course it is also a story about prejudice and could probably be interpreted in many different ways as being about an outsider in society, whether that society is that of Goredd in the book, or some real life place. Because some people will always find themselves, through no fault of their own, as thinking that they have something to hide, that there is something wrong with them. Seraphina gradually learns that she is who she is, and that some people may hate her for that, but she has to accept her own nature and she will find that plenty of other people will accept who she is too.

But it isn’t a book that tries to shove that message down your throat. That is simply the device used to move both Seraphina and the plot throughout the novel. It serves the story, rather than the story serving the message. An important distinction that means Seraphina never becomes preachy and annoying.

It is a well told story, very engaging, I will be reading the follow up when I can get my hands on it. And her dragons, although not totally unique, are fairly interesting and different enough from most of those I’ve read about to bring something a little new to the table. I particularly liked the memories that they could pass on and their interest in maths. The emotional detachment I hope gets investigated further, because it seems something artificially created. But that is for another book, hopefully.

Really really good. Unlike so much fantasy set in the Middle Ages, this creates a medieval world that feels real and textured and has the problems the real Middle Ages dealt with. And the heroine is just great - likeable while still being flawed, a strong personality without being a stereotypical kick-butt heroine. ( )

ugh ADORABLE what a way to start the year why aren't there 897423984 more books in this series already ( )

Ultimately liked it much better than I thought I would like it. She's a good writer, but as the subject matter unveiled itself, I started to worry. I like dragons as much as the next person (well, maybe less so), but unless you're Jo Walton's Tooth and Claw I don't think I want to get too close to them. I didn't care for Naomi Novik's dragon series, yet her non-dragon books were my top #1 favourite of their respective years. I think having dragons as pets, or as horses, or as boyfriends, or as avatars, etc., strikes of adolescent wish fulfilment. I have trouble picturing George Eliot taking on the topic, for example.

That said, this wasn't so bad. You could just take it as an allegory for racism and passing, if you like, or homophobia. And that's the problem, I suppose--the Difference mattered, but not the kind of difference. The plot wouldn't be substantially different if, instead of dragons, we had elves in disguise, or trees in disguise, or aliens in disguise, it's a McGuffin. (Of course the climactic battle at the end would be conducted differently, but that's a minor point).

But it's not bad. It's quite good! I just have my minor quibbles, you know, otherwise one isn't reading critically, one's just watching TV on paper.

(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). I feel a lot of readers automatically render any book they enjoy 5, but I grade on a curve! ( )