Tuesday 29 January 2019

S. Andrew Swann: Dragon Thief (2015)

    In a fit of drunken self-pity, Frank turns to using a cursed artifact, hoping to become a man again, if only temporarily (Goodreads).

     The sequel to Dragon Princess seems to disregard what character development previously took place, but it does make up for that in terms of character development in its own right, as all of the main protagonists go through at least some well developed changes. The humour of this second installment isn't executed quite as well as that of its predecessor, but in terms of plot complexity and the evoking of emotion, it far surpasses it. The politics of Swann's world, along with the body-switching concept that he manages to keep fresh, makes the plot much more intriguing, although not without its faults. The plot increasingly gets more convoluted as more and more characters reveal ulterior motives, and while this does increase the sophistication, to a point, it also makes the novel slightly harder to stay with. That being said, it is still engaging, as new character introductions increase the emotion of the piece and add a whole lot more depth. Swann executes this depth with a fair amount of ability, but he almost adds too many layers to the whole story, each of them probably good and sensible in their own right, but mashed together in a rather fast-paced adventure is likely not the best application. 7.9/10

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