The Dragon Has Some Complaints

by John Wiswell

In this heartfelt and humorous fantasy from the Nebula-winning author of Someone You Can Build a Nest In, a dragon whose three heads bear rather…different...personalities finds family in the most unexpected of places.

Garrodigh was once a four-headed dragon, among the most powerful in Kardoša. After an unfortunate incident, he now has three heads, one stump, and a daily whirlwind of internal bickering. Centerhead wants to rain death upon all humanity, Bottomhead is like a feral cat, and Upperhead is under the delicate delusion that he is, in fact, human. 

When a nearby battle goes awry, Garrodigh sneaks into an elite dragon rider academy, pretending to be tame to get free food and a warm bed. Lucky for him, rider Rania Albright is desperate enough for a dragon of her own that she overlooks his eccentricities. 

As Garrodigh recovers under Rania’s care, all three heads start to turn, for the first time, in the same direction. Each wants to protect her from the invaders who killed their fourth head—the same invaders who seek to conquer Kardoša. When the academy comes under attack, can this wild dragon and his wilder rider save their homeland together?

This cozy fantasy intertwines epic battles with loving friendships, sharing an utterly unique perspective on what it means to be a "monster."

Genres: Fantasy, Dragons, Cozy, Adult, Cozy Fantasy, Fiction, Humor

400 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication July 14, 2026

About the author

John Wiswell is a disabled author who lives where New York keeps all its trees. He won the Nebula Award for Best Novel and the Locus Award for Best Debut Novel for Someone You Can Build A Nest In, and the Nebula Award for Best Short Story for Open House on Haunted Hill, and the Locus Award for Best Novelette for That Story Isn't The Story. His fiction has been translated into over fifteen languages.

Reviews

[gabbie [semi-ia, new job] · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes the bravest thing a dragon can do is fall.

Garrodigh, the Great Terror, is not so fearsome anymore. Once a four-headed dragon, he now has three heads, one stump, and a lot of unresolved trauma. He can’t fly, and the remaining heads are coping in very different ways. Centerhead is proud, regal, furious, and anti-human. Standard dragon. Upperhead is convinced that he is human. Bottomhead is basically a child and only cares about eating. After a nearby battle goes badly, the three of them make the executive decision to sneak into an elite dragon rider academy in the floating Winged City, pretend to be tame, and get free food and lodgings. Unfortunately for this wild, anti-human dragon, this involves being claimed by Rania, a refugee and aspiring dragon rider who desperately wants a dragon of her own.

The relationship between Garrodigh and Rania is where this book shines. They are both outsiders. Rania is trying to belong in a city that doesn’t fully accept her, and Garrodigh is trying to recover from something that has left him physically and emotionally changed. He never really feels like he belongs with any of the dragons. Too tame for the wild dragons, and too wild for the tame dragons. The bond between Garrodigh and Rania has a warm, found-family feeling, and I loved watching this furious, traumatized dragon slowly grow attached despite their best efforts. It’s very “I am NOT emotionally invested in this human” while actively rearranging his entire worldview around her safety and happiness. Sir, please. We can all see you.

The first half of the book is so endearing. It has this cozy training montage feeling, like Eye of the Tiger, but make it dragon rehab. It’s a story about trauma, shame, fear, and remembering who you were before you fell. Remembering that the greatness isn’t lost just because you fell. I like the way Garrodigh’s heads externalize different responses to trauma. It’s silly, but there’s something tender underneath the absurdity. Centerhead wants revenge. Upperhead escapes into delusion. Bottomhead retreats into instinct.

I have to mention Oleksiy. I say this as someone with no authority on how queer characters should be written or introduced: Oleksiy is the only character in this book whose identity is made explicit on first appearance. He is introduced as a trans man before we know much else about him. No other queer character in the book, and there are several, is introduced the way he is. It's clear that they're queer based on who they date, for example. His introduction stands out by contrast, but that alone doesn't mean it's an issue. I’m curious how this lands for queer readers more broadly. When a character shares your identity, do you prefer it to be stated clearly right away, or do you prefer finding out when other pieces of their background come up naturally?

On the topic of Oleksiy, though, I love him. He has this unbothered confidence about him, calls everyone darling, and has glorious hair. If you love Howl, you will love Oleksiy. We need more MMCs like Howl and Oleksiy. Seriously, where are they?? (pls tell me in the comments)

My main issue, and the reason I'm giving this 3.5 stars, is that the book started to feel so long. It's not even that long, but it felt like it would never end. I struggle to describe why. Maybe the descriptions were too long and tangential? I love intricate side characters and all that, but sometimes it felt a bit like listening to that friend who never gets to the point because they go into 15 side stories.

Ironically, the second half, which is a lot more action-packed than the first, is when I started getting bored. The quieter moments and character detours started to feel stretched out, and the larger war plot never grabbed me as much as the Garrodigh/Rania dynamic did. It's more serious, with battles, airships, political tension, and real danger. While that gives the book more plot, it's not what I would expect from a cozy fantasy, but I am certainly no expert on the genre.

Still, despite my complaints, there’s a lot of heart in this story. The chapters are short (and named! I miss named chapters!), the humor is cute, and Garrodigh is a delightfully ridiculous creation. The book works best when it’s about the divide between dragons and humans, and how kindness can sneak past even the most stubborn defenses. I just wish the whole book had stayed as sharp and endearing as that central bond.

3.5 ⭐ rounded up
A big thank you to NetGalley, DAW, and John Wiswell for the ARC!

[Ricarda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a new favorite, but of course I did enjoy the book with the three-headed dragon main character. The whole concept of the three heads having all different personalities will never not make me grin, and I just loved to read about Garrodigh, the Great Terror. That's the name the dragon is widely known under, but we get to know him a little better than that. There is Centerhead, who is bloodthirsty and hostile, Bottomhead, who feels more like a dog and is mostly thinking about food, and Upperhead, who is convinced that he is a human hallucinating this whole situation. Which is understandable, because reality really doesn't look too good for Garrodigh. War made him flee his home and other wild dragons were not willing to shelter him. He can't fly anymore and is gravely injured (he used to be a four-headed dragon after all) when he comes up with the great plan of letting himself be captured by humans. The people of the Winged City tamed dragons long ago and so they might as well feed and heal Garrodigh. There's still enough time to conquer the city and destroy humanity afterwards. Especially Centerhead is determined to hate all humans, but it's hard when they show him so much love and care. One dragon-rider in particular just adopts Garrodigh and is beyond thrilled to have a new steed. John Wiswell always writes weirdly cozy and wholesome stories set in rather harsh worlds, and this one was no exception. At first it was the healing journey of a dragon with quite the repressed feelings, and a bit of a found family situation with his new rider, a woman named Rania. She was an interesting character as well, a refugee of war struggling with being accepted in her new home. I know that the dragon POV is a big part of the appeal of this book, but I wish Rania had gotten her own chapters as well. It was rather unnatural how her whole personal story was observed from an outside perspective and there were plenty of awkward moments because of that. (Really, what was up with all the sex she was having right next to her dragon?) Rania had a whole rom-com-drama going on, and I was not into it. I was very interested in the dragon-part, though. There were pretty cool dragon powers shown in this book, like dragons producing lava or them basically manipulating gravity to fly. They also had a whole religion and it was very interesting how it tied into the war plot of the story. It's definitely a mix of humor and heavier themes, so be aware of that when you pick it up expecting a fun little silly read. I enjoyed it, but I ultimately also have to call it my least favorite book from this author. But I guess it's just hard when you only ever write bangers.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and DAW for providing a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

Pre-read: John Wiswell really saw that meme with the three-headed dragon and made a whole book out of it, but his dragon has one head that wants to annihilate humanity, one that thinks it's human and one that just wants some good head scritches, and I love absolutely everything about that.

[Chantaal]

PLEASE BE A REFERENCE TO THIS MEME

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Dragon Has Some Complaints by John Wiswell
Book Blurb: A dragon whose three heads bear rather…different...personalities finds family in the most unexpected of places.

Rating: ****
Feels: Amused, Impressed, Adventurey, Happy
Style: Fantasy, Dragons, Cozy, Adult, Cozy Fantasy, Fiction
First published July 14, 2026: 400 pages

Themes & Setting:
Main Character: Garrodigh !! The Great Terror !!! Is just so much fun. We have so much personality wrapped up in this fun dragon. Centerhead made me want to believe in humanity again (while he wants to destroy humanity !!!). He went through alot of development and it was so very heartwarming. Upperhead ... thinking he was human ... was just too funny. The things he would say .. had me in stitches. Bottomhead is just the sweetheart you wanna pat on the head. Enjoy getting to know the dragon !!!
FMC: Rania was such a great strong female character and I love that she was the one that got to be with Garrodigh !! Her heart and spirit are what guided everything and made this all such a very enjoyable read.
Conclusion: Such a fun adventure with a dragon with the most amusing multi head personalities!!! It was really interesting to have the story from the POV from one of the heads of the dragon and that be the filter of the relationships around the dragon. The dragon’s rider is fantastic and gives great treats !! She also has a romance sub plot which is pretty fun to have narrated through center head dragon. The world building was a lot of fun as seen through the dragon and a world in the midst of a war. I always love a good conflict. I think my favorite part of this story was the POV and just enjoying this story through such a novel view. Really fun read !!


This book has:
Dragons !!!
Politics and Waring Nations
Hidden Identities
Lots of conflicts
Queer Friendly

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ Very cute if a little underwhelmed. Garrodigh is an ancient four headed dragon who’s a bit worse for wear. He can’t fly, has a busted leg and one of his heads is dead. Losing Lefty has left his other three heads more than a little confused. Upperhead thinks he’s a human, Bottomhead doesn’t think just eats and Centerhead is trying to keep them all together except there’s some pretty big holes in his memory. All Centerhead knows was the humans killed Lefty & he wants revenge but he’d like some breakfast first!

This is the type of cozy that I like! There are still stakes that propel the action forward and the world is filled with positive accepting characters. The whole book is from Centerheads POV. Such a fun character to spend time with! I disliked how drawn out the final battle was & how much time it took to help the dragon goddess. There was lots of random action thrown in that felt like filler.

A bit of a random noodle. I keep thinking about how Oleksiy a trans male character, was introduced. Wiswell tells the audience that Oleksiy is trans immediately. It was done simply/to the point in the same way an author might say so and so had brown hair. I do appreciate Wiswells directness. Although I wish that Oleksiy was introduced in the same way every other character was & use of pronouns tells us what gender he is. We weren’t given additional labels for other characters like nonbinary or queer.

