Review: Dragonheart by Charles Edward Pogue

A knight sworn to a forgotten Code. A young tyrant no weapon can kill. A peasant girl who wants freedom for her people, and a dragon seeking redemption. Bound by chance, brought together by fate, they each pursue victory. What will it cost them to gain their hearts’ desires?

The novelization of the film starring Dennis Quaid, David Thewlis, and the late Sean Connery, Dragonheart is as good a book as it is a film. In some ways it is better, since it gives fans of the movie greater insight into the story that was brought to life on film.

The story

Bowen is a knight of the Old Code, the protocol of King Arthur and the Round Table, which has fallen into disuse. He intends to rectify that by training the next king of the realm, Prince Einon to be a better man than his father. At the behest of Einon’s mother, Aislinn of the Celts, Bowen has been drilling the young future king in tactics, swordplay, and the Code.

While practicing amidst the ruins of a Roman fort, Bowen overcomes his pupil, only for Sir Brok to arrive with a message: the peasants are rebelling, and the king wants his son to see his father overcome them in battle. Unhappy with this turn of events, Bowen nevertheless accompanies Einon to the front lines. During the conflict the king is killed, and his son charges into the fray to find him. Taking his crown from his not-quite-dead father’s hands, Einon is accosted by several peasants, including a girl named Kara. When an opportunity presents itself she mortally wounds him.

Desperate to save the prince, Bowen rushes back to the castle with the boy to bring him to his mother, who knows of a single hope to save her son and the realm. Aislinn leads a caravan including Bowen and Einon to a dragon’s cave, where she convinces the creature to share his heart with Einon. Although suspicious, the dragon wants the misunderstandings and violence between their species to end as well. He does as Aislinn requests after having Einon swear to uphold the Old Code.

The next morning, however, the three of them and the kingdom itself are betrayed. For Einon is not his father; he is worse. Enraged, Bowen vows to kill the dragon who corrupted his charge and dashed his hopes in the process.

Four long years pass, during which time Bowen becomes a skilled dragonslayer. He corners his latest mark near a waterfall, only to learn that this dragon is the last of his kind. But Einon still lives, which means Bowen has failed…

…Or has he simply lost his way?

The characters

The characters are given a fair bit of depth in the novel that can only be inferred in the film. Einon in particular is revealed to be more despicable than he appears onscreen, shown time and again to have no concept of love because he believes all that springs from it is weakness. Although he does beg for love to be shown him once, his inability to comprehend love prevents any attachment forming between him and others, including his own mother.

Bowen’s and the dragon’s thoughts are laid bare, and readers are privy to some extra scenes that did not make it into the movie. Kara and her worldview are also given more time to shine, as she laments the fact that Einon not only murdered her father, he stole her virginity as “punishment” for trying to assassinate him. Seeing her mourn the loss of the only dowry she can claim as a landless peasant when Bowen proposes to her is moving for certain.

Tertiary and side characters receive more development here as well. From the largely unnamed peasants of the film to the slimy nobles of Einon’s court, to Aislinn herself, we get to see more of the characters we came to love in the movie. It is easy to picture the actors’ voices as those of the characters in the book, and to enjoy the story on its own merits if one has never seen the film.

The world

The world is deeper and richer in the novel than the movie, as it has time to delve into the day-to-day workings of the characters’ lives. Readers will learn more about the dragons and how they fit into the world of Dragonheart through this book, which will explain how we reach the ending seen in the film. It also emphasizes the injustices practiced on the peasants which led them to rebel in the first place.

The politics

Dragonheart’s politics are entirely internal and have nothing whatsoever to do with the modern day. It is a relief and a breath of fresh air for certain.

Content warning

Kara is raped, offscreen, but the scene may still bother some readers. We also see one of Einon’s lords philandering with and drooling over a peasant girl he employs for his pleasure. Other than that, there is nothing objectionable in the book.

Who is it for?

Fans of the film on which it is based, fantasy lovers, and those who like reading about dragons. Any readers interested in the Dark Ages and early Medieval history will also enjoy this book. The novelization does not require one to have watched the film, as it contains the entire story and needs no viewing of the movie to understand. Pogue knew his business and wrote well for both mediums.

Why read it?

It is a translation of a good movie into a good book. You do not find those often, so why let this one get away?