Review: The Voyage of the Basilisk by Marie Brennan

Hedwig's World

Aug 1

'*'I find that respectability grows wearisome after a time, when one is accustomed to being a disgrace.'*

***Content warnings for colonialism, war, plague, sexism, implied homophobia, and kidnapping***

Possible spoilers for previous books.

And I am back with reviews today on the blog! So, I've mentioned a few times now across various posts this year that this is, for me, 'the year of the audio book'. The Memoirs of Lady Trent are a series that I started on audio and it's been a few months since I read the last book. Sadly, this one wasn't one I enjoyed as much.

Devoted readers of Lady Trent's earlier memoirs, A Natural History of Dragons and The Tropic of Serpents, may believe themselves already acquainted with the particulars of her historic voyage aboard the Royal Survey Ship Basilisk, but the true story of that illuminating, harrowing, and scandalous journey has never been revealed—until now. Six years after her perilous exploits in Eriga, Isabella embarks on her most ambitious expedition yet: a two-year trip around the world to study all manner of dragons in every place they might be found. From feathered serpents sunning themselves in the ruins of a fallen civilization to the mighty sea serpents of the tropics, these creatures are a source of both endless fascination and frequent peril. Accompanying her is not only her young son, Jake, but a chivalrous foreign archaeologist whose interests converge with Isabella's in ways both professional and personal.

Science is, of course, the primary objective of the voyage, but Isabella's life is rarely so simple. She must cope with storms, shipwrecks, intrigue, and warfare, even as she makes a discovery that offers a revolutionary new insight into the ancient history of dragons.

Getting to a rough outline of my opinion before I detail it in the review, I still had a fun time reading this book. Mostly during the last third but there is still that sense of adventure there following Lady Trent as she takes these trips to study dragons. I also liked the fact that there was discussions and at least some outside thinking of how other cultures approach things like gender and relationships. Like at one point, Isabella is confronted with another people's idea of marriage and clearly she recognises in her native Skirland it would be a big no. But she isn't like that. What I think my main issues come down to was plot and character development overall.

We start off much like the last book, Isabella Camherst making plans for an expedition. Only this time she is taking to the seas, and she's taking her son with her too. It's clear since her last 'volume' of her memoirs that Isabella has amassed a bit of a community. Women studying and discussing science and other subjects at her home, some of them sad to see her be gone for so long. Some of them like Natalie in the last book, hiding their sexuality so are here to be safe. We are definitely getting a glimpse at the future figure of academia we've been teased about so far. So we join Isabella, her trusted colleague Tom, her son Jacob and we are aboard the Basilisk.

I want to talk the development first, because I do consider it a double edged sword. Isabella is a character we need to see grow, and that is definitely happening. Don't get me wrong, Marie Brennan has definitely got a clear intention here. What isn't happening yet for me is the speed I thought it would. From the last novel, she has realised that her son is part of her life and if she wants him to not know her from a distance, not an uncommon occurrence in these times, she has to make that effort to build a relationship with him. And she is doing that, it's great! The issue is how much slower this book feels to get her on board with, you're here in this country to observe so why are you being so critical? Her attitude to one country and how they hunt dragons is a good example. Granted, she and Tom are being arrested for nonsense reasons by corrupted police but her sounding off that they are 'wrong' to hunt that dragon then on their emperors want is a bit silly. Like from the last book especially, she should be past this.

As I mentioned earlier, there is a point where the Basilisk has to spend time on a set of islands and Isabella is pretty closely watched by local native women. This part was pretty good, she is pretty much told she needs to do a thing as much to help herself and another local girl. Something that would be like 'ew' but she takes in her stride. Same for a non gender conforming character in the same discussion, Isabella handles it so well I was impressed. But it didn't feel like a grand development, she's always been supportive of people being "scandalous" to be their true selves. She could have been less passive there, though I did like it was something she didn't take issue with.

The plot is very slow for a book that takes place at sea. At the same time, I was reading another book that had a huge portion at sea. And that I was caught up in every second I wasn't reading it. I wanted to know where they were, what was happening. This one didn't have that appeal, and even the things that go down aboard and off the Basilisk felt not interesting. It felt very much on boat, then off boat, then on boat again. And that made me sad because the adventure aspect is what I like in these stores. The last third was far more like the last two books and it was far more enjoyable. But there is a lot happening there and new ideas about dragons, the natives they live with having things to reveal to Isabella, there is an urgency there too. So it does have a lot of good in there and it has a lot of almost boredom too.

I will say, the audio format never fails. Even when I didn't enjoy this one as much, I think Kate Reading is still a fabulous narrator. She manages men, women, children and more accented characters so well. None of it has that dangerous edge into racism which is a relief. And it's also really clear what's happening so I never feel lost. So do still recommend that as how to read these.

I have toyed with not finishing this series. This was a disappointment. But for the sake of 2 books and then a spin off following an ancestor , I am going to. I would like to keep following my intention for this year to complete a lot of series. This one is a strictly audio one. Thanks for checking in guys, and your patience while I've been away. Happy reading!

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