Read All About It: Dragon Heart

Cecilia Holland is known for her historical novels, but with Dragon Heart she takes her steps into the world of fantasy, and resolves to create a narrative that won't soon be forgotten by its readers. As a result, this isn't your typical fantasy. Dragon Heart has a dark tone, deep vision, and morally bankrupt characters to push it to the extremes of historical semi-realism in fantasy.

The premise of this novel sounds lighter than it should, and I was not prepared for what I found within its pages. If you live for wonderfully happy endings, this one might not be your cup of tea. But if you love gritty, open-ended resolutions--this one is definitely for you.

Jeon has set out to return his mute twin sister, Tirza, to Castle Ocean, where their family awaits. Their mother the Queen is getting married to one of the Emperor's brothers, after the King died in war. This is the second attempted marriage--Queen Marioza poisoned the first. As Jeon and Tirza are returning to Castle Ocean, their ship is attacked by a mighty dragon, and Tirza finds herself in a strange cavern with the dragon, unsure of her brothers fate, and somehow able to communicate with the dragon--her captor.

This is a tale of destruction and rage, love and hate, and the trickery of fate. Fair warning, there is a lot of death, both animal and human. There is quite a bit of politics, a strange castle that may or may not be alive, and magic beyond that of science that seems to be centered around this castle, rather than present in the rest of the book's universe.

Tirza is able to communicate with the dragon, and that is how the narrative is first moved along. The dragon spares her because she is able to communicate with it. Tirza is wild and inarticulate to most, and Holland conveys that by having Tirza herself be self-aware of how she sounds to others. Tirza is both more and lesser than the rest of her family because of this, and her interactions with her family are clearly written to show the vast rift that separates the mute and speaking communities.

I enjoyed this novel, but it was not what I expected. It's more a narrative about arrogance of noble men and the strength of down-trodden women. There is always an unseen road that the women take, while the men seem to take the most obvious and painful routes on their journey to revenge or power. Holland sets clear differences in the values of women and men, and those are exacerbated in those who rule Castle Ocean, and those who come from the Empire.

Dragon Heart is an interesting title for a novel that only has one dragon, who appears directly twice and is mentioned only a handful of other times. I was hoping for a more symbolic gesture that would suggest Tirza's muteness was some form of dragon-related problem, but it didn't, and the connection is only tangential.

I might check out a few more of Holland's works now. Her style is excellent, and I loved the gritty tone that held my attention throughout the novel. Until next time, keep an eye out for dragons, and make sure you have a good story ready. It just might save your life.