Review: A War of Wyverns by SF Williamson

A War of Wyverns by S.F. Williamson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC and ALC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

This picks up shortly after the events in [book:A Language of Dragons|211096516], so I don't recommend reading this as a standalone as I feel you really need the background the first book provides.  Viv is in hiding after escaping Bletchley Park, and quietly doing what she can for the rebellion.  Her stills as a translator and polyglot are desired by both the corrupt government and the rebellion to not only understand the true intentions of the dragons but to find and harness the lost power of the Wyverns who have hidden themselves in the Hebrides Islands.

Viv's character really grows in this installment.  She has to face who she is without her dream of being a translator, and what she is worth if she stops translating.  If you've read the first book you know that much of her self worth is tied up in becoming a translator and rising the ranks in the caste system that exists.  When she realizes that translating the language unique to the dragons and wyverns will cause more harm than good, she looks inward to her own values and fights back in her own way.  This causes an uproar in the rebellion and those that are on her side continue to pressure her to translate the dragon language.  I loved the dragons and wyverns in this and how they had their own personalities and didn't require humans at all.  While they enjoyed human interaction, they didn't bond with humans and each dragon had their own personality and opinions.  

I appreciate all of the research that went into this series and that some of this was inspired by true events.  Obviously liberties were taken to turn this into a fantasy series, but I always appreciate an author's note that explains the research process and anything that was changed or any inspirations from true events.  Being as language is the center of the storyline here, the author details a several attempts to eliminate languages and dialects in favor of more "civilized norms" aka English.

I really enjoyed this sequel.  I'm not sure if there is going to be a third book, but the way that this ended I expect that there will be.  If so, I'm looking forward to see where things go next.

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