To Shape a Dragon's Breath: The First Book of Nampeshiweisit

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I can't stop talking/YELLING about this book! Set in the 1800s in an alternate North America colonized by Vikings, a world where dragons can be beasts of war or lifelong companions sacred to communities, it follows a young Indigenous woman as she and her dragon try to navigate a colonizer-run school for dragoneering. Alternate history, a magic system deeply informed by science and spirituality, a coming-of-age story that is also a coming to power, queer love, incredibly rich worldbuilding, and so much else. I'm so very glad this is the first book in a series.  Recommended By Claire A., Powells.com

To Shape a Dragon's Breath is a book I want to shove into everyone's hands. Anequs is a fantastic lead, and the supporting characters are wonderfully diverse. It is a fun and smart alt-history that leans into a very cool science system that relates to dragons and the riders that study at the academy Anequs is forced to attend. But Anequs is an indigenous native of these colonized lands, and she begins to learn that there are much older native ways and traditions that bond rider and dragon. A wonderful and compelling read! Recommended By Lesley A., Powells.com

"An early contender for the best fantasy novel of 2023." — The Washington Post

"A very entertaining and fun read, full of loveable characters and intricate, original worldbuilding." — NPR

The remote island of Masquapaug has not seen a dragon in many generations — until fifteen-year-old Anequs finds a dragon's egg and bonds with its hatchling. Her people are delighted, for all remember the tales of the days when dragons lived among them and danced away the storms of autumn, enabling the people to thrive. To them, Anequs is revered as Nampeshiweisit — a person in a unique relationship with a dragon.

Unfortunately for Anequs, the Anglish conquerors of her land have different opinions. They have a very specific idea of how a dragon should be raised, and who should be doing the raising — and Anequs does not meet any of their requirements. Only with great reluctance do they allow Anequs to enroll in a proper Anglish dragon school on the mainland. If she cannot succeed there, her dragon will be killed.

For a girl with no formal schooling, a non-Anglish upbringing, and a very different understanding of the history of her land, challenges abound--both socially and academically. But Anequs is smart, determined, and resolved to learn what she needs to help her dragon, even if it means teaching herself. The one thing she refuses to do, however, is become the meek Anglish miss that everyone expects.

Anequs and her dragon may be coming of age, but they're also coming to power, and that brings an important realization: the world needs changing — and they might just be the ones to do it.

"To Shape a Dragon's Breath cuts right to the chase and is about that, offering a scathing rejection of the idea that there is one right way for a person to be educated." — NPR

"Imagine a world full of dragons where a newborn chooses you to be its caregiver. Imagine you have to go to a special school to learn how to train it. Imagine that almost no one at the school wants you there. This is how the well-written, compelling tale of To Shape a Dragon's Breath begins, and once underway it doesn't let you go." — New York Times bestselling author Terry Brooks

"This is a classic fantasy at its finest...a must-read high-fantasy series." — Booklist (Starred Review)

Moniquill Blackgoose began writing science fiction and fantasy when she was twelve and hasn't stopped writing since. She is an enrolled member of the Seaconke Wampanoag Tribe, and a lineal descendant of Ousamequin Massasoit. She is an avid costumer, and an active member of the steampunk community. She has blogged, essayed, and discussed extensively across many platforms the depictions of Indigenous and Indigenous-coded characters in sci-fi and fantasy. Her works often explore themes of inequality in social and political power, consent, agency, and social revolution.