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Dragon Jousters #4
Aerie
In the fourth and final novel of Mercedes Lackey's Dragon Jousters series, Kiron, the man who had once been a dragon-boy called Vetch, has united the dragon riders and managed to rid their world of both war and magical domination. But are the evil Magi really gone for good? As Kiron tries to build a new civilization at the site of an abandoned cliff dweller's city, called Aerie, conflicts arise, and he soon realizes there is a vast conspiracy at work, which includes individuals who have infiltrated every walk of life-even his own family. Once the heads of the Magi, these conspirators are determined to regain their sinister control.
291 pages, Hardcover
First published October 3, 2006
77 people are currently reading
1838 people want to read
About the author
Mercedes Lackey
441 books9,537 followersMercedes entered this world on June 24, 1950, in Chicago, had a normal childhood and graduated from Purdue University in 1972. During the late 70's she worked as an artist's model and then went into the computer programming field, ending up with American Airlines in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition to her fantasy writing, she has written lyrics for and recorded nearly fifty songs for Firebird Arts & Music, a small recording company specializing in science fiction folk music.
"I'm a storyteller; that's what I see as 'my job'. My stories come out of my characters; how those characters would react to the given situation. Maybe that's why I get letters from readers as young as thirteen and as old as sixty-odd. One of the reasons I write song lyrics is because I see songs as a kind of 'story pill' -- they reduce a story to the barest essentials or encapsulate a particular crucial moment in time. I frequently will write a lyric when I am attempting to get to the heart of a crucial scene; I find that when I have done so, the scene has become absolutely clear in my mind, and I can write exactly what I wanted to say. Another reason is because of the kind of novels I am writing: that is, fantasy, set in an other-world semi-medieval atmosphere. Music is very important to medieval peoples; bards are the chief newsbringers. When I write the 'folk music' of these peoples, I am enriching my whole world, whether I actually use the song in the text or not.
"I began writing out of boredom; I continue out of addiction. I can't 'not' write, and as a result I have no social life! I began writing fantasy because I love it, but I try to construct my fantasy worlds with all the care of a 'high-tech' science fiction writer. I apply the principle of TANSTAAFL ['There ain't no such thing as free lunch', credited to Robert Heinlein) to magic, for instance; in my worlds, magic is paid for, and the cost to the magician is frequently a high one. I try to keep my world as solid and real as possible; people deal with stubborn pumps, bugs in the porridge, and love-lives that refuse to become untangled, right along with invading armies and evil magicians. And I try to make all of my characters, even the 'evil magicians,' something more than flat stereotypes. Even evil magicians get up in the night and look for cookies, sometimes.
"I suppose that in everything I write I try to expound the creed I gave my character Diana Tregarde in Burning Water:
"There's no such thing as 'one, true way'; the only answers worth having are the ones you find for yourself; leave the world better than you found it. Love, freedom, and the chance to do some good -- they're the things worth living and dying for, and if you aren't willing to die for the things worth living for, you might as well turn in your membership in the human race."
Also writes as Misty Lackey
Author's website
"I'm a storyteller; that's what I see as 'my job'. My stories come out of my characters; how those characters would react to the given situation. Maybe that's why I get letters from readers as young as thirteen and as old as sixty-odd. One of the reasons I write song lyrics is because I see songs as a kind of 'story pill' -- they reduce a story to the barest essentials or encapsulate a particular crucial moment in time. I frequently will write a lyric when I am attempting to get to the heart of a crucial scene; I find that when I have done so, the scene has become absolutely clear in my mind, and I can write exactly what I wanted to say. Another reason is because of the kind of novels I am writing: that is, fantasy, set in an other-world semi-medieval atmosphere. Music is very important to medieval peoples; bards are the chief newsbringers. When I write the 'folk music' of these peoples, I am enriching my whole world, whether I actually use the song in the text or not.
"I began writing out of boredom; I continue out of addiction. I can't 'not' write, and as a result I have no social life! I began writing fantasy because I love it, but I try to construct my fantasy worlds with all the care of a 'high-tech' science fiction writer. I apply the principle of TANSTAAFL ['There ain't no such thing as free lunch', credited to Robert Heinlein) to magic, for instance; in my worlds, magic is paid for, and the cost to the magician is frequently a high one. I try to keep my world as solid and real as possible; people deal with stubborn pumps, bugs in the porridge, and love-lives that refuse to become untangled, right along with invading armies and evil magicians. And I try to make all of my characters, even the 'evil magicians,' something more than flat stereotypes. Even evil magicians get up in the night and look for cookies, sometimes.
