This one has been sitting on my shelf for a while. I got it as a gift and I’m only just getting around to reading it because of course I am. But I finished it, and in a day no less!
The story follows the adventures of Jenifer Strange, a girl who is two weeks away from turning sixteen1 who has been running an organization that sends wizards out for odd jobs in a world where magic is dying and technology is taking over. When one of them gets a premonition that the last dragon is going to die, she goes out to get to the bottom of it and finds out she was named 400 years ago as the last dragonslayer.
It’s a really fun and quick read.2 Jennifer is a fun protagonist to follow and, while she reads a lot more mature than fifteen going on sixteen, she does still feel very young at times. She holds her morals high and it’s nice to see her tempted without compromising them in the end. It’s also nice to see them work against her and to watch her figure out her way out of situations that she got into because of them or in spite of them.
It’s also very British. The world building is done very matter-of-factly. This is a universe with dragons of course and yes the dragonslayer is driving a Rolls Royce, moving on. If that bothers you, this might not be your thing, but I found it a good thing to keep the pacing of the story moving.
Overall, I really liked it. It was a good read, light, and it certainly didn’t drag. The world is a lot of fun and, while I wish there were more with the wizards for hire business and less with the politics, I would highly recommend checking it out.