Voyage of the Basilisk: A Memoir by Lady Trent (The Lady Trent Memoirs, 3)

I received a free arc-e-book of The Voyage of the Basilisk from Tor on NetGalley.The Voyage of the Basilisk is the third book in the Memoir by Lady Trent series, the first of which is The Natural History of Dragons. I was happy to find out that it was not the last and that there are two more in the series after this.The VofB starts off slowly, the pacing was a tad too slow for my liking and mired in parts by the naming of all the fictional geography--which instead of clearing things up for me, actually confused and irritated me. It was somewhat unnecessarily especially since I couldn't make the connections to the countries/languages she was referring to and their real world counterparts. I'm guessing this one takes place somewhere in the Pacific Islands and the aggressor is Japan.The book would have been a letdown for me except thankfully the pacing picks up in the second half of the book and some exciting action finally starts to happen. Isabella really is an amazing character. She's a scientist with a curiosity of a cat that more often gets her into dangerous situations, and in trouble with foreign governments. In this one, she's actually forced to marry another woman in order to avoid offending her host who believe she's dragon-spirited and is neither man and woman. Since she is female who dresses and acts more like a man, she is then perceived as a man, and therefore must marry a woman to anchor her to this world. This to me, really hilarious. I actually wish she went a little more into this, but alas, there was none.There was some really cool dragon riding, escaping hostile army men via balloons, and diving into a heat of battle.I'm also dying to find out who Isabella married. I hope it's Suhail!

If you're looking for a fast-paced, fun, interesting adventure story, these books are the way to go. I can't say how refreshing these novels are. They're a perfect combination of period-piece, dragon fantasy, and feminism. Brennan's background as an anthropologist/folklorist definitely shines through as she takes her characters around a globe not altogether unlike ours, in a time/political period similar to the British imperialist era. The main character has an admirable sense of curiosity and drive, and works hard to achieve her dreams against many odds. In her travels it becomes clear that every culture has some sort of special cultural relationship with dragons (actually similar to our own world!), and so in order to study dragons she must learn to navigate the local culture and customs wherever she is. And, being a woman, she learns, with some frustration, that the half of the local culture that she is able to access is the feminine side, making for an interesting narrative and perspective. As a result, these dragon books have just as much to do with exploring cultures, kinship structures, gender roles, and religions as they do with illustrating dragons in this world. Additionally, unlike so many authors of female protagonist fantasy novels, Brennan doesn't waste time talking about the main character's every love interest. There's definitely love in the book - in its many variations - but the more interesting parts of the story (like dragons, adventure, & politics!) aren't thrown aside to make room for the same old romance story we've all read a thousand times. It's so refreshing! The result is a fun, interesting, unique read that I'd recommend to anyone!

This book is part of a trilogy which I will review in entirety since its hard to read just one. The series is written as a fictional autobiography of a naturalist who ventures to remote corners of the planet to study dragons. Set in a period that resembles the Victorian era, Lady Trent travels by sailing ship or on horse back and communicates by letter. The conceit brilliantly incorporates fantasy, history, scientific method and cultural anthropology. In each book the author embarks on an adventure searching out the elusive creatures in the spirit of Darwin on the Beagle. Lady Trent is not the typical fiction hero. For example, she must adhere to the social mores of her time where a woman wearing pants, much less a woman in the jungle wearing pants, is considered scandalous. A mix of Jane Goodall, Margaret Mead and Shirley Temple, the author's quests for knowledge lands her in tangles that test an incredible range of skills. An admirable well-rounded role model, she negotiates diplomatic snafus, overcomes gender discrimination, and confronts wild beasts in the jungle with tact, realism, intellect and a unique spirit of adventure. Whether shipwrecked on a remote island or caught in a war between nations, Lady Trent approaches every obstacle from the scientific perspective of gathering data and testing theories. If there is one criticism, it is that her detailed observations often weighs down the narrative but imagination ultimately triumphs over lengthy descriptions. The inventive story-line and well crafted characters make for a entertaining and informative read.

