Miss Percy’s Pocket Guide to the Care and Feeding of British Dragons (A Miss Percy Guide #1), by Quenby Olson

Miss Percy’s Pocket Guide to the Care and Feeding of British Dragons is the first book in the A Miss Percy Guide series by Quenby Olson. We have a really cozy fantasy history, situated in the Regency and extremely well written, which I personally loved (Note: from now on I will refer to the book as Miss Percy’s, just for concision’s sake).

Miss Percy’s is a delightful book, one that I can say I really enjoyed despite being so outside of the genres I usually tend to read. There is certainly some distinctive approach to the genre from Olson, as the first different thing we can observe is how the character goes outside of the molds. Miss Mildred Percy is totally the opposite of a classic MC, a middle-aged woman, single, and it is well developed throughout the whole novel.

Despite the unconventionality of the main character, it is one that thanks to the writing of Olson grows fastly into you, as her voice is really unique, full of sarcasm and humor, drawing more than a laugh from me. We will also see how the character grows during the novel, learning to self-love and to appreciate herself over the family, over social conventionalism. And what is the real trigger that unleashes the story? The inheritance of a dragon’s egg from his great uncle.

And here is where the fantasy was introduced to the book when the dragon egg hatches and Fitz enters into the story. As the first dragon alive in Great Britain in centuries, this certainly poses challenges to Mildred, and to the vicar. Despite this not being a romance book, it is true that the love component is there, mostly in the relationship between Mildred and the vicar, a kind soul who helps Mildred before the eggs hatch.

It was nicer to say that she «bit her lip» rather than «she chewed on her lips as though it were a sausage after she had gone without a proper meal for full two days»
- Miss Percy’s Pocket Guide to the Care and Feeding of British Dragons, Quenby Olson

Mention apart to the dragon, I found it kinda adorable, Fitz is practically like if my cat had wings and could breathe fire. It’s just a little trouble creator, but at the same time one of the most valuable things in the world of the novel, as he can probably cost millions, which is exactly the reason our villain wants to get Fitz and causes trouble.

Not diving more into the plot, I feel I must talk about how well-written Miss Percy’s is. The prose is fluid, never too dry. Despite the chapters being slightly longer than I usually prefer, I never found one that I felt had too many pages. And let me talk about two of the main strengths of Olson: breaking the fourth wall, but making it in almost an adequate manner, more like hitting a little before throwing the wall into you; and how good the humor is in this book. I don’t want to finish this paragraph without also noticing how well the food/drink descriptions are written, totally I didn’t want to stop reading for getting a refreshment.

Unfortunately, those familiar with the process of writing will know the scattered nature of her paragraphs, thoughts and ideas leaping from one stepping stone to the next with several tumbles into the raging waters below.
- Miss Percy’s Pocket Guide to the Care and Feeding of British Dragons, Quenby Olson

In definitive, I think all the praise this book receives is totally deserved. If you are on the look for a cozy, warm fantasy, with humour and adorable character, Miss Percy’s is for you. And we will return for traveling to Wales with Miss Percy soon!