Nov 02, 2021
Finally, it is here lol
The Heir of the Dragon was an experience, that's the first word that comes to mind. It's a fantasy epic that didn't really feel like one. Those 188K words flew by like a breeze to me, making me want more and more. And The Heir of the Dragon delivers on that promise. When people describe books as fun, it's not always clear what they mean. Some people describe a "fun" novel as one full of interesting fights and cool fluff, not something deep with great character development. The Heir of the Dragon does a great job challenging that notion. While it wears its influences on its sleeves at times, it also does a great job twisting what it takes into its own unique thing.
Starting with said influences. The most obvious one, intentional of not, is Harry Potter. It's not hard to compare the two, especially in the beginning. With the train and sorting ceremony. What I like about HOTD however is how it takes these tropes and twists them to its own narrative. For starters, the cohort system makes waaaaaay more sense than Harry Potters's house system. The way of sorting also felt unique in its own way, feeling more like a homage than anything else.
The other one is ASOIAF, or Game of Thrones. This is also pretty clear, though its also not, especially with how Fuzzy handles point of views. The different perspectives created by all the characters really help the story, and feel simmular but different to how this is handled there. Also, we need a Reed POV Fuzzy, actually, we just need more Reed.
Now to start with the plot, because this is somehow the shortest segment. HOTD tells a linniar story from the perspective of several characters, their own stories intertwining in the main narrative. In the world of HOTD, A war has just ended between the Humans and Elves, and said school is also dealing with the consequences of winning the war against the Elves. Elly's perspective is really important here, and Fuzzy does a great job of showing the discrimination she feels, while also showing how to like, there are good people too. Then there's Blakes, showing another side of the war. Hes the orphin left behind in the carnage, the one who lost everything. I remember reading an article by the guy who wrote The Sympathizer, in with he said that people removed from their homes, their stories are war stories as well. Blake reminded me of that. He is part of the after-effects of the war in a way, a broken Kid damaged by war, only wanting revenge. The other main POV is of Eve, who is the cool and collected... imposter. Her perspective is also interesting, acting on for now unknown goals, but that's more for the future. The other POV is of Damion, a teacher at the academy. Seeing his perspective of the administration helps to show everything behind the scenes, and grasp some of the political stuff happening in the background.
Next is the Worldbuilding, and oh boy is there a lot. Like I said before, this is a world fresh of war, and it shows. There are the major points, like how Elves and Humans don't really interact, to the more minor stuff, like the slurs they throw at each other. Elly's experiences do a great job showing the state of the world at the moment, and how culture as a whole is reacting. There's also the sky itself. The physical world is incredibly unique and engaging, with a variety of unique geography all around, not to mention that the entire world is floating islands, something that's actually never directly stated to my knowledge, doing a great job at the show not tell approach. Then there's the magic system. On a website full of magic systems, this one stands out. Its about as hard of a magic system as you can get, with extremely clear rules on how everything works. Theres another side to the magic as well, almost a completely different system that's a lot softer too, and that's what I love, Elemental magic, used by several characters, including Blake. The magic system overall reminds me of the system used in The Name of the Wind, with a very hard, and somewhat soft system all in one. There's also the history sprinkled here in there. While we don't have a clear view yet, its clear that there's a ton of history in this world, waiting to be explored.
Then there's the last major part, the characters, and oh boy. The characters are where HOTD shines. The amount of perspectives and different voices helps the reader understand each character, and HOTD does a great job creating very rounded characters with mutable sides to them. I talked about most of the characters earlier in the review, but I wanted to focus on two specifically here to show different aspects that HOTD excels in, Reed and Sabrina. Reed stands out for mutable reasons. Sure, I want her to step on me, but there's more to it than that. Shes a great example on how characters can have mutable sides, their not just one thing. Reed is that calm, cool, and collected character that seems to weather whatever is thrown at her with no problem. It's only when she talking to Elly (and somewhat blake) that were able to see different sides of her. She has fears doubts, hopes. She's an obsessed dragon nut that practically worships Blake's house, and she is also the cool-headed rock for others to lean on at the same time. The other, Sabrina, is a great example on how people can change. Whine Fuzzy does a good job of keeping her from ever going too far, she's still 100% a bully to Elly, especially at the beginning of the novel. Over the corse of the story however, we see her slowly change as a person, becoming more understanding of others and realizing her flaws. HOTD does a great job having its characters change over time, Sabrina is just one of the more obvious cases.
Overall, HOTD is an incredible fantasy epic. Despite its large size for a Honeyfeed novel, it goes by like a breeze and leaves you wanting more. Im a huge fan of this novel and what it stands for, and cant wait to read more
Until next time, otk out.