At multiple points, Rania, Garrodighs rider, talks about her childhood growing up with Oleksiy. We learn about how her sexuality was something to be hidden & she was sold off to be a child bride before she ran away. We also learn about Oleksiys struggles to transition/ be accepted as male before he ran away. It’s important we know about both Oleksiys & Rania past but Rania wasn’t labeled queer or child bride upon introduction…

I guess I feel if a person identifies as/is a man we should treat them the way we treat all the other male characters. If that man’s history is important to their story then we should learn they were AFAB in the same way we learn any characters backstory.

Big caveat while I’m demi gendered I am not trans. I’ve had feelings of gender incongruence but it is not even close to the same experience Trans people go through. If Trans readers are happy with or prefer the way Wiswell introduces Oleksiy then that’s what I support.

[Pernille A Prolific Page Turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't quite sure what I was getting into, but if a book contains dragons I'm going to read it! And it sure was entertaining.

In a world with a howering city high in the sky, off course human greed wins and the city gets attacked by another nation. The wild dragons on the ground are affected and injured by the ammunition falling from the sky in the clashes between airships and dragonsriders from the floating city. One of these dragons is Garrodigh, The Great Terror. He has lost one of his four heads, Centerhead the most bloodthirsty of the three remaining heads get the bright idea to trick their way to the floating city, so the dragon can get fed and heal among the tame dragons. Upperhead is very interested because he believes himself to be a human and hallucinating being a dragon. and just want to return to his people, the human. Bottomhead is a glutton and just want to eat everything presented to Garrodigh.

Not everything isn't as easy or straightforward as expected, and a bold young woman, Rania, basically bullies her way to becoming Garrodigh's rider. Hilarities ensues.

I found this story heartwarming, and the found family delightful. The way kind, gentle, and persistent relationships can heal wounds neither known or recognised.

I saw some reviews talking about the meme with the three dragon heads, but while reading I felt it more resembled the two-headed dragon (Devon and Cornwall) from Quest for Camelot fits so much better. The heads need to reconcile their differences before they can become a 'proper dragon' and fly. Getting to that stage with personal growth and help from friends is just like Devon and Cornwall in that they get outside help and guidance to reach that point. I love the movie and I enjoyed the book.

I wanted a bit more of everything I guess, though I can't exactly pinpoint what so that's why it's not getting a higher star rating. If you love the found-family tropes and healing, then this book is for you. It's not something I read much of so that may be what is affecting the rating.

3 stars

Thank you to DAW through NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own.

[Tiny Dragon Books~ Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this advanced copy for my unbiased opinion 😊
What a quirky read! Having not read any of the authors work, it took me some time to get into the rhythm of the story (which felt like coming in on a movie 30 minutes into the plot). Told from the perspective of Centrehead, one of 3 heads on a wild dragon, I appreciated the sardonic inner dialogue and the redemption arc from villainous to heroic.
However, the pacing and lack of world building fell short for me, as did the odd juxtaposition of a naive, childlike FMC, who had multiple sexual encounters that were never mentioned again within the story.
I liked the fantasy elements, and the introduction of the Goddess was a nice touch.
Not my cup of tea, but will definitely appeal to readers of untraditional storylines and the authors work.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a free copy from DAW via Netgalley in exchange for a fair review. Release date July 14th, 2026.

I liked Wiswell's previous two novels and was excited to get a copy of his latest book about a dragon infiltrating a dragon rider stable. In The Dragon Has Some Complaints, three-headed dragon Garrodigh is old, injured, and desperate. In a last bid for survival, he tricks his way onto the dragon stable on the floating city of Kardosa where he's nursed back to health—and also inevitably gets invested in Kardosa's endless losing war.

I liked both Someone You Can Build a Nest In and Wearing the Lion, but for me, The Dragon Has Some Complaints edges over the cute line and is just a bit too life-affirming. Wiswell's strength is his alien character voices, and I liked Garrodigh's tendency to occasionally eat people and the heads' three distinct personalities: one of them keeps putting things in its mouth, one of them thinks it's secretly a human hallucinating the whole "dragon" thing, and poor Centerhead is left to steer the body. But ultimately, the plot was just a bit too cute. I was expecting a ruthlessly ambitious twelve-year old in dragon school, and instead I got a dragon stable and a very soggy twenty-something who's into auras and affirming emotions. I wish the story had leaned a bit harder into the comedy and tension of Garrodigh's reckless fraud, like the very funny detail that all tame dragons can talk but they're just too lazy to bother. But instead the story centers Garrodigh finding love and acceptance and learning that humans aren't all that bad.

Aside from my issues with the plot, I found the worldbuilding to be simplistic. It's one of those setups where there are only three countries. In this case, one of them is the mostly perfect floating queer utopia and the other two are the cruel homophobic aggressor countries attacking it. It's a character-focused story and I don't think Wiswell is particularly interested in the complexities of the political situation. Unfortunately, the neglect of the larger stakes in favor of the smaller stakes didn't work well for me. I didn't care about Rania's romantic dramas, especially through the remove of Garrodigh's perspective. Even Rania's beloved bonded dragon Garrodigh has limited patience for the melodrama...

The concept of a multi-headed dragon with three very conflicting personalities was great, but I think that The Dragon Has Some Complaints slid into the sort of cozy-branded fantasy I don't enjoy. But don't listen to me, I'm a hater who loves gore and angst. I know lots of people will enjoy a sweet and affirming fantasy novel about being healed of your wounds and finding your place in the world. However! Not me.

[Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had found Jonathan Wiswell’s short fiction a little twee for my personal taste (it’s very high quality twee, but I’m not the right reader for it), so I was pleasantly surprised by Someone You Can Build a Nest In, and I was delighted to be given the opportunity to review an advance copy of The Dragon Has Some Complaints.

The best thing about this book by far is the narrator. A three headed dragon--each head with a distinct personality and voice, is not picking your narrator on easy mode. And Centerhead is such an absolute delight. He’s grumpy, he’s vulnerable but doesn’t want to show it; he’s a whole mood. And the other heads are just as delightful. Wiswell does a fantastic job with the relationships among them, and it’s the absolute highlight of this book. In truth, I’d have rated this book 3.5 stars, but it got rounded up for the absolute charm and skill Wiswell brings to Centerhead’s narration. (I read this digitally--I hope the audiobook narrator does this justice. If they do, it will be an all timer.)

Garrodigh is a feral and wounded dragon. He scrounges up a living in a forest, but his wounds mean he can’t fly, and he doesn’t remember how he got his wounds. He’s down to three heads, and under cannonfire, when he poses as a wounded tame dragon to con a few meals out of the humans before he eats them. But then he meets Rania, who is determined to heal him and let him fly again. As he finds his place in this new world, he’ll have to fight to keep his rider and his new friends safe.

The plot is fun, and it has its twists and turns. It surprised me a few times, but there were a few times I found the world building a little confusing or inconsistent. But the beating heart of this book was the relationship between dragon and rider, and I found myself wishing for a little more edge, like Wiswell brought to SYCBNI. The singleminded focus on dragon and rider also made some of the other characters a little blurry.

Recommended for fans of T.J. Klune, and the Dealing with Dragons series.

I recieved an advance copy in exchange for this honest review.

[Mela · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very fun story!
In this book we follow a three-headed dragon, Garrodigh as he fakes being one of the humans’ dragons to be rescued. However Garrodigh doesn’t seem to be like other dragons. Each of his heads talk and have very different personalities. Rania, one of the humans, claims him as her own. And after nursing him back to health and warming him up to her, the two team up to fight back the FRR attacks. Will the be able to find peace for both humans and dragons?

I really loved the story and Garrodigh was a great MC. I loved the banter between the three different heads and how differently they thought. I almost wished we could have had chapters from each of their perspectives instead of just following Centerhead. Nevertheless I did love him and I also really enjoyed the story overall. My only issue was that I didn’t get attach to Raina. I almost wish we had a few chapters by her, because it was quite weird to get attached just by seeing her through the dragons’ eyes. Loved the story and I will definitely check out more works by this author.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

4⭐️ Emotional, cozy, but also high stakes? This was a super cute read with a big topic revolving identity. There was some heart warming moments between our main characters that had me tearing up. 🥹 This read felt very cozy while at the same time we're in the middle of a war and the background was so high stakes! I was either emotional or filled with adrenaline.⚡️ I'd definitely recommend this to anyone who is maybe struggling with their identity or healing and wants to feel seen within the cozy fantasy space. 🐉

[Sarah]

Listen this book is so cute! It’s very very cozy so it simply is just not for me. I really enjoyed Centerhead, Upperhead, Bottomhead (poor lefty). I was hoping to see more action, but alas I cannot continue reading.

The writing isn’t poor and I love the queer rep, but I am a bit bored and I don’t think it’s fair for me to read anymore.

Thank you DAW for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.

[Jefferz · Rating 2 out of 5]

A floating city, foreign invading airships, an immigrant woman who longs to be a dragon rider, and a three-headed dragon who’s tired and wants to remind humankind that he is to be feared. Following a jaded three-headed dragon whose heads comically quarrel amongst themselves, John Wiswell’s the Dragon Has Some Complaints is a book pitched as a cozy fantasy meets epic fantasy story of battles, friendship, and reflections of being a monster. With earnest intentions, this book succeeds in the friendship department with lots of positive therapeutic empathy and inclusive queer representation. Yet, its other aspects feel less successful and cohesive resulting in a somewhat disjointed and underwhelming reading experience.

Highlights:
☕︎ Lighthearted and comedic fantasy adventure that’s easy to follow and wholesome.
☕︎ Mix of silly banter with more serious and grave battle situations eases sensitive readers into the story and narrative material. Story has elements of epic fantasy without confusing complexity with surprisingly good action.
☕︎ Story has a nice variety of themes pertaining to love and friendship, found family, self-identity, and recovery. Prominent queer representation and physical rehabilitation portrayal.

Considerations:
-Pacing is slow and goes on frequent drama-filled tangents in the middle of the story.
-Character writing, dialogue, and conflicts feel juvenile and high-school esque despite the characters being adults. Characters also feel shallow and one-dimensional.
-Overly therapeutic and supportive character developments can be heavy-handed, excessive, and tangential. Human drama feels like it distracts from the main dragon riding and defending the nation storylines.
-Lighthearted and cozy first half feels odd with the more action-heavy and epic feeling back-half and does neither genre very well. Epic fantasy world-building and overall narrative feels lackluster with many conflicting details that don’t sense.