"I suppose that in everything I write I try to expound the creed I gave my character Diana Tregarde in Burning Water:
"There's no such thing as 'one, true way'; the only answers worth having are the ones you find for yourself; leave the world better than you found it. Love, freedom, and the chance to do some good -- they're the things worth living and dying for, and if you aren't willing to die for the things worth living for, you might as well turn in your membership in the human race."
Also writes as Misty Lackey
Author's website
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 165 reviews
August 18, 2010
Dreadful. It took over two hundred pages for a conflict to appear and once it had, it struck up out of nowhere. It had no connection to the previous books and made no sense. It was more like she tossed it in for the sake of a conflict, to render the fourth book significant when she could have ended it earlier. There was no build up for it and no hint of it in other books, either.
In addition, the introduction of Peri felt forced, especially since she had no character development. She appeared like the "perfect" match for Kiron, and then was flung out just as fast. The only traits I could tell for her was that she knew Kiron's mother and she spent her time as a serf. Other than that, she didn't appear to have any personality whatsoever.
While we're on the subject of tacked on characters, Letis was also contrived. Her only personality point, if it could be considered one, was to pester Peri and Kiron into marrying and moving back to the farm that might or might not be there. She could have been well developed. She could have even been medium developed. But, no, she was just a shrill, annoying voice that ultimately turned into "oh, fine, I'm leaving". C'mon, you can do better than that. We spend most of the three previous books wondering how Kiron's family is doing, if they're still alive, and then you disappoint us by a pathetic attempt at bringing her there for nothing.
A lot of the conflict between Kiron and Aket-ten also appeared out of nowhere and left me scrambling to figure out what was going on. She omitted things she should have included, could have worked to put the main plot in sooner and rid herself of at least a hundred and fifty useless pages. Had she built upon the main conflict and started it sooner, and found a way to hint at it in the earlier books, the book could have been far better. As it was, it seemed very rushed, forced, and I had to force myself through it just so I could say I'd finished the series. I had to know what happened to the characters, but by the time I got through the fourth book, I stopped caring.
This is not to say I dislike Mercedes Lackey. I love her. However, I wish in certain enterprises, she'd left the series on a high note rather than proceed to drag it through the mud. To anyone starting this series, leave off with Sanctuary and forget about this dreck. You'll be sorry you continued.
In addition, the introduction of Peri felt forced, especially since she had no character development. She appeared like the "perfect" match for Kiron, and then was flung out just as fast. The only traits I could tell for her was that she knew Kiron's mother and she spent her time as a serf. Other than that, she didn't appear to have any personality whatsoever.
While we're on the subject of tacked on characters, Letis was also contrived. Her only personality point, if it could be considered one, was to pester Peri and Kiron into marrying and moving back to the farm that might or might not be there. She could have been well developed. She could have even been medium developed. But, no, she was just a shrill, annoying voice that ultimately turned into "oh, fine, I'm leaving". C'mon, you can do better than that. We spend most of the three previous books wondering how Kiron's family is doing, if they're still alive, and then you disappoint us by a pathetic attempt at bringing her there for nothing.
A lot of the conflict between Kiron and Aket-ten also appeared out of nowhere and left me scrambling to figure out what was going on. She omitted things she should have included, could have worked to put the main plot in sooner and rid herself of at least a hundred and fifty useless pages. Had she built upon the main conflict and started it sooner, and found a way to hint at it in the earlier books, the book could have been far better. As it was, it seemed very rushed, forced, and I had to force myself through it just so I could say I'd finished the series. I had to know what happened to the characters, but by the time I got through the fourth book, I stopped caring.
This is not to say I dislike Mercedes Lackey. I love her. However, I wish in certain enterprises, she'd left the series on a high note rather than proceed to drag it through the mud. To anyone starting this series, leave off with Sanctuary and forget about this dreck. You'll be sorry you continued.
February 8, 2021
Notes:
I wish the fight part was set up better and described more. It was very interesting! I didn't care for the relationship conflicts as much because it was laid out and talked about too much in a manner that did not add to the plot.
I wish the fight part was set up better and described more. It was very interesting! I didn't care for the relationship conflicts as much because it was laid out and talked about too much in a manner that did not add to the plot.
July 18, 2014
Four word summary: Better than I expected!
So while my wife, Millie, was in labour with our daughter, I read four books (it took a while). It's been a bit trickier to find time to get those four books reviewed since then (we also have a hyper toddler).
I doubt many people will read Aerie without having first read the preceding three books in the trilogy. I jumped straight in here because Millie was still reading book three, Sanctuary, so she'd bought this with her, and I needed something/anything to keep me distracted after finishing Deepness in the Sky.
