Oh, what an absolute gem of a book. Quiet and unassuming on the surface, yet so utterly charming and thought-provoking.
Bon Agornin dies one day, leaving behind two sons and three daughters. His sons, Penn and Avan, are in the clergy and government respectively, and his eldest daughter, Berend, is the matron in a wealthy family. The youngest daughters, Haner and Selendra, are unmarried, and are forced apart when their patriarch dies. Much of the story is about Haner and Selendra being uprooted from their old home and settling down in their new environment: Haner with Berend and her husband, and Selendra with her parson brother Penn.
The real pivot of the story?
They are all dragons. And dragons have a singular custom — that of eating dragon flesh of the deceased, because that is the only way they can increase in power and sustenance. Walton gives them other dragon-like characteristics and rituals too, but at the heart of the story is the grim truth that dragon eats dragon to flourish. It is to Walton’s credit that she makes dragon customs like these feel real but empathetic.
There are rules for dragonflesh repast, however — the deceased should have consented to it; otherwise, only dragons too weak to survive may be killed. When Bon dies, his own greedy son-in-law breaks these rules. This shocking incident sets an ominous undertone to the book.
Why everything works so well
Written in a style similar to that of Anthony Trollope and Jane Austen, Walton’s characterizations are simple, but her observations about people (even if they are in anthropomorphic forms) are so very succinct and accurate that it was impossible not to smile with glee as the story unfolded. There is an underlying droll humor too, throughout the pages, which made the book a cozy pleasure. Satire and comedy of manners were what Trollope and Austen did best, and Walton’s Tooth and Claw follows in the same footsteps.
There are so many plot-threads: radical religious thinking, women’s independence, whether might makes right always, rigidities of family hierarchies, subtleties of indirect bigotry, the never-changing pomposity of Court procedures. Walton manages all these threads deftly. Even though she does not narrate a revolutionary awakening in dragon society, she does bring about small changes in the lives of the Agornin family — and really, those little changes are more than enough for any reader.
Tooth and Claw won the 2004 World Fantasy Award for best novel.
12 replies on “Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton”
I haven’t read this book, but dragons are always a favorite when it comes to reading fun fantasy books. 🙂
True, that — and add comedy of manners to that!
I’ve been considering picking up this one, and it sounds well worth the read. Thanks for the review!
More of a quiet read, and didn’t require too much heavylifting. Hope you give this a try!
I have only read one book by Jo Walton (https://wordsandpeace.com/2020/06/29/book-review-or-what-you-will/ and I feature the first page, with a dragon in the first line!!), and I can see she’s an amazing author. I definitely need to read more, maybe this one, sounds so good, thanks!
Ooh, I’ve heard very good things of “Or what you wil”. Have to, have to read that, and thanks for sharing the link!
I read this recently and loved it so much! I wasn’t expecting the cannibalism but I liked how well it tied in to the setting and what the book had to say!
Totally agreed. The trope actually made sense, and it’s to Watson’s credit that she managed it so well.
This is an author I like and I do love the sound of this one so I’ll add it to my wishlist.
Lynn 😀
You won’t regret it. It’s slower in pace but very thought provoking. And very Pride & Prejudice too.
I read Among Others by Jo Walton and thought it was fabulous. I’ve never followed up on her books but would love to read another. Sounds like this is one not to be missed!
I still haven’t read Among Others, but have heard such amazing things about it.