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craftygiant's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
myranda_the_bookwyrm's review
adventurous
funny
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
5.0
I found this charming and warm and cozy, and now I have to hunt down where I put the second book because, while this closes very neatly and can for sure be read on its own, it does open the door for the next book, and left me wanting delve straight in.
natas287's review against another edition
5.0
This is one of my favorite books I've read this year.
I love miss Percy!
And Fitz is adorable.
I love miss Percy!
And Fitz is adorable.
witchivor's review
4.0
I enjoyed this book. For the most part, it was as I expected it to be. Regency period fantasy, with an unexpected (to the characters) dragon, and just a little bit of romance. The romance is definitely not the central aspect of the story. It’s more about Miss Percy herself, her personal journey and the choices she makes.
There were a few things that frustrated me despite my overall enjoyment. The first was the pace. This is a slow book. There is some ‘action’ but even those scenes are very introspective with a lot of focus on what a character thinks and feels about what is happening. The second frustration was the amount of asides, where the author directly addresses the reader. They often felt unnecessary.
annettebooksofhopeanddreams's review
4.0
I've been eyeing this book for quite some time already and after having read Scales and Sensibility I just wanted more regency with dragons. The book was on top of my to be read case and it was also at the very back hidden behind quite a few other books, but eventually I did find it and could start reading. So, during the warm summer evenings and my countless attempts to cool my house (without much result) this book kept me company.
What I loved most about this book is how relatable the heroine of the book is. I'm 35 myself and although being single is not frowned upon anymore I do sometimes question myself and wonder if this is really what the rest of my life is gonna be. And I liked that the heroine in this book was not the kind drastically changing in a blink of an eye, but did eventually learn that wanting something for yourself is okay.
I also absolutely loved the balance between this being a cozy fantasy while there still being something at stake and a little bit of danger. It lead to quite a thrilling finale where all the characters could show what they have learned and what they are made of. No one could hide anymore. And some relationships were forever altered after that finale. I'm curious if those can be mended in future installments, but I doubt it.
The star of the book was of course Fitz the dragon. I loved how we could literally see him grow up during the story and despite the fact that our heroine had absolutely no idea how to deal with him and what was waiting for her it was amazing to see the bond between Fitz and our heroine grow. I'm really excited to see what will be waiting for them on their next adventure to Wales! And I also can't wait to see all the new tricks Fitz will undoubtedly learn.
What I loved most about this book is how relatable the heroine of the book is. I'm 35 myself and although being single is not frowned upon anymore I do sometimes question myself and wonder if this is really what the rest of my life is gonna be. And I liked that the heroine in this book was not the kind drastically changing in a blink of an eye, but did eventually learn that wanting something for yourself is okay.
I also absolutely loved the balance between this being a cozy fantasy while there still being something at stake and a little bit of danger. It lead to quite a thrilling finale where all the characters could show what they have learned and what they are made of. No one could hide anymore. And some relationships were forever altered after that finale. I'm curious if those can be mended in future installments, but I doubt it.
The star of the book was of course Fitz the dragon. I loved how we could literally see him grow up during the story and despite the fact that our heroine had absolutely no idea how to deal with him and what was waiting for her it was amazing to see the bond between Fitz and our heroine grow. I'm really excited to see what will be waiting for them on their next adventure to Wales! And I also can't wait to see all the new tricks Fitz will undoubtedly learn.
a_reader_obsessed's review
3.0
3.5 Stars
Overall, an engaging historical about a downtrodden spinster who finds herself when she’s bequeathed an eclectic inheritance that happens to contain a dragon egg.
Be forewarned that there’s some absolutely insufferable family dynamics, and I wanted to throat punch Mildred’s sister and niece multiple times. This is also mired down with so much detail - detail in everything ranging from the scenery to the social setting to inner ramblings - perhaps to give it that authentic historic feel, but for me it hindered the momentum often.
