By Dragons, just dragons and magic and bonds and a bit of romance. It does not matter how old I get I’m still drawn to tales with dragons. I defiantly picked up the first book based on the cover. Also duologys are great because you get more of the story but it’s not as overwhelming as a long fantasy series.
Synopsis: Long-banished dragons, revered as gods, return to the mortal realm in the first in this magical new epic fantasy duology from a bestselling author
Long ago, humans betrayed dragons, stealing their magic and banishing them to a dying world. Centuries later, their descendants worship dragons as gods. But the gods remember, and they do not forgive.
Thief Arcady scrapes a living on the streets of Vatra. Desperate, Arcady steals a powerful artifact from the bones of the Plaguebringer, the most hated person in Lumet history. Only Arcady knows the artifact’s magic holds the key to a new life among the nobles at court and a chance for revenge.
The spell connects to Everen, the last male dragon foretold to save his kind, dragging him through the Veil. Disguised as a human, Everen soon learns that to regain his true power and form and fulfil his destiny, he only needs to convince one little thief to trust him enough to bond completely–body, mind, and soul–and then kill them.
Yet the closer the two become, the greater the risk both their worlds will shatter.
Synopsis: The final book in a new romance epic fantasy duology, in which long-banished dragons, revered as gods, return to the mortal realm—a perfect read for your next book club!
Arcady faces their greatest heist yet: posing as a noble student at the arcane University of Vatra. When the University announces the reinstatement of archaic trials of magic, the ever-penniless Arcady seizes the chance. If they win, they not only prove their worth, but the scholarship will give them more time to unlock secrets and reveal, once and for all, that their grandsire was not the Plaguebringer. Yet grief still leaves Arcady broken, and when they close their eyes, they dream of a certain dragon.
Everen, once the hope of dragons, is now hated by his kind. When he is eventually released from his prison, the Queen is clear: while he may help protect the island from wraith attacks, he is no longer a prince of the realm. As he struggles to find his place in Vere Celene, visions of the past, the future, and tantalizing glimpses of Arcady still haunt him. If he steers the wrong path through fate’s storm, he may never be able to create a future where both humans and dragons live in harmony.
Arcady soon realizes that to survive the rising threats from both their old life and their new one, they must use every trick at their disposal—even magic stolen from a dragon they thought dead. And as time runs out before an ancient danger awakens, Everen must fight his way back to Arcady, earn their forgiveness, and learn what it truly means to be an Emberclaw.
I will share how I fell. But first, I must tell you what it is like to fly.
This is the first line of Dragonfall from the point of view of the dragon Everen. I might have picked this book up for the cover but I bought it for the way the story starts. And then I was in a weird reading and writing phase and the world building took me a bit to get through and I sadly put this book down for months. That was to my detriment.
When I saw that the second book in the series had been release I was prompted to pick up where I had left off in Dragonfall and I finished the last 3/4 of the book in two days. There is forced proximity, they try to kill each other, there is a dragon involved in a heist. So much fun.
This is the first book I have read where one of the main characters goes by they/them pronouns. I really like Arcady as a character, they are driven and smart, even if they have serious trust issues. My only issue is that They/Them is also used as honorific terms for those in position of standing and at the start of the book things can be a little confusing. A fun little detail is that when people introduce themselves they tell their preferred pronouns.
The dragons in this book are a matriarchal society and they put a lot of responsibility on poor Everen’s shoulders due to prophecy. I’ll let you read and see if he does things the way he is expected to or not. That being said they are all beautiful with hardened scales, feathered wings, and glowing eyes. They can also shape-shift into a mostly human form that they refer to as preterit form. From there they can take up very convincing human disguises.
These are fairly short books, averaging out at about 350 pages each. That being said there are multiple points of view from various characters which can be confusing. Everen’s chapters are first person past tense speaking to Arcady, whereas one of the secondary characters, Sorin, uses third person past tense for there chapters. All the POVs work for the story but it can be bit confusing to get used to.
All-in-all I really enjoyed this series. It looks at fate, trust, and choosing your own path. I suggest this book for those that like dragons, for those that are looking for some non-traditional romance and for those that like reading of magic. Have you read this series? Let me know in the comments. Happy reading.
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