What do I often say I want in a book? I say I want a nice standalone fantasy novel. But when I read a standalone fantasy novel that I enjoy, I find myself thinking, “No wait! I want more time with these specific characters in this world.” I guess you have to be careful what you wish for because you might just get it.
Now that I’ve finished The Sky on Fire by Jenn Lyons, I’m sitting here wanting more.
For this review, I also want to note that this book is being marketed as a standalone. I believe the first line of the write-up I read about it even called it a standalone (and you bet I put a hold on it at the library so fast). However, I’m rooting for more. It feels like the door is left open at the end, and while it works as its own story, I’m just a greedy reader who wants more.
The Sky on Fire is set in a world where dragons coexist with humans, with the dragons relying on the humans to help prevent themselves from going “rampant” and losing control. The world features characters who live high up in the mountains as well as those in the jungles of The Deep. Our lead character, Anahrod, originally hails from the mountains but, through a series of misadventures (a huge understatement, as I’m trying to be vague), has made her way to The Deep.
When we meet her, she’s on the run from one of The Deep’s warlords and receives an “assist” from a group of adventurers. While they’re happy to lend a hand, it’s only because they need Anahrod alive—she’s a key part of their plan to steal from a dragon’s horde. This dragon is the current leader of the dragons and is deeply tied to Anahrod’s backstory, operating under the belief that she is dead.
Look, if a standalone fantasy novel hadn’t hooked me, the combination of dragons and a heist certainly would have.
I really liked this book; it packed a lot of information and world-building into the story without feeling strained. It also told a fun tale about breaking into a mad dragon’s vault to steal its treasures. Like any good heist story, there’s plenty of build-up to the actual event, and a lot of the worldbuilding is woven into that.
To be honest, I don’t typically read fantasy for the intricacies of magic systems, but this one made sense to me on a surface level. I embraced it and moved on. I’m not sure if it would hold up for someone more invested in that aspect, but honestly, I was here for the dragons.
And oh, there are dragons! I loved this take on them; they have their society but rely on humans to some degree. Each dragon hoards something and has a council, and occasionally, they go a little nutty and embark on destruction sprees. To help manage this, they choose humans to act as their riders, though they don’t always treat them nicely.
At the end of the book, in the acknowledgments, the author thanks Anne McCaffrey and George R. R. Martin, stating that without them, the book wouldn’t exist. It was at that moment I wondered if perhaps my early love for Pern influenced my enjoyment of this story. While these are not the Pern dragons, I feel my long-ago affection for that world shaped how I approached this book.
There is an expansive cast of characters, and in any novel with so many people, some of the supporting characters are fleshed out more than others, while some serve as familiar tropes (the angry one, the quiet but deadly one, the smart one). I didn’t mind this, but the vagueness of some characters’ backstories and the few hints dropped made me feel, even before the end, that this book might not truly stand alone. Additionally, there are a few things mentioned about one character that lack follow-up or explanation, particularly since this aspect is quite outside the established norms of the world. So yes, I am hoping we revisit this universe and, specifically, these characters. Specifically some of these characters. There is a supporting character whom I just want to know so much more about!
My few quibbles with the book stem from that random bit of character information and some last-minute lore that made me think, “There aren’t enough pages left for this to feel fully explored!” There was also a somewhat spicy scene that made sense for the characters involved, given what we knew about them, but felt oddly placed.
However, these are minor nitpicks, and I’m rating this book five stars—All the stars! I’m now off to check out the author’s five-book fantasy series because this was such a treat.