I’ve been anticipation reading Voyage of the Basilisk for some time now. I was utterly in love with both its predecessors and have been saving this for an occasion where I need a serious reminder of why I love reading, and it has not disappointed.This series baffles me though, because I can’t think of another series that could construct its narrative so strangely and still be a success. You see, all the ‘plot’ that is to say anything with an over arching impact on the series, setting the impact of general enjoyment aside for the moment, is delegated to a maximum of the last 10% of the book in each novel of the series so far.This is not a criticism, more something that simply amazes me, as I imagine if another less skilled writer attempted it the result would be, to describe it charitably, really bloody irritating. The narrative decision is even more evident in The Voyage of the Basilisk in particular as Isabella (Lady Trent) is, surprise surprise, on a voyage and the narrative is given in a pocket of interest style.But it is impossible to dislike this book, no matter what you consider most important in a narrative, that is to say; style, world building, character development, sheer excitement in the delivery of set pieces.The style, for returning fans, is nothing new; it is the continuation of the memoirs as told from the first-hand perspective of celebrated dragon naturalist Isabella Camhurst.World building is a more general but larger glossary in Voyage, as this time round Isabella isn’t staying in one place, and I absolutely loved all the travel. Honestly, if Brennan released a work devoted entirely to the modern history of Lady Trent’s world as an audio book exclusive recited by the world’s most boring man I’d still buy it.As for the set pieces, Isabella comes across they are fantastic, as I’ve said, very few attribute anything to the over arching plot; if you consider that to be the politics of what’s happening in this series. However if you consider the plot to be ‘have the best time you possibly can’ then yes, every single event contributes heartily. I won’t spoil because I’m going to recommend you read this yourself, but if treacherous sea voyages, flying machines and dragon riding appeal to you (and if they don’t I’m going to assume you’re the person narrating the audio exclusive I mentioned above), then you’ll thoroughly enjoy this.Then lastly there is the Lady Trent herself, returning readers, be assured she hasn’t wavered in her fabulousness, for new comers let me simply say that Isabella is an irresistible character, she’s the epitome of pragmatism, until it comes to her intellectual obsession with Dragon’s, at which point you might call her mad. As an example; she nearly drowns, and her immediate reaction is to curse that it caused her to miss a dragon sighting.So to returning readers, yes, the adventure is worth continuing. To newcomers, go back and read A Natural History of Dragons, the first in this series, not because you won’t understand, I’m pretty sure you could start at Voyage if you were so inclined. But why would you want to spoil this series for yourself when everything about it has been enthralling and of nothing but the highest quality, so you might as well enjoy the lot?

Brennan's back on form with the third instalment of Isabella's adventures as she travels the world seeking new discoveries about dragon-kind. "The Tropic Of Serpents" was a disappointment for me, with a lot of the names and the state politics utterly boring me. There's the usual plethora of unusual names in this book too (with Hawaii being a particular inspiration) but the story never gets bogged down this time around.I think it helps that Isabella visits so many places this time, and sees so many different creatures (not all of them dragons). Her formal Victorian narration is a delight to read as usual (particularly when Isabella/Brennan's dry humour is applied), and there's a lovely atmosphere of scientific/archaeological mystery. The climax is, as it was in the previous book, centred around state politics and hostilities again, but this time Isabella ends up in the thick of it and doesn't relate it in a dull, concluded way which was the real failing of "The Tropic Of Serpents".I eagerly await the next instalment! (And the cover - though it's hard to imagine what could be more beautiful than this one)

This was an enjoyable opening book. Basically set in pseduo Victorian England, following a young woman who is stifled by the strictures society has placed on her gender. She has a strong desire to be an academic, specifically regarding dragons, however that is viewed as un-lady like. Through a series of events she finds herself on an expedition which involves various hi-jinks and adventures (and of course dragons). Good characterization, however so far read 3 of the series and can apply the above description to all 3 so it's a bit samey

This is the third in the series, and Isabella’s getting more confident in her role as a dragon-natural-historian, and in her knowledge. That said, she still manages to get into almost endless scrapes, usually involving dragons. This volume is a mix of tropical islands, castaways, family arguments and general chaos, and it’s almost as much fun as the first two! I admit it felt almost too brief, despite being the same length as the first two volumes – I would like to read her dispatches back at the time, as well as the memoirs in this book. But hey ho! A fun, amusing continuation of the series, and I’m definitely picking up the next one!

Very good book. Finished the book in three days and immediately looked up when the next one comes out. I love the scientific take on a fantasy world.A realistic world with dragons but no magic is a genuinely unique idea I've never come across, and its executed brilliantly.