However, there’s a dragon and a baby one at that. There’s also a slow slow slow growing romance brewing between Mildred and the helpful vicar Mr. Wiggins. Ultimately, Mildred gets her proverbial wings and breaks free of her self imposed prison. It’s that small spark that was set off in the last 25% of the book that will bring me back for more for a possible fireworks display. Bonus points for Mildred’s no nonsense, practical smarts that didn’t make her a naive ninny.
Overall, an engaging historical about a downtrodden spinster who finds herself when she’s bequeathed an eclectic inheritance that happens to contain a dragon egg.
Be forewarned that there’s some absolutely insufferable family dynamics, and I wanted to throat punch Mildred’s sister and niece multiple times. This is also mired down with so much detail - detail in everything ranging from the scenery to the social setting to inner ramblings - perhaps to give it that authentic historic feel, but for me it hindered the momentum often.
However, there’s a dragon and a baby one at that. There’s also a slow slow slow growing romance brewing between Mildred and the helpful vicar Mr. Wiggins. Ultimately, Mildred gets her proverbial wings and breaks free of her self imposed prison. It’s that small spark that was set off in the last 25% of the book that will bring me back for more for a possible fireworks display. Bonus points for Mildred’s no nonsense, practical smarts that didn’t make her a naive ninny.
darwinista's review
4.0
I have mixed feelings about this book. Most of those feelings are positive, but the pacing was frustrating. If you are the type who can get frustrated over pacing, you might want to choose text over audio so that you have more control.
SPECIFICS:
The lovely things: It was a sweet, amusing, affirmative story about Mildred Percy, an unassuming heroine on the verge of changing her life. I rooted for her all the way through. Her personal growth felt realistic. There was (this shouldn't really be a spoiler) a dragon at the center of the plot, with plausible attention to the difficulty of raising a mythological creature covertly. There was an opinionated yet kind narrator who sometimes intruded to offer clever observations about unfolding events, word choice, and character development. Also, character-driven though this book was, it also had an engaging plot, which included many action sequences in the last third of the book.
Annoying thing: As I said, this book had a plot, and sometimes there were even action sequences. However, the narrative remained leisurely and introspective throughout. This means that
1. a villain would, for example, seize a precious object (one sentence).
2. Then Mildred would wonder how to respond (4-5 sentences),
3. reflect on how she felt (3-4 sentences),
4. and move on to pondering some utterly inconsequential thing (such as feeling astounded that a thief would prey on someone who wasn't even wearing her bonnet--I made that one up, but it's plausible for this book), and continue pondering it for about 7 sentences, before
5. dismissing those thoughts as inconsequential (8 sentences).
6. Then the narrator would comment on whether or not the word "felt" was the right way to describe Mildred's state of mind, given her shock, which meant that she could scarcely "feel" anything (1 sentence that felt like it would never end)--all of this when, as a reader, I was waiting impatiently to find out what happened.
7. Finally, the villain would do something else, like shove Mildred to the ground (1 sentence).
8. Repeat steps 2-6.
These farcical scenes are meant to be amusing, and they were—for the first two-thirds of the book. Later, though, I was so worried about Mildred and the dragonette that I started to see the constant interruptions as authorial sadism. This impression was exacerbated by Mildred's general inability to take action or reach a decision; while this diffidence made sense based on her history, it seemed extreme. Even the slowest, most incompetent villain could run circles around Mildred while she stood and watched, her mind running at 100 mph. Because these later scenes felt more like an adventure plot to me, I wanted Mildred to break out and show some warrior goddess mojo, or at least a bit more competence. However, she was apparently less familiar than I with police procedurals and was continually confounded by the villains.
Caveat: I listened to the audio version of the book. Zara Ramm, the voice actor, was delightful. However, I think an ebook would have worked better for me, so I could have skimmed those torturously drawn-out action sequences.
SPECIFICS:
The lovely things: It was a sweet, amusing, affirmative story about Mildred Percy, an unassuming heroine on the verge of changing her life. I rooted for her all the way through. Her personal growth felt realistic. There was (this shouldn't really be a spoiler)
Spoiler
an adorable dragon hatchling, with the winsome ways of animal babies, fully realized by the author in all its infant habits, like sleeping on its back with its wings sprawled open and its soft belly exposed. I love books withAnnoying thing: As I said, this book had a plot, and sometimes there were even action sequences. However, the narrative remained leisurely and introspective throughout. This means that
1. a villain would, for example, seize a precious object (one sentence).