Based on its premise and marketing as a light-hearted fantasy story, that one goofy three-headed dragon fanart meme instantly comes to mind. And though I can’t verify if this provided any inspiration for the book’s concept, it invokes a similar tone, at least initially. Garrodigh’s three heads act the three stooges; Centerhead being the leader and snarky one, Bottomhead who is feral one (the book’s description not mine, they seemed more like the impulsive child than feral to me), and Upperhead who is the anxious and slightly neurotic one who is convinced he’s a human trapped in a dragon’s body. Garrodigh also carries the metaphorical and physical weight and loss of their fourth head Lefty who sympathized and hoped to work collaboratively with humans; their name also doubling as an apt socio-political association compared to most dragons who detest humans. The first half of the book follows Garrodigh’s infiltration of the human’s Winged City, a plot of land blessed by the dragon goddess who bestowed upon the ability of flight. While masquerading as an injured tamed dragon taking advantage of the humans' food and supplies, he’s paired with a young lady Rania who’s dreamed of becoming a rider.

The front half of the book is where this book feels the most light-hearted and comical courtesy of Garrodigh’s three heads and their endless banter. Determined to learn all he can to one day overthrow Winged City, what actually happens is the three heads are constantly baffled and confused by human behavior such as avoiding what they want to say, strange contraptions to torture- erm rehabilitate dragons, keeping track of who doesn’t like who, and even frequent rubbing meats together outside their barn stable; aka frivolous one-night stands (it’s not spicy nor described on-page). Despite how stubborn and firm they are to soon devour them all, Rania’s constant doting and positive reinforcement slowly starts to sway them from their original goal, becoming attached to the person they meant to betray. The story has a very warm and comforting feel to it and the story for me is at its best when it's focused on Garrodigh and Rania, bridging the divide between humans and dragons.

Introduced as caring and kind-hearted, Rania is the kind of character that wears their heart on their sleeves and is easy to root for. Although she has always dreamed of being a dragon rider, her background as a refugee/escapee from the FFR (more on that shortly) makes others immediately distrust her as a potential spy from the enemy. Rejected as a rider until Garrodigh arrives without a paired rider, she does everything in her power to bring him back to full health, showing him the kindness and affection he never had amongst the other wild dragons. On the flip side, unconsciously against his better judgement, Centerhead can’t help but want to protect Rania in return, whether its physical threats from the invading airships or from emotional pains of heartbreak or grief. There’s a lot of support and love for others in this book, their bond being a great example of it.

Once the book transitions into its back half, the story begins to shift and takes on a more action-forward and grave approach. Though it’s vaguely foreshadowed early on, the nation of Kardoša and the Winged City is under constant threat from the FFR’s invading airships and deadly cannons. Despite the early comical and light-hearted introduction, the story pulls out some unexpectedly big battles and dragon flight combat that’s more on-brand with epic fantasy stories; this book’s marketing describes it as a cozy fantasy but I don’t agree with that label as the content is not at all what people consider the sub genre to be. The stakes and world-building lore grow as the story progresses, culminating in a surprisingly grand finale that one wouldn’t expect given the book’s unassuming beginning.

In addition to the mix of comedy and grand battles, another one of the book’s highlights is its queer representation and its themes of found family and home. the Dragon Has Some Complaints is set in a queer normative world that extends to all of its characters. While not discussed, Rania is likely pan, the first knight Olesksiy is a trans man, Rania has some flings with men and women who also have feelings for others, etc. The book’s themes of found family not only apply to their queer identities (Oleskiy’s childhood of concealing who they are is lightly touched on) but also to their home in Kardoša vs where they were originally from. Outside of Rania and Garrodigh, there’s a lot of soft feelings, a found family support group, and a sense of therapeutic healing from the pains of their past.

If evaluated on paper, the Dragon Has Some Complaints has a lot of great ideas. Airship battles, a floating city, interesting lore about a dragon goddess, a refugee state at risk of being conquered, and of course dragon riding. However, though the book tries hard to be comedic while also grand, the end result doesn’t quite come together in a satisfying way. Despite enjoying both epic fantasy books as well as comedic satirical ones, I found this one’s pairing of the two to be a bit awkward and the overall story to be very underwhelming and slow. Its first half and middle section felt to me like it was fumbling to find its hook and had too much filler. Additionally, rather than blending its humor and action well, it felt like the book couldn’t figure out what it wanted to be. It’s kind of cozy but loses that charm half-way though, it’s kind of funny but the three-headed banter gets old (particularly Bottomhead whose interjections get very repetitive), the stakes are high but notable plot details don’t make sense while the world-building is limited at best. This novel tries to do a lot of different things but unfortunately ends up doing them all rather weakly. I felt like the novel was more memorable when it was light-heated, and I wished it leaned more in that direction than its mid-way noncommittal approach.

Garrodigh’s rehabilitation process was well done in the early chapters (likely attributed to Wisell’s physical disabilities and experiences) but it was surrounded by a lot of character drama that felt juvenile and surface level. Ordinarily this wouldn’t be a dealbreaker, but the problem is that this book is pitched as an adult novel with characters in their 20’s and up. The character dynamics and relationship woes felt akin to high school drama, he said she said and jealousy included. All of the human characters’ actions and dialogue felt far too young for how old their characters were meant to be; the story likely would’ve made more sense aging them down if not for the book’s frequent sex flings that didn’t feel like they added much (closed door mind you, though they ironically happen outside). I felt like the conflict and melodrama felt very forced and almost silly, slowing down and dragging a plot that could’ve used the pages for better world-building, exploration of the dragon riding mechanics, or even the character’s backgrounds, Cosmos and Olesksiy specifically.

Each character also felt like they had a single defining trait which made them feel like caricatures rather than fleshed out individuals; Rania caring too much, Olesksiy flirtatious and gallant, Cosmos abrasive and guarded, and the Minster pragmatic. There were great narrative ideas like Cosmos’s background and affiliation with another nation or Olesksiy’s being unable to come out and identify with who he was growing up that were simply skimmed over or introduced in a casual flippant manner. The dialogue also felt lackluster, particularly with Rania who felt almost comically over-caring to the point where it felt comically forced. On top of the weak character writing, the story has the aforementioned theme of loving friendship and support of each other. In theory the theme is a wonderful and wholesome idea, but the execution felt overly saccharine and heavy-handed. Safe and coziness are rather subjective, and I can see their circle of therapeutic support for each other to be comforting for some readers, but I struggled with these sections due to the shallow nature and explorations of each character’s trauma and history. I would’ve liked if Wiswell went further with each of these elements considering other parts of the book have moderate graphic violence and death involved, the book skirting what would be considered cozy fantasy already.

As the story intensifies, the book felt progressively unfocused with what it was trying to accomplish. The Winged City being at risk of invasion or diplomatic takeover are fine storylines on paper, but the lack of world-building means there’s almost no context to who Kardošans are, their only identity being scrappy refugees against the big guys. Motivations are revealed as they are happening during political negotiations with little setup or foreshadowing, xenophobia isn’t effective as an underlying theme without the history behind it, and by the end of the book it’s still unclear who the FRR even are and why they are invading except for “power”. The dragon lore and Goddess legend are initially interesting but certain reveals start to stretch what is believable, the mechanic behind how the FRR suddenly appear near the Winged City defying the laws of physics and velocity without some gimmicky original in-lore explanation like how dragons are able to achieve flight.

While lackluster on a macro level, the details are also conflicting and inconsistent. Garrodigh’s heads are intrinsically familiar with some of human settlement buildings, roles, and purposes, but they don’t understand the concept of lying or hesitancy on top of suddenly knowing things they shouldn’t know (there’s a plot device that could potentially explain it though it’s a cheap copout). Rania is barred from being a dragon rider due to her origin while Olesksiy is immediately given a high status and is tasked with overseeing new recruits the first week he arrives at Winged City when they’re from the same place? Rania also immediately knows how to fly and steer a dragon in flight despite having no formal training and being illegible to ride one? Buildings are built to obscure the eyes of a large being despite them being perpetually asleep and unable to see anything anyway? Garrodigh is introduced to Olesksiy and the dragon immediately narrates that he’s a trans man, how exactly does the dragon know this instantly (a notable drunken Rania scene that occurs soon after would’ve been a far more effective chapter to reveal Olesksiy’s identity)? Rania has the ability to see and read people’s aura which is never explained and is the only ESP type of power in the whole book. A casual reader may not necessarily notice or take issue with these discrepancies or oversights, but as a veteran SFF reader, I found the plot and details all over the place. The more intense the story got, the messier the reading experience felt, the book being much stronger as a light-hearted fantasy story vs a dramatic and action-forward one.

Juggling lighthearted humor with serious stakes and cozy vibes followed by intense action, the Dragon Has Some Complaints is a book of mixed elements that lead to a mixed reading experience. Featuring a lot of interesting ideas and storylines, the overall execution unfortunately holds the book back from reaching the fun and heartfelt novel with crossover appeal it’s shooting for, not to mention the story being quite dry and far longer than it need be. I feel a little bad about scoring this on the lower end as I can tell Wiswell had great intentions with its queer representation, supportive found family friendships, portraying the struggles of rehabilitation and more, but at the end of the day I just didn’t find it particularly interesting to read. For the sensitive reader looking for a safe and comforting story with pops of action, or queer literature readers wanting to venture into epic fantasy stories, this can be a wonderful hand-held read. Unfortunately, for more experienced SFF readers or those that may find the therapy-heavy character work to be dull or off-putting, the Dragon Has Some Complaints may leave them with some disappointing complaints of their own.

This review is based on a complimentary Advanced Reader Copy provided by DAW.

*For more reviews, book lists and reading updates, check out my blog TheBookGrind!

[Kate (BloggingwithDragons) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Actual rating: 2.5 stars

When I read the blurb for The Dragon Has Some Complaints, I immediately pictured the classic three-headed dragon meme, where each head has a wildly different personality. Whether or not that is where the inspiration for this novel comes from, this three-headed dragon—named Garrodigh—does have very distinct personalities. Each head is referred to by their position on the body of the dragon—Centerhead, Upperhead, and Bottomhead, and formerly, Lefty. Centerhead is the most cunning and complex, Upperhead believes he is a human and is somehow trapped in the body of a dragon, and Bottomhead is mostly preoccupied with where his next snack is coming from.

