Release Day: February 27, 2018
In the medieval kingdom of Goredd, women are expected to be ladies, men are their protectors, and dragons get to be whomever they want. Tess, stubbornly, is a troublemaker. You can't make a scene at your sister's wedding and break a relative's nose with one punch (no matter how pompous he is) and not suffer the consequences. As her family plans to send her to a nunnery, Tess yanks on her boots and sets out on a journey across the Southlands, alone and pretending to be a boy.
Where Tess is headed is a mystery, even to her. So when she runs into an old friend, it's a stroke of luck. This friend is a quigutl--a subspecies of dragon--who gives her both a purpose and protection on the road. But Tess is guarding a troubling secret. Her tumultuous past is a heavy burden to carry, and the memories she's tried to forget threaten to expose her to the world in more ways than one.
So I haven't read Seraphina but this cover grabbed me when I was browsing titles on Netgalley. It's absolutely GORGEOUS and the story is just as stunning and dark and beautiful.
I went into this story completely blind to the world and the characters. I loved following Tess on her journey, especially since we get to have a peek into her life as a child and her relationships with her parents and siblings. She is an incredibly complex and emotional character, and the way that Rachel weaves the issues into Tess's everyday life was nuanced and natural. I never felt like I was being hit with all these issues or moments of the past, despite the fact that once you realize what happened in Tess's past reader's can see how it has been a part of the book from the beginning.
The world is colorful and interesting. I have to admit I was slightly confused by the different people/ species (like dragons and half dragons) and the way they fit, or didn't fit, into the society. By the end I had a good idea but I think that reading the previous two books would have really helped with this in particular. There were also times I thought the plot dragged on a little, and though sometimes it really worked, since Tess is kind of figuring it out as she goes, as I neared the end I found myself trudging along slightly. That being said I thought that the medieval ideas mixed with the old lore of Saints and dragons and magic was unique and enchanting. Seraphina's character was especially fun to experience and helped set up all the complexities of this world.
If you were a fan of the previous two books, I can't help but think you will love this one as well. From what I could tell, Seraphina and Tess are very, very different women, but have shared traits of strength and resilience and intelligence that any fantasy-loving feminist will love. I also think that if you liked Unrooted, you will like this book, and probably this series (if you haven't read it already.
Smart and enchanting, Tess of the Road is a magical story of a woman who doesn't know where she's going but pushes forward anyway, taking each and every obstacle in stride and still finding a way to stay true to herself and the things of her past that has shaped her into the woman she is.
** I received a copy of the book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Random House! **
Rachel was born in Kentucky, but has lived a variety of places including Chicago, Philadelphia, St. Louis, England, and Japan. She has a BA in Comparative Literature, although she insists it should have been a BS because her undergraduate thesis was called “Paradox and Parody in Don Quixoteand the satires of Lucian.” She eschewed graduate school in favour of drawing comic books. She now lives in Vancouver, BC, with her family, their whippet, and a talking frog and salamander (who fight zombies)(really. There are a lot of zombies in the Pacific Northwest).
Happy Reading!
Jasmine
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