Voyage of the Basilisk

No cover — Marie Brennan: Voyage of the Basilisk (EBook, 2015, Tor Books)

eBook, 352 pages

English language

Published March 30, 2015 by Tor Books.

ISBN:: 978-1-4299-5636-9

(1 review)

Devoted readers of Lady Trent’s earlier memoirs, A Natural History of Dragons and The Tropic of Serpents, may believe themselves already acquainted with the particulars of her historic voyage aboard the Royal Survey Ship Basilisk, but the true story of that illuminating, harrowing, and scandalous journey has never been revealed—until now. Six years after her perilous exploits in Eriga, Isabella embarks on her most ambitious expedition yet: a two-year trip around the world to study all manner of dragons in every place they might be found. From feathered serpents sunning themselves in the ruins of a fallen civilization to the mighty sea serpents of the tropics, these creatures are a source of both endless fascination and frequent peril. Accompanying her is not only her young son, Jake, but a chivalrous foreign archaeologist whose interests converge with Isabella’s in ways both professional and personal.

Science is, of course, the primary objective …

Devoted readers of Lady Trent’s earlier memoirs, A Natural History of Dragons and The Tropic of Serpents, may believe themselves already acquainted with the particulars of her historic voyage aboard the Royal Survey Ship Basilisk, but the true story of that illuminating, harrowing, and scandalous journey has never been revealed—until now. Six years after her perilous exploits in Eriga, Isabella embarks on her most ambitious expedition yet: a two-year trip around the world to study all manner of dragons in every place they might be found. From feathered serpents sunning themselves in the ruins of a fallen civilization to the mighty sea serpents of the tropics, these creatures are a source of both endless fascination and frequent peril. Accompanying her is not only her young son, Jake, but a chivalrous foreign archaeologist whose interests converge with Isabella’s in ways both professional and personal.

Science is, of course, the primary objective of the voyage, but Isabella’s life is rarely so simple. She must cope with storms, shipwrecks, intrigue, and warfare, even as she makes a discovery that offers a revolutionary new insight into the ancient history of dragons

1 edition

Soh Kam Yung reviewed Voyage of the Basilisk by Marie Brennan (The Memoirs of Lady Trent, #3)

A sea voyage that leads to discoveries.

4 stars

This is the third book in the memoirs of Isabella, the dragon naturalist, and it is finally starting to pay off. The first and second books in the series did not really feature must about the natural history of dragons but concentrated more on who Isabella was, her relationships with the people around her who, in a fantasy version of Victorian times, think she should 'stay in her place' (but of course, she doesn't) and the troubles she causes in her quest to understand dragons and to protect them from being hunted, possibly to extinction: for their bodies contains a secret that would greatly benefit the nation that takes advantage of it.

The third book skips directly to her observations with dragons, since the first two books have helped established the world she inhabits. Here, she is on a sea voyage to study sea dragons to understand their evolution and …

This is the third book in the memoirs of Isabella, the dragon naturalist, and it is finally starting to pay off. The first and second books in the series did not really feature must about the natural history of dragons but concentrated more on who Isabella was, her relationships with the people around her who, in a fantasy version of Victorian times, think she should 'stay in her place' (but of course, she doesn't) and the troubles she causes in her quest to understand dragons and to protect them from being hunted, possibly to extinction: for their bodies contains a secret that would greatly benefit the nation that takes advantage of it.

The third book skips directly to her observations with dragons, since the first two books have helped established the world she inhabits. Here, she is on a sea voyage to study sea dragons to understand their evolution and how the various types of sea dragons are related to each other. Along the way, she meets an archaeologist who is interested in a long dead civilization that had a mysterious relationship with dragons (alluded to in the previous two books).

When the ship suffers damage during a storm and she and her companions are asked to stay on an island while repairs are made, things start to turn hilarious; for she is compelled to enter an uncomfortable relationship to appease the native inhabitants. But when she attempts to perform a feat with sea dragons, she enters a forbidden area and makes a discovery that could change the world.

This is the most interesting and exciting book in the series so far and raises expectations for what can be resolved in the next two books.