Lindskold, Jane: Brother to Dragons, Companion to Owls
Brother to Dragons, Companion to Owls
Writer: Jane Lindskold
Genre: Science Fiction/Cyberpunk/Urban Fantasy
Pages: 287
Slowly but surely, I'm catching up on my reading. This was my May/June dare from emerald_ibis. Lindskold is not a writer I remembering hearing about (though after looking at her website, I can't help but wonder if I know the photographer of those snapshots personally), so I've never been curious about her work. However, I'm always up for new authors, and this was was certainly enjoyable.
According to the author's website, this was her first book, though not her first published, from what I can gather. And after reading it, it makes sense that it is, indeed, a first book. And I don't mean that in a bad way. It feels more experimental, not quite as grounded as I'd like, and uses my favorite POV/verb tense ever: first person, present tense.
None of this is really a bad thing. My only real complaints stem from the transitions from the characters thinking about doing something and actually doing it. Sometimes, the thread of logic escapes me, and it's not helped by the novel's narrator: a woman named Sarah, who can think quite clearly, but can only speak in quotes. That's right, quotes: biblical, Shakespearean, literary, commercial: Sarah uses these quotes to communicate with those around her, and only her closest friends can gather her true meaning. But that's not all that's unique about Sarah: she hears voices coming from inanimate objects, such as her pet two-headed rubber dragon: Betwixt and Between.
What starts out as a story about a girl (I say girl, despite the fact the reader knows Sarah's thirty) in a mental ward (thus casting some element of disbelief as to the ability of her two-headed dragon to really speak) turns into a girl whose initiated into an underground life known as the Jungle (obvious references here to The Jungle Book) who becomes one of the leader's favorite lovers, and that turns into a story about a girl who actually has a hidden past, where she's wanted by the covert research agency because of her talents, which turn out not to be so crazy after all.
Despite the twists and turns of the plot, this is actually a smooth, easy read. There are times the language just sings off the page, and even though I couldn't grasp all of Sarah's dialogue (again, I wish I were better read in literature than I am), I certainly found myself sympathetic. And Betwixt and Between cracked me up on more than one occasion. I loved the fact they needed to be fed on a regular basis, their quirky, individual personalities, and how that even though they knew the truth of Sarah's past and her abilities, their reticence in telling her doesn't stem from manipulation on the author's part: the dragons are truly trying to protect her, and for that matter, they've got their own grieving to do.
And despite the urban fantasy feel of this book, make no mistake, it's science fiction. Maybe it's not as hard a science fiction as some readers would like, but it's easy to understand and even has a cyberpunk flavor to it. And while I never felt a great degree of tension coming from the text (such is the problem of present tense, everything tends to have the same weight to it, if one isn't careful), I was pleased with the twist of Sarah's family history, and you'll know what I mean when you reach that point.
It's an enjoyable book, a smooth read, and like I said, deceptively science fiction. Anyone with a literature background will certainly enjoy this: hell, you may get more out of it than I did. :) It's an ambitious little novel and it's not perfect, but the language makes it a joy to read.
Next up: The Orphan's Tales: In the Night Garden by Catherynne Valente
And maybe, if I finish writing my own book before finishing the Valente, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling