A female dragon slayer (whom few know is a lady) is told to embark on a political mission to a land close to the one she is from. While there, she is befriended by the newly minted female King of the land, and our heroine learns about her roots and where she truly belongs.

Almost like the elves in Lord of the Rings, beautiful yet deadly. Our FMC is badass but also very native. It is apparent from the beginning that there is a war going on within between her duty and her heart. At one point, she starts to explore a life that would make her happy, instead of one where someone is always telling her what to do. The FMC is inspired by the King of the land, who is heartwarming and mysterious all in one.
​The prose is lush and rich. It is dreamy yet strong. I enjoyed the lyrical nature of the writing, which (to me) compounds the fantasy nature of the whole story. Deep and poignant, it is a book that will leave you satisfied in the end.

The narration on this one is calm, yet strong. Petfect for the lyrical setting.

*received for free from netgalley for hones review* This was a great short read, i would definitely read more if this was made into a series

This was a really great book. I loved the strong female protagonist, she was compelling to read about. Lady Sookee made for an interesting companion for her. The plot was interesting, but took about half the book to pick up. Finally, the world was simply but engaging. I think where this book suffers the most is from its length. I would have loved a full length novel to flesh out Yeva, Sookee, the world and its politics and history, and a plot that was propelled towards a climatic ending. The book was great, but lacked just enough to be what I wanted it to be.

I’m so sorry. I wanted to love this book so badly. It just fell flat for me. I don’t know if it was the story itself or the narration. It felt very anti-climactic. I do love that an Asian narrator was used though.

4/5 stars ✨️

At this moment, at this twilight, she is allowed to take on new form—not just the valiant guildknight of the Sun Empire, not the faithful servant whose only purpose is to wield a blade, not the faceless, nameless creature who exists only as terror and whispered legend.
She never lets herself be so exposed, yet she does not feel vulnerable.

Thank you, netgalley and the publishers, for this beautiful arc! (I'm a bit late ik)
it's always books like this with so few pages that take me days to finish.
The depth of the story in each and every line makes it impossible to skim through, which makes this even more beautiful.
I picked this up for a short read, but this small book has left a huge impact in my life.
I could emphatise with yeva, always pushed and prodded to fit a mould, or in this case, a constructive armour. Forced to be the best out there, the most ideal.
And when she finally tears down all that had kept her suppressed - that's the part that brought me the most joy,
her freedom.

4.5/5
Once again, Neon Yang accomplishes much within the confines of a novella. Their poignant prose is better than ever and Nancy Wu's narration brings it to life. This is the tale of a dragon hunter who goes to a neighboring kingdom in search of a mythic beast, but as she befriends its king, she learns that not all is as it seems.

The story told is stunning and the prose is beautiful. Unfortunately, the heart of the story is missing from the telling. There is clearly a full novel's worth of story here, but the important parts are cut out in the telling. The entire story is told as if seen by an impersonal 3rd party. At the heart of this story there is a romance, but every aspect of the couple's time together is skimmed over or referenced only in passing. This story could have been glorious, but instead it is merely good. The audio narrator is really what saved this from becoming a slog.

4.5 stars I read this book as an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for letting me do so for an honest review. 4.75 stars. The beginning is a little slow and things arent clear but then it really picks up and the story draws you in with loveable characters and a great Fantasy story. Nancy Wu does a great job with the narration.
Highly recommend and it was a great read for API month!

A young girl fights off a baby dragon only to discover she has powers. Powers that force her parents to send her to the Sun empire. There she is trained to hunt down dragons and kill them. But then she has to go to a neighboring Kingdom and investigate a dragon infestation. But she not only found the dragon. She found her love.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC audiobook copy of this, narrated by Nancy Wu

This book is a gorgeously written queer fantasy novella with dragons, sapphic romance, and deep emotional themes.

Yeva, a dragon-slaying knight, is sent to a kingdom where dragons are worshipped, not killed—and meets Lady Sookhee, a ruler who challenges everything she believes.

What I Loved:

- Thoughtful exploration of identity & duty
- Quiet, powerful sapphic romance

What I didn’t like

- Pacing felt uneven in the middle
- Some world-building felt rushed or unfinished

A solid read if you’re into introspective, romantic fantasy, but I wanted a little more from the journey and more emotional connection to the characters.

Book is so sweet with an absolutely adorable main character who has killed dragons, but is scared to have a conversation. Murderbot diaries vibes with a beautiful romance.

This novella was small but packed a punch. The worldbuilding was just enough to make a person want more in this world, combining Yang's beautiful prose and a world that was so atmospheric. Not everyone could tell quite such a compelling story in such a short amount of space.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced listening copy in exchange for an honest review!

I love a good novella, and Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame was such a treat. The worldbuilding is great and I really enjoyed Yang’s prose; I also think they did a great job at telling a full story in a very short space. The aesthetics and vibes of this book are immaculate, and while I think it maybe lacked a certain depth that is common in novellas, the story was deeply satisfying nonetheless.

The audio was great and I enjoyed Nancy Wu’s narration a great deal.

This is a beautiful sapphic asian-inspired novella with dragons.
I absolutely got lost in the atmosphere of this world and the journey our character goes on to discover herself and to discover love was undeniable.
I will forever be thinking about this book and yearning to venture further, I need more books in this world asap!

3.5 stars.

I had forgotten just how gorgeous Neon Yang's prose is. Despite being less than 200 pages, they are able to craft a world that feel so rich and alive. I really enjoyed Yeva as a main character and following her journey. My favorite aspect of the novella was seeing Yeva reconnect with her mother tongue and homeland. It was so heartbreaking and vulnerable seeing her feel like an outsider in a place that used to be home. Nancy Wu's narration continues to be so engaging, as usual.

I'm very glad I got the chance to read this and I am hoping to make my way through Neon Yang's backlist soon.

Thank you to Netgalley and RBmedia for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Yeva was thirteen when she killed her first dragonling in defense of her little sister and herself. In doing so, Yeva manifested a magical ability that runs in her father’s side of the family. Because of this gift, Yeva’s father sent her to his homeland Mithrandon to be trained as a guildknight (i.e., dragonslayer).

Years after cementing her image as a merciless dragonslayer, Yeva is commanded to travel to the mysterious Quanbao to find and root out any remaining dragons. Although the guildknights are revered in Mithrandon, the profession is treated with suspicion in Quanbao. While Yeva investigates for evidence of dragons, she must also navigate this foreign culture and the girl-king Lady Sookhee’s court.

This novella interestingly explores themes of colonization and biracial identity. It also has great atmospheric prose, making it a quick and folkloric read. What brought this down to three stars was mostly the predictability of the plot, the insta-lovers romance, and the unnecessary framing device.

As for the audiobook, Nancy Wu gave a great performance. She has such an interesting voice and was a perfect choice for the tone of this book.

Brighter Than Scale, Swifter Than Flame is a standalone fantasy novella with a sapphic romance.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC.

3.5 stars!

This is not a book that was on my TBR but I am glad I recieved it as an e-arc!

For a novella it was very well done! I listened to this one and I thought the narrator did a fantastic job bringing the characters to life!

I really enjoyed the main character and the relationships that she made and the struggles she went through. I enjoyed the whole cast of characters! I liked the ending. I kinda had a feeling that was how it was gonna end but it was very satisfying all the same.

I did feel as I do with most novellas I would have enjoyed this more as just a full length novel even if it was a shorter one. There was so much world building I would have to love to have seen and it would have made the characters that much more complex!

I did find myself not totally drawn in until about 40% so again I think had it been slightly longer it actually would have gotten me more invested!

Overall enjoyable and I would read more by this author! Thanks for the arc and all thoughts are my own!

4.5 stars —> This is a beautiful story of loyalty, love, and finding your way in life, steeped in Asian mythology. And of course, dragons!

Yeva grew up trained to slay dragons, and has a sense of duty and loyalty to her guild. Their whole purpose comes to question once they begin to fall in love with Lady Sookhee, the queen of the rival kingdom Yeva is sent to infiltrate. Who is Yeva behind their mask, and what choice will they make between love and duty? I loved the twist involving the dragon at the end! I will definitely be reading more from Neon Yang in the future.

🎧 Narrator: Nancy Wu
🎧 Length: 4h 54m

Nancy Wu did an incredible job with her narration. She brought out Yeva’s emotion, and it felt like I was listening to someone tell me a folktale.

Thank you to tordotcom and Recorded Books for providing me with copies of this book. This review is voluntary, and all opinions expressed are my own.

As a child, Yeva put on the armor of a dragon-slaying guildknight and did her best to forget what life was like before her journey to Mithrandon. But when she is sent to Quanbao, she is forced to face the part of herself she has tried to hide and the fact that she may not know all there is to know about dragons.

This was an incredible novella that packed in so much mythology and world-building into a beautiful story about suppressing self for misplaced loyalty and duty.

This was wonderful. I love the way this novella opens, relating the story of a famed dragon killer, the masked guildknight Yeva, who must find and kill a dragon in a neighbouring kingdom. Yeva is believed to have died on her last mission for her ruler. Then, we hear the actual story of what happened to Yeva on her last mission, and how profoundly life-changing it was for her.

Yeva finds Quanbao fascinating, as her mother and she were originally from this reclusive kingdom. Yeva finds herself struck by the differences in culture in Quanbao, as well as the way people look at her for constantly sporting her armour and helmet.

The queen of Quanbao, Lady Sookhee, is way of Yeva, but both find themselves drawn to the other, and Yeva begins loosening her rules the more time she spends in the kingdom, even removing her armour, while continuing to look for an elusive dragon and explore the elaborate cave system below the palace.

When Yeva's Prince arrives unexpectedly, this forces Yeva into significant conflict with her dragon-killing past and current orders, her growing love for the kingdom, and Lady Sookhee.

The mystery at the centre of this story is not really about the dragon in Quanbao. Rather, it is about what Yeva will do once she's confronted and forced to choose between her orders, and the life she has built for herself in Quanbao, and her beliefs about her heritage and what she is unfortunately very, very good at.

I loved the feel of this story, with its folktale feel and its delicate prose.

It's the inner conflict of cultures and beliefs in this novella that make this such a gripping read. Voice actor Nancy Wu beautifully brings the characters to life, and shows us the constant turmoil Yeva experiences from her entry to Quanbao to her fateful decision.

Thank you to Netgalley and to RBMedia for this ARC in exchange for my review.