Two posts in one week?! It’s a bit unusual for me I know. But as my last post was an update post on my freelance writing adventures I thought I’d do a review too. This won’t be a regular occurrence, but I thought it would be great to celebrate two months blogging with a review! (Wow, two months already? Where is the year going?…).
Today I’ll be reviewing the ARC copy of Dragonslayer by Duncan M. Hamilton I received. Thanks to Tor publishing for approving me to read this one.
What’s it about?
Dragonslayer is the first of the Dragonslayer trilogy. The book is set in a world where dragons are believed to be extinct. The men who once hunted them, The members of the Silver Circle, are now shadows of the famed knights they were previously.
The story follows one such former hero, Guillot. A chevalier fallen into disrepute he spends most of his days at the bottom of a bottle. So when a dragon turns up and begins to terrorise his home and country he finds himself called up to serve as dragonslayer once more. But will he be able to meet the dragon with the skill he was once famed for?
What I liked about this book?
Guillot is set up from the beginning as your unlikely hero. An alcoholic, grieving the loss of his wife and child, he has let himself deteriorate from the famed hero he once was.
While the character concept of the ‘unlikely hero’ is one most readers are familiar with I found Guillott to be one of the most believable I have read in this genre. He genuinely struggles though out the entire quest with his poor suitability to the task he has been set.
“Was it possible for a person to use up all of their talent in their youth, leaving nothing for the remainder of their life?”
Guillot, Dragonslayer – Duncan M. Hamilton
As a reader I found myself, like Gill, unsure of how he would succeed with the quest. This is refreshing, as sometimes with character tropes you know what will happen. This one was convincing. I was second-guessing what I thought I knew about the ‘unlikely hero’ trope.
This book is about more than fantasy, and explores themes of addiction and loyalty to others. The action scenes are really interesting and well-written.
Dragons! Need I say more? Dragons are a great staple in fantasy writing for a reason. They’re a blend of scary, yet awe inspiring. The dragon in this story was really amazing in my opinion.
You have to read this book to know what I’m talking about. Then please contact me so we can talk about it!
What I didn’t like about this book?
Initially I found it difficult to connect to characters in this book due to the events of the first few chapters. That being said, the instability of characters and perspectives does mirror the way the awakening of the dragon throws the world into chaos.
Once I got into the book and figured out which characters the book was focusing on I found this a great read! The ending… Let’s just say I’m looking forward to the next book already!
There wasn’t a whole heap of world building in this book compared to other fantasy novels, which again I don’t know if that’s a bad thing at all. Just something to bear in mind. The world has a lot of medieval characteristics to it, but then there is language and technology that shows the world to be its own making. There’s maps at the start of the book which I think will come in handy as the trilogy progresses.
Recommendation?
If you like reading books about dragons with a medieval vibe and a good serving of magical interest this book is probably for you. I haven’t read much high fantasy, but this book falls into that category.
It’s quite a long book, so be prepared for that. I found I quite enjoyed this book, it just took a bit to establish itself. Once you get into it though, I think most fantasy readers will enjoy it.
Dragonslayer is released on 2nd July 2019. You can pick up a copy online or in bookstores after that. I believe it is going to be an audiobook so if that’s your preferred format you’re in luck! All the covers of this series look amazing, I’ll be checking out the next books in the series that’s for sure.
Let’s connect
I hope you enjoyed todays review! If you want to keep up-to-date with this book check out the author Duncan M. Hamilton’s website here.
I do really like stories with dragons in them – The Luck dragon from The Never ending story by Michael Ende has got to be my favourite.
What is your favourite creature from the fantasy genre? Comment below to let me know!
Steph Huddleston 