“The heads were a part of a whole, and nothing united them like complaining about the same thing.”

With his fourth head gone, his wings unable to carry him into the sky, no shelter, and warring humans, Centerhead is exhausted, in pain, and helpless. After fleeing from yet another battle and being refused a place with the other wild dragons, Centerhead desperately comes up with a plan—pose as a battle-injured dragon whose rider has perished in the battle, and be taken up to the Winged City to live with humans. To his relief and bewilderment, his plan works, and Garrodigh is loaded onto a barge, lifted into the sky, and given a gold-covered salon amongst the other domesticated dragons in which to recover from his injuries.

At the Winged City, he is perplexed to find that he is the only dragon that speaks, hiding his loquaciousness to blend in. Before too long, he is adopted by an overly enthusiastic rider, Rania, who has been longing for a dragon of her very own. Together, the three heads and Rania embark on a healing journey, both physical and emotional. Through his relationship with Rania, Garrodigh learns that there is more to life than simply being the terror of the skies.

I guess it’s no surprise that my favorite part of The Dragon Has Some Complaints is everything having to do with the dragons. I loved the banter between the three heads. All readers have probably felt at war with themselves at some point in their lives, and seeing it on display outwardly in the form of a legendary magical creature was quite entertaining. The novel does a great job portraying Centerhead as a world-weary dragon who has learned to cope with the eccentricities of the other heads, managing to delicately balance the delusions of Upperhead and the baser instincts of Bottomhead.

“Centerhead wondered if he could eat his own head.”

I also very much enjoyed all of the aspects of Garrodigh recovering from his injuries, both physical and emotional. It feels odd to say this about a dragon’s physical well-being, but the author does a great job demonstrating living with chronic pain and the loss of confidence and identity that accompanies it. I also thought it was really interesting to see something as “mundane” as physical therapy practices for dragons in a fantasy world and to see what methods the humans had developed to help these creatures.

The world-building itself has some highlights too. I really liked the lore around why dragons can fly and how humans on the Winged City learned to harness that themselves while living in harmony with the creatures. I would have liked more detail on how these aspects worked, and how humans began to cohabitate with and fly dragons in the first place, but I realize that this novel is sort of a cozy fantasy, so expecting that level of intricacy is probably not realistic. The Dragon Has Some Complaints’ charm is truly in its details, like the dragon salons being littered with gold and jewels due to their restorative properties for dragons. And no fantasy novel is quite complete without an evil empire trying to take over the world, which is also found here.

Still, despite how much I enjoyed the dragons and the novel’s inspired premise, the execution didn’t fully come together for me. The Dragon Has Some Complaints often relies on plot armor and the power of friendship to resolve otherwise impossible conflicts. I also would have liked some more backstory involving Rania, for example. I really can’t tell you much about the character herself, other than that she’s a positive, flower-crown-loving, and aura-reading hippie with a background that alienates other characters. And, judging by how often the novel brings it up, apparently spends a great deal of time having sex. While the novel may have been trying to portray Rania as a woman confident and comfortable in her own sexuality, I found the repeated attention given to her sex life through Centerhead’s narration uncomfortable and oddly voyeuristic at times.

Though these moments are framed as humorous, the comedic angle didn’t entirely work for me from the perspective of a dragon narrator. One line even states that Centerhead would recognize her bedroom noises anywhere, which pushed the joke further than I personally found enjoyable. There is yet another line that says, “‘You’re so tight now. I can’t even get my finger in there.’ Centerhead wished she wouldn’t talk to him like that.’” I just don’t think this level of attention to her sex life from the point-of-view of a dragon was necessary or logical.

I appreciated the inclusion and normalization of LGBTQ+ identities in the world. However, some of the exposition surrounding those identities felt awkwardly inserted into the narration. Characters were identified as trans during their first introductions in ways that didn't feel particularly grounded in the POV or worldbuilding. This pulled me out of the story because I wasn’t sure how a dragon, who had limited interaction with humans, would somehow know that someone was trans at first glance. Because the story is so closely tied to Centerhead’s POV, moments like this felt more like authorial exposition than information that the dragon himself would naturally know. I would have liked for these character facts to be handled in a way that felt more organic, rather than being simply told this information when the character was first introduced.

Another thing that stood out to me was some of the actual dialogue characters said unironically, like, “ I need to talk to you like a whale needs to come up for air.” While there’s nothing wrong with making stylistic choices, especially in such humorous novels, these kinds of quotes had me slowing down and saying, “wait, what?” And I’d need to go back and reread the sentence to make sure I read it correctly. These are the kind of lines that remind me of Harrison Ford commenting on the clunkiness of Star Wars’ script, “You can type this sh**, but you can’t say it.”

The Dragon Has Some Complaints is a quirky novel with a really great premise and an unforgettable dragon. Readers expecting a deeply layered political fantasy may find the worldbuilding fairly light, but those looking for an unconventional cozy fantasy with plenty of humor and heart will likely enjoy it. Fans of lighter and more unserious fantasy novels, such as How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler, will likely find a lot to enjoy here.

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[rachel x]

"In this heartfelt and humorous fantasy, a dragon whose three heads bear rather…different personalities finds family in the most unexpected of places."

and it's a "cozy fantasy that intertwines epic battles with loving friendships, sharing an utterly unique perspective on what it means to be a ‘monster." sold!

[Eva_812 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC!

This is a story about a threeheaded, injured dragon who just wants to survive and sneaks into a dragon rider academy, so he can rest up, eat and heal. Due to a traumatic event that led to losing his fourth head, the three remaining heads remain with a very distinct coping mechanism: Bottomhead becomes more animalistic and simplistic by nature, Upperhead is convinced he is not a dragon but a human experiencing a psychotic event and Centerhead who is just desperately trying to keep them alive. Reading from the dragon POV is a first time for me, but reading from the POV of a dysfunctional threeheaded dragon was funny. And I liked that Garrodigh just kept eating/wanting to eat people while being 'domesticated'. The other dragons were a let down though. They didn't want to speak because they were convinced 'they had tamed the humans into caring for them' and thus language wasn't necessary. As a result, it seemed as if the author didn't think it was necessary to develop any of their personalities. It also feels a bit delusional and weird to make the tamed dragons think they are the ones who tamed the humans. Is it not the dragons who are being ridden and used in a war?

The POV being from Centerhead is not really thought through. It feels as if the author is just writing from their POV and substituted everything as if it was Centerhead. Because this dragon is like 'humans? I don't know anything about humans. Except that they're food' but also sees a man and instantly recognises him as a trans man (this is beside the point how you can even know someone is a trans person, dragon or not). This dude is actually introduced twice as a 'trans man'. This mostly felt like something that was added for diversity points, because introducing him like that was not relevant to the story at all. I did like his backstory with Raina, in which being trans was relevant, and thus his transness could've been discussed as context to the backstory instead of it being his apparent main feature. On the topic of representation I will say that I enjoyed that most of the characters were women and mostly queer, after reading a fantasy series in which women are mostly an afterthought.

The politics are simplistic and stereotypical. There are 3 countries in total: 1 too good to be true, 2 really really bad.
1) a floating island, where everyone is welcome, despite it being completely unclear how many people it can house and where their resources come from to sustain a growing population.
2) the homophobic, racist, fascist FFR (with a lot of Russian sounding names (also, does FFR remind anyone else of the USSR?))
3) the country with the saviour complex, but who just wants to colonise and feel morally superior doing it. Also doesn't feel bad about a few bombings, blackmail, more homophobia (because our special island is the only one where you can really be yourself) and who is just very objectively also a bad choice.
The solution is also simplistic: just have someone overpowered kill literally everyone in their army/armada.

The plot is quite entertaining, with a lot happening and an interesting plot twist. A part of the reason I requested this ARC is because it is a cosy fantasy and I love a cosy fantasy. However, this is not really a cosy book. There is a lot of action, fights and cannonballs, political problems and issues, and quests. Maybe a little bit in the beginning is cosy, but mostly it is just a fantasy. I do wish there had been a bigger focus on Garrodigh's fraud, how he is trying to adjust to a situation unfamiliar to him but is supposed to be his home, and how he is keeping up appearances towards other dragons. Unfortunately, Raina just claims him and everything is fine about it. And Garrodigh, who is supposed to not like humans and their wars, changes his mind insanely quickly and adopts an 'I have to defend these people/land' mindset, and I'm not even really sure why. It is supposed to be because of Raina, of course, but she is just not really a likeable character for me. She is naive, goes on and on about aura's, doesn't know who she really loves, but that was obvious from the start even for a clueless dragon who calls having sex "rubbing meat". She is also a bit too perfect: an immigrant who will lay down her life for her new country, while training (but mostly just doing it, there is not a lot of training happening at this academy) to be a dragon rider and also doing voluntary work for at least 3 different companies.

The ARC I received is an uncorrected file, which asks me not to quote from the book. I won't, so I don't have any specific examples, but I will comment on the writing as there were quite a few instances of clunky sentences that I had to reread in order to understand what was meant. This did cause me to lose my reading flow a couple of times.

All in all, this book was okay but I had such high hopes. The title alone is amazing and I do love the cover art. I give this book 2,5 stars.

[Holly Taggart · Rating 5 out of 5]

John Wiswell is an author that can really- really tell a tale. I was sure that "Someone you can Build a Nest In" was going to win the Hugo last year. It did not but it was definitely in contention.
I then picked up Wearing the Lion- and proceeded to just groan with laughter and love for our main characters.
So- when I saw this choice from DAW, I was primed to wonder - what the heck is John Wiswell up to with a straight up dragon story?

