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Book rec- "Dragon Keeper" by Robin Hobb
Feb. 10th, 2010 02:48 pm I heard this was coming out and instantly went and ordered a copy online, and then waited a month or so for the actual street date.
First impression was that Dragon Keeper gets off to a slow start. The world/culture building was solid as I come to expect from Hobb, and that kept me moving along. About a third of the way through, I was invested enough in the story to finish the rest in one sitting.
It is well worth sticking with it. If for nothing else, then to get to the dragons in all their arrogant, alien glory. These are not overly romanticized fabulous creatures. These are large predators who have inherited ancestral memories of being served and worshiped by humans. And are very, very hungry.
The last known dragon made a bargain with the local humans- she would defend their city if they helped the sea serpents (think of them as larval dragons) in their migration to their cocooning grounds, and then then care for them once they emerge. something goes wrong. The serpents are too old and too undernourished, and what emerge from the cocoons are something less than dragons. They are malformed, and they are aware of the fact something has gone wrong. The dragon that struck the initial bargain vanishes, leaving land bound, irritable, hungry young dragons in the care of the humans, who grow to resent them. It is rare that I have ever read of dragons malformed, muddy, quarreling and pest-ridden such as these. It caught my attention, and had me wondering when the breaking point would be reached.
The main catch of the story is in those gathered to be keepers of the surviving dragons as they travel upriver, following a hazy ancestral memory of a city they all long for. One of those keepers is a young woman from the wilds who should have been exposed to die at birth, the rest are a fascinating mix of cultural outcasts, some of which appear to have their own agendas. The other lead character is a privileged Trader woman who has traveled to study the dragons. Most of the slow start the book has is involved in setting up these characters, making their decisions to gravitate to the dragons make sense.
Dragon Keeper is the first book in Hobb's Rain Wild Chronicles, and looks to be an excellent set up for a very interesting book two. It is worth the read.
First impression was that Dragon Keeper gets off to a slow start. The world/culture building was solid as I come to expect from Hobb, and that kept me moving along. About a third of the way through, I was invested enough in the story to finish the rest in one sitting.
It is well worth sticking with it. If for nothing else, then to get to the dragons in all their arrogant, alien glory. These are not overly romanticized fabulous creatures. These are large predators who have inherited ancestral memories of being served and worshiped by humans. And are very, very hungry.
The last known dragon made a bargain with the local humans- she would defend their city if they helped the sea serpents (think of them as larval dragons) in their migration to their cocooning grounds, and then then care for them once they emerge. something goes wrong. The serpents are too old and too undernourished, and what emerge from the cocoons are something less than dragons. They are malformed, and they are aware of the fact something has gone wrong. The dragon that struck the initial bargain vanishes, leaving land bound, irritable, hungry young dragons in the care of the humans, who grow to resent them. It is rare that I have ever read of dragons malformed, muddy, quarreling and pest-ridden such as these. It caught my attention, and had me wondering when the breaking point would be reached.
The main catch of the story is in those gathered to be keepers of the surviving dragons as they travel upriver, following a hazy ancestral memory of a city they all long for. One of those keepers is a young woman from the wilds who should have been exposed to die at birth, the rest are a fascinating mix of cultural outcasts, some of which appear to have their own agendas. The other lead character is a privileged Trader woman who has traveled to study the dragons. Most of the slow start the book has is involved in setting up these characters, making their decisions to gravitate to the dragons make sense.
Dragon Keeper is the first book in Hobb's Rain Wild Chronicles, and looks to be an excellent set up for a very interesting book two. It is worth the read.
