SMASH THE WORLD'S SHELL

In Fliederbaum’s YA debut, a teen girl and a dragon forge an unlikely friendship in a world where their species are enemies.

In an Earth-like world (in which medieval fantasy elements co-exist with modern technology), Ellen Delacroix finds a strange silver ring in her room and tries it on. After a few twists of the ring around her finger, she inadvertently finds herself in the Wildlands, well outside the domed Safe Zone where she and her fellow humans live. Like all of her kind, she fears dragons; luckily, the one she runs into is a warmhearted creature, named Shard. He offers to teach Ellen magic after her attempt to defend herself makes it obvious that she’s “magically impaired.” Plus, Shard could use a friend, as his twin brother, Keeper, who considers Shard weak, regularly beats him. Ellen and Shard must stay mum about their training sessions, as humans and dragons share a mutual hatred based on events in both the past and present. Their arrangement won’t stay a secret for long, with Shard’s uncle (the dragon chieftain Inferno and the Safe Zone installing new security cameras. The dual protagonists shine brightly and match well; each one has trouble entirely trusting the other and has suffered a family tragedy. The story bravely tackles topical issues including bigotry and suicidal ideation. Some of the themes are a bit heavy-handed in the execution, as when Shard proclaims, “I act all confident and snarky, but that’s just to hide how much I hate myself!” But there is a myriad of absorbing subplots and mysteries to keep things moving—where did that ring come from, and who’s the “woman in the black cloak” periodically showing up in the narrative? Several of these questions go unanswered; the author surely has a sequel in the wings.

A diverting fantasy novel that champions camaraderie and acceptance.