For a young-adult story about dragons 'n' that, my expectations weren't high.
But you know what? It's not bad at all!
Books 1 and 2 are very good (I'm reliably informed). Book 3 is pretty solid, but book 4 (this one) is the weakest of the series. If that's the case, I'm kind of tempted to read the whole series - except I'm not taking on any new series until I've cleared what I've got on my plate - because this was a pretty solid three.
This book follows a group of Jousters - dragon riders. I gathered enough from Aerie to fill in a lot of the backstory. Slave-boy finds a dragon egg, hatches it and raises it by hand. In doing so, he revolutionises the dragon-rearing and riding community - most dragons are caught fully grown and resist their human riders. He then plays his part in uniting two warring kingdoms against meddling evil mages, and wins the love of a high-born priestess who can talk to dragons (and became a Jouster). At some point there's also the founding of a new city and the discovery of an abandoned ancient system. Somewhere in that, Slave-boy also becomes Chief Jouster.
Which brings us to this story. What impressed me most, is the dragon-love, which shines brighter than the plot or the characters. The characters have all finished their main growth-arcs, and are settling into the day-to-day work of the plateau - good, but nothing special. The plot is a kind of post-trilogy tack-on that escalates too quickly, to try and out-do the previous climaxes, but doesn't have sufficient conflict points along the way to build enough momentum - instead it just ramps up abruptly. But the dragon-love is spot-on!
You know how young-teen girls can become enraptured with every aspect of horses? Riding, grooming, feeding, petting, mucking-out, training, etc, etc. The dragons are the horses, and taking them hunting, grooming, training, housing, etc - all these aspects of dragon-care seem to earn just as many lines as the adventures they go on together.
It's light. It's breezy. And I don't regret reading it - win!
After this I read: Hideous Creatures
So while my wife, Millie, was in labour with our daughter, I read four books (it took a while). It's been a bit trickier to find time to get those four books reviewed since then (we also have a hyper toddler).
I doubt many people will read Aerie without having first read the preceding three books in the trilogy. I jumped straight in here because Millie was still reading book three, Sanctuary, so she'd bought this with her, and I needed something/anything to keep me distracted after finishing Deepness in the Sky.
For a young-adult story about dragons 'n' that, my expectations weren't high.
But you know what? It's not bad at all!
Books 1 and 2 are very good (I'm reliably informed). Book 3 is pretty solid, but book 4 (this one) is the weakest of the series. If that's the case, I'm kind of tempted to read the whole series - except I'm not taking on any new series until I've cleared what I've got on my plate - because this was a pretty solid three.
This book follows a group of Jousters - dragon riders. I gathered enough from Aerie to fill in a lot of the backstory. Slave-boy finds a dragon egg, hatches it and raises it by hand. In doing so, he revolutionises the dragon-rearing and riding community - most dragons are caught fully grown and resist their human riders. He then plays his part in uniting two warring kingdoms against meddling evil mages, and wins the love of a high-born priestess who can talk to dragons (and became a Jouster). At some point there's also the founding of a new city and the discovery of an abandoned ancient system. Somewhere in that, Slave-boy also becomes Chief Jouster.
Which brings us to this story. What impressed me most, is the dragon-love, which shines brighter than the plot or the characters. The characters have all finished their main growth-arcs, and are settling into the day-to-day work of the plateau - good, but nothing special. The plot is a kind of post-trilogy tack-on that escalates too quickly, to try and out-do the previous climaxes, but doesn't have sufficient conflict points along the way to build enough momentum - instead it just ramps up abruptly. But the dragon-love is spot-on!
You know how young-teen girls can become enraptured with every aspect of horses? Riding, grooming, feeding, petting, mucking-out, training, etc, etc. The dragons are the horses, and taking them hunting, grooming, training, housing, etc - all these aspects of dragon-care seem to earn just as many lines as the adventures they go on together.
It's light. It's breezy. And I don't regret reading it - win!
After this I read: Hideous Creatures
June 10, 2017
Really disappointing. It's only halfway through the book that anything related to the actual plot presents itself - and look, I know what I'm signing up for with a Mercedes Lackey book, and the occasional plotless meandering is par for the course, but here it was painful to get through. The dragons were a set piece, and I was hoping for some exploration and interesting discoveries in Aerie, but no luck there. Instead, there's nonsensical relationship drama, and Aket-ten's stripped of all positive traits and portrayed as a petulant child for no apparent reason.
