I generally struggle with LOVING novellas, and I think this suffered from being predictable, especially for the tropes mentioned in this book. I enjoyed my time but I don't think this book did anything special.

Enjoyed this. Good characters, world-building, and the story was engaging throughout. A bit slow to get going, perhaps, but ultimately a satisfying read.

I enjoy how Yang is able to give story, character growth, conflict, and romance in short works. Brighter than Scale is a good read. Yeva is a renowned dragon hunter, yet has never felt as if she fits in the world that has become all she knows.

A mission for her greedy emperor will change that as she meets a ruler and her council with such a devoted bond that she begins questioning how she has been existing.

I like that Yang is able to craft this story where they balance narrative and character so that the reader always has an interest in what happens next.

Experiencing this on audiobook was the way to go! I really enjoyed this short tale about a dragon slayer and her dragon queen. My main complaint is that it isn't longer - I would've loved diving into these characters more. However, Yang does a great job of fleshing out Yeva's character and creating a compelling plot for such a short tale.

Thank you, NetGalley, and the publisher for the ARC. This is my honest review.

I had been looking forward to this book for months and it did not disappoint. I usually don't read a lot of novellas because I always want more world building, more time with the characters, etc. However, this one was perfect.

The story is told like a recounted myth or fairy tail, and the pace is rather quick. Yet, I still feel like we get a lot of things you don't normally get from third person pov or novella.

The main character, Yeva, is shipped away when she's just 13 to her father's homeland because she possesses magic that runs in her family's bloodline. There she is trained to be a faceless soldier, a dragon hunter. Her young cousin befriends her, and they grow up together under her cold (and abusive) uncle's care. However, as Yeva reaches adulthood, she is sent off to a neighboring land to investigate the possibility of dragons. Her cousin has now replaced her uncle as the arbiter of her assignments. In this new land, bordering the countryside where she was born, Yeva learns to find herself again. She grows with as much character development as you would find in a longer novel, and yet it doesn't feel rushed.

I thought the romance was endearing, the way Yeva changes but also retains her strength is so beautiful to read. And overall, the way she finds her purpose, the one she actually wants for herself, not what she has been told.

This is certainly a powerful little book! Following along with Yeva as she becomes a mythic knight sent on a strange mission, I was immediately hooked by the writing style. Each time I sat down to read it, I felt totally enveloped in the world and like I was just a moment away from sinking right into the story itself. This is some of the most beautiful prose I have read in a while, and the imagery feels so vivid on the page.

While the imagery and vibes are so wondrous, the characters feel a bit one dimensional. From the very beginnings of this, you can see where the arc is going, and while predictability is not necessarily a bad thing on its own, there wasn’t quite the character exploration needed to offset it. I wanted it to be just a bit longer, a bit deeper, to really get into the state that Yeva and Lady Sookhee are in. They seem to get lost behind the descriptive language at some points, and I wanted more.

All in all, I quite enjoyed it and will definitely be looking into other works by the author!

What the heck, this was fantastic. Though short, the novella is able to really capture the essence of the world vividly. I loved the queer-normative society and the introspections on finding belonging. There are such good moments where you see the MC grappling with duty and what it means to find love. Gah, this was just so fantastic. My only complaint is that it isn't longer, because I want moreeeeeee.

After Yeva kills her first dragon, she is sent to the capital of the Empire to train as a guildknight. Her foreignness causes her to hide behind physical and metaphorical armor. Eventually, the Emperor commands her to a nearby country with rumors of dragons. But the rumors, the Queen, and the country itself, are not what they seem.

Yang’s world building always captivates me. In sparse language, they have created a sweeping world of empires. And the queer normative cultures they create in their books are amazing and lovely.

This is a lovely, fast tale of the difficulties of finding where one belongs, discovering what duty really means and what one is willing to sacrifice, and finding love.

Many thanks to both NetGalley and Tor Publishing for the opportunity to review this arc.

Yang tells a fascinating story in less than 200 pages about a lady knight that gives Mandalorian vibes and the enigmatic girl-king she becomes entangled with. As an avid novella reader, I find that my favorites are the ones that are character-driven, and can tell a complete story with only one or two well-written characters. This story is carried by Yeva, our always-masked protagonist, and I mean that in the best way. By the time I reached the end I felt as if I knew Yeva like a childhood friend, whom I love and support and want to see happy. I was invited along on her journey, and even though in some ways we parted before seeing the end, I was still satisfied with the time we spent together.

