We’ve got a fever, and the only prescription is more dragons! In this episode, we discuss BRIGHTER THAN SCALE, SWIFTER THAN FLAME by Neon Yang, a queer, Asian-inspired fantasy novella about a renowned dragon slayer who never takes their armor off in public. Joining us for this discussion of identity, duty, and the power of love is multi-hyphenate guest host Fictional Tiff—musician, queer activist, and leader of the Sacramento Silent Book Club.
Listen as we celebrate the queer-normative worldbuilding and how it allows for exploration of personal identity, Laura draws parallels between the book and blind religious devotion, and Tiff shares why sometimes friendship means saying, “I love you, but you suck.” Plus, find out which of us is hoping for a sequel full of dragon smut.
Goodreads Synopsis
A new Queer, Asian-inspired fantasy novella about a renowned dragon slayer who never takes her armor off in public, Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame reads like She Who Became the Sun meets The Mandalorian, with dragons!
The fiercely independent nation of Quanbao is isolated, reclusive, and something of a mystery to the rest of the world. It is rumored that there, dragons are not feared as is right and proper but instead loved and worshiped.
Yeva is perhaps a strange emissary to these people. Not only because their face has never been seen in public, but because they are a hero born to a birthright that makes them suited for their task—hunting dragons.
And so the dragon hunter must woo Quanbao’s queen—the Lady Sookhee—to understand what secrets she is hiding. A woman reasonably suspicious of Yeva’s intentions, and the imperial might of the throne she represents, Sookhee bears the burden of the safety of her entire people. How can she trust this stranger newly arrived to her court, a weapon forged in blood and fire, to understand what her people need and how best to safeguard their future?
Buy Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame
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The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
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Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz
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Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne
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Out of the Drowning Deep by A.C. Wise
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Outdrawn by Deanna Grey
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We Solve Murders by Richard Osman
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The Black Tides of Heaven by Neon Yang
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The Genesis of Misery by Neon Yang
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Fable for the End of the World by Ava Reid
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Death’s Country by R.M. Romero
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The Ghosts of Rose Hill by R.M. Romero
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The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
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The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta
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The Fellowship of Puzzlemakers by Samuel Burr
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Credits
Ablation Suite by Hayden Folker | https://soundcloud.com/hayden-folker
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Creative Commons / Attribution 3.0 Unported License (CC BY 3.0)
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en_US
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