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A review by dananana
To Shape a Dragon's Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
A debut with a compelling premise, but could have used a bit of editing to really meet its potential.
To Shape a Dragon’s Breath follows Anequs, an Indigenous young woman living in a fantasy world that closely mirrors the history of our own world. Her story begins in the equivalent of the 1840s, when she discovers that a Nampeshiwe – a dragon native to her land that has all but been wiped out – has laid an egg on her island. When the egg hatches, the dragon, Kasaqua, chooses Anequs to bond with. However, the knowledge of how to care for and work with dragons was lost years ago, so Anequs makes the difficult decision to enroll in an Anglish dragoneering academy. There, she will face hostility and colonialist racism as she begins to learn how to shape her dragon’s breath.
The beginning of this novel was incredibly stellar, and I really do love the premise of the story. The simple and direct narration worked for me and I found myself quite emotional over Anequs and Kasaqua’s bond! In addition, I loved the setting, especially the scenes that took place on Masquipaug (Anequs’s island). Those scenes were infused with a sense of community, history, and cultural details that kept me captivated. I was very intrigued by the themes of anti-colonialism and Indigenous strength. And I really loved everything to do with Kasaqua. I love dragons!!
However, I do have to say I felt a little underwhelmed with the rest of the novel. There wasn’t much a plot, beyond Anequs trying to excel at the Academy while facing racism. There was some action toward the end, but it felt very sudden and was over quickly. There wasn’t much build up of tension. And the writing style made me feel removed from any sense of urgency, as it would often summarize events in paragraphs afterward, without showing the scene and the immediate emotions of the characters.
While I enjoyed Anequs’s perspective, she didn’t have much of a character arc. She was calm and levelheaded, always had an answer for how to handle situations, and always saw the truth of situations. This isn't a criticism in and of itself, but maybe as a result of this characterization, she didn’t have much internal growth or internal difficulties. Even her relationships with her roommate, friends, and romantic interests weren’t especially compelling. The dialog was stilted, there was lots of worldbuilding explanation dumped into conversations, and it felt like she kept having the same conversations over and over. My reading doorways are character and plot, so I found myself wanting more.
Overall, I wanted to like this more than I did – I think it needed editing to meet its full potential, with the addition of more plot or character work to really get it there. Also. I just wanted more dragon scenes, there didn't seem to be enough! However, I think this book could still appeal to readers that like a strong setting and explorations of history through fantasy.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchanged for an honest review.
To Shape a Dragon’s Breath follows Anequs, an Indigenous young woman living in a fantasy world that closely mirrors the history of our own world. Her story begins in the equivalent of the 1840s, when she discovers that a Nampeshiwe – a dragon native to her land that has all but been wiped out – has laid an egg on her island. When the egg hatches, the dragon, Kasaqua, chooses Anequs to bond with. However, the knowledge of how to care for and work with dragons was lost years ago, so Anequs makes the difficult decision to enroll in an Anglish dragoneering academy. There, she will face hostility and colonialist racism as she begins to learn how to shape her dragon’s breath.
The beginning of this novel was incredibly stellar, and I really do love the premise of the story. The simple and direct narration worked for me and I found myself quite emotional over Anequs and Kasaqua’s bond! In addition, I loved the setting, especially the scenes that took place on Masquipaug (Anequs’s island). Those scenes were infused with a sense of community, history, and cultural details that kept me captivated. I was very intrigued by the themes of anti-colonialism and Indigenous strength. And I really loved everything to do with Kasaqua. I love dragons!!
However, I do have to say I felt a little underwhelmed with the rest of the novel. There wasn’t much a plot, beyond Anequs trying to excel at the Academy while facing racism. There was some action toward the end, but it felt very sudden and was over quickly. There wasn’t much build up of tension. And the writing style made me feel removed from any sense of urgency, as it would often summarize events in paragraphs afterward, without showing the scene and the immediate emotions of the characters.
While I enjoyed Anequs’s perspective, she didn’t have much of a character arc. She was calm and levelheaded, always had an answer for how to handle situations, and always saw the truth of situations. This isn't a criticism in and of itself, but maybe as a result of this characterization, she didn’t have much internal growth or internal difficulties. Even her relationships with her roommate, friends, and romantic interests weren’t especially compelling. The dialog was stilted, there was lots of worldbuilding explanation dumped into conversations, and it felt like she kept having the same conversations over and over. My reading doorways are character and plot, so I found myself wanting more.
Overall, I wanted to like this more than I did – I think it needed editing to meet its full potential, with the addition of more plot or character work to really get it there. Also. I just wanted more dragon scenes, there didn't seem to be enough! However, I think this book could still appeal to readers that like a strong setting and explorations of history through fantasy.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchanged for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Racism, and Bullying
Moderate: Violence, Genocide, and Homophobia
Minor: Animal death and Suicide