All dragons all the time

From Book Riot, a post by Silvana Reyes Lopez: 15 OF THE BEST DRAGON BOOK SERIES

I will say first: Pern’s missing from this list.

I grew up with Pern, I am still quite fond of Pern, I never believed in the time travel aspects of the series, but whatever. Plus Michael Whelan’s wonderful covers!

So, well, anyway, if you made a list of The Top 15 Dragon Series, not sure Pern would be on there, but if you made a list of The Top 15 Dragon Series Covers, then certainly.

Later I liked the Harper Hall trilogy best, but moving on, what are some great series featuring dragons? Let’s see what’s on this list from Book Riot first:

Ah, here’s Temeraire. Good choice. For me the series went kinda like this:

But I’m pretty sure some of you all commented that the series improved again later? I never read the last two books, and I sort of think I remember people saying I really should. I didn’t much like the Australian book. Let’s spend the entire book traveling across Australia! And back! With no progress in the larger plot! 

And the book after that, the South American one, was worse.  I did not like it AT ALL and remember practically nothing about it other than the fact I didn’t like it and the vivid fact that I just loathed the female fire-breathing dragon, what’s her name? Selfish, stupid, short-sighted creature. Maybe she improved eventually.  Or was killed. Or shuffled off to an unimportant subplot somewhere, whatever.

Fine, moving on, what’s another series on this list I’ve read at least part of? Let me see …

Sorcerer and the Crown, Zen Cho,, I have the first one on my TBR pile. Dragons? I don’t remember anyone mentioning dragons. I read the first bit and it didn’t really grab me and I went on to something else, but I know lots of people loved this one so I should try it … someday …

Heartstone series, Elle Katherine White, I have the first one on my TBR pile. Pride and Prejudice, everyone says, with dragons. Not always wowed by things in the style of P&P because, really, it’s not that easy to compete with Jane Austen.

Invisible Library, Genevieve Cogman, I’ve heard a lot of thumbs-up reactions to that one.

Chronicles of Elantra, my my, there Michelle Saraga / West is again with her Elantra series. I vote for this being the most likely new-to-me series for me to actually try in 2019. Fourteen books out in this series, wow.

Various series I haven’t read, moving on …

Oh, here we go:

Lady Trent by of course Marie Brennan. I vote for this being the most likely series on this list for me to actually finish in 2019. I’ve got the more recent couple on the shelf downstairs but haven’t actually read them. I love the naturalist take on dragons that Brennan has going in this series and really, I am curious about how she wound up the series. No spoilers, please, but if you’ve read the whole thing, thumbs up or thumbs down on the resolution?

Then some more series I haven’t read . . . let me see, what besides Pern is missing? Well, how about these:

Granted, the Book Riot post didn’t include MG stories, but hey. I loved the original Dragonet Prophecy five-book series! Great MG series, one of my all-time favorites in the MG category. Looks like all five of the Jade Mountain quintilogy is out now, too. Well, this may be the most likely dragon series for me to go on with in 2019, bumping both the adult series down a notch.

Other dragon series … let me see, how about this one?

Patricia Wrede did some great work here. I do seem to be biasing my picks toward MG/YA, but still, Talking to Dragons surely belongs on any list of great-fantasy-series-with-dragons.

Oh, here’s an adult series I liked a lot:

Robin Hobb is not my very favorite epic fantasy author, but I liked this series quite a bit. The dragons themselves were not that likable, which is one thing I kinda liked about them. Definitely not bred for docility, like some. Also just a lot of characters I liked and relatively few I disliked, not always the case for Hobb. Pacing: slow, but compared to the Assassin series, super super fast. Wow, was Fool’s Assassin slow. DNF for me, not because of the pacing. I had other issues with that series.

Anyway, I did like the Dragon series a mile better than anything else of hers I’ve read. 

One more, not a series:

OKAY FINE so it technically is the first book of a series. I just sooooo do not recommend that anybody treat it that way. Dragonshadow, no. Knight of the Demon Queen, no no no. Dragonstar, sure, that one is finally not as grimly horrible, but it’s not worth it. 

Dragonsbane yes. A wonderful dragon story. The rest of the series, no.

Okay! What have I missed? Throw a great dragon story, series or not, in the comments.

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