Seraphina

Author(s): Rachel Hartman

Senior Fiction

Lyrical, imaginative, and wholly original, this New York Times bestseller with 8 starred reviews is not to be missed. Rachel Hartman's award-winning debut will have you looking at dragons as you've never imagined them before... In the kingdom of Goredd, dragons and humans live and work side by side - while below the surface, tensions and hostility simmer.   The newest member of the royal court, a uniquely gifted musician named Seraphina, holds a deep secret of her own. One that she guards with all of her being.   When a member of the royal family is brutally murdered, Seraphina is drawn into the investigation alongside the dangerously perceptive--and dashing--Prince Lucien. But as the two uncover a sinister plot to destroy the wavering peace of the kingdom, Seraphina's struggle to protect her secret becomes increasingly difficult... while its discovery could mean her very life. "Will appeal to both fans of Christopher Paolini's Eragon series and Robin McKinley's The Hero and the Crown." --Entertainment Weekly   " A] lush, intricately plotted fantasy." --The Washington Post   "Beautifully written. Some of the most interesting dragons I've read." --Christopher Paolini, New York Times bestselling author of Eragon   From the Hardcover edition.

It is forty years since peace was made between the humans and the dragons, and the two species co-exist uneasily in Goredd, with the dragons taking human form. As the anniversary visit by the dragon leader approaches, the Goreddi prince is found murdered in a way that suggests the work of dragons. Sixteen-year-old Seraphina, a gifted musician, assistant to the court composer, is drawn into an intrigue indiciative of the disintegrating relationship between humans and dragons, aware that she must hide her secret: her father is human but mother was a dragon, and this not only gives her special gifts but also puts her in immense danger, both from the species-hatred of many Goreddis and from the peculiarly peopled landscape of her own mind, scattered with memories left for her by her mother. Hartman’s exploration of difference (both internalised and politicised) is nuanced and immensely sympathetic, and the book’s world is particular and convincing (discovering its characteristics reminds me of the convincing wonder I experienced as a child discovering the characteristics of Ursula Le Guin’s Earthsea). Hartman’s writing frequently achieves flights of great beauty. 


{THOMAS}


Product Information

A gripping new fantasy adventure by an exciting debut author.

Winner 2012 CYBILS Award- Fantasy and Science Fiction YALSA 2013 top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults

Seraphina is a quick-paced read, and while the story does pause at times for introspection, it never stalls or grinds to a halt ... It's a tale well told, the author's writing hitting a real high whenever music is involved. Here, her prose verges on the poetic; beautiful, often haunting, descriptions abound ... In Seraphina, Rachel Hartman has created a likeable, gutsy heroine, one who isn't flawless or afraid to make mistakes. Starburst magazine Hartman proves dragons are still fascinating in this impressive high fantasy ... Equal parts political thriller, murder mystery, bittersweet romance, and coming-of-age story, this is an uncommonly good fantasy centered upon an odd but lovable heroine ... Fantasy readers young and old who appreciate immersion into a rich new culture will not mind the novel's slow build, especially as it takes wing and hurtles toward the stratosphere. This is an exciting new series to watch. Booklist Hartman's splendid prose debut (is) head and talons above the rest Kirkus This is a proper fantasy, with a feisty heroine and some truly splendid dragons...it's a beautifully told story, with some gorgeously surreal imaginative flights on a level with Alice in Wonderland - it has that dreamlike quality of beauty and absurdity...Seraphina is a fast-paced and skilfully wrought fantasy, a beautiful and original take on the dragon myth. Katy Moran 20120324 In her exquisitely written fantasy debut, Rachel Hartman creates a rich, complex and utterly original world. Seraphina's journey to self-acceptance is one readers will remember long after they've turned the final page Cicely Loves Books blog

Rachel Hartman is Canadian and this is her first YA novel. She is also the author of a mini-comic, Amy Unbound.

General Fields

  • : 9780552566001
  • : Penguin Random House
  • : Corgi
  • : 0.305
  • : December 2012
  • : 198mm X 129mm
  • : United Kingdom
  • : March 2013
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : Rachel Hartman
  • : Paperback
  • : 313
  • : English
  • : FIC
  • : 384