This was great. It reminded me a bit of Nicola Griffith's Spear both in terms of the style (almost resembling an epic poem at times) and in terms of the themes, with the hardened warrior main character and the queer romance. Loved the twist. I kind of wish it was longer which is a silly thing to wish from a novella, but I honestly feel like I could have spend longer in this world, with these characters.

Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame is proof that you don't need a fantasy novel to be pushing 1000 pages for it to pack a punch. This little novella contains some excellent world building, a decent (albeit a bit) predictable mystery, and some lovely sapphic pining. Definitely need to check out more from Neon Yang after enjoying this so much.

Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame is an entertaining queer novella set in an Asian-inspired fantasy world. The worldbuilding was the best part! It was so well developed with national relations, lore, and food descriptions.

Yeva, a disabled sapphic dragon slayer, being sent to the neighboring kingdom to root out the deadly dragon they are harboring was such a cool plot idea, and Neon Yang is such a mesmerizing writer. I wish it was longer! I adored Yeva as she navigated her past and her growing feelings for the girl-king all during her ongoing investigation into the dragon. I’d definitely recommend this one to dragon lovers, and folks who enjoyed queer fantasy like Bookshops & Bonedust. It’s such a treat!

First the audiobook was fantastic. Nancy Wu did a great job. Second the writing for this was so lyrical. Third I'll always love a lady knight story. We need more. I wouldn't be mad if Yang decided to write companion novels in this world to expand it more. I highly recommend this story.

This high fantasy novella by Neon Yang, narrated by Nancy Wu, was gorgeous. Neon Yang's lyrical, almost fairytale-like prose sold this fascinating mystical world. Also, Nancy Wu's narration was so ethereal that it solidified the fairytale feel of the story.

As well as having a beautifully vivid world, we have Yeva, who is such a cool main character. She's very well-rounded in the sense that she has confidence in her skills, but that doesn't leech into cockiness as she explores/resides in Quanbao because even though her mother is from there, she hasn't visited in many years. Because of that, she tries to be cognizant of what she should or shouldn't do and adjust accordingly.
However, the romance seemed kind of rushed, but this is a novella, and I tend to forgive some pacing issues. I will say Yeva and Lady Sookhees's connection felt genuine because of how their relationship progressed and how the story was wrapped up.

Thank you, NetGalley, Tor, and Neon Yang, for the ALC in exchange for my honest review. 3.5/5 stars

An excellent novella that explores family, legacy, and staying true to oneself. This was a short and well narrated audiobook that I have already recommended to friends. Nancy Wu does a wonderful job as Yeva, with her narration reflecting the emotions and moods of our characters and creating the environment as we cross country and into challenging new environments.

This is a great audiobook for fans of novellas, dragons, love interests, and challenging norms.

I received an ARC through NetGalley for an honest review.

I think retellings of classic folk and fairytale narratives are important, especially when they are sapphic, and this is inarguably well-written, but there's something about fairytale writing and the relative distance it has just bounces off my autism...but so does The Hobbit, so that's likely a me problem.

If you like a more modern take on classic tales, I'm sure you'll love this, but this just wasn't my cup of tea, despite being able to see it's quality.

That cover is absolutely sublime...even if it does give the very obvious game away even more obviously.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️: 3.5 stars

🌿Tropes & Themes 🌿
* Duty vs. love
* Sapphic
* Slow burn
* Dragons 🐉

Yeva slays a small dragon in her youth which awakens something in her. This spurs her father to send her away to become a dragon slaying knight. She trains and loses herself along the way becoming the faceless knight. It’s only when she is sent away to Quanbao that she begins the journey of shedding this armor and finding herself along the way.

I really enjoy the idea of novellas. The appeal of a short and sweet story enticed me. Also this gorgeous cover and anything with dragons is always up my alley!
I found this to a brisk but mostly enjoyable story. The world building was probably my favorite aspect. I kind of wished for more showing and a little less telling. I wanted to see more of their romance and relationship develop. It wrapped up very nicely with fitting ending.

Audiobook narration: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I needed to speed this up 1.25x to make the narration work for me. At 1x speed it was a little breathy and drawn out for my tastes. I normally listen at 1.3-1.4x currently so this might just be a personal preference!

Many thanks to netgalley for the audio arc of this!

This was a fun story and I loved the narrator. This is just not my genre. I keep trying it but it's not a book that's written for me. I would recommend for someone trying to get into fantasy

4/5 Stars

A compelling novella that gives the lush vibes of storytelling of old - gathered around a fire or an evening meal and hearing a family legend told, even one you may have heard before. Elements of the story give Mandalorian vibes (in the helmted protagonist), but other familiar storytelling elements are present without feeling overworked or trope-y.

The story's themes of identity, the way cultures are colonized and family identity can be erased are powerful but stay subtle, without being heavy-handed.

There were some things that I felt could have been fleshed out more (Yeva's father just sort of disappears from the story/her memories, and her sacred gift and how it integrates with others in the warrior culture is never really talked about). I also put the pieces together of the main mystery fairly quickly, so experienced some annoyance at how long it takes Yeva to do so. However, I found the final wrap up to be satisfying and not exactly what I predicted, so that soothed that part of me a bit.