2. Then Mildred would wonder how to respond (4-5 sentences),
3. reflect on how she felt (3-4 sentences),
4. and move on to pondering some utterly inconsequential thing (such as feeling astounded that a thief would prey on someone who wasn't even wearing her bonnet--I made that one up, but it's plausible for this book), and continue pondering it for about 7 sentences, before
5. dismissing those thoughts as inconsequential (8 sentences).
6. Then the narrator would comment on whether or not the word "felt" was the right way to describe Mildred's state of mind, given her shock, which meant that she could scarcely "feel" anything (1 sentence that felt like it would never end)--all of this when, as a reader, I was waiting impatiently to find out what happened.
7. Finally, the villain would do something else, like shove Mildred to the ground (1 sentence).
8. Repeat steps 2-6.
These farcical scenes are meant to be amusing, and they were—for the first two-thirds of the book. Later, though, I was so worried about Mildred and the dragonette that I started to see the constant interruptions as authorial sadism. This impression was exacerbated by Mildred's general inability to take action or reach a decision; while this diffidence made sense based on her history, it seemed extreme. Even the slowest, most incompetent villain could run circles around Mildred while she stood and watched, her mind running at 100 mph. Because these later scenes felt more like an adventure plot to me, I wanted Mildred to break out and show some warrior goddess mojo, or at least a bit more competence. However, she was apparently less familiar than I with police procedurals and was continually confounded by the villains.
Caveat: I listened to the audio version of the book. Zara Ramm, the voice actor, was delightful. However, I think an ebook would have worked better for me, so I could have skimmed those torturously drawn-out action sequences.
paperlove's review
1.5 stars.
OK, I give up. I really liked the idea of the book: a middle-aged woman who has to raise a little dragon. It sounded like a cozy read with a heartwarming story.
Unfortunately, the writing is terrible. The author uses thousands of unnecessary parentheses. It's like trying to read the mind of someone with ADHD. Almost every sentence is interrupted by parentheses. And they are even longer than the sentences that actually tell the story. Sometimes there were parentheses IN parentheses. It was absolutely impossible for me to keep up with the story with all these interruptions. If the author wants to tell so much extra stuff (not really relevant to the story) she should at least have used footnotes instead of parenthetical notes so you can skip them.
This book definitely needs an editor.
If there is ever a second revised edition of this book, without the parentheses, I'll be willing to give the story another chance, but until then I'm afraid I can't recommend this book.
OK, I give up. I really liked the idea of the book: a middle-aged woman who has to raise a little dragon. It sounded like a cozy read with a heartwarming story.
Unfortunately, the writing is terrible. The author uses thousands of unnecessary parentheses. It's like trying to read the mind of someone with ADHD. Almost every sentence is interrupted by parentheses. And they are even longer than the sentences that actually tell the story. Sometimes there were parentheses IN parentheses. It was absolutely impossible for me to keep up with the story with all these interruptions. If the author wants to tell so much extra stuff (not really relevant to the story) she should at least have used footnotes instead of parenthetical notes so you can skip them.
This book definitely needs an editor.
If there is ever a second revised edition of this book, without the parentheses, I'll be willing to give the story another chance, but until then I'm afraid I can't recommend this book.
jdunn79's review
4.0
The use of parenthesis throughout the book was irksome. I believe it was designed to add humor to the storytelling but often it wasn’t because it came in the middle of a sentence instead of standing in its own.
This was a good start to a cozy fantasy. Some of the characters were infuriating. I found myself very angry toward the end and wishing Mildred would use violence.
Glad I read it though not in a hurry to continue. This is definitely a mood specific read.
This was a good start to a cozy fantasy. Some of the characters were infuriating. I found myself very angry toward the end and wishing Mildred would use violence.
Glad I read it though not in a hurry to continue. This is definitely a mood specific read.