Fantasy Buddy Reads discussion

A Natural History of Dragons - Marie Brennan.
July 1st.

In

In😀

I think the BR fell apart last time because the ending to this book was so unexpected... (view spoiler)[with the death of the husband... (hide spoiler)]

Possibly in, I paused the book in the last BR, maybe I can finally finish it now.

Iain - the BR hasn't started and you are putting the ending in spoilers, how do you expect me to resist opening it for such a long time!

I didn't have the book at the time, but I have the series now, so i will be good to go 😊

Karishma wrote: "Possibly in, I paused the book in the last BR, maybe I can finally finish it now.

Iain - the BR hasn't started and you are putting the ending in spoilers, how do you expect me to resist opening it..."

Sorry... really don't click that... I only mentioned it because I see Katherine already read the book...

Yeah, I've read the entire series and loved it as a whole, but I do think the first book is the weakest of the bunch (it's still great tho!).

It's a series that only gets better as it goes on, imo, and by the fifth book I was completely blown away. I can only recommend sticking around for the whole thing, it has amazing pay-off

I actually did a paper on this first book in English class and spoiled it for my teacher, who was also reading it at the time – whoops

Oops... lol

Yea... I liked the first book, obviously... it just got lost in the shuffle over the summer, since I did 20-30 Buddy Reads most months this year, and stopped filling in my tracker ahead of time... I'd just check the Master List at the beginning of each month and update my plans accordingly, and Lady Trent wasn't on there in August, and I didn't notice...

I'd love to reread this series!

Ooh I'd be into re-reading this series too! Though the first two books are my least favorite I'll still re-read them

I'm in for this! I've planned this for a while, but didn't found the time.

Yay, happy to see so many people joining in on this! It really is one of my favorite series :D

I've been wanting to read this book for ages, and finally I got it from kindle deals for $1.99 :)

Anny wrote: "I've been wanting to read this book for ages, and finally I got it from kindle deals for $1.99 :)"

Awesome! :D

I should be in for this one!

Not sure I'll re-read, but we did a BR last summer and it took me 2 months to notice there was no BR for the rest of the series, so I'm looking forward to an excuse to continue... last August was a distracting time for BRs, with Kate Daniels ending...

Starting yesterday.

Really loving it so far I almost can't stop reading! I really like Isabel's character and am so glad the romance part is done swiftly so we can focus more on dragons and adventures.

I think I'll start omorrow.

Considering how unhappy some people were with character developments towards the end of this book, I feel like I should warn you guys, but doing so would be a pretty major spoiler.

Best I can do is use a spoiler tag and let anyone who wants a spoiler to read it: (view spoiler)[Lady Trent's husband or husband-to-be (I can't quite remember) dies in this, leaving Lady Trent open to study dragons to her heart's content in future books without him...

Didn't seem entirely necessary, from what I remember, but there it is... (hide spoiler)]

Timelord Iain wrote: "Considering how unhappy some people were with character developments towards the end of this book, I feel like I should warn you guys, but doing so would be a pretty major spoiler.

Best I can do i..."

I didn't mind this as much when I read it, because (view spoiler)[Isabella still faces a lot of struggles going forward in the series (hide spoiler)]. 

Kathrine wrote: "Timelord Iain wrote: "Considering how unhappy some people were with character developments towards the end of this book, I feel like I should warn you guys, but doing so would be a pretty major spo..."

I know at least one person that decided to abandon the series and never continue... to each their own... I was fine-ish with it... still rated 5 stars...

Timelord Iain wrote: "Kathrine wrote: "Timelord Iain wrote: "Considering how unhappy some people were with character developments towards the end of this book, I feel like I should warn you guys, but doing so would be a..."

I think the first book is the weakest, which might turn off some people, but as a whole, I think the series is amazing and worth it. There's also a new book coming out later this year! :D

Kathrine wrote: "Timelord Iain wrote: "Considering how unhappy some people were with character developments towards the end of this book, I feel like I should warn you guys, but doing so would be a pretty major spo..."

I don't know why this would upset anyone to the point of disliking the book/series. I was very saddened, but still loved the characters and concept. I agree with both yours and Kathrine's opinion there, Iain.


I was really hoping to join this for a reread but I don't think I have time :( I didn't allow in my schedule for how big the Liveship books are!