Some elements of the writing felt overly stiff and fragmented. As I listened on audio (at 1.25 speed), I can't tell if that is the nature of the writing, or if the narrator was just taking weird pauses in the middle of sentences. Overall, the narration was not my favorite, but served the story well.

i didn't realize this was on the shorter side, not even 5hrs long, but the story was full and i didn't feel like it was rushed at all. i loved that the romance was off screen/fade to black, i'm very much over how hard romance and smut have been shoved into every freaking genre because *sex sells*, so fade to black is my fav (well no romance at all is my fav, but if i had to pick a level, fade to black is best).

the narrator did a great job, i had it at 2.5x speed and she still sounded like, idk how to describe it, but like an old grandma telling you a tale in the middle of a storm because you got scared, loved it.

the monthly blood issue, i honestly was expecting it to be like some regular old disease that we don't even really worry about anymore, or period related, but the real reason behind it was good and i didn't connect the dots till it was revealed.

In this lyrical fantasy, Neon Yang follows Yeva, a famed dragon-slayer, as she confronts her past and questions her loyalty during a mission to a distant kingdom. With rich worldbuilding and deep emotional resonance, Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame is a powerful story of identity, love, and self-discovery.

4.5☆

I highly recommend the audiobook. The narrator was fantastic, and it added greatly to the atmosphere of the book. The book is written like the retelling of an old myth, so the audiobook format works perfectly for it.

I absolutely adore this. The setting was beautiful and vivid. I loved the lore of the dragons and the knights. Having a disabled sapphic fmc being the knight was my favorite thing ever. I loved following Yevas' journey and seeing her grow and change as a character. Even though this book was so short, it entailed a great amount of descriptive lore and character development.

While I really enjoyed the beautiful fairy tale like writing and was drawn into the world right from the very first page, I just wish we had explored Yevas and Lady Sookhees' relationship more. I'm aware that you've got to cut corners in a novella, I just wish we didn't skip the part where they fell in love since that development was quite existential to the following plot. While I do enjoy their relationship, it's purely based on my own imagination since we're barely given any reasons for them to actually be in love. It's like they simply decided to be devoted to each other one day. I loved the stakes and dynamics of their relationship, which is why I craved a less shallow exploration of it.

This was a cute coming of age story with nice magical elements set in it. I wish that it had been a little longer. I wish that we had seen more of the romance and after the big reveal. 3.5 stars

A short and powerful novella, I didn’t love the narrator for the audiobook but the plot twist and characters were great I just wish the romance between the two main characters had more of a build up.

This is my first read by Neon Yang and I'd like to read more written by them! The beginning segment was a bit slow for me, but I really began enjoying the story once we were in Quanbao. The amount of details given in this shorter book were just enough to carry the story along while not dragging anything out.

I didn't like how the story was told. It felt like it was being told to me, rather than allowing me to truly immerse myself in the world and feel with the characters. Also the narration wasn't really for me - the way the narrator read the book.
So I in the end I didn't enjoy this audiobook. But it's short and quick, so you don't lose a lot of time if you want to tap your toes into the story.

I liked this book but as most of the books in third pov it can be a bit distancing and also a bit slow.
If you like to read a sapphic romantic fantasy, give it a go. It was still enjoyable.

The voice actor did a good job, I have nothing to mark on her or the production.

This novella gave me the feeling of what I imagine a modern depiction of an Arthurian Legend would read like. The world felt rich and deep in history and the tone evoked one of an epic story.

As such, the twist might feel a little obvious to us the reader but I would argue that that might be the point. Reading this as if it were a Legend puts Yeva's character journey at the center and the revelation being for her, not us, and how she deals with the inner conflict that brings her. Looking back, her arc was truly wonderfully done.

Although short, it packed the right kind of punch with its commentary on disability, femininity, duty, and what happens when confronted with your own worldview and ideology. I will definitely be picking this up to add to my collection!

Thank you to NetGalley and Recorded Books for an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank the publisher for giving me an audio-arc in exchange for an honest review through NetGalley.

Yeva's birthright manifested itself when she was a child, leading her to be taken in service to the Emperor. Trained to hunt dragons, she has lived in her armor, never allowing people to see her face. But when the Emperor decides to send people to Quanbao -- a place rumored to worship dragons -- it is decided that Yeva will go an investigate. Tasked with earning the trust of their queen -- Lady Sookhee -- she'll have to remove her armor and let someone in for the first time since she donned her armor.

Let me start this off by saying how much I love the whole knight versus monster plot, especially when they fall for one another. Because WOW I loved this. So you have a dragon slayer -- Yeva -- who is sent to another country with the intent to find proof of a dragon, especially since there have been reports of a dragon recently being seen fleeing the kingdom into the mysterious country of Quanbao. It's there she meets the Lady Sookhee and the mystery of what's going on slowly unravels. This was such a beautiful story, language, setting, plot. It's so well written, and to be honest, you know what's happening, you know what's going to happen eventually, but you don't know how it's going to happen and so you're waiting and holding your breath because the language is so beautiful you don't want to interrupt even with something as mundane as breathing. I absolutely adored this novella. It's short, it's gorgeous, and the ending was well done.

Plus the audio narrator did a fantastic job. Definitely recommend this one.

Actual Rating: 4.75, rounded up