Bookworm Speaks!- Wings of Fire by Tui T. Sutherland

Wings of Fire: The Dragonet Prophecy by Tui T. Sutherland

Dragons...

It is said that ancient peoples conceptualized these magnificent creatures from the bones of the dinosaurs as they moved from here to there. Ever since that time long since passed into antiquity, Dragon's have captured the imagination of a myriad of cultures around the globe both East and West. In some stories they are portrayed as intelligent warriors. In others, little better than a mindless monster. Almost universally, though, they are portrayed as mighty. 

Wings on Fire is a book about Dragons

The story takes place on continent that as far as has been showcased, is populated entirely by dragons, there are many different kingdoms (or queendoms) based of different breeds of dragons. Skywings, Mudwings,  Nightwings and others

Bookworm has a confession: Ever since the release of the Bionicle series of Lego toys I have been a complete sucker for "element" mythology. The Four elements: Earth, Fire, Air and Water, I eat it all up. 

So when looking at this book and realizing that the dragon kingdoms were based off of elemental motif's, that pretty much sold it for me. Each particular tribe has certain abilities based on their elements. The Rainwings can change color and the dragons of the sea can breathe underwater. I love these things. 

A war has been raging among the dragon queens for many years. A rogue group called the Talon’s of Peace are attempting to fulfill a prophecy that will end the war. Stealing eggs from the various tribes named in the prophecy, they raise the hatchlings under a mountain in hopes that will end the war. 

At first glance the story has some very familiar motif’s. Ancient Prophecy, Young Heroes to Save the world. Been There Done That! But as we get further into the story we see that the Talon’s of Peace are not what they seem and in fact may be considered the initial villains of the story. There is a very real sense that the main characters are not being trained merely used to fulfill the expectations of others. Even when the dragonets escape, Clay and the others continuously never seem to get a break and are continuously swept away by the wills of other dragons, Queen Scarlet in particular, who is the main villain of the story, we’ll get to her later. 

The story is surprisingly full of action packed scenes. While it never gets too explicit, the author deserves kudos for writing a children’s book, with real combat in which the character’s die. 

No spoilers but later in the book, we discover a disturbing truth about one of the characters and the very nature of the prophecy and the war. This alone makes me want to read the sequels.

The Characters:  

Before I start with them, it should be stated that naming the dragon's after natural stuff (Reed, Glacier, Osprey, Tsunami) is kind of cool at first but it can seem due to laziness on the part of the author. 

The protagonist dragon is named Clay. Clay is not that unique as far as characterization goes but he is very appealing in his innocence and his weaknesses (although it can get a little tiresome at some points, dude suck it up!!) And his loyalty and love to his friends feels authentic. Clay is portrayed as being naturally gentle. This is a bit of a surprise as it seems Clay is the dragon portrayed on the cover and he looks quite fierce. There is a great deal of humanity in a book that doesn’t contain any humans (so far) that really adds strength to the narrative and makes the character’s growth a very real feeling. 

Unfortunately, the multitude of characters in the narrative showcases one of the book’s flaws. There are so many characters in the seen it is sometimes hard to keep track of whom is speaking and to whom. If you focus, the reader can pull it off, although this may discourage some readers. Hopefully the later volumes will refine the dialogue. 

Then there is the villain, Queen Scarlet. While I am glad that the main villain for the story is a woman, or a female at least, we need more of those, the fact is that there isn’t much to her. 

As I have gotten older, my tastes have matured and I am losing my taste for the “general villain” trope that appears so often in creative media. The  Queen Scarlet, at least at this appearance, is just an generic, run-of-the-mill jerk (whom I desperately want to see plugged), and not much else. A more developed villain would have been more preferable. 

What must be taken into account is that this a book written primarily for children, that is where I bought it, so a more simplistic view of the world is to be expected. There is not of grey in the black and white viewpoint of a child. 

The weaknesses of the villain is subverted by the character of Peril. At first glance she seems as one dimensional as Scarlet, just a typical badass, but as Clay befriends her we see a deeper look into the female dragon and how she may be as much a victim of Queen Scarlet, and new details about their pasts may greatly influenced the future of the story. 

Final Verdict: 

While it may have many of the weaknesses found in children’s literature, Wings on Fire is an enjoyable and action packed tome with a surprising about of humanity for a book with no humans it, that is sure to make any  fantasy finish feeling satisfied. 

4 out 5 stars.