The Dragons of Deepwood Fen by Bradley P. Beaulieu – Review

Published: December 5, 2023

Publisher: DAW Books

Series: The Book of the Holt #1

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 498 (Kindle)

My Rating: 4 Stars

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis:
This first book in a new fantasy series from the author of the acclaimed Song of the Shattered Sands series follows an unlikely pair as they expose the secrets at the heart of the mountain city of Ancris.

Lorelei Aurelius is the smartest inquisitor in the mountain city of Ancris. When a mysterious tip leads her to a clandestine meeting between the Church and the hated Red Knives, she uncovers a plot that threatens not only her home but the empire itself.

The trail leads her to Rylan Holbrooke, a notorious thief posing as a dragon singer. Rylan came to Ancris to solve the very same mystery she stumbled onto. Knowing his incarceration could lead to the Red Knives’ achieving their goals, Lorelei makes a fateful she frees him.

Now branded as traitors, the two flee the city on dragonback. In the massive forest known as the Holt, they discover something terrible. The Red Knives are planning to awaken a powerful demigod in the holiest shrine in Ancris, and for some reason the Church is willing to allow it. It forces their return to Ancris, where the unlikely allies must rally the very people who’ve vowed to capture them before it’s too late.

Explore the mountain city of Ancris, where fast-paced adventure and intrigue abound. in this new offering from the author of the acclaimed Song of the Shattered Sands series.

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The Dragons of Deepwood Fen is a complex, multi-POV political fantasy about a group of people trying to free a trapped god while another group is trying to thwart their attempts. You might think that based on the title, the plot would be very dragon-centric but that’s not the case. There are plenty of dragons flying about, but they’re primarily mounts and the source of magical scales rather than a significant plot device at this time. And trust me, this isn’t a bad thing because I love a good political fantasy!

We are first introduced to Rylan Holbrooke, dragonsinger, illegitimate son of the Imperator of the Holt,  and secret supporter of the rebel group the Red Knives. Next we meet Lorelei Aurelius, an inquisitor in the capital city Ancris who gets drawn into this political morass simply by investigating a drug dealer. Then there’s Rhiannon, a teen girl training at a druidic monastery in the Holt who also happens to be the niece of the leaders of the Red Knives. The last main POV is that of Azariah, a highly placed church member who’s working to free the trapped god and he gives some rather fascinating insight into the church’s dark secrets and motivations. As with many fantasy books, they start off on their own separate journeys and eventually begin to come together later in the book.

I spent the first 20% or so of the book just trying to get situated in this very complex and unique fantasy world and it did get a little info-dumpy for my preference. The world has two suns and one produces deadly radiation and auroras – it’s pointed out several times that people out during that time cover up or they have noticeable sun spots or cancers. The Holt is a vast forest filled with trees so gargantuan that whole cities can be built in their branches and this forest is where the Red Knives hide themselves. The magic of the world flows and can pool in certain areas, causing local anomalies like floating rocks and fens. There are even standing stone circles that you could teleport through if you don’t have a dragon to fly upon. There’s a lot and it was cumbersome to wade through until the story began to really pick up and then the whole flow was much more natural. 

This was, overall, a very cool story with a dense plot that does take some investment to get into. I think this series has a ton of potential especially with the rising popularity of dragons in fantasy once again as long as folks realize the dragons aren’t as much characters as they are vehicles. This is a book with dragons rather than about dragons, at least at this juncture. I will definitely pick up the next installment, though I hope I don’t have to wait too long because I can see this requiring a re-read because of how much happened!