Shadow Scale by Rachel Hartman

An Epic Journey

SHADOW SCALE
by Rachel Hartman

(Random House Books for Young Readers; $18.99, Ages 12 and up)

★ Starred Reviews – Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, & Booklist

In this stunning sequel to Hartman’s first book, Seraphina, the author revisits the kingdom of Goredd. In the previous book the court musician, Seraphina, had to come to terms with the stigma surrounding her half dragon, half human ancestry. This book begins with Seraphina’s search for others of her kind, called the ityasaari. Seraphina hopes that gathering all the ityasaari together will help to protect the kingdom from the ongoing dragon-against-dragon wars. To find the other ityasaari, Seraphina must journey through many different kingdoms. However, with every ityasaari found, she comes closer to being controlled by one of her own. Jannoula, a powerful and highly manipulative half dragon, tries again and again to gain control of the minds of all the ityassari. It will take all that Seraphina has learned from her dragon uncle, Orma, and everything that she will learn along the way, to defeat Jannoula. Along the journey Seraphina encounters defeat, loss and hardship. Perhaps the greatest thing Seraphina learns is that set backs seldom mean defeat and that help can arise from the most unlikely places.

Hartman’s world is fascinating, complex and detailed. Spanning four kingdoms, each with its own unique customs, food, and sometimes even religion, Seraphina’s journey is a sprawling quest. Readers of the first book will remember her love interest with Prince Kiggs, which only grows more complex in this second installment. Seraphina’s dragon uncle and mentor, Orma, is mysteriously missing which also adds to the necessity of Seraphina’s search. With this parting of the guide, Seraphina must learn to navigate the world as an adult. Hartman examines the origin and function of religion in society to work for good or for evil closely in this sequel, which makes for a fascinating read. Shadow Scale is a tribute to the power of a talented author to create a fully realized fantasy world full of danger, tradition, sacrifice and love.

– Reviewed by Hilary Taber

Read our review of Seraphina here.