“Humor helps me get through life when my bag of scales is light, and my glass of whiskey is low.”
Now, I am not kidding when I say that the very first page of Wild Skies made me go: “Yee-freaking-haw, I am IN”. Andrews just does an absolutely phenomenal job of establishing the immersive atmosphere of this uniquely intriguing fantasy western world, and I quickly found myself invested in our charmingly roguish bounty hunter Dale and his trusty dragon companion Bean. We follow this dynamic duo through the magical wild west on their hunt for the notorious train robber Talon, but the stakes soon become sky-high as they find themselves launched into a wild adventure full of old secrets, hidden identities, unlikely allies, and lots of dangerous magical mayhem.
Even though Dale immediately came off as a bit of a wise-cracking (though very good-hearted) scoundrel to me, it didn’t take me long to discover that there’s much more hiding behind his smart quips and snark. Why yes, we’ve got ourselves a damaged man with a tragic past; one of my personal favourite character types in any story. I loved getting little peeks into his dark backstory, especially because the traumatic events of his past are so seamlessly and intricately interwoven into the mysteries and schemes that he finds himself pulled into now, all these years later.
For a novella with such a fast pacing and so much action, it is really remarkable how much character depth and layered world building Andrews is able to deliver. The intricacies of the unique take on the traditional dragonrider bond, the clash of magic and science, the complex and amusing interpersonal relationships that start to develop, I was just eating it all up. Sure, as a character-driven I wouldn’t have minded even more time to dig into the trauma and the complex interpersonal relationships that we get to see develop over the course of this adventure, but Dale’s strong inner voice and the irresistible air of mystery and intrigue kept me deeply immersed and invested.
I especially liked the uniquely unconventional dynamic between Dale and Talon, and their sharp banter had me grinning the entire way through. Some of the dialogue was maybe a bit too exaggerated and caricaturish for me, but I also can’t deny that it fit the western cowboy vibes and became part of the charm of the characters. See, while I wouldn’t call this a cosy fantasy considering the heavy action, dark themes, and high stakes, there is just a lot of warmth, humour and heart to Wild Skies that makes it an inexplicably fun comfort read to me.
After Cal Black set the bar for fantasy westerns ridiculously high with No Land For Heroes, I never thought I would find another one that could live up to that high standard, but K.E. Andrews proved me wrong in Wild Skies. Even though it feels like we have barely scratched the surface of all the exciting stuff this world and these characters have to offer, I think the Yeehaw Dragons series couldn’t have started off with a bigger bang, and I already can’t wait for more!
Thank you to the author for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. Wild Skies is scheduled for release on 22 November, 2024.