A very enjoyable fantasy novella with a sweet sapphic romance featuring a very cool but kinda rigid lady knight main character and a sickly girl-king who may or may not be hiding something. Plus, dragons.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for an eARC!

It’s a beautiful book. I only wish it was longer. I got through it in a single afternoon. It wouldn’t work as well if it dragged out, but I do wish there was somehow a little more of it. A good not-entirely-happy ending is my favorite, and they do an excellent job of dancing the line between depressing end and just hopeful enough, I would have liked a little more character development, particularly if the girl-king, but her mysteriousness is part of the plot, so I’ll forgive it. All in all a very meditative and fulfilling novel, that encourages me to read some of the author’s other work.

Neon Yang's Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame is a an epic fantasy novella that tells the story of a dragon-slaying knight who falls for the queen of a kingdom that worships dragons. This book was one of my most anticipated releases of 2025 and it certainly lived up to my expectations! I loved the writing style and how it was told like a fairy tale. I also loved all of the world building and the characters of both Yeva and Sookhee. I definitely recommend this book!

I love a book that is exactly what it says on the tin. This is a love story about a badass dragonslayer lady with a sword falling in love with another lady. Does that sound fun to you? Great, you’re probably already out the door trying to get your copy. If not, that's fine, there’s lots of books out there.

This is a very tight and well paced novella, and it does not overstay its welcome. It does not need to be any longer, and it’ll be great company for an afternoon. My one complaint is that the main character is a little too slow to put some plot pieces together--I wanted to smack her upside the head a little bit when she failed to realize what was right under her nose. But because it’s a novella this passes very quickly.

Recommended for people who can’t wait for the new Alix Harrow IYKYK, people who loved The Protector of the Small series but are all grown up now, and fans of the Burning Kingdoms Trilogy.

A beautifully written, character driven story following Yeva, a dragon hunter who is struggling with her identity. I could've read 200 more pages of this story!

Thank you to NetGalley and Tordotcom for letting me read an e-ARC of Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame by Neon Yang!

Queer lady-knight dragon slayer? I’m so here for it! This novella packs a lot of story in a small punch. Yeva has been trained to be a dragon hunter and quickly rises through the guild’s ranks to become one of the best (and most mysterious) dragon slayers in their nation. When she’s sent on an assignment to a neighboring nation as an emissary, she doesn’t expect to be there long and she certainly doesn’t expect part of her duties to involve winning over the girl-king, Sookhee. The twist at the end, though slightly predictable, is extremely satisfying and I really loved the newest novella from Neon Yang! Their writing is always interesting and engaging for me, as a reader. My only qualm is that the pacing felt a little off. There was a lot of speeding up and slowing down for moments throughout the entire story, and I almost wish this had been a full-length novel to properly flesh out the characters and their motivations just a little bit more. This was still a 5-star read for me and I will always pick up Yang's work!

I had both the ALC and e-ARC for Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame. The audiobook is narrated by Nancy Wu and it is excellent. She kept the story moving. The pacing in this is a bit uneven. There is the dragon hunting adventurous parts which are quite fast-paced and the friendship and queer romance between the girl king and the dragon hunter. To be fair, this book focused more on the relationship than on actual dragon hunting so it is a bit slower paced. I still really enjoyed it. Overall well done. I have a few quibbles with the story, but really enjoyed my time spent in this world and would definitely read more from this author. Thank you to Net Galley, and Tor Publishing for my advanced copies. This book is out today, May 6, 2025

Thank you to the publisher for this eArc.

I had such a good time with this book. I loved how it was told and the tone of the writing. It was also such a cool concept that I feel was executed beautifully.

I would have liked a little more development with the relationship between the two leads. However, due to it being a novella it didn’t take away from the experience for me.

I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for a shorter fantasy with a really clear identity.

2025 is the year of the lady knight. Brighter Than Scale, Swifter Than Flame is the second one I've read this year and I have a few more yet to review but. This one. This one was poetic. It hit all the sweet spots and high notes and everything in between.

• lady knight dragon slayer
• disability + queer rep
• mandalorian vibes in an Asian-inspired fantasy

I'm definitely looking up this author's other works.

The concept of this sounded so great but ultimately left me just wishing that it was longer. Usually with novellas I hope that I am satisfied with a small glimpse into the world, but I needed more from this story to really enjoy it.

Sapphic, Dragons and tea with themes of identity and duty this was a fun read for an evening at home.

The story is about Yeva, a legendary dragon slayer, who is tasked with a mission from the emperor, she must finish while facing her own past and a connection with the Queen.

Beautiful writing but the length left a lot to be desired. This is a story that deserved much more room to breath.