Review by AnnaKathleen -- Becoming the Dragon

[AnnaKathleen]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Becoming the Dragon" by Alex Sapegin.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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When Andy unwittingly steps into the crossfire of an experimental area gone wrong, he finds himself transported to a new and strange place, filled with creatures, people, and languages he does not recognize. He quickly realizes it will be survival of the fittest and he must fight if he wishes to continue living and ever consider finding a way home. After surviving a lightning strike, attacks from strange animals and magic and being captured as a slave he quickly realizes it is not a matter of if he will survive, but what will he become if he does.

With a highly colorful dragon eye and scales, the cover image of Alex Sapegin's Becoming the Dragon gave me the impression that a certain age group of readers, namely middle schoolers, grades 6-8th possibly 5th graders with high reading abilities, particularly male readers were the intended audience. I expected a work similar to a Scholastic book one would see at a book fair or in the back of a Language Arts classroom. However, with somewhat crass sexual references within the first part, I found myself caught off guard and confused. The age of our protagonist, Andy, did not fully settle with me until further into the book when he informs an elf he is 16. Things became a little clearer after that. I would say this book is more proper for mature 8th graders and anyone above, particularly those being introduced to high fantasy, die-hard lovers of dragons and magic, those with slower reading pace or reading ability, or just someone who wants a somewhat lighter fantasy read. I do not think teachers would necessarily keep it in the back of their room for students, however I can see it being available at the library.

Language wise, it is important to note this novel was not originally in English but translated by Elizabeth Kulikov. Due to this, while the sentence structure seems somewhat simple, there are occasionally parts of the story that are choppy and a bit unnatural. I occasionally found myself pausing to contemplate the use of words or structure. While they were technically correct, they felt unusual. I believe this is largely due to the translator trying to remain faithful to the source material and not deviate too much as well as my Midwest vernacular. While I paused occasionally, it did not really disrupt my reading experience, and I easily moved on.

The story itself is not bad. Although, it was easy to realize who the “important” characters were. The protagonist, Andy, is a relatable character, and I can see his development, but many of the supporting characters were lacking around him. I wish the character relationships had been more established; the physical aspect of many characters were okay but relationships lacked depth. I believe this can easily be rectified with more time spent on creating interaction and dialogue between characters, moments of growth and emotion.

While the beginning of the plot is somewhat predictable in the series of events, the middle of the book gave me a feeling of tension as Sapegin began to create a new feeling of unpredictability and urgency. I found myself contemplating just how the story would go, what path and events lay ahead. I was highly pleased by the author laying groundwork not only for a seemingly different time, but completely different planet. I was twice as pleased to discover references to other planets which means he has not only created a new planet, but a whole system with its own laws and sciences revolving around a different sun. I found this blending of fantasy with science fiction to be a large undertaking and accomplished in an okay way for an introductory novel, but it never went into the depth I was wishing for.

The new environments developed in front of the reader's eyes in bite-sized chunks, utilizing widely known references many readers may recognize by writers such as J.R.R. Tolkien, Lewis Caroll, and C.S. Lewis and blending with mythology of other lands while adding original twists. What the creatures and races had in physical description, I wish the world had as well. There was a lack of consistency in the descriptions and world building. I wish the environments had been described a little more colorfully, as they sometimes became flat due to what felt like a rush in writing. However, since this is only the first book I have a hope that the world will only gain detail and be expanded in the later installments.

While reading I often found certain moments of action also fell victim to a rushed sensation as well, particularly the transformation promised in the summary. I enjoyed the stream of consciousness and found it interesting, but wished more graphic details and descriptors were used to create a better mental image of the process. The ending action also seemed a bit rushed, lacking as much detail and possible foreshadowing as I would have liked. Despite this, with a final cliffhanger and surprising revelation, I was left with a feeling of anticipation and slight hope about the future of this series.

Overall, I enjoyed Becoming the Dragon, but it was not a masterpiece nor the best fantasy, particularly with dragons, that I have read. I do believe it was a promising and solid start to something bigger and I was able to finish it in a good amount of time. I would also gladly open the sequels and continue where I left off.

I give this book 2 out of 4 stars.

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Becoming the Dragon
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes | on Smashwords

Like AnnaKathleen's review? Post a comment saying so!

******
Becoming the Dragon
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes | on Smashwords

Like AnnaKathleen's review? Post a comment saying so!

[Espie]

My first review here had been a translated piece just like this, but I found it to be a well-done one enough to give it a perfect score. It could have been because it was a unique piece without the well-known style and themes of famed authors and books that could have influenced my judgment. Thank you for honest review.

[AnnaKathleen]

My first review here had been a translated piece just like this, but I found it to be a well-done one enough to give it a perfect score. It could have been because it was a unique piece without the well-known style and themes of famed authors and books that could have influenced my judgment. Thank you for honest review.

Absolutely! Sometimes with a unique story or something more obscure it can outshine any aspect that could potentially dampen the experience. I have read translated pieces that are really lovely, but with this one something was distracting with the language. Thank you for taking the time to read my review!