A few months ago, someone posted in the CBR facebook group that Seraphina was on sale for Kindle. I went and bought it simply because it was cheap and the person said it was one of their favorite books. Whoever that person was, thank you, thank you, for introducing me to this fantastic book!
Seraphina takes place in Goredd, a human country in a world where dragons and humans have had a peace treaty for many years. Dragons can take human form, but they have trouble understanding human emotions (Rick Riordan described them as half Vulcan, half Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock, which is spot-on). The fact that dragons can take on human form naturally leads to some cross-species romance, which is strictly verboten (but of course still happens). Seraphina is a court musician who gets caught up in intrigue when Prince Rufus is murdered in a fashion that is suspiciously dragon-like. Together with Lucian Kiggs, the Captain of the Queen’s Guard, Seraphina tries to solve the mystery of his murder, while also wrestling with some pretty serious personal issues.
I don’t want to give anything else away. This wonderful book is full of surprises and so, so original. Even if you’ve read a million fantasy books this one is different. The characters are so entertaining and well-written, and the book is frequently hilarious. This is one of those books that I drew out as long as I could, never reading it for more than a half hour a day, to try and prolong the pleasure. There’s a sequel that I can’t wait to dive into as well. I don’t want to give a single thing about the plot away–just read it. It’s a delight.