When we finally do get to the plot, it's rushed and very little is actually explained or even given room to breathe - and I like Peri, but she's given nothing interesting to do, and given that the story's already rushed, I'm not sure the addition of another viewpoint character did it any favors. Probably best to just pretend the series is a trilogy and skip this one.
When we finally do get to the plot, it's rushed and very little is actually explained or even given room to breathe - and I like Peri, but she's given nothing interesting to do, and given that the story's already rushed, I'm not sure the addition of another viewpoint character did it any favors. Probably best to just pretend the series is a trilogy and skip this one.
January 10, 2020
After promising myself I wouldn’t continue with this series, I did. I have regrets.
September 6, 2021
I think the polite thing to say would be this series hasn't aged well, though I need some serious convincing that it was ever good. Generally poor and often repetitive writing with crappy yet seemingly acceptable gender politics. Were women ever mentioned without us being told how limited they are? I don't remember an instance.
Edit:
Oh shit! I thought this was at least 40 years older than it is. I didn't think someone who has Internet access and owns a refrigerator could seriously write this.
Edit:
Oh shit! I thought this was at least 40 years older than it is. I didn't think someone who has Internet access and owns a refrigerator could seriously write this.
August 2, 2018
Hmm. Pretty good. A little under-developed in all the key aspects. I fully expected Peri to end up being Nebt or something. I guessed that she would be the “expendable mortal” instead of the the Chosen of Seft. Would have given her existence a reason...turns out all she was there for was to add length to the story and then be nothing... Kaleth turning into the Chosen was weird.
And the unprecedented conflict between Aket-ten and Kiron was...just that - unprecedented, and a little ridiculous.
But, despite the suddenness and randomness of pretty much the whole story, the meanderings were tolerably enjoyable, and it was kind of cool to watch Kiron puzzle things out and develop a little more.
Ah well. The series would have been just fine had it ended with Sanctuary. I still like Mercedes Lackey a lot. She’s a good author.
And the unprecedented conflict between Aket-ten and Kiron was...just that - unprecedented, and a little ridiculous.
But, despite the suddenness and randomness of pretty much the whole story, the meanderings were tolerably enjoyable, and it was kind of cool to watch Kiron puzzle things out and develop a little more.
Ah well. The series would have been just fine had it ended with Sanctuary. I still like Mercedes Lackey a lot. She’s a good author.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 13, 2008
For the end to an entire series, it was a disappointment, but I did enjoy the characters & the book, so it's still okay. *shrug* I've just seen the author write so much better novels than this one, by comparison, it's pretty dull. I was 80% through it, still waiting for the plotline to develop, and then all the action took place in the last 30 pages! I think I might have been better off just stopping at book #3 of 4 & making up my own ending!
August 25, 2023
Where to begin... Well this is the final installment of the Dragon jouster series and serves as a conclusion to the storyline of Kiron. Though the third book also could have ended the series as well.
Aerie starts slow, very slow and builds up a good head of momentum by the final 100 -150 pages. After that it picks up pace quite a bit and doesn't slow down at all. Unfortunately the feel of this ending being so fast is that it was rushed.
As normal there is a large amount of foreshadowing throughout the book. New and interesting characters are everywhere, my favorite of the new characters being carefully chosen. The detail given through the book allows for lots of mental imagery
Overall, a wonderful read, though rushed at the end. I personally believe this one was unnecessary to the series as there were a few ends left loose. Though I admit this book ties up the series unanswered questions nicely. I would recommend this series to anyone interested in high fantasy or with an interest in the author.
Aerie starts slow, very slow and builds up a good head of momentum by the final 100 -150 pages. After that it picks up pace quite a bit and doesn't slow down at all. Unfortunately the feel of this ending being so fast is that it was rushed.
As normal there is a large amount of foreshadowing throughout the book. New and interesting characters are everywhere, my favorite of the new characters being carefully chosen. The detail given through the book allows for lots of mental imagery
Overall, a wonderful read, though rushed at the end. I personally believe this one was unnecessary to the series as there were a few ends left loose. Though I admit this book ties up the series unanswered questions nicely. I would recommend this series to anyone interested in high fantasy or with an interest in the author.
December 27, 2023
I wish some of the things introduced in this book had been woven in earlier. There were new characters and enemies that could've been more impactful if we understood them more, and the reintroduction of people from the past that I think should've held more emotional weight than they did. I was glad that the formation of the women's wing didn't wait for permission at the beginning, but I don't *love* how it was done and handled and talked about by other characters.
October 2, 2020
Full review here:
https://jamesgenrebooks.blogspot.com/...
Meandering and scattershot plot, but some of the larger discussions within make up for it.
https://jamesgenrebooks.blogspot.com/...
