If you’ve been building software for any length of time, you’ve almost certainly worked with at least one relational database. There’s a good chance it was MySQL, PostgreSQL, or SQL Server. All three can store rows, run queries, and handle transactions, so it’s tempting to …

The first time I looked at DynamoDB, it felt like a golden unicorn. It promised fast access, huge scale, and very little operational effort. If you’re already building on AWS, it also feels like the natural choice because it fits so neatly into the rest of the platform.

Then the catch becomes …