Thank you to DAW and NetGalley for the advanced review copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
The Dragon Has Some Complaints by John Wiswell is told from the perspective of Garrodigh, a three headed dragon. After losing their fourth head in battle, Centerhead, Upperhead, and Bottomhead cope with the loss of Lefty in their own ways. When their injuries prove hard to rehabilitate, they sneak into an elite dragon rider academy for some free food and definitely not to bond with humans. When they meet Rania, a human who’s dedicated to helping them heal, everything changes.
I picked this one up after reading the description and realizing how closely it matches the three headed dragon meme, the one with two serious heads and one kind of derpy one. It’s a humorous fantasy with cozy moments of healing, wholesome moments of finding family where you least expect it, and self healing. It reads a bit like a slice of life fantasy, just a magical one. So if you’re into those, it’s a warm, cozy adventure with some spectacular moments of dry humor, even if the narrative occasionally stalls.
The Dragon Has Some Complaints
Description
“The dragon may have some complaints, but readers won’t. By turns silly, sweet, and subversive, this novel has all of Wiswell’s characteristic blend of tension and heart.” โCaitlin Rozakis,ย New York Timesย bestselling author ofย Startup Hell
In this heartfelt and humorous fantasy from the Nebula-winning author ofย Someone You Can Build a Nest In, a dragon whose three heads bear ratherโฆdifferent…personalities finds family in the most unexpected of places.
Garrodigh was once a four-headed dragon, among the most powerful in Kardoลกa. After an unfortunate incident, he now has three heads, one stump, and a daily whirlwind of internal bickering. Centerhead wants to rain death upon all humanity, Bottomhead is like a feral cat, and Upperhead is under the delicate delusion that he is, in fact, human.
When a nearby battle goes awry, Garrodigh sneaks into an elite dragon rider academy, pretending to be tame to get free food and a warm bed. Lucky for him, rider Rania Charvรกtovรก is desperate enough for a dragon of her own that she overlooks his eccentricities.
As Garrodigh recovers under Raniaโs care, all three heads start to turn, for the first time, in the same direction. Each wants to protect her from the invaders who killed their fourth headโthe same invaders who seek to conquer Kardoลกa. When the academy comes under attack, can this wild dragon and his wilder rider save their homeland together?
This cozy fantasy intertwines epic battles with loving friendships, sharing an utterly unique perspective on what it means to be a โmonster.โ
Tropes
- Cozy Fantasy
- Dragons
- Humor / Comedy
- Adventure
- High Fantasy
- Adult
- Fiction
Review
Overall Impressions ๐
I liked The Dragon Has Some Complaints. It’s warm, funny, and I can honestly say I’ve never read from a dragon’s perspective before. It was hilarious.
But honestly, although the book has so much heart, it felt a bit underwhelming. The novelty of the unique perspective and humor wore off pretty quickly, and when the events became somewhat repetitive, it wasn’t enough to keep me interested. I still appreciated the cozy, slice of life fantasy, loved watching the relationship between Rania and Garrodigh grow, and enjoyed the worldbuilding, which there’s quite a bit of for a humorous fantasy.
The weird part is the balance of the book feels off too. Although the second part is way more action packed than the first, I found myself having to convince myself to read a few chapters a day to finish it once I crossed the 50% line. That being said, there’s an infinite amount of whimsical wonder in this novel, and it’s a good addition to any cozy fantasy lover’s shelf.
Perfect For Fans Ofโฆ ๐
The slice of life fantasy reminded me quite a bit of Legends & Lattes and Brigands & Breadknives. I felt the same way here, like something is on the verge of happening but never really comes. So if you like novels that keep a consistent pace, more slice of life than ups and downs, this is great.
With its whimsical nature, this was pretty close to An Ancient Witch’s Guide to Modern Dating. Not fantasy, but the absurd comedy and dry humor reminded me of Kevin Wilson’s Nothing to See Here.
If you’re looking for an action packed dragon fantasy that’s going to sweep you off your feet, this isn’t it. It’s more of a slow burn of a cozy novel you can nibble at before bedtime, like a warm blanket so you can go to sleep feeling warm and fuzzy.
Characters ๐ฅ
I love Garrodigh with all my heart, with a special soft spot for Bottomhead, even though I would never pick a favorite of course. Garrodigh is one dragon, but Bottomhead, Centerhead, and Upperhead are all characters of their own. Their inner monologues and conversations with one another are hilarious, and the humor made me laugh out loud multiple times.
It’s a POV I always have a soft spot for, ever since I read that one epilogue in a contemporary romance novel from the perspective of the main character’s border collie. Garrodigh’s inner struggle of never belonging, being wild enough that he can’t be tamed and too friendly with humans to be accepted by the dragons, made it a captivating story to read.
Rania and Garrodigh, two outsiders finding each other, are the core of the novel. Found family hits so different for a reason, and I’m always a sucker for an animal companion. Rania as a selfless, positive, but tough main character to Garrodigh’s sardonic and delusional “I don’t like humans” attitude made every interaction worth reading about.
I did feel like the cast was a bit too crowded, just as the book was too long. Despite liking the First Knight, Second Knight, Kardos, Esme, and the others, I thought this was more about the relationship between Garrodigh and Rania, and sometimes the side characters made it drag on longer than it should.
Plot ๐บ๏ธ
The book is set up like one long training sequence and healing arc into an action packed second half. The beats feel a bit off. It’s a pretty steady pace where nothing feels truly high stakes. It’s almost like a fairy tale, where you know no one is really going to be hurt and everything’s going to be okay at the end.
For a cozy fantasy, that makes sense, but I struggle with the single tone of the story some of the time. There are definitely too many side characters, and their interactions with Rania felt repetitive to me, like different versions of the same character.
That being said, the dragon POV is the point of this book, and that 100% delivers. So I don’t think the plot feeling too monotonous is an issue here, except at times it felt like the book had the dragon POV idea and the plot sometimes didn’t come together around it.
Spicy Chapters
How Spicy is The Dragon Has Some Complaints: ๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธ
This one is cozy fantasy so although some explicit scenes and adult themes are covered they are not the core focus of this novel.
Have you ever wanted to read a book about that meme with three yellow dragons with one of them looking kind of funny? Well, now you can. ๐
If you’re looking to read a book written from a dragon’s POV, are a fan of slice of life cozy fantasy novels, and a sucker for found family, The Dragon Has Some Complaints is a good time. However, the plot is a bit monotone and feels like the entire book is built around the idea of the dragon POV, which is phenomenal narratively, but once the novelty wears off, it makes the plot a tad bit dull in my opinion.
What do you think? Will you pick up The Dragon Has Some Complaints? Let us know in the comments!
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