This novel made a poor first impression on me, mainly because its style is highly expository, with the author telling us much that I'd rather she'd shown.
But I enjoyed the book more and more as it progressed, and its ending really affected me.
Highlights:
- A view of Neltharion at his best, as the bravest and strongest of his people, along with the seeds of his tragic fall.
- An exciting, detailed account of a devastating war between enormously powerful creatures, set in the fully realised geography of what will become the Dragon Isles.
- A young-adult secondary storyline that deepens our exploration of what it is to be a dragon and the political basis of the war.
- Lots of named characters with distinct identities, many of whom I'd like to explore further.
The audiobook is read by Alexstrasza's voice actress, Wendy Lee, in a clear and emotive rendering.
Some Warcraft novels are handicapped by the existing plots of the games. War of the Scaleborn loses some suspense as it is a prequel, but it benefits from inhabiting a period of Azeroth's history that has barely been explored in other works.
You don't need to have played the Dragonflight expansion to enjoy this book. On the other hand, it adds greatly to the story of Warcraft's dragons, and is essential reading for those of us interested in the Aspects.