Book Review: "Henchgirl" by Rita Stradling

Henchgirl by Rita Stradling
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"Henchgirl" by Rita Stradling brings to life an alternate world where dragons live and breed with humans to create dracons. Backed by their dragon parents, dracons control over 80% of the world. The protagonist, Dakota Kekoa, is a 16-year-old dracon who works for her grandfather as a type of enforcer. Dakota's mother is a selfish alcoholic who drinks or spends every penny she gets her hands on, so Dakota works to support her mother, her sisters, and herself.

Ms. Stradling immerses her readers in this new world from the beginning. I can feel the heat of the islands where Dakota lives, hear the hate speech from the full-humans, and understand the dread of being accidentally turned into a vampire or werewolf. I want to bitch slap those who are rude to Dakota, and yell at her mother for letting her daughter shoulder the responsibility of taking care of the entire household. If you let it, this story will suck you in and hold you to the edge of your seat as Dakota muddles her way through visiting dignitaries and the vanishing of one of her true friends.

"Henchgirl" is clean in term of no grammatical or spelling errors. But more than that, all the details line up. Not once did I hit an inconsistency that can pull a reader from the narrative. Instead, I lost track of time while reading.

I give this book 5 stars out of 5, and recommend it to anyone who loves fantasy books.

Disclaimer:  I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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