I will start it tomorrow for sure!

So far I found this to be a very light and happy reading. Mostly about the comical misadventures of our heroine. It almost read like a travel diary of sorts. No complex plot and heart wrenching drama and tragedy. Maybe something like a light brunch read?

Timelord Iain wrote: "Considering how unhappy some people were with character developments towards the end of this book, I feel like I should warn you guys, but doing so would be a pretty major spoiler.

Best I can do i..."
I kid you not, I did not read this spoiler yet and I was talking to my significant other this morning and I said that it is clear to me that what you described in the spoiler tag was going to happen!

Anny wrote: "So far I found this to be a very light and happy reading. Mostly about the comical misadventures of our heroine. It almost read like a travel diary of sorts. No complex plot and heart wrenching dra..."

I agree with you Anny!
I finished book 1 - while there are a bit more sensitive topics (view spoiler)[ such as depression caused by still-born, expectations of wives in a Victorian England and how repressed really women are (hide spoiler)], I find it fresh and easy to read!

I am finished with the book as well.

Yep, despite the sensitive topics, it was quite a realistic depiction of women's standing not so long ago. And regarding the twist at the end (view spoiler)[I think it was the only logical plot development. After all with a husband (and possibly babies) it would be hard for her to have the sort of adventures that we're going to read in the series. Isabel did say this expedition will probably be her only expedition ever (and is probably true had Jacob survived). So while it's sad to see such an ending, it's quite understandable to me. Now I'm only dreading a potential romance down the line, which I guess will inevitably happen. I'm praying it won't be the sort of sappy romance that will ruin her character. (hide spoiler)]

In all, I really like Isabel's easygoing and gung-ho attitude, I will be looking forward to more of this spunky lass in the next books :)

Not nearly finished, but I agree with you, Anni, it gives a realistic view on what was expected of women in that time period.
For now it's an okay read. I hope it gets more interesting. I loeved the part where they were (view spoiler)[hunting the wolf drake (hide spoiler)]. I definately have done the same. The drawings are a positive addition to the book.

I might join you from the second book onward, because I did reread this last year but I would love to do the rest of the series too :D

Agree with you both, Anny and Saar. I think this series does an amazing job at building a believable Victorian-esque world with dragons

I really liked this series. I did it all in audio, narrated by Kate Reading who is great . Each book gets better. I tell people if Jane Austen wrote Fantasy this would be the series.

Saar The Book owl wrote: "Not nearly finished, but I agree with you, Anni, it gives a realistic view on what was expected of women in that time period.
For now it's an okay read. I hope it gets more interesting. I loeved th..."

One minor complaint for me is for a book supposedly about studying the dragons, we don't really get much detailed knowledge and otherwise. It's more of Isabel's travel diary rather than a comprehensive guide to dragons.

I loved the bits where they mentioned that dragon wings have a sort of hatch mechanism to allow wind to pass through it to reduce drags during lift-off and closing it to allow maximal lift when on air. That's the sort of thoughtful knowledge that I would love to hear more of from the author. Sadly, it's quite lacking in this aspect in my opinion.

I just finished the book and I really enjoyed it.
Such a great idea to write it as a memoir - which hurts less on matters that impact the heart.

As for your comment Anny, I did not even think of it until you mentioned it. Yet you are absolutely spot on!

Anny wrote: "Saar The Book owl wrote: "Not nearly finished, but I agree with you, Anni, it gives a realistic view on what was expected of women in that time period.
For now it's an okay read. I hope it gets mor..."

That's an interesting remark and I must agree, but it's also a memoir, so it goes mostly about traveling. Maybe it'll get better in the next books?

I agree with you also, Anny – it is more of Isabella's travel diary. Having read the rest of the series, I can't say it improves significantly, unfortunately :( However, dragons will continue to be the main subject throughout the series, so there'll be plenty of other cool stuff about them: different types and ages and behaviours and culture surrounding dragons – I feel like the series only gets better for each entry :D

Also, should we schedule the rest of the series?

If that's okay with the others, that's fine for me. I've recently bought the whole series :)

Saar The Book owl wrote: "If that's okay with the others, that's fine for me. I've recently bought the whole series :)"

I'm still waiting for Kindle deals T_T or for my library to stock them, whichever first.