Zana's Reviews > To Shape a Dragon's Breath

I fell in love with this novel when Anequs, the MC, stood up for herself and gave no shits about what the colonizers thought of her and her nackie savage ways.

This is everything I ever wanted in a novel with a WOC who uses the colonial system to her advantage in order to get what she wants. (I know this is really specific, but as a WOC, you tend to acquire specific tastes when it comes to fiction that deals with white supremacy.) There's no grand indigenous vs. colonizers physical conflict here. Nothing flashy that's so common in YA Chosen One against the world type of novels. To Shape a Dragon's Breath is idyllic and understated in comparison.

Which is why I love this novel.

The world building is exquisite and very detailed. It's pretty much an alternate universe that very highly mirrors our own, but with a very strong Nordic colonial influence. It was cool to try and figure out which words, country names, terms, etc. had their equivalents in English. The author has created a world that feels familiar, yet foreign at the same time.

There are even discussions on sexuality and the different practices between Masquisit society and Anglish society. (Surprise! Anglish society is extremely heteronormative.) The juxtaposition between indigenous Masquisit life and Anglish life, with Anequs (and Theod, to an extent) as the bridge between worlds, was really well done. I loved it.

But with this amount of world building also comes with a lot of info dumping. I honestly didn't mind it because the author used scenes, dialogue, and the MC's inner monologue to explain the world, its people, history, and cultural practices. Through Anequs (who's also experiencing a lot of Anglish life and customs for the first time), we get an audience surrogate. It works really well imo.

It's also such a breath of fresh air to read a novel set in a historical time period that doesn't use modern slang or idiosyncrasies. It's very immersive in a sense.

I loved the MC, Anequs. (Although she does stray into Mary Sue territory sometimes.) She's a brilliant young woman who can hold her own in an imperialistic society that's doing everything to tear her down.

I loved how the author showed Anequs dealing with different examples of racism, both outright racism (like the death threats that both her and Theod receive) and the ones that are more subtle (with Marta or another Anglish character's casual comments on how Anequs isn't quite Anglish enough, etc.). For being only fifteen, Anequs deals with the racism and sexism with grace and maturity. Plus, the fact that she's outspoken about her injustices makes me love her even more. She doesn't back down from a fight, even when she knows she should (because, you know, polite Anglish society frowns down upon strong women fighting for their rights and voicing their beliefs).

Overall, I can't wait for the sequel. I hope that it goes beyond the dragon/magic school trope where Anequs and her friends have to deal with the real world on their own, without the Kuiper Academy as a safety net. We see hints of this near the end, and I'm hungry for more.

Thank you to Del Rey and NetGalley for this arc.