(no subject)
May. 30th, 2016 09:19 pmBarbara Hambly's Dragonsbane was one of the first books I ever put on my Kindle but I only got round to reading it last week, I don't know why, it just felt like the stars had aligned.
Dragonsbane, definitely written in the eighties, is a fairly intentional deconstruction of Heroic Dragonslaying Tropes, ft. as protagonist Jenny Waynest, a middle-aged witch who is constantly having Relatable Struggles Between Her Career and Her Family, which is to say between having enough study time tocomplete her dissertation become truly excellent at magic and the distractions of her boyfriend and their two kids. Aforementioned boyfriend, John Aversin, happens to be the lord of a fairly impoverished region and also the only living person to have ever slain a dragon (with significant assist from Jenny.)
This becomes relevant when a naive baby knight named Gareth comes riding up demanding help to slay a dragon.
NAIVE BABY KNIGHT GARETH: I am here to request the aid of the GREATEST hero in ALL THE LAND --
JOHN: Yes sorry pardon all the mud etc. but we are a very small holding here and I am busy with the pigs?
JENNY: Hey babe, long time no see, how are the kids?
JOHN: Oh, fine, fine, hope your months alone studying witchcraft in the woods went well?
NAIVE BABY KNIGHT GARETH: Pigs? Witches? Illegitimate children?
JENNY: Kiddo do you maybe need a moment to go off and clutch your pearls --
NAIVE BABY KNIGHT GARETH: YES, WITCH HARLOT, YES I DO.
Anyway, although John is reluctant to leave the pigs etc. to go kill somebody else's dragon, baby knight Gareth promises gratitude and significant financial aid from the king for the impoverished region if the quest is completed, so Jenny & John & naive baby knight Gareth ride off a-questing!
The first approximate third of the book after this is basically just The Road Trip That Shattered The Last Of Poor Baby Gareth's Illusions. However it soon turns out that what is ACTUALLY plaguing the land is the king's evil sorceress mistress who is evil, very evil, one hundred percent evil, you never can trust the pretty ones (my one complaint with the book) and the dragon is just sort of a byproduct to this, although still a byproduct that needs to be sorted out one way or another.
But, I mean, the whole political/magical plot is kind of all just a narrative excuse to force Jenny to resolve the central question of her life anyway -- whether to pursue various opportunities at power & magical knowledge & freedom (including ( dragon-y spoilers )) or whether she can continue with the life she's currently leading, constantly torn between her personal potential and the needs of the people who love her, whom she loves as well, but also can't help but resent.
Which: it sucks that this is a binary choice, but I can't say the dilemma isn't real. The choice is never easy and the answer is never obvious, and I spent most of the book unsure myself what I wanted Jenny to do, which really is the biggest mark of success for this book.
A sidenote: I am told this book has sequels that should NEVER, EVER BE READ. So I am not going to read them, but the people who have read them and explicitly told me not to read them (I'm looking at you,![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rachelmanija and coffeeandink) could maybe make it easier for me by satisfying my horrible curiosity in detailed ROT13 or something in comments. >.>
Dragonsbane, definitely written in the eighties, is a fairly intentional deconstruction of Heroic Dragonslaying Tropes, ft. as protagonist Jenny Waynest, a middle-aged witch who is constantly having Relatable Struggles Between Her Career and Her Family, which is to say between having enough study time to
This becomes relevant when a naive baby knight named Gareth comes riding up demanding help to slay a dragon.
NAIVE BABY KNIGHT GARETH: I am here to request the aid of the GREATEST hero in ALL THE LAND --
JOHN: Yes sorry pardon all the mud etc. but we are a very small holding here and I am busy with the pigs?
JENNY: Hey babe, long time no see, how are the kids?
JOHN: Oh, fine, fine, hope your months alone studying witchcraft in the woods went well?
NAIVE BABY KNIGHT GARETH: Pigs? Witches? Illegitimate children?
JENNY: Kiddo do you maybe need a moment to go off and clutch your pearls --
NAIVE BABY KNIGHT GARETH: YES, WITCH HARLOT, YES I DO.
Anyway, although John is reluctant to leave the pigs etc. to go kill somebody else's dragon, baby knight Gareth promises gratitude and significant financial aid from the king for the impoverished region if the quest is completed, so Jenny & John & naive baby knight Gareth ride off a-questing!
The first approximate third of the book after this is basically just The Road Trip That Shattered The Last Of Poor Baby Gareth's Illusions. However it soon turns out that what is ACTUALLY plaguing the land is the king's evil sorceress mistress who is evil, very evil, one hundred percent evil, you never can trust the pretty ones (my one complaint with the book) and the dragon is just sort of a byproduct to this, although still a byproduct that needs to be sorted out one way or another.
But, I mean, the whole political/magical plot is kind of all just a narrative excuse to force Jenny to resolve the central question of her life anyway -- whether to pursue various opportunities at power & magical knowledge & freedom (including ( dragon-y spoilers )) or whether she can continue with the life she's currently leading, constantly torn between her personal potential and the needs of the people who love her, whom she loves as well, but also can't help but resent.
Which: it sucks that this is a binary choice, but I can't say the dilemma isn't real. The choice is never easy and the answer is never obvious, and I spent most of the book unsure myself what I wanted Jenny to do, which really is the biggest mark of success for this book.
A sidenote: I am told this book has sequels that should NEVER, EVER BE READ. So I am not going to read them, but the people who have read them and explicitly told me not to read them (I'm looking at you,
rachelmanija and coffeeandink) could maybe make it easier for me by satisfying my horrible curiosity in detailed ROT13 or something in comments. >.>
