The Fireborne Blade

I'm no expert on fantasy tropes or the subverting of tropes, but I know that I don't want that to be the focus of any story. This is more than the story of a courageous knight (who happens to be a woman) and her failed mage of a squire (who happens to be a man) taking on a dragon. The story fits very well within familiar fantasy conventions (the dragon that they pursue is ancient and has a legendary treasure within her hoard), but is told in a way that lives up to those traditions yet feels fresh, imaginative and surprising. For one thing, author Charlotte Bond adds some new horror elements to the classic story. Sir Maddileh and Petras are haunted by nightmares and hallucinations in the dragon's cave. They encounter “dragon dead” (the ghosts of dragon victims who stalk the cave like zombies) and “soot drakes” (deadly pests who infect unsuspecting travellers with toxic soot that will destroy their bodies) as they make their way deeper in. There are also many interesting magical objects, spells, and legendary tales of various mages of old woven into the story, which are a lot of fun to read about.

Even with a low page count, there are interesting backstories for all the characters — even some of the characters within the backstories have backstories. The titular Fireborne Blade definitely has its story and, by the end, Bond manages to bring many of these stories together in a clever and unique way, crafting them into an even bigger story. I love twists; and this novella contained so many surprises which I didn't expect that it kept me delighted and surprised the whole time.

The writing and the narration are also both very well done. The language is descriptive, pleasant and elegant without being flowery or pretentious. There's a good variety of voices and tones, including some guide-book-style chapters which nicely deliver world-building exposition in an engaging way. It is impressive how much of a world is built around a fairly straightforward story and a single core event. It doesn't feel only like the dragon's cave is the entire world. In fact, there is so much going on outside (described mostly in the flashbacks) that when we reach the climax, it doesn't feel like we're seeing sunlight for the first time. The narration by Helen McAlpine is great. She gives each character a varied tone, and her voice is mature enough to avoid the petulance and juvenile air that makes many female narrators skew a little bit “young adult”.

Overall, I loved this story. It was all well-crafted, very fun and satisfying. Even though I don't feel it needs to be any longer, I would love to read more from this world and this author.

4.75 stars