I have perused the Good Reads reviews and I find that there are folks who seem to feel that this was some sort of cozy fantasy where everything ends up ok. While in fact, in this "cozy" fantasy people definitely end up injured, near death, somewhat dead and with a lot of emotional damage. Many readers ignore the fact that this entire floating city/nation exists of refugees from horrendous situations- and thus the "cozy" feel sort of feel flat for me. BUT I will say that I almost, almost put this book down in the first three chapters... LET ME EXPLAIN.
It starts off with this very cantankerous 3 headed dragon that used to be a 4 headed dragon. As a dragon, our Main dragon character is beastly. They smell bad, act cowardly and sullen, and are grumpy. Their body is broken and messy. They have terrible breath, and--- no one likes them. I didn't even like them. They are it seems in some sort of war time situation with some dragons being tamed and pampered battle steeds for a human settlement, and many more resisting working with the humans. Humans, of course, seem to eff everything up.
To be honest, I may have put this one down at this point, but Wiswell, that smart feller- he then hooked me in as our main Dragon character - MDC... finds himself wholly rejected by the Dragon community and in desperation, finds himself rescued by the humans after a battle. Once rescued, he is assigned a DISASTER HUMAN, Raina.
Wiswell had the nerve, readers- to write a character that was SO fully relatable that I thus was fully sucked right in and had to know what was going to happen to Raina, even though... she was so relatable-that I had a hard time really LIKING her. I recognized all of the parts of me that I am not particularly proud of- on display, in a book- that was not about me... but yet, was it? I had a couple of uncomfortable chapters there.
SO we start off with me feeling like our MDC is so despicable that no dragon will host him, and our MFC Raina is such a disaster that her kind also sort of shun her.

NORMALLY- as readers, we generally....feel the pangs of sorrow and understanding for those underdogs of the pages. Wiswell created such wretched creatures that I felt like I'd likely flinch away from both the dragon and the human. AND THEN... HE MADE ME FALL IN LOVE WITH BOTH OF THEM.

What the what. What did he put in this one.

Chapter after chapter, I started to love the fantastic disaster that Raina honestly is, and the transformation of our MDC (Garrodigh) from a miserable broken creature into a focused, magnificent fearsome dragon. These two magnificent and imperfect creatures take on invaders who seek to destroy them, and uncover a secret that is even more fantastical.

I had so many reactions and hot takes that I do wish I'd done a series of "video reactions" as I was reading, but alas, I do work a full time job - not in publishing or media- so you get this word vomit here.

I was locked in until the very end. I will freely admit, there's something... in this novel. I laughed, and cringed, and cried enormous tears. I shared one passage with a friend- one passage- and she was suddenly sobbing too. (ONE PASSAGE, not the whole book- she didn't know anything but that one passage). I'd love to share that with you, but but but the book isn't out yet.

PUT THIS ONE ON YOUR TBR.

Firstly because the story - as it unfolds is marvelous. There is some quirky, amazing worldbuilding and dragon lore which I am sure Wiswell got from somehow real time dragon interaction- no way he just made that all up in his head- (Dragon sleeping habits have to be observed) An inventive floating city, aloft on dragon magic (I mean, yes please!) and more.

Secondly because so many of us have said we want to read stories that represent all kinds of people. And this dragon fantasy- has organic inclusion of disability, trans persons, elderly persons, mental health struggles and more. So many novels attempt to be "representative" and it reads as inaccurate, forced or performative inclusion. Not this one. All of this just flowed in a way that made me say- of course, yes, this is the way of things.

Will I be lining up on release day? It will depend on my book money situation, but I will definitely definitely be cheering this one on no matter what.

I word gushed over on the TT: https://www.tiktok.com/@plantybooklov...

[Lanie Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Garrodigh is quite frankly sick of hiding from the humans constant wars, after he finds himself once again with no place to go as cannons rain death down on the wild dragons he comes up with what he believes is a brilliant idea to end them once and for all. He will pretend to be an injured tamed dragon, get brought to the city in the sky and then when the humans least expect it he and the tamed dragons will rise up and kill them all. At least that Center Heads plans. But Bottomhead quickly realizes that he can get all of the meat he wants from the humans and Upperhead for some reason believes he is human. On top of all that they are put under the care of a woman named Raina who is charged with rehabilitating them and she's actually nice? No that's impossible Garrodigh absolutely does not like humans.

This is my first Wiswell book and yeah at least one of his other two will be on next week's TBR for sure because omg this was absolutely amazing!! Like I genuinely don't think I quit smiling while reading this. Even when things were bad, because you just knew that Raina and Garrodigh? They had this in the bag!

Garrodigh is probably going to be one of my favorite characters ever, part of it is definitely that fact that he has three very distinct, very wonderful personalities, but like gods he is so freaking relatable. All three of his heads are! Centerhead, whose perspective we hear the story from, starts out as this kind of bully, but you can tell from the get go a lot of it is bluster to protect himself. They've gone through a lot; one of the heads is killed (they had four), their wings are in tatters so they can't fly, they have an injured leg that makes is extremely difficult to walk, and once they lost their fourth head they lost a lot of memories with it. So he's got some PTSD to say the least. He's honestly so sweet from the beginning though and even though it may take him some time to like see the big picture in terms of who the real bad guys are when he realizes he's been judging the wrong humans he corrects that mis judgement. Bottomhead is the dopey one who occasionally says really profound things but like will also end your very existence if you mess with one of his other heads or Raina. He's absolutely adorable and I loved him to pieces. Finally, we have Upperhead who after reading the whole thing is still my favorite, marginally. He thinks he's a human, hilariousness ensues, he's just wonderful. Especially as he grows throughout the book.

Raina is genuinely the heart and soul of this book. I love Garrodigh to pieces, truly, but omigoodness none of this would have even been possible without this amazing woman. She's just one of those characters that radiates sunshine, but not in an obnoxious way. She has her bad days, she knows when she has to be firm with people, she knows when patience is needed, she is so ridiculously brave, she was simply beautiful. Like I said at the beginning no matter how hopeless something may have appeared I genuinely didn't worry about anything because the world had Raina and Raina had Garrodigh and between the two of them they'd figure it out.

Side characters here were awesome as well, literally all of them.

World building was great, this is a pretty tiny world so we didn't really need to much information to begin with, but we got what we needed to understand what was going on. Pacing was truly excellent I wouldn't necessarily say that the book took off running and just kept up that pace, but it did kind of feel like that only because I wanted to see what happened next.

What I really loved about this though is it just had so much freaking heart. It's just positive from the beginning to the end with yes conflict obviously, because you have to have that, but the conflict really isn't the focus. The focus is healing from that conflict, among many other things. It genuinely just made me happy. Truly ridiculously happy. Also, it's freaking hilarious. Like laugh out loud, spit out your drink sometimes hilarious.

If you're looking for a pick me up or something to get you out of a reading slump than this 100% is going to be the book for you. If you haven't already I'd get your pre-order in because I can see this selling out fast!

Also, at DAW Books if you are reading this, I still feel like a plushie of Garrodigh where they talk when you push a button but it's always Upperhead saying that he's not a plushie, but the Bringer of Death, would sell out like freaking hot cakes.

As always thanks to Netgalley and DAW for the eArc!

[Susanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a stand-alone fantasy set in a secondary world with dragons and some steampunk elements. The main human city is a remarkable place hanging in the air, with inclusive society and tame dragons. It has been at war for a long time with a totalitarian nation that wants to subjugate it. The dragons are divided to wild dragons who live in a large hive, though each a bit solitary, and those tamed by humans of the winged city for their war. The first look down on the latter and both look down on humans.

The main character is Garrodigh, an ancient three-headed wild dragon. He used to have four heads, but one of the heads died as a casualty of the war. It has left the dragon otherwise incapacitated too, so he can’t fly or move well, and he doesn’t remember his past properly either. But he knows he’s been a great dragon. Other wild dragons disagree and shun him as a human sympathizer, which he can’t understand.

Garrodigh is a delightful protagonist. Each head has a different personality. The narrator is Centerhead who holds himself to be the most rational of the three, though Lefthead that’s now gone used to be the most intelligent. Bottomhead is a bit simple and straightforward, and cares more about food than anything else. Upperhead believes he’s a human who is only suffering from a delusion of being a three-headed dragon.

Yet another battle injures Garrodigh again. But this time Centerhead has a plan. Since humans take good care of their dragons and never leave them behind, he’ll pretend to be a tame dragon, wait until the humans have healed him, and then destroy the humans. The plan works perfectly. Up until he’s assigned a rider who turns out to be nothing Garrodigh could imagine.

Rania is one of the many refugees fled from the totalitarian society for the free country of the Winged City where people can be who they are, in her case a free spirit who believes in auras, being helpful and understanding, and protecting those she loves. But she too is shunned by her society for a reason Garrodigh cannot fathom.

Little by little, the two strike a friendship, much to Garrodigh’s bewilderment. He tries to understand her and her troubles, like her romantic life, which seems to consist of one-night stands. But there’s also heartbreak in form of a childhood friend who’s turned a cold shoulder on her. And as he learns to care for her, he also wants to defend the city against the enemy. The enemy has a new, bewildering weapon that almost destroys the city. As Garrodigh and Rania go to investigate, they discover a great secret and almost die destroying the weapon.

This was a good story. The focus was on Garrodigh and his struggle with understanding humans and himself. There’s healing and learning, grief and heartfelt moments. All three of Garrodigh’s personalities are delightful and different, and they all grow as individuals and as a whole. Rania wasn’t equally interesting, and she mostly served as an object of observation for Garrodigh. The society was understanding and inclusive, but not everyone was a nice person, which Rania learns first-hand.

I have complaints too though. I would’ve wanted there to be other dragon characters. There were plenty of dragons, but Garrodigh doesn’t form friendships with any of them and they barely feature. He's the only tame dragon who talks, and they shun him as much as the wild dragons did. I would’ve liked there to be a parallel story for him that there is for Rania of being accepted by his own kind. The story is also too long, with too much time and focus spent on Rania’s love life, which wasn’t all that interesting.

There were also moments that took me out of the story. Garrodigh occasionally knows very human concepts, while other times he’s completely clueless. Like he knows what apothecary smells like and what a trans man is. The latter has meaning for the worldbuilding—though it should’ve had more meaning for the story as well, as now it was more of a gimmick—but it would’ve made more sense if it were explained to him by humans.

This is described as a cozy fantasy, but it’s not completely so. There’s the war, with everything it entails, like death and bad injuries, and nasty people who treat others badly. Garrodigh eats humans. But it has a wholesome core, growth and understanding. As long as the reader doesn’t expect things to be perfect and nice, it’s a delightful read, with Garrodigh making every scene worthwhile.