Meandering and scattershot plot, but some of the larger discussions within make up for it.
September 29, 2021
Not the first time I've read this series but it's always a great read!
June 26, 2024
Classic boy meets dragon meets great king meets mother
June 21, 2025
I could read books in this universe forever I'm sad it's over
June 30, 2021
ReedIII Quick Review: While this continues the story from the first three novels it does not end the story well. This weakest of the four novels is only recommended for people interested in the continued story of the characters.
August 20, 2020
Kiron has assisted with the union of Tia and Alta, yet things are not as simple as they seem. Despite the Great King and Queen uniting the lands, without a common enemy the common people are divided. While on patrol, Kiron spots a lone rider from the border town – unfortunately dead. Have the Magi returned?
Half the time Kiron acts very teenager-y and the rest of the time a bit childish! He spends a lot of time second-guessing himself and being grumpy. I’m not certain how many years have passed since the other novels, but I would guess at least 3-4, since there are a lot of new dragon wings (complete wings of 9). If he’s the chief of the Jousters, he needs to get a wriggle on!
There are a lot of missed connections in this novel, and parts where I felt like a sub-story had started, yet wasn’t completed. For example, the original ‘wing’ has a huge discussion on how to deal with the oldest Jousters, and they decide that a new wing is a great idea. But none of the shuffling is ever realised. We just jumped from this concept straight onto Kiron with a new wing finding the body.
I wanted something comfortable to read that I wouldn’t need to review (since I’m still behind)… So I reread Joust and Alta, then Sanctuary (oops, I haven’t reviewed that one either). My memory of this novel was a bit rusty, I just haven’t read it as many times as the others. And no wonder why! There’s not enough dragon training here for me, and too much politics and self-doubt. I seem to remember this originally being a trilogy, and then turning into a quartet. You don’t need to read this novel to enjoy the others, and I personally found it a let down.
Did you enjoy this goodreads review? If so you may find it useful to visit my blog The Cosy Dragon . I regularly post new reviews on a variety of genres.
Half the time Kiron acts very teenager-y and the rest of the time a bit childish! He spends a lot of time second-guessing himself and being grumpy. I’m not certain how many years have passed since the other novels, but I would guess at least 3-4, since there are a lot of new dragon wings (complete wings of 9). If he’s the chief of the Jousters, he needs to get a wriggle on!
There are a lot of missed connections in this novel, and parts where I felt like a sub-story had started, yet wasn’t completed. For example, the original ‘wing’ has a huge discussion on how to deal with the oldest Jousters, and they decide that a new wing is a great idea. But none of the shuffling is ever realised. We just jumped from this concept straight onto Kiron with a new wing finding the body.
I wanted something comfortable to read that I wouldn’t need to review (since I’m still behind)… So I reread Joust and Alta, then Sanctuary (oops, I haven’t reviewed that one either). My memory of this novel was a bit rusty, I just haven’t read it as many times as the others. And no wonder why! There’s not enough dragon training here for me, and too much politics and self-doubt. I seem to remember this originally being a trilogy, and then turning into a quartet. You don’t need to read this novel to enjoy the others, and I personally found it a let down.
Did you enjoy this goodreads review? If so you may find it useful to visit my blog The Cosy Dragon . I regularly post new reviews on a variety of genres.
May 20, 2023
My biggest question upon completing book 3 was "Why is there a fourth book?" I don't think this book answered that question. Before getting into my rant, I want to say I still whole-heartedly recommend the first three books to anyone who likes dragons. I just recommend pretend this series os a trilogy, which is probably what it was conceived as anyway.
I thought at first that maybe the author just wasn't able to let go of the characters and wanted to wrap up a few more minor plot threads that there weren't time for in the last book like Kiron's missing family or, apparently, how restoration of the lost cities was going. The more I think about it, the more I suspect this was a stealth pilot for a spin-off. Maybe with Peri, who came out of no where for this book, had a past that interwove her with Kiron in order to make her seem more significant, and yet could have been absent from the story without it impacting anything. She isn't even particularly relevant to the Queen's Wing plot thread except that the Queen's Wing served as an excuse to introduce her. (Which is a separate issue from the Queen's Wing plot thread being anti-climactic and mostly serving as an excuse for our leads to not yet resolve their romantic arc, and I guess a bone to throw to any female readers.) Even the last few pages of the book gave the impression that the author was leaving open the possibility of continued installments. For a series that still felt like it ought to have ended a book ago.
