A Language of Dragons: An Epic Tale of Forbidden Romance, Dragon Languages, and Civil War in an Alternate 1920's London by S.F. WilliamsonMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I was provided an ARC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.
I was drawn to this book after having read several books set at the secretive Bletchley Park over the last several years. This is set in an alternative London/England, and while it takes some elements from the original Bletchley and codebreaking mission of the park, the war they are fighting is very different. This is not a WWI/WWII historical fiction as one might expect based on the setting, it is a completely different alternative history and fantasy story. There is quite a good bit of discussion about politics, corruption, class systems, oppression, and of course there are dragons.
This follows Vivien, a polyglot, fluent in several human languages and several dragon languages. Dragons live along side humans, and a Peace Agreement between the British Prime Minister and the Dragon Queen keep their violent natures at bay, atleast outwardly. Vivien hopes to become a famous dragon translator, and will do anything to ensure her future is secure. All of her plans come to a halt when her parents and uncle are arrested for treason and being members of the rebellion. In an attempt to destroy evidence Vivien concocts her own plans to save hwe family, which only sets off events that she never anticipated. She finds herself assigned to Bletchley Park to learn a new dragon language to pay for her crimes against her country and save her family. She and a group of "criminals" have been assigned to the Park to work on various dragon projects to help the Prime Minister save the country from a devastating war with the dragons, or so they think. The longer they are at Bletchley, the more Vivien and her cohort discover that corruption is all around them, and the language she is learning isn't a mere code to break, but something so much more.
I really enjoyed this! Vivien struggles alot with her self-worth and guilt. She was brought up in a class system where performance is everything and the threat of losing your status is worse than death. She is naive when it comes to trusting people, always expecting they will do what they say and hold up agreements. Betrayal is a huge part of her character arc and the reason she has so much guilt. We see Vivien struggle with doing what she knows is right versus doing what she thinks will either get her ahead or later on protect her loved ones. She then has to come to terms with corruption and what is best for the greater good while still trying to figure out what will save her family. I really enjoyed all of the side characters as well that helped Vivien on her journey to crack the dragon code, and figure out what kind of person she truly wants to be. There is a light bit of romance.
I'm not sure if this is the first book in a new series, but it does read as if there will be more to come. I do feel like this installment had a fulfilling ending, but there is still more story to be told. If there is another book, I can't wait to find out what happens next! This was so unique and I'm completely invested in the characters and the plot. I would really like to see more of Chumana the dragon, I really enjoyed her! I also hope to get to know the side characters better if there is another book.
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