“It begins and ends, as things do, with a girl throwing a birthday party for a dragon. Or it would, if things were ever that simple.”
Terry Pratchett’s Guards! Guards! meets T. Kingfisher’s A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking in Upscaled, a delectable cozy-ish fantasy comedy full of dragons, baked goodies, and tons of heart. It’s heartwarming, it’s funny, it’s thrilling, it’s refreshing, and, most of all, it’s absolutely unforgettable!
In a time long past, humans and dragons peacefully shared the lands of Nóra, but then the Inquisition of the Priory of the Thrice-Dead Prophet decided that dragons were evil, and thus they all had to go (no questions please, just trust the Inquisition, they are really telling the truth about their heroic mission and victory!). But now, through a series of rather peculiar circumstances, a young girl has found herself in the possession of the first dragon hatchling in generations; all kinds of adversaries turn their eyes upon Ailís and her family, but you better bet that nothing is going to stop her from throwing a birthday party for her new baby companion.
Well, if that premise doesn’t give it away, Upscaled is not your typical epic dragon fantasy. In a way, it almost reads like a loving satire of the fantasy genre, taking the most beloved tropes and subverting them in the most entertaining ways. From the very first page, Lee just sets the tone and creates an irresistibly charming and impressively immersive atmosphere that transports you right into this rollicking adventure.
Ailís immediately captured my heart with her slightly stubborn and almost dangerously curious personality, and I loved how her childhood innocence infused this narrative with so much heart and wonder. Even though the stakes actually get spectacularly high for a cozy novel, I never felt stressed or anxious because Ailís herself is mostly just absolutely thrilled about all the exciting adventures that she gets thrown into (and who can blame her, dragons and pies are all one really needs in life anyway, right?!).
Moreover, I absolutely loved the vibrant cast of supporting characters, and I ate up the strong (found) family dynamics in Upscaled. Ailís’s mom (yes, the mom survives!) truly deserves an award for her patience, protectiveness and clever inventiveness, and her eccentric uncle Iósef and the lovely yet enigmatic Áine also absolutely stole the show. I’d almost dare to say that they were all a bit too compelling and endearing, because every time we got an occasional shift in perspective (to the ‘antagonists’ mostly), I just found myself wanting to go back to my lovely group of oddballs.
Though, while the characters were absolutely the heart of this story for me, I was truly so pleasantly surprised by the level of depth and richness to the world building. Even though it feels like we have only barely scratched the surface, I was already gobbling up all the little tidbits of twisted history and the intriguing dragon lore here. Lee really breathed so much life into this world, and I loved exploring so many different awe-inspiring settings throughout this wildly entertaining adventure.
Upscaled is honestly a much more nuanced and multi-layered story than I initially gave it credit for, and I deeply admire how Lee balanced the absurdity with the seriousness. There are plenty of intentionally caricaturish characters, ridiculously funny scenarios and silly interactions that will have anyone cackling out loud, but there’s also quite a bit of dark humour and scathing social commentary cleverly hidden between the lines that will appeal to the more jaded, weary souls among us.
How Lee managed to pack such a punch in only 200-ish pages is honestly the real magic of this story to me, and I already can’t wait to see all the crazy fun that’s yet to come in the Dragons of Nóra series. If you think you are tired of the ‘boy girl and her dragon’ trope or feel like you can’t enjoy middle-grade/YA stories anymore, then I dare you to try Upscaled and think again; just make sure you have some snacks ready, because this book will make your tummy roar louder than a dragon ever could.
Thank you to the author for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. Upscaled is scheduled for release on August 23rd, 2024.
