Fantasy Novella Review: Of Dragons, Feasts and Murders by Aliette de Bodard

Disclaimer:  This review is based upon a prerelease eARC provided by the author in exchange for a review in advance of the novella's July 7 release date.  I give my word it did not affect my review in any way.

Of Dragons, Feasts and Murders is an upcoming novella from Aliette de Bodard, one of my favorite SF/F authors out there today.  It's also a stand alone novella featuring characters from her "Dominion of the Fallen" universe, a world featuring fallen angels, Viet immortals and dragon (and other) spirits in 19th century Paris.  It's an utterly fantastic universe and I strongly advice you to pick up the trilogy, but this novella is meant to stand without prior foreknowledge, focusing upon two characters from it -  the dragon prince Thuan and the fallen Asmodeus - as they get involved in a murder mystery/ political conspiracy story in the Dragon Kingdom underneath the Senne.  The result is really fun and enjoyable especially given the contrast between our two main characters, and deals quite well and interestingly with themes of power and rooting out corruption.

NOTE:  This novella takes place after de Bodard's "Dominion of the Fallen" trilogy, chronologically and contains major spoilers for Book 2 of the series (The House of Binding Thorns) in its premise.  There's no way to talk about this novella while avoiding those spoilers - since the characters involved are the main characters here, so be forewarned.  That said, I don't think the spoiler would affect your enjoyment of The House of Binding Thorns much, as that tremendous book can stand on its own even with you knowing that part of its ending.


Quick Plot Summary:  Asmodeus and Thuan are back in the Dragon Kingdom - and for once, it's not for any diplomatic or business reasons, but instead to celebrate Tet (the Lunar New Year).  Unfortunately, both are on edge: Thuan because the citadel was home to a lot of unhappy memories of political maneuvering he didn't care for and Asmodeus because he's bored and has no interest in festivities and wouldn't be there if not for Thuan.

So naturally, the two find themselves quickly at the scene of a dead - and obviously murdered - body.  Soon Thuan and Asmodeus are on the hunt for the killer - Thuan for justice, Asmodeus for someone to stab - and find that not everything is all right in the Dragon Kingdom......

Thoughts:  Asmodeus and Thuan are probably my favorite pair of characters in the Dominions of the Fallen universe and quite a hilarious couple: Asmodeus, the sadistic cynical fallen angel who takes pleasure in inflicting pain upon others, but always protects his own people and does have his own pointed sense of justice underneath it all; and Thuan, the bookish idealistic Dragon prince who wishes everything could be better and struggles with the practical politics of it all.  Throw them both into a murder mystery that was committed to protect a political conspiracy, and well, you have the recipe for a really fun novella for sure.

And this novella IS very fun - especially with the interactions between the main duo and between them and Thuan's bloodthirsty grandmother - but it's more than that.  It uses its runtime to again speak about the ideas of justice and power, particularly at a time when power has shifted to the hands of someone who hopes to make things better.  Who should have access to power and when one gets it, what should one do with those who had previously been abusing similar powers?  The story makes a very interesting argument about this - particularly against incremental change and forgiveness of the past in the name of going forward - with some quotes that I will turn back to repeatedly in regards to our own world.  All in a story that's still really fun!

In short, it's a de Bodard story, rich in themes while tremendously fun at the same time.  You should be reading her - not just this novella, but all of her work.  But you can totally start here.