Review: Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Title: Seraphina

Author: Rachel Hartman

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, DRAGONS!

Publisher: Random House Books

Pages: 499

Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty's anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high.

Seraphina Dombegh has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered—in suspiciously draconian fashion. Seraphina is drawn into the investigation, partnering with the captain of the Queen's Guard, the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucian Kiggs. While they begin to uncover hints of a sinister plot to destroy the peace, Seraphina struggles to protect her own secret, the secret behind her musical gift, one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life. (More from Goodreads)

I have wanted to read this book since I was a little child.

Okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration. But I have wanted to read it since 2012 and only got around to it this year- which is fine and dandy, because back in 2012 it didn't have a purple cover. For those uninitiated (perhaps all of you), purple is my favourite colour- the colour that held my favourite colour title for the longest time yet, and possibly will remain my favourite for a good long while.

Now that I have done yakking away, here we go to my humble series of opinions and final rating of the book that we all call a review ;)

The Book

This book is a beautiful hardcover copy with a beautiful cover illustration, on which a beautiful dragon is portrayed on a background which is a beautiful shade of purple in color. 

Okay seriously now.

This is obviously a high fantasy book, written for young adults to adults, featuring dragons- yay! From the summary, you can glean that it is also intended to be somewhat of a murder mystery.

Setting

This beautiful book is set in an entirely different universe, as with any other high fantasy titles, but the setting is most definitely parallel to Renaissance Europe- and very beautifully described. This can be a bit overwhelming for those of us less learned in the attire, furniture, and generally speech of that era. It is a lovely educational trip, however, and made me envy those people who can participate in Renaissance fairs I see so much on television, who would most definitely breeze through the pages without much trouble.

So within this Renaissance-esque era, we are introduced to Goredd, a kingdom where an almost-40 year-old uneasy treaty has been established between the dragons and humans, under some strict rules. As mentioned in the Goodreads summary above, dragons are able to take the shape of humans. Oppression is rife, and with the murder of a royal family member tensions have never been higher. This somehow thrusts Seraphina, an assistant to the court composer, into much unwanted attention- and to becoming an important piece in uncovering the mysterious events behind the murder.

So yes, you can say this book is a murder mystery, but it is so much more. 

Writing Style

Word of warning: There is a ton of unfamiliar jargon on the get-go, even if you are familiar with the workings of the Renaissance era, because it is, after all, a fantastical setting. Subsequent word of advice: a glossary is conveniently placed at the back of the book for those unfamiliar words. Heed my advice, and refer to it as often as necessary. Do not repeat my mistake.

Or you can use Google, which I did a lot before I found out about said glossary...

In that sense, it did detract a little from the reading experience- i.e. I had to take my eyes off the book every once in a while to look something up. But do not be fooled, I enjoyed this book. Because the writing, oh the writing, is lovely.

The prose is decadent, with a deliberately-paced narrative that may feel a little slow at times depending on your personal span of attention. I find that it is usually fast enough, but don't take my word for it- I've known others who found the pacing off-putting. On top of that, you will find a smattering of songs and quite a few deep philosophical arguments thrown in. Music, of course, is an intrinsic part to the book, which to be honest I probably could not appreciate as much as other people. That said, appreciation for art is universal and seemingly ingrained for us humans, unlike the saarantrai, who can't even fathom head nor tail of their fascination with it. Ahem.

Mind you, the word 'bastard' is rather generously sprinkled throughout the entirety of the book, but it is probably the worst swear word you are likely to come across. As far as I'm concerned the language is PG-13.

World-building is meticulous, particularly concerning the politics, history and belief systems. This is a major plus point for most of us who love the fantasy genre. Rachel Hartman introduces readers to some heavy lexicon that may rival many classical fantasy works, and are increasingly easy to understand as the book progresses.

One of my only gripes is the relative lack of geographical development in this world. There is a form of mind travel in which you get to see glimpses of the kingdoms outside Goredd, but not enough- not anywhere near enough when compared to the colorful politics, religion, and overall uniquely creative lexicon. This is a highly personal thing, but I wish to see more scenery. I like maps and geography. Please give me more maps and geography in the next book :(

Characters

Seraphina is of course the main character, a 16 year-old gifted musician- among other extra-ordinary things. She is a strong character, not so much physically but rather mentally. In a world where every high fantasy character is physically strong and empowering, this is rather refreshing to me.

She is, however, aloof and rather awkward, preferring to be invisible rather than stand out- unfortunately, she does the opposite rather too easily. Her back story factors a lot into this, and I will not say more about that just in case you prefer going into the book a bit cluelessly (I know I do). Pertaining that, this makes her a rather endearing character.

Orma is the saarantras that we get most well-acquainted with. He is also, very likely, the least saarantras-like character in the book. I won't say much more about him now out of, you know, spoiler evasion purposes.

And then there's Prince Lucian, or Kiggs. The well-read bastard prince, captain of the Queen's Guard and an all-round detective extraordinaire. Also quite the sweetheart, thus making him quite the dreamboat. Swoon.

An introduction to Prince Lucian isn't complete without an introduction to Princess Glisselda, his cousin, who will be Queen after her grandmother and mother- and also Lucian's betrothed. One year Seraphina's junior and her student in music, Glisselda is a character you would expect to hate, but end up doting upon. I love her energy and optimism, and though she is more of a side character compared to those above, I believe her character is fleshed out pretty decently.

The cast of characters is actually way more extensive than this, and I may have omitted a rather important sub-group of characters, but I reiterate: I do not want to delve too much into Seraphina's family and character development for fear of spoiling the story. Suffice to say, the main characters and their peripherals are very well-developed, and their dialogues mostly enlightening.

While we're still on the subject of characters, I would like to point out that one of the major plus points about this book is the way the dragons are written. As a humble being who appreciates dragons in literature, I think Rachel Hartman has made quite a mark with her rendition of the dragons. Their personality and biology just blows my mind- and could have given the late Anne McCaffrey a run for her money.

Like most dragons of fantasy, the dragons in this book are also intelligent beyond human capacity and have quite a thing for treasure hordes, but they are more than just some sentient, over-sized lizards with a taste for human flesh. I can say, with certainty, that Ms Hartman's writing gives an extra dimension to dragons as we know them- and to put it very eloquently, I love, love, LOVE this aspect of the book.

Conclusion

Seraphina is a fresh of breath air* in the young adult fantasy genre. It is also the sort of book that goes down better with subsequent readings. Witty, thoughtful and rich in narrative and prose, it is easily one of my favourite reads of this year, and is highly recommended to all with even the slightest interest in the fantasy genre and dragon lovers, young or mature alike!

~My Rating~

5 out of 5 Mind-Pearls!

★★★★★

* - Highly intentional