Seraphina

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rachelhartmanbooks.com

Seraphina

Rachel Hartman

2012

The Summary

Seraphina Dombergh is a gifted musician and a talented singer and, as the assistant music mistress, she is constantly moving in and out of the royal court.  Seraphina, however, has one very dangerous secret:  she is half dragon.

With tensions rising between the dragons and mankind, Seraphina finds herself in a very precarious position.  Caught up in the investigation of the prince's death and struggling to keep her secret hidden from everyone she has ever known, Seraphina will find herself balancing on the precipice of two worlds - the human world of her father, and the dragon world of her mother.

The Good

Rachel Hartman's novel is wonderfully descriptive and detailed.  With her narrator (Seraphina Dombergh), she creates a beautiful and strange world full of dangerous dragons, unique races of people and creatures, martyred saints, and volatile politics.  It's an intriguing piece of work and highly addictive.

Additionally, Hartman tinkers with dragon lore by turning dragons into more than a sentient race but an entire people:  a population with its own laws, its own system of beliefs, its own technologies and literature.  Moreover, she creates a reality in which dragons have managed to take human form.  She offers a new series of questions about dragons and, more to the point, presents readers with a richer mythos.

I also enjoy Hartman's narrator, Seraphina Dombergh.  She's wonderfully descriptive and completely candid, having both a scathing wit and shyness that make her an intelligent and enjoyable narrator.  She's brave, she's flawed, and she's startlingly human - and it's incredibly easy to become emotionally invested in her story.

The Bad

Seraphina ends on a good note.  I can safely say I was pleased by its conclusion, despite the fact it lacked a complete resolution - that is, I was left with several lingering questions and an open-ended adventure.

So, I would really like a sequel.  I mean, most books I can wait to see - I'm patient.  You have to be when you inadvertently stumble into a series - but I need a sequel.  It ends with a cliff-hanger, so it's too inconclusive to not have a second in series.

The Ugly

Seraphina has many obstacles to face:  her dragon heritage, fear and self-loathing, hatred of her parentage, fear of discovery, fear of an impending war, fear for her own soul, social stigmas, struggles with her own mortality - or immortality? - and love.

It's a heady brew of emotional, social, and political conflicts.  And, honestly, you sometimes fear for Seraphina's safety.  You hope, even more than she hopes, that she finds happiness - and you keep your fingers crossed for her safety and the safety of those she cares about.