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Anodyne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Garrodigh, the Great Terror, a formerly four-headed dragon, is distinctly down on his luck. Outcast from other dragons for his apparent care for humanity – which Centerhead certainly doesn’t recall – he is very much vulnerable to the fallout of warring humans above. Out of desperation, Garrodigh feigns being an injured mount to infiltrate the floating city of Kardoša, a tiny would-be utopia using its alliance with dragons to oppose the technologically advanced, warmongering FFR.

Take mentions of an ‘elite dragon rider academy’ with a pinch of salt – there’s little in the way of training, and apparently anyone can secure a dragon if one is available, providing they have the right paperwork. Rania, Garrodigh’s would-be rider, is less a down-on-her-luck trainee and more of an optimistic (if opportunistic) civilian desperate to contribute to her home. While Kardoša is ostensibly welcoming to refugees from across the continent, Reina’s origins in the oppressive FFR still earn her distrust and an exile of her own from the community she desperately wants to be part of. As such, she’ll do anything to help and gain acceptance as a dragon rider – including charming the (mostly) uncooperative injured infiltrator. Garrodigh, meanwhile, is doomed to suffer the indignities of her care in exchange for food and shelter and, inevitably, starts to accept Kardoša as his home.

This is a third person limited perspective – not just to Garrodigh, but specifically to Centerhead, who deems himself the only sane and rational part of Garrodigh remaining.

The tone throughout is relatively irreverent, and a lot, particularly early in the book, plays up the ridiculousness of the cast and their actions; the pace accelerates in the second half, with the driving plot becoming apparent. There are relatively few characters of significance, and most are introduced quite early on; likewise the political scenario is not particularly deeply delved into, but is covered sufficiently to give a good idea of where things stand.

Alongside the actual plot, the heart of the book is a clear and powerful disability narrative. Injured and unable to fly since the accident that destroyed Lefty, Garrodigh deals with significant pain and emotional fallout; it’s only under Rania’s ministrations, encompassing medical care, physical therapy and reinforcing belief in his ability to recover that he can recover his ability to fly. Even after major rehabilitation, Garrodigh deals with chronic pain, reinjury and limitations, in a very affecting and poignant depiction.

Alongside this, Garrodigh’s development as a character is likely the most moving part of the novel. Our point of view is limited specifically to Centerhead who is the true, calculating brains of the operation; his disdain for the simplistic Bottomhead and delusional Upperhead are pretty biting early on; the three heads are very much separate and more frequently at odds than working in tandem early in the novel. However, with the disability narrative and his increasing reliance on others, we also see his hate of his own weakness and his own failings that ultimately push him towards forming better bonds both with himself and others. Ultimately he becomes a very apt foil for Rania for the main bulk of the book, remaining outcast but sufficiently self-possessed that it is of little significance.

There’s queer and trans rep, though trans rep particularly is just stated as character description rather than anything that feels more natural. I love seeing this kind of representation, but I always feel a little wary when these things are instantly pegged, and it did take me out of the narrative a bit to have this done as it was by a dragon that claims minimal knowledge of humans. There’s a non-zero amount of casual sex that’s at least character relevant, though given it’s spectated by a being with zero interest and mild distain for the whole thing, it’s not likely to trip any spice sensors.

Admittedly, given fairly ridiculous early portrayals, I was personally not particularly invested in the human cast. In addition, most of the broad story beats felt a little predictable, so there’s a certain amount of the plot narrative that felt more obligatory to me. Despite this, the prose is buoyant and easy to read; while I fully acknowledge that I’m not likely the target audience, I still found it overall an enjoyable read.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

Sweet and funny, The Dragon Has Some Complaints is a cozy-adjacent fantasy with a main character who is one head of a multi-headed dragon.

What’s really interesting about this book is that while the book is in third person, it’s third person limited to Centerhead. While he’s part of Garrodigh, in that all three heads sort of control the body without much issue, all three minds function separately. There was a fourth, Lefty, but he's gone. So, the main character is Centerhead, and he’s grouchy, distrustful, and the clear leader, though as the story goes, you see how the others do influence him.

There is some fantasy action in this book, but no gory Joe Abercrombie scenes. It’s more dragonflight and dodging and burning stuff.

There’s a lot of queer rep. Garrodigh has no romance plot, but his human, Rania, is bi or pan with her love interest being a trans man. The normalization of this is great, but the latter is described by Centerhead simply as a “a trans man” and that seemed a little odd to me. It was clearly meant to be inclusive, but it could have been shown, not told, like Rania’s sexuality was. (But I’m not trans, so I could be totally wrong on this, but it stood out to me in a curious way.)

The worldbuilding was cozy-level acceptable - we get a bit of politics in that one country is attacking another and a third is trying to cut a deal while this is going on, but there’s nothing layered. It’s very much a “these are the bad guys and they wear a somewhat fascist uniform just so you know for sure they are fascist, and we have to defend our utopia from them." All that is sort of par for the course, until the last ten percent, when it went in a totally different direction that was very fun. For being a cozy book - the main story isn’t really about the attacking force but more so the friends we made along the way - it had good worldbuilding, but it is quite surface-level. Cozy worldbuilding is a hard balance to strike - too little and it feels flat, but too much and you inevitably lose the cozy. I liked how the explanation of how dragon flight works was linked to the plot, and the combo of gaslamp and dragons was fun. So I’d say if you’re expecting cozy-adjacent, the worldbuilding is good. If you’re not, you might find it lacks depth.

Garrodigh is so cute. And Centerhead’s story arc is a predictable yet enjoyable one. It’s clear he just needs to be shown love to feel it again - he’s tough on the outside but jelly in the middle. His recovery from injury and rehabilitation was the strongest part of the story.

Rania irked me a little bit. I didn’t dislike her, but she was a little much at times. As an exuberant person myself, even to me, I was like, "Girl, settle down." It’s possible it’s because all the human characters act a bit too young at times. I initially attributed this to the coziness of the book, but as the story progresses, the cozy factor drops off and the seriousness ramps, so the characters’ interpersonal conflicts seemed to just take up space. It would have been almost better if all of that had happened off the page, with Garrodigh only being aware of it in the periphery. Tied to this, or perhaps because of it, some things that could have stayed implied were implicity said, which slowed down the pacing considerably.

Yet, the book is very fun. Garrodigh had some funny parts and the found family aspect was sweet. It’s highly enjoyable.

[Gali · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is often said that children and animals steal the show. It is certainly the case here. Our dragon is the hero of this piece! "The Dragon Has Some" Complaints by John Wiswell is a charming fantasy following a disabled three-headed dragon’s life-changing journey, told from the third-person POV of the middle head. The story throws us straight into the action and quickly pulls the reader into the tale.

Garrodigh was once a four-headed dragon, the most powerful in Kardoša. After losing his fourth head in battle, he now has three heads, a busted leg, and a broken wing. The three heads are at odds with each other. Upperhead is shy and convinced he is human, Bottomhead just wants food, and Centerhead? He wants revenge on the humans who did it to him while still trying to hold everything together. He has big holes in his memory as a result of losing the fourth head and is now an outcast among the wild dragons, who see him as a human sympathizer.

Garrodigh decides to enter the winged city and wreak havoc on its citizens. Pretending to be injured, he manages to sneak into the city, where he bonds with the rider Rania Charvátová. To his surprise, he grows to care for her and starts shifting away from thoughts of eating humans toward protecting them instead. Oh, and his three heads talk to each other all the time. He also talks with his rider, which makes him the odd one. The tame dragons don't talk, at least not to him or the other humans, and he is not sure why that is. Like the wild dragons, they also reject him, deeming him too humanlike.

What follows is a fast-moving adventure full of friendship, courage, and difficult choices. The pacing stays strong most of the book, although at times it was a bit erratic. Not that I minded. I really enjoyed the book. The dragon’s multiple personalities, quirks, and internal bickering worked especially well for me, and I liked how much growth they each go through. I also appreciated the wit and humor. The scenes where he becomes aware of human sexuality were amusing, although that plot line didn’t need to be emphasized as much.

Overall, the story balances humor with emotional weight in a way that feels natural. Rania is a well-rounded character, struggling with doubt and low self-esteem while also being an outsider, much like her dragon. I liked their bond and how they gradually help each other heal. The supporting cast is well drawn, even if not all of it is deeply developed. At its core, the story explores what it means to be seen as a “monster,” and flips that idea into something more emotional and human.

The only blip was the dragon’s quick recognition of a trans character. Since dragons, or other animals for that matter, don’t share human social concepts, I found it a bit hard to believe he would recognize that at first sight. I did like the inclusion, though.

Aside from a few minor editing mistakes that are hardly noticeable, the writing in this book is excellent. I hope to read more books in this world. To sum up, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and urge you to read it. Fans of fantasy and dragons will surely enjoy it. Dragons rule!

* Thank you NetGalley and (publisher) for the opportunity to read this arc. All opinions are my own.
* Review on my blog: https://galibookish.blogspot.com/2026...

[Cass · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's rare that a book takes me by the lapels and insists I ignore my bedtime to finish the last arc of the story in one go before I sleep, but that's definitely what happened here. I'll do my best to keep my review as spoiler-free as possible, which will be a challenge because John Wiswell has written such a damn fine story, and it's going to be a story you'll want to talk about with other people.


We experience the world through the eyes of Garrodigh, a three headed (once four headed) dragon. Each of his heads has its own personality, experience, and view of the world. Bottomhead is simpler and less conflicted, with food-based priorities. Centerhead views himself as the brains of this operation, with a cynical view of humanity and an equally cynical view of other dragons. And Upperhead...well, he's got a lot going on, too.


The story deftly weaves and subverts fantasy tropes- a missing almost mythical leader, who will surely return in a time of need. A dashing champion rider, and an upstart getting her first chance. They're warm and familiar and written by the hand of someone who loves them enough to playfully spin them around and set them in a new direction.


Overall, this feels like a story about identity. What does it mean to be yourself, and what does it mean to be seen by others, and the messy places where those intersect. It asks, what can you learn about yourself through the eyes of those that see you? How do we remain ourselves when the world wants or us to be a version that doesn't feel comfortable or true? It explores how we come into our own when we accept all the things we can be and choose to step into what we want to be, with the support of those we decide to listen to, who tell us who we are. Garrodigh's internal and external interactions as he decides what being a dragon should mean are at turns poignant, bittersweet, hilarious, and painful.