Book 3 wrapped up the conflict that had been buildings for the past two books with a thrilling climax that made sense with everything that had been established across the first three books. The war that was at the core of Kiron's past trauma was won, the forces behind it were defeated, and the two warring kingdoms not only found peace but united. Obviously there was going to be some growing pains getting the two halves of the new kingdom to embrace one another and the jousters duties would change post-war, but book 3 still resolved in a way that gave the impression that this was all going to go relatively smoothly. Heck, book 4 didn't even build much conflict around it except to go "Oh yeah, that would have been an issue, but we quickly came to a solution."
I suppose if I went back through the past three books, I might notice a couple mentions of this book's antagonists, but if the author ever hinted that they might have any involvement in the plot, it wasn't noteworthy enough for me to recall. It felt like a last minute addition to give some source of conflict with a rushed effort to tie them to the previous, better established villains so they would seem suitably threatening. The increased relevance of the gods felt out of left field. The enemy nation's god felt like it came from a different sport entirely. There was way too little build up involving how magic and gods in this story work for it to all get dropped the way it did leading up to the climax. I couldn't appreciate the scale of the conflict because I was too distracted wondering if I'd missed any hints that any of this was even remotely possible in the past three books.
Not to mention, because the villains really weren't established in the previous books, far too much time was spent building up to them. So much time, so slowly, on such a small scale relative to the previous threat of the original three books, that I thought I must have been mistaken about this series ending on book 4, and that there was going to be at least another book after this one. Then the conflict came and was over so quickly that it ultimately felt far less menacing than the villains of the past books. The scale of the conflict thus felt less like an actual escalation of stakes and more like a desperate attempt to try and convince the readers that this was more serious than last time.
Since I said this felt like the test run for a spin-off, I'll mention that I think I would have preferred this be book one of a sequel trilogy that could gradually focus more on a new jouster. (I guess a version of Peri whose arc involved more than learning that insta-love isn't real. Maybe all that stuff about her wanting to be protected and not realizing the pros and cons of freedom could be a recurring part of her character and growth rather than coming out of nowhere in the climax.) The disappearing village mystery and the traps set against anyone who investigated it were genuinely cool, and felt about as relevant to the short war between two large armies in the end of the book as this book felt to the other three books in the series. A spin-off that gradually built up that subtle, sneaking attack style levied against the boarder village would have been way more interesting than
The ending didn't even feel like the same satisfactory resolution as the last book. The final few pages were spent wrapping up a plot thread that the book practically treated like a background problem for Kiron and Peri. I think it would have been more satisfyingly dealt with before the climax than after, so the story could end on a higher note. That makes the character entirely too ridiculous to take seriously, which undermines the other characters finding the nerve to stand up to her.
Oh, also:
I thought at first that maybe the author just wasn't able to let go of the characters and wanted to wrap up a few more minor plot threads that there weren't time for in the last book like Kiron's missing family or, apparently, how restoration of the lost cities was going. The more I think about it, the more I suspect this was a stealth pilot for a spin-off. Maybe with Peri, who came out of no where for this book, had a past that interwove her with Kiron in order to make her seem more significant, and yet could have been absent from the story without it impacting anything. She isn't even particularly relevant to the Queen's Wing plot thread except that the Queen's Wing served as an excuse to introduce her. (Which is a separate issue from the Queen's Wing plot thread being anti-climactic and mostly serving as an excuse for our leads to not yet resolve their romantic arc, and I guess a bone to throw to any female readers.) Even the last few pages of the book gave the impression that the author was leaving open the possibility of continued installments. For a series that still felt like it ought to have ended a book ago.
Book 3 wrapped up the conflict that had been buildings for the past two books with a thrilling climax that made sense with everything that had been established across the first three books. The war that was at the core of Kiron's past trauma was won, the forces behind it were defeated, and the two warring kingdoms not only found peace but united. Obviously there was going to be some growing pains getting the two halves of the new kingdom to embrace one another and the jousters duties would change post-war, but book 3 still resolved in a way that gave the impression that this was all going to go relatively smoothly. Heck, book 4 didn't even build much conflict around it except to go "Oh yeah, that would have been an issue, but we quickly came to a solution."
I suppose if I went back through the past three books, I might notice a couple mentions of this book's antagonists, but if the author ever hinted that they might have any involvement in the plot, it wasn't noteworthy enough for me to recall. It felt like a last minute addition to give some source of conflict with a rushed effort to tie them to the previous, better established villains so they would seem suitably threatening. The increased relevance of the gods felt out of left field. The enemy nation's god felt like it came from a different sport entirely. There was way too little build up involving how magic and gods in this story work for it to all get dropped the way it did leading up to the climax. I couldn't appreciate the scale of the conflict because I was too distracted wondering if I'd missed any hints that any of this was even remotely possible in the past three books.
