As the only child of a dragon slayer chief, Alísa’s purpose should’ve been simple: lead the clan in ridding humankind of the dragon scourge. But while gaining respect from hardened warriors is difficult enough with a vocal stammer, when they learn her empathic powers connect uncontrollably to the dragon enemy, it becomes impossible.
Confidence shattered, Alísa resigns herself to silent service under her father’s apprentice. But when her growing connection reveals one dragon’s capacity for good, she realizes the war isn’t as black-and-white as the slayers teach. Now Alísa faces an impossible choice: stay with her family in comfortable but condemning silence, or follow the dragon claiming to know her true purpose. But if she can’t lead slayers, how on A’dem is she supposed to lead dragons?
Intrigued? Read On:
It has dragons. Of course I read it.
Jokes aside, Songflight is an incredible story of a girl overcoming her faults and realizing her strength. I first found it at the Christian writing conference I attend, Realm Makers. Then I found it again on a list of book reviews I was skimming through. I checked it out on Amazon and happened to find it on sale for 52% off! All signs indicated it was meant to be.
Now Songflight sits snugly on my shelf next to so many other beautiful Christian YA fantasies. However, one thing sets it apart…wait for it…drumroll…It’s about dragons! And not just any dragons, no. These dragons are sentient and have the capacity for good or evil. The best kind.
What I Love:
The prose in Songflight is beautiful and heart-touching, not to mention the frequent songs the main character sings are shockingly beautiful. Let me tell you, writing poetry or songs within a book consistently is difficult, but Michelle M. Bruhn pulls it off with remarkable skill.
And like I stated above, there are DRAGONS. Beautiful dragons, who can be good or evil. Dragons who are redeemed, dragons who follow God, dragons, dragons, dragons. I love stories about dragons, so long as they’re well written, but it gets tiring when the dragons are inherently good, like in Here, There Be Dragons or inherently bad like in The Hobbit.
In each story, this works for the purpose of the novel and the world, but I personally prefer when dragons have the ability to decide whether to follow darkness or light. When they hold the choice and the responsibility for that choice.
Another thing that I adore is the fact that there is no love triangle. Whatsoever.
Not that I particularly mind love triangles, but it gets exhausting after a while. Nearly every YA book with romance has a love triangle. Songflight does not.
Speaking of which, that reminds me of the male characters in Songflight. There are some wonderful men–Karn, Falier, Namor, Graydonn. There are also some not so wonderful characters, but the one that comes to mind first is Kallar.
Kallar is toxic. He is the definition of a toxic man. But rather than let that definition of men reign in Songflight and making another feminist girl power story, Michelle M. Bruhn also introduces characters like Graydonn and Falier, who are kind and gentle and the exact opposite of Kallar while still being true men (or in Graydonn’s case, a true male dragon.) There is no feminist skew, only a sharp contrast between toxic and true men.
And the cherry on top, Songflight subtly digs into questions of faith and trusting God–all without being preachy or hampering the story with pages of theological discussions.
What I Don’t Love:
The first thing that really bugged me was the author’s clear inexperience with horseback riding. If you haven’t ridden horses much or have in fact never ridden a horse, nothing will seem amiss, but if you have, the signs are glaring.
The main character directs her horse while bareback by yanking the mane in the direction she wants the horse to go and kicking the horse’s sides to get her to move faster. This is not how you do it in any way. Tis is, in fact, very rude.
While media often portrays riding this way because it looks more dramatic on screen, most of the communication between rider and horse is more subtle. You speak by way of your thighs and hips. It’s all about body language. You turn your hips in the direction you want to go and gently direct with the reins.
A stubborn horse may requirer a firmer pull on the reins, but this is not the standard. To have a horse speed up, you squeeze with your thighs and knees. You say commands such as easy or whoa before pulling on the reins. You do not just yank them to a stop.
And so ends my crash course on riding. Moving on!
The cover art is beautiful, but it simply does not do the dragons justice or match the correct anatomy of a dragon, nor the size specified in the book. However, neither of these facts detracted from the book in any way.
What does detract is how often the main character breaks down. There are powerful, raw moments where it is fitting for the protagonist to have a meltdown, but they are lessened by the times when she cries unnecessarily.
And lastly, many characters are over-described when first introduced. It seems more like an info-dump that drags the story down, no matter how beautiful the descriptions.
Content Warnings:
A few minor swear words, violence and death.
A couple characters utter swear words, but there are only as many as I can count on one hand. It’s odd, I think this is the first time I’ve read a Christian YA that had any swear words.
Battles take place and a handful of characters die.
Ratings:
Appropriate content: 4.5/5
Writing skill: 4/5
Story construction: 4/5
Ethics: 5/5
Other Information:
Christian: Yes
Point of view: Third person limited
Tense: Past tense
Romance: Yes
Series: Yes
Age suggestion: 13-18
Conclusion:
Songflight is an enchanting book that draws the reader in and wraps them in wonder at a world where dragons and humans clash, where the bad guys and good guys aren’t what they seem, and where a song can save lives. A nonstop page-turner and a book that glows with love and determination, I read it from cover to cover in no time. Songflight deserves 4 out of 5 potatoes.
Until next time, my friends.
–Astor
P.S. Comment below with thoughts or questions. I’m happy to answer and seeing you interact with my post lets me know that you enjoyed it! Don’t forget to subscribe below!
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