I bought this book on Independent Book Store Day (April 25, 2026) from Wildflower Bookshop. Let's be real, I don't need any more books to read and with using the Libby app, I have access to plenty of free books I can download but there's something slightly more exhilarating to pick a new book off a bookshelf and flip through the pages to read it.
When Women Were Dragons caught my eye because I've had one foot on the fantasy band-wagon for few years but haven't fully committed. My friend Alexa (a human, not AI) reminds me regularly which fantasy series I've dabbled in and which ones I haven't. Thanks, Alexa, the fact that you have four kids, a husband, a new house, a new job, are a basketball coach, and still keep track of the books I've read tells me that you're a true friend. All the storylines in the fantasy genre remind of me of Beauty and the Beast. Lovely woman is underrated in her abilities and lost with her life, meets an intimidating "beast" that loves her for who she is and once they work through the awkwardness and miscommunications, they realize they are in love. An additional plot twist would be that their love somehow helps save the world.
Wow, I digress, and could be wrong on my judgement of fantasy books. I'm still dabbling in them so I haven't written them off, yet. I try hard not to judge books but if I don't, I would spend eternity reading them all instead of picking and choosing a literary lane.
When Women Were Dragons has an intriguing cover, full of green plants, and the vibe of the book definitely piqued my pages. It had me hooked from the beginning and was a quick read. I was disappointed in the ending as I was expecting something bigger but I would still recommend this book. I related to the main character's love for learning and my connection inspired a future blog post. Goodreads says the genre is fantasy and historical fiction. I would agree but also question it. "Yes and no," as I typically respond when I can see both sides. I agree fantasy because of the dragons but not a storyline like ACOTAR or other popular fantasy books. I had to look up historical fiction and Goodreads defines it as:
After reading through that definition and having read the book, what well-known historical figures or famous events are in the story? Read the last paragraph closely. What significant historical event are they referring to? My mind goes to aliens with a government cover-up in the 1950s instead of dragons. Additionally, why does historical fiction have to adhere to the laws of physics? What are the laws of physics? Is there a laws of physics police that follows up if a book is not adhering to the laws of physics? Who do they follow up with? The author? The editor? The publisher? Is there a flow chart for this? Is there a flow chart for placing books in genres?
Lately, I haven't been able to be "done" with a book. I continue to notice and wonder everything about the book. Thus, my connection to the main character and her love for learning.
I'd recommend reading this book and if you'd like, we can analyze it together. Let me know at [email protected]
Back to my books — there's always another one piquing my pages.