A worthy premise (three young people trying to escape their expected societal roles) and Beagle’s lovely writing made for an enjoyable read.

The dragons were fascinating; they seemed nearly to the end to be alien and unknowable.

It made the scarcity of detail about Robert’s unexpected powers all the more irritating.

I found the whimsy heavy-handed…sort of randomly sprinkled in, according to the recipe for high fantasies of the sort described as a “romp,” and which are invariably compared to The Princess Bride.

The female main character was irritating.

Poor thing, she couldn’t help it, what with the beauty and the trembling and the tears and the foolish romantic daydreams. One scene in particular illustrated this. Cerise’s mother describes the expectations and burdens of marriage to a high lord or king, using terms such as: hostess, overseeing kitchens, supervising servants, playmate, lover, mother. All very much the traditional female role, though it’s clear both women in the conversation recognize this as actual hard work. There is never ever a single hint of the burden the princess will eventually carry as the sole heir to her father’s throne. But maybe that won’t matter since she’ll marry that nice dragon master?  In a scene where the dragon-fighting team is facing certain death, the two male characters ponder fate and dream of rest, while the female character considers which of the male leads would be a more satisfactory romantic partner in the aftermath of the battle.

I think I would have been satisfied by the ending a mere decade ago. But no, not in 2024, not when there are more nuanced heroines in other novels, and stories which don’t rely on entrenched gender roles.  It’s interesting to see the rise of the cozy fantasy has gone hand in hand with the rise of queer love stories; diverse casts; valiant (albeit reluctant) heroes of all genders; and older, more experienced characters. More of that, please.