Not to mention, because the villains really weren't established in the previous books, far too much time was spent building up to them. So much time, so slowly, on such a small scale relative to the previous threat of the original three books, that I thought I must have been mistaken about this series ending on book 4, and that there was going to be at least another book after this one. Then the conflict came and was over so quickly that it ultimately felt far less menacing than the villains of the past books. The scale of the conflict thus felt less like an actual escalation of stakes and more like a desperate attempt to try and convince the readers that this was more serious than last time.
Since I said this felt like the test run for a spin-off, I'll mention that I think I would have preferred this be book one of a sequel trilogy that could gradually focus more on a new jouster. (I guess a version of Peri whose arc involved more than learning that insta-love isn't real. Maybe all that stuff about her wanting to be protected and not realizing the pros and cons of freedom could be a recurring part of her character and growth rather than coming out of nowhere in the climax.) The disappearing village mystery and the traps set against anyone who investigated it were genuinely cool, and felt about as relevant to the short war between two large armies in the end of the book as this book felt to the other three books in the series. A spin-off that gradually built up that subtle, sneaking attack style levied against the boarder village would have been way more interesting than
The ending didn't even feel like the same satisfactory resolution as the last book. The final few pages were spent wrapping up a plot thread that the book practically treated like a background problem for Kiron and Peri. I think it would have been more satisfyingly dealt with before the climax than after, so the story could end on a higher note. That makes the character entirely too ridiculous to take seriously, which undermines the other characters finding the nerve to stand up to her.
Oh, also:
July 5, 2017
I pretty much went from loving Aket-ten (in books #1-3) to hating her in this book. She seems so mad for no apparent reason.
The dragons have moved to Aerie. It's hard to tell how much time has passed between book #3 and this book, but apparently they now have at least 64 dragons.
There's a little confusion in the story at some points -- if all of Kiron's wing now has a wing of their own, then Kiron doesn't really have a wing anymore because they're part of the new wings.
Is Letis in this book just for comic relief? I'd have edited that all out as it doesn't seem to contribute anything.
The time it takes to fly anywhere on dragon seems to vary depending on how long she wants it to take. And, it seems weird that they were *just* at the eastern border and saw no sign of the enemy and now that huge enemy army is there.
Not a huge solution of resolution by gods. The priest of Seft is pretty cool, though.
The dragons have moved to Aerie. It's hard to tell how much time has passed between book #3 and this book, but apparently they now have at least 64 dragons.
There's a little confusion in the story at some points -- if all of Kiron's wing now has a wing of their own, then Kiron doesn't really have a wing anymore because they're part of the new wings.
Is Letis in this book just for comic relief? I'd have edited that all out as it doesn't seem to contribute anything.
The time it takes to fly anywhere on dragon seems to vary depending on how long she wants it to take. And, it seems weird that they were *just* at the eastern border and saw no sign of the enemy and now that huge enemy army is there.
Not a huge solution of resolution by gods. The priest of Seft is pretty cool, though.
May 11, 2021
I was really sad to read this book.
I honestly think that it would have been better as a stand alone, rather than the final book of a series.
It took ages to get to the point, and felt as if it had nothing to do with the previous plotlines. It was okay once it eventually got going, but I spent the first third of the book wondering what it had to do with the other books - apart from the main characters, and the dragons themselves.
It was as if someone had complained about there only being male jousters - apart from Aket-ten - and so it was decided to add more. Not only that, but then a whiny mother was added to the mix - with no real plotline for her! Frankly, it just put me off even more.
I really believe this series should have been left as a trilogy - at least it would have left us with some pleasant memories.
I honestly think that it would have been better as a stand alone, rather than the final book of a series.
It took ages to get to the point, and felt as if it had nothing to do with the previous plotlines. It was okay once it eventually got going, but I spent the first third of the book wondering what it had to do with the other books - apart from the main characters, and the dragons themselves.
It was as if someone had complained about there only being male jousters - apart from Aket-ten - and so it was decided to add more. Not only that, but then a whiny mother was added to the mix - with no real plotline for her! Frankly, it just put me off even more.
I really believe this series should have been left as a trilogy - at least it would have left us with some pleasant memories.
November 30, 2017
Normally, I'm a huge fan of Mercedes Lackey and I'm absolutely obsessed with dragons. This series was okay, not my favorite but the third one ended in a way that made me curious as to how this one would go.
First of all, the book could have been at least a third the size it was because it was so repetitive. Not even necessarily in the feeding dragons, finding water, and that sort of stuff that the first three were. In the course of three pages, Lackey would reiterate the same thing in as many ways possible. It grew tiresome.
