Second month of 2026, and I only finished one book. But it was an awesome book. I started more books than I actually finished. Two of the books I have been reading throughout February - Slashed Beauties by A Rushby and Anna O by Matthew Blake are almost finished, and so I'll be adding them to my March round-up. I really want March to be an awesome reading month for me, as I have fallen behind on my Goodreads Reading Challenge. Thankfully, we are only on month 3 of 12, so plenty of time to get back on track.
This is one of my Chapter 25 Book Club's picks for the month. This is a chapter-a-day read-along book choice, and it was a surprise hit for me. I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would and am delighted that there are two more books in the series to enjoy (A War of Wyverns is out now, and a third book will be out at a later date). It is listed as young adult, and I would definitely second that. It's an awesome book, but there is no spice or adult themes.
In this book, we meet Vivien (Viv) Featherswallow, a young woman who lives in London in 1923. Her top concern in life is getting into an intership to study dragon languages. Viv lives at a time when humans and dragons live together but are divided. There is a lot of mistrust between the two species. Humans are also split, with the more respected and successful, known as first or second class, living happy lives for the most part. But their fellow citizens existing in third class are struggling for everything in life - accommodation, food, and life.
When her parents, uncle and cousin are arrested, Viv is determined to find a way to free them. Things don't go to plan howeber and she is soon arrested herself. She is given an option - work at Bletchley Park in a mysterious role and save herself and her family, or condemn herself and her family to certain death.
What she finds at Bletchley Park will change her life forever. Not only is she competing with a group of other young people in their mission, but she also finds a face from a past that could throw more chaos into the mix. She doesn't know who she can trust amongst the humans around her and the dragons who are in the same vicinity.
I found the FMC to be very annoying for a good chunk of the book. She was very naive and believed everything the higher-ups in Bletchley Park told her, even when there was ample evidence to the contrary. But I was intrigued enough to keep reading and did eventually change my mind about Viv.
If you are looking for a very enjoyable fantasy with a motley crew of young people facing an unimaginable risk, not just from the humans around them, but from a band of villified dragons, then I think you'll enjoy this book.
March Plans:
As I said above, I need to have a good reading month in March since I have fallen behind with my reading goal for the year. I have a few books I started in February that are either almost finished or in progress. One that I am really enjoying so far is Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. It has been on my physical tbr pile for far too long, so I finally picked it up. I already have the second book in the duology, so I can't wait to start that asap.
What did you enjoy in February? Any recommendations? Let me know in the comments.