When I think of John's writing, I think of Geena Davis' quoted approach to create gender balanced movies- add into your screenwriting instructions when a crowd gathers, "half of them are women." It's always a delight to see transgender characters on the page and in the background of a story, and the representation feels fluent and right at home within the world of the story. The winged city of Kardoša is diverse in many different ways, and the text tells us that through easy glimpses of crowds, background characters, and main characters of different races, genders, and disabilities. For a story with the bulk of it set in the air, the descriptions and sense of place and culture are grounded. Kardoša is somewhere I want to spend hours of time outside of the text- exploring its streets, experiencing its culture, making friends with its people.


My favorite types of movies, music, books- any media really- are those where you can see how much those involved enjoyed their craft. "The Dragon Has Some Complaints" clearly was written with a deep enjoyment and excitement for the story the author wanted to tell, and it shines with it. Without spoiling the story for you, this book is an incredible amount of fun. There are so many incredible surprises- you'll want to read it along with a friend so you can turn to each other and yell at each other about them.

[Kayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a nuisance she was. Perhaps Centerhead's favorite nuisance.

I managed to nab an ARC of this off NetGalley, and I had so much fun reading it. I love dragon books and grab all the ones I can, but never thought I'd have the opportunity to read from the point of view of a multi-headed dragon. Wiswell has crafted truly lovable characters here; each of the dragon's heads have their own, stand-out personality that helps them worm their way into your heart and stay there. Sometimes, I'll find that characters in books are all blending together in their personalities and voices, but not so here! Besides the three dragon heads, each character was unique and stood out as individuals.

Wiswell's humor had me laughing out loud at several different points; if you were a fan of Someone to Build a Nest In, I think you will find a lot to love here, too, both in the character work and the familiar style of humor. Also, if you are a fan of a sort of down-on-their-luck monster, you are bound to like this! Additionally, I think the book had some truly brilliant chapters that I loved reading. Truthfully, one of my favorite chapters was Garrodigh having to repeat the same toils over and over again, highlighting his healing struggles.

I found The Dragon Has Some Complaints to be a story with a lot of themes, but what really stood out to me were its themes of chronic pain. The book is narrated by Centerhead, just one head on the great and mighty dragon Garrodigh. But Garrodigh starts the book as a dragon who cannot fly and is limping around the wilderness. As I mentioned above, one of my favorite chapters was Garrodigh having to just do it again in regards to his healing; stretching his wings, forcing his bad leg to walk. And then, after he is able to use those parts of his body again, he still makes references to how he will never not have pain, it will always be there. And then, at the end, he gets injured again, in a similar way as he was injured in the beginning. It felt to me as though the book was highlighting how you can never completely get away from some health struggles.

I spent this whole book waiting for the big twist to come, and when it did, it was not what I had expected at all, but I thought it was great. Learning that the villainous FFR had been building on the body of the dragon's goddess perfectly tied the conflict between humans with the dragons, who had been particularly uncaring about the conflict before other than how it directly affected them. I do wish we had gotten more from other dragons sooner, but Garrodigh comments on having always felt outcast amongst other dragons at several points, so it is enjoyable to really feel what he was feeling.

Overall, I loved this book! I would give it a 4/5 stars. I think there were minor details I wish had been expanded on more, such as world building, and I think some more build-up to the eventual conflict and plot points could have been warranted. There were a few spots where I felt the story dragged just a little. Ultimately, what really matters is that I enjoyed the book, and enjoy it I did, quite a lot!

[Teru · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 ⭐

I’ll be the first to admit that while adult cozy fantasy is a nice, enjoyable genre, it doesn’t leave a lasting impression on me. This one is a little different, and I was sat, paying attention.

The reason is a unique narration style, because the main character and the POV is a dragon. A three-headed dragon Garrodigh who’s been severely traumatised, with his fourth head amputated, a limp leg, mangled wings, and a spotty memory. What’s more, each head has its own personality. Bottomhead reverted into a simpler, instinct-driven state, craving meat and head scritches. Upperhead went through a kind of existential crisis that made him think he’s actually human and needs to wake up. And Centerhead, our POV, was just trying to keep it together and keep them alive, enduring.

One thing led to another, and our dragon ended up in Winged City, a city floating in a sky full of refugees, and a pretty queernormative place, which was a delight to see. There lived Rania, one of the refugees and still regarded as an outcast, who immediately latched onto Garrodigh, proclaiming herself as his new dragon rider.

I actually loved the plot and was fascinated by the idea of a dragon with PTSD undergoing physical therapy and forming an attachment to humans. The theme was also very much anti-colonialism and fighting against oppression, as Kardoša was a country known for its unique bond with dragons, and enemy forces wanted to either assimilate them or steal their knowledge and destroy them.

The bond between Garrodigh and Rania was truly the driving force, though I do have to say, the dragon himself was what kept my attention. My heart went out to Rania, but she was written in a slight OTT happy-go-lucky way, and I don’t mesh with her type of character well. Even their bond left me a bit lukewarm at first because Rania simply bombarded Garrodigh with affection and he capitulated almost immediately, and I was hoping for a more gradual, hard-won dynamic (I’m sorry, I’ve been influenced by HTTYD too much and nothing quite compares).

I have to appreciate the obvious Central/Eastern European influence that went into the world-building, especially as I recognized a few words and names as Czech (and that just doesn’t happen often, for obvious reasons, my language is quite a pain in the ass. Fun fact for those who read this - Polárka means North Star ❤️). I still have unanswered questions about the world, and some things weren’t even utilized at all (Rania “seeing auras” didn’t play any kind of role at all, that was disappointing). I did have trouble with imagining the geography of everything, but I’m hoping a map will be included in the final version.

Honestly, the only reason I’m rounding down is my current slumpy mood; no book would have managed to look exciting to me this past week. Otherwise, I’m pretty sure it would be a 4-star reading experience for me. Definitely up there when it comes to cozy fantasy with some actual stakes and a strong plot!

Thank you to DAW and NetGalley for this e-ARC! The Dragon Has Some Complaints is set to be out 14th July 2026.

I’ve been a bit out of it this week and out of GR, so I’ll be trying to go back to all the wonderful reviews I’ve missed here, sorry about that ❤️

[becks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, DAW and John Wiswell for the ARC in exchange for a review!

Full disclosure and to be wholly accurate with my rating, I would say this leans a little more to 3.75 overall.

There's something very enjoyable about a book following a dragon with three heads, many opinions and a whole lot of trauma. Especially one hitting rock bottom after plummeting from the top.

Garrodigh, the dragon in question, was once fearsome and powerful and now is... not so much. Missing a head and unable to fly, his heads are all coping with the loss of one of their own... not admirably, but my god he's trying. Garrodigh's three heads are all unique in their own right, making up three characters in one:

Centerhead is proud, haughty and hates humanity. Which is awkward, because Upperhead now believes he IS a human and is consistently about three seconds from a despair spiral over the fact he's not waking up in his own bed, and Bottomhead... is doing his best. He's more like an excitable puppy than a mighty dragon, but it doesn't seem to bother him. Currently without a home and dealing with the aftermath of a bad battle, Garrodigh makes the decision to sneak into a dragon rider academy for the free food and guaranteed safety of lodgings, which unfortunately comes at the cost of being claimed by a human called Rania, who dreams of being a dragon rider and desperate to do whatever she has to see that dream through.

While I had some ups and downs with the pacing of the book, finding it a little slow to get into and then finding like it was lingering a little too long on some things later on, the thing that makes this book truly stand out is the bond between Garrodigh and Rania. Both of them are displaced in the world, with Rania being a refugee struggling to feel accepted in her new home, and Garrodigh feeling out of sorts among his own kind. Not wild enough to fit it with the dragons outside of the academy, but not tame enough to find a place in the academy either. Watching the two of them grow attached to each other, despite Garrodigh's desperate attempts to avoid his fate, was lovely. Their relationship is warm, cosy and comforting, especially if you've ever felt like you're alone in the world. I really enjoyed reading their interactions.

This bond and the newness and intrigue of the academy kept me happy for quite a while, but somewhere in the second half of the book I started to feel a bit restless. The focus shifts to more of the world story and a broader war plot that just didn't grab me in the same way reading about Garrodigh and Rania did. That is not to say I disliked the book, far from it. But I would've happily read a whole book just about Garrodigh and Rania's connection and personal stories.

Overall though, there's a lot to love about this book. It manages to tell you a warm tale about feeling displaced and finding a home for yourself in spite of all that. and has a sweet sense of humour that kept me grinning as the day went on. What's not to love about a book with kindness and love set at its core ?

[patrice.reading.rainbow · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Dragon Has Some Complaints – John Wiswell
Pub Date 07/14/2026

Thank you to DAW & NetGalley for putting this book up as Read Now. Thank you to John Wiswell for writing and sharing this book with the World.

This is my second John Wiswell book and just like the first one I had a great time with it!

Two things to start with, I have a new favorite thing to call annoying people, nockholes. And my favorite quote from the entire book: “Nuh. I don’ t want self-respect, I want head scritches.”

The Great Terror.

Garrodigh.

A three-headed dragon (previously four-headed) who hatches a brilliant plan to get all the food he could want, and then all the death, destruction and terror he could bring to the humans that he could ever want.

Did you know that a multi-headed dragon doesn’t just have multiple heads but multiple selves? I didn’t but I do now. Garrodigh has three heads and they all have their own personalities and drama.
Upperhead believes he is a human. (He is in fact, not a human, he is one of the heads of a three-headed dragon).

Bottomhead is basically the dragon version of Ed from Ed, Edd n Eddy (yeah THAT one, the dumb as a brick one) (p.s Bottomhead is my favorite).

Centerhead the brains of the operation, the wrath of humanity, The Great Terror! (Okay fine he has his own issues too).

The humans have been at war for so long that the sound of cannons shouldn’t surprise Garrodigh anymore, but they still do. And the current battle is sending more cannonballs crashing down to the ground than normal. He is trying to avoid them and hide in a cave, but they are all taken. And then he sees something other than a cannonball falling, it’s a dragon! The poor thing crashes to earth dead, or if it wasn’t already the fall killed it. But it does give Garrodigh a plan… the humans will come around looking for survivors, human and dragon alike, and he will be there to play as one of their hurt dragons and get taken back to their city to be fed and safe. It’s the perfect plan, and after he has eaten his fill, he will take revenge on the humans and destroy their city.

But things never truly go to plan do they. Instead, he has Rania thrust upon him, a much too eager human who is so excited to finally have a dragon of her own and become a dragon rider.