Also, overall, the whole book seemed to drag on. Nothing particularly exciting happened until the very end.
I would put spoilers here, but won't. The ending just felt very contrived for me and it made me roll my eyes more than anything.
In my opinion, she should have left this series as a trilogy. It would have been stronger for it.
First of all, the book could have been at least a third the size it was because it was so repetitive. Not even necessarily in the feeding dragons, finding water, and that sort of stuff that the first three were. In the course of three pages, Lackey would reiterate the same thing in as many ways possible. It grew tiresome.
Also, overall, the whole book seemed to drag on. Nothing particularly exciting happened until the very end.
I would put spoilers here, but won't. The ending just felt very contrived for me and it made me roll my eyes more than anything.
In my opinion, she should have left this series as a trilogy. It would have been stronger for it.
September 16, 2020
Aerie is easily the weakest of the Dragon Jousters quartet, although it is still a good read. Books 1-3 have a full, overarching plot across them that feels fairly complete at the end of Sanctuary even if there are some loose ends. Aerie is almost an extended epilogue, written to answer the question of "What comes next?"
If it had limited itself to answering that question and not incorporating the petty relationship drama between Kiron and Aket-Ten, I think I would have liked it much better. Additionally, the whole mysterious ancient enemy invades plot line felt shoehorned in.
If it had limited itself to answering that question and not incorporating the petty relationship drama between Kiron and Aket-Ten, I think I would have liked it much better. Additionally, the whole mysterious ancient enemy invades plot line felt shoehorned in.
January 30, 2020
The fourth in the series, this book is best read after the first three, but I think there's enough context without.
This book shows the slow makings of building a combined nation, then segues into an ancient external threat. The hand of the author comes down and fixes the problem, and stuff wraps up. It's a decent series wrap up book with it's own interesting ups and downs. I enjoyed the reading, but feel it's not as strong as the others.
This book shows the slow makings of building a combined nation, then segues into an ancient external threat. The hand of the author comes down and fixes the problem, and stuff wraps up. It's a decent series wrap up book with it's own interesting ups and downs. I enjoyed the reading, but feel it's not as strong as the others.
June 9, 2020
This is very possibly the best book of the series. The plot of the previous three books were like the lazy river at a water park, but the current of this one quickened a bit, with subplots filling the empty space and making it that much more interesting. With its low scale romantic rivalries, large scale nagging mothers, dark mysteries, drunk pigeons, gigantic foreign armies, and manifestations of the gods themselves, this felt more like ye olde fantasy adventure.
May 12, 2018
I don’t think this series is Lackey’s best work. The character development is flat, there is nothing really at stake during the action, and the romance falls back on pretty tired tropes about women in a man’s world.
That being said, this series was totally fine for a beach read. Nothing too challenging or stressful, easy to pick up and put down.
That being said, this series was totally fine for a beach read. Nothing too challenging or stressful, easy to pick up and put down.
November 1, 2018
This book, along with the previous 3 was OK, the author tries but sadly for me just doesn’t quite get there.... maybe more a set of books that are aimed at the ‘young adult’ market, they were not sophisticated enough for me. And this 4th book climaxed and ended very abruptly.
If you want a great set of Dragon books read the books by Robin Hobb which are rich, detailed, emotive and amazing.
If you want a great set of Dragon books read the books by Robin Hobb which are rich, detailed, emotive and amazing.
February 9, 2021
I was very disappointed with the conclusion. It felt rushed and incomplete. For some odd reason, there was an extra character out of no-where with random love interests that just felt unnecessary. The conflict was simply meh and didn't arrive until the last 50 pages or so. It just wasn't what I had expected after reading the other books.
September 26, 2024
While I enjoyed this book, it is probably the weakest in the series. Not enough plot to keep the character fresh and interesting and not enough dragons to make up for it. That being said, it is still a good book and worth the read, its just not Lackey's best work.
May 4, 2017
The first three books of this series were quite enjoyable and I think it would have been better if the author finished it after the third. This book felt very rushed and did not make sense. The ending left the reader confused and unsatisfied. :(
November 15, 2017
While I enjoyed the story, and especially found the addition of the Chosen of Seft to be worthy, I found the end lacking. The Nameless Ones are only ever tangentially mentioned throughout the series, so the reader is left without an understanding of the depth of the final confrontation.
November 7, 2023
Another great addition to the series. The ending is a little more sudden, with less end of the story wrap-up than I would prefer, but I still enjoyed the story. As with the rest of the series, I have read this before, and I will definitely read it again in the future.
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