Wait, what!

With flower garlands stuck in his horns Garrodigh has this new annoyance to consider. But will she stay an annoyance, or will Rania grow on him? Or will he eat her. Only time will tell.

The Dragon Has Some Complaints was a cozy, fun, hilarious read! I snorted multiple times while reading this book. Each head is so distinct and has their own voice, it was such a great choice to write them that way. The overall story was fun too, a war between multiple countries and a missing leader who would help turn the tide in saving the city. I think if you want something that’s not high stakes with some great humor then you should pick this book up for sure.

[Raj · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's weird to think of this as a found-family story, and yet, it sort of is, albeit as well as an external family, the main family that three-headed dragon Garrodigh finds is himself. Garrodigh didn't always have three heads, but his fourth was blown away by a cannonball, in the same fight that damaged his leg and wings. Since then, he's not quite been himself, with his Upperhead thinking that it's human, Centerhead that hates all humans and wants to destroy them, while Bottomhead is just a bit dozy. And yet, by the end of the story, all three personalities of Garrodigh are much more comfortable with, and supportive of, each other, than at the start.

This all happens when Garrodigh opportunistically sneaks into a human city and into the dragonrider academy where he pretends to be an injured, tame dragon to get food. But he doesn't expect Rania, someone who's been waiting for the opportunity to bond with a dragon. Heck, nobody could expect Rania, who keeps garlands of flowers in her satchel just so she has something to fling around, and "can see" auras and thinks that Garrodigh (or Mr Slithers, as she names him) is just the bestest dragon ever. And slowly, as well as healing physically, Garrodigh begins to heal within his soul(s), and to care deeply for Rania.

This was just a delight from start to finish. Each of Garrodigh's three heads has a distinct voice as well as personality. Our PoV is from Centerhead, being the head that's most lucid at the start, despite his hatred of humans. They all miss Lefty, and having lost him, have lost so many memories and parts of themselves. It's never clear if all dragons with multiple heads have distinct personalities, or if that's just part of Garrodigh's trauma, as the only other dragons that talk to Garrodigh in the book have just one head.

The city-state of Kardoša itself is almost my platonic ideal of a state. Formed of immigrants and refugees, they still welcome anyone who is need of help to their borders. Not everyone believes wholeheartedly in this mission, as Rania, who is a refugee from the nation currently at war with Kardoša, finds out, to her sorrow, but even this bullying is more bluster and boredom than hatred.

There are aerial battles between airships and dragons, lots of (human) sex (although all off-page, other than the annoyance the noises cause Garrodigh) and a huge amount of love. Both between Garrodigh and Rania, between the different parts of Garrodigh and between the people and the nation that sheltered them, creating something worth protecting and fighting for. There is a certain amount of eating of people (they all deserved it) but this still a really cosy book where everyone just wants to take care of each other.

Thanks to the publisher for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Rynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and DAW for this ARC.

4.5 stars

Although I may not 100% love everything I've read by John Wiswell, I find there is something compelling in their narratives. Wiswell brings a unique voice to fantasy that has been missing in years, and that voice keeps me coming back to try again. The Dragon Has Some Complaints and Someone to Build a Nest In are both unusual in that the main protagonist in both is non human, but has the human desire and yearning to understand and connect to others. That yearning is refreshing in how it does not immediately assume that one needs to be forced to demonstrate empathy, but that empathy transcends humanity and can be found even in conventional "monster" type creatures. Even within Wearing the Lion, the goddess Hera shows a side that is rarely depicted in mythology, wherein she express empathy towards an unwanted offspring from her cheating husband. This connecting thread is what I really enjoy seeing in Wiswell's work especially in this current day and age.

To date, The Dragon Has Some Complaints is probably by favorite of Wiswell's, as I found the pacing and the overall arching character growth of the three (formerly four) headed dragon, Garrodigh. At the very beginning of the story, Garrodigh runs to escape the cannonfire of the warring nations above, and is unable to find a safe haven due to their "human sympathizing" that the other dragons express a huge disdain of. Our dragon is already fighting within his three heads, for Upperhead believes he is a human trapped in the body of a dragon, while Bottomhead primarily remains focused on stuffing their gob full of whatever they can get their mouth on. After their attempts to flee and hide from the fire, Centerhead has the bright idea to masquerade as a wounded dragon, and essentially infiltrate the human nation who brokered a pact with some dragons in order to fend off their invaders. Fully intending to eat as many people as they could, Garrodigh soon finds themself a human rider that is determined to ingratiate themselves into the army, despite the other dragon riders' opinions of them.

Throughout the story, we see Garrodigh struggle to comprehend the follies of humans, but overall grow to love the society and want to fight for their rights. This growth not only felt natural--although centerhead himself struggled to understand his feelings about humanity. Garrodigh has never been dragon enough to fit in, but human enough on where it mattered most. As Garrodigh made a special place in their heart for humanity, you too will create your own well for them to live in after reading The Dragon Has Some Complaints.

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

I also have some complaints.

tl;dr: This book was not for me. I mean that both in the sense that I didn't like it much, and also in the sense that it wasn't intended for the kind of person I am. I didn't know that going in; I was attracted by the unusual premise and the (in my opinion, inaccurate) claim to be cozy.

If you're the kind of person who will love this book, or have already read it and loved it, reading this review may only annoy you, and you may be better off skipping it and reading one that will reinforce your views instead. I always implicitly write my reviews for people who value the things I value (writing craft, especially) and enjoy the things I enjoy. I write positive reviews to direct them towards books I think they would like, and negative reviews to direct them away from books that are probably not going to be to their taste. If you have different priorities and enjoy different things, what I have to say will not be of much interest to you.

This review is going to be as much an expression of concerns I have about the current cozy fantasy genre in general as it is about this book in particular, though starting from thoughts I had while reading this specific book. I critique cozy as strongly as I do because I love the idea of it, while frequently being disappointed by the execution. It's an experience I've had before, when steampunk was as popular as cozy is now.

The first thing that bothered me about this book is that it feels like one long point-of-view violation. The viewpoint character is the relatively sane and sensible central head of a three-headed dragon; the other two heads have issues. Upperhead has the delusion that he's human, and Lowerhead has become almost animalistic. All three, including Centerhead, have lost memories because of the trauma of the loss of Lefty, the fourth head, who was favourable towards humans and worked with them. That obscured backstory may partially explain why this supposedly wild dragon not only understands but freely uses so many human concepts, including trans men and women (who he identifies instantly as such), cathedrals, apothecaries and vacations -this last itself being an anachronistic concept for the setting. However, while he recognizes ink and paper, he doesn't understand what writing is - but uses the verb "read" in a metaphorical sense multiple times.

How this came across to me is that the author wasn't putting in the effort, or maybe didn't even think about the need, to characterize someone based on what that sort of character is familiar with and would know and value. Reading some of the reviews of one of his other books reinforces this idea; multiple reviewers mentioned how a solitary swamp monster who had previously had limited and brief interactions with humans seemed to have a complete and instant grasp of how abusive human relationships work, as seen through a this-worldly current-state-of-psychology lens. To me, this is a basic craft issue.

And this is a problem I have with the cozy genre in general. Not only is the worldbuilding often thin, little more than generic sword & sorcery scenery flats, but those scenery flats stand behind people who are, in their attitudes and ways of thinking, completely indistinguishable from mid-2020s US people of a particular type (to which the authors belong). My suspicion is that they are so embedded in a filter bubble that emphasizes doctrinal purity that they are almost unable to conceive of people who might think differently from them, except as othered and villainized; that they have no functional sense of history; and that they believe implicitly that everything they think, and the way they behave, cannot be improved upon and therefore should be universalized. As a young person, I was in a community like this myself, and even though the content of the beliefs could hardly have been more different, I recognize the patterns. And to me, exploring other perspectives and ways of thought is part of the point of speculative fiction.

In the typical cozy book, basically every single character (who isn't a villain or at least an opponent) is queer in some way, and most of them are at least one of neurodivergent, disabled, or struggling with anxiety or depression. In these days of self-selecting groups ("found family"), this may be the lived experience of the author; everyone they know is like this. But it's like the famous example of the journalist who, when a political candidate won an election, protested that nobody he knew had voted for him. It says more about the narrowness of the person's experience than the actual constitution of the world at large. I should note that I don't have a problem with people being queer, neurodivergent and etc. These are ways that real people are, and I respect them as fellow humans. But it isn't how everyone is, and universalizing it places me and people like me, who don't have those characteristics (except that I am arguably slightly disabled and occasionally anxious), in an outgroup, just as much as earlier literature placed people who did have them in an outgroup. It's not true inclusiveness if there's still an outgroup, even if that is the people who were traditionally the ingroup. It's still not fully honouring our shared humanity.

In this particular book, the pervasiveness of these types of characters is more or less its only claim to belong to the cozy genre, since it's about a war between diverse refugees from a lightly sketched fascist-imperialist country and that country's military. Nobody here is living the equivalent of a Japanese "slow life." It's more like the demimonde of the Weimar Republic left Germany (though the names are mostly Eastern European), found an uninhabited island, tamed some dragons, created a flying city using the antigravity magic of the dragons, and held out against a much-less-efficient Nazi regime, with Britain pretending to help, but actually out to take half their land and half their dragons in return for minimal assistance. (That is, at least, slightly more worldbuilding than cozy authors often bother with.)

The other thing that annoyed me about this book, and the main reason I gave it up in the middle, is the character Raina, who becomes the rider of the dragon central character. She is the complete opposite of the kind of character I like to read about. She's outwardly naive and optimistic to the point of getting on people's nerves, while on the inside she's a complete emotional bombsite who uses alcohol and casual sex as forms of maladaptive coping. And what escalated her from "annoying character" to "reason to put the book down and not pick it up again" was that the dragon declares to Raina that she is everything a human should want to be, which is a statement I couldn't disagree with more strongly. To me, that's not unconditional acceptance; it's enabling.

If you don't care about the POV issues and can cope with Raina, this is a competently written book with the right emotional beats to appeal to plenty of readers. In the author's afterword, he mentions that the copy editor remarked on how clean it was, and I agree that it has fewer issues than average, but there are some words used in odd senses, and a few small words like "to" and "the" dropped out of the occasional sentence in the pre-publication version I had from Netgalley. (Missing words are a hard thing to spot unless you have the knack of it.)

It's not a terrible book. It just very much is not for me.