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The Evertide #1
The Summer Dragon
The debut novel from the acclaimed illustrator—a high fantasy adventure featuring dragons and deadly politics.
Maia and her family raise dragons for the political war machine. As she comes of age, she anticipates a dragon of her own to add to the stable of breeding parents. Her peaceful life is shattered when the Summer Dragon—one of the rare and mythical High Dragons—makes an appearance in her quiet valley. Political factions vie for control of the implied message, threatening her aspirations, her aerie, her entire way of life.
The bond between dragons and their riders is deep and life-long, and Maia’s desire for a dragon of her own to train, ride, fly, and love drives her to take a risk that puts her life at stake. She is swept into an adventure that pits her against the deathless Horrors, thralls of the enemy, and a faceless creature drawn from her fear. In her fight to preserve everything she knows and loves, she exposes a conspiracy, unearths an ancient civilization, and challenges her understanding of her world—and of herself.
Maia and her family raise dragons for the political war machine. As she comes of age, she anticipates a dragon of her own to add to the stable of breeding parents. Her peaceful life is shattered when the Summer Dragon—one of the rare and mythical High Dragons—makes an appearance in her quiet valley. Political factions vie for control of the implied message, threatening her aspirations, her aerie, her entire way of life.
The bond between dragons and their riders is deep and life-long, and Maia’s desire for a dragon of her own to train, ride, fly, and love drives her to take a risk that puts her life at stake. She is swept into an adventure that pits her against the deathless Horrors, thralls of the enemy, and a faceless creature drawn from her fear. In her fight to preserve everything she knows and loves, she exposes a conspiracy, unearths an ancient civilization, and challenges her understanding of her world—and of herself.
496 pages, Hardcover
First published May 3, 2016
263 people are currently reading
9033 people want to read
About the author
Todd Lockwood
76 books289 followersTodd Wills Lockwood, (born July 9, 1957 in Boulder, Colorado), is an American artist specializing in fantasy and science fiction illustration. He is best known for his work on the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, and for his covers for the books of R.A. Salvatore. His art has also appeared in books from Tor Books, DAW Books, and on magazine covers, including Satellite Orbit magazine in 1984-1985, Asimov's Science Fiction, Analog Science Fiction and Science Fact, Realms of Fantasy, Dragon Magazine, and Dungeon Magazine.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 471 reviews
September 16, 2016
This exciting and emotionally riveting story was such a pleasure to read. The characterizations are excellent and the writing has a lovely cinematic feel. The fabulous interior artwork is just an added bonus.
I was expecting a standard epic fantasy, but this had a more personal feel, exploring themes of identity within the complex matrix of family dynamics. In this respect, The Summer Dragon is somewhat reminiscent of books like The Scorpio Races and Updraft. The main character's "journey" takes place without her ever leaving home, but she nevertheless finds herself pushed to limits she didn’t even realize were there.
This wonderful debut novel is definitely going on my favourites shelf for 2016.
I was expecting a standard epic fantasy, but this had a more personal feel, exploring themes of identity within the complex matrix of family dynamics. In this respect, The Summer Dragon is somewhat reminiscent of books like The Scorpio Races and Updraft. The main character's "journey" takes place without her ever leaving home, but she nevertheless finds herself pushed to limits she didn’t even realize were there.
This wonderful debut novel is definitely going on my favourites shelf for 2016.
July 1, 2016
The Summer Dragon.
Really? You need more than the title?
*subtracts 1 point from your fantasy street cred.
Dragons are auto-reads. Pfft. Everyone knows that.
I do find it hard to believe that you did not see that cover illustration.
Tough crowd….Fine.
Maia wants a dragon qit badly. She has wanted one ever since she could remember. She has high hopes for one as well, seeing as her family are of the few who own an aerie where dragons are raised for a living. They don’t really own the aerie though. It’s more of a concession by the government who takes most of the successfully raised dragons to be trained fighters for the Emperor’s army. Still, the aeries do sometimes get to keep qits as is needed for the breeding of the dragons and the latest litter of qits is larger than usual. Added to that, both Maia and her brother are of the right age to receive dragons and thus their high hopes are not unfounded. But when the aerie nearest to Maia and her family, and also the most productive aerie, is suddenly attacked and all but wiped out, the situation is thrown into precarious turmoil. The enemy is terrible and unforgiving and they ride on dark monsters, dragons that have somehow been turned into something that should not be, unspeakable abominations that are simple, yet perfectly named. Horrors. Read and find out. O_O
Then a chance and rare, yet magical encounter takes place and Maia and her brother see the Summer Dragon - a legendary dragon of great importance, but also one that heralds great change. While Maia and her family believe this to be an omen of very good luck for them, not everyone feels the same.
Some herald it as a dark and ominous sign of portentous disaster.
Some will turn this sighting into a reason to prevent Maia from getting her dragon.
Some will find Maia does not let anyone or anything stop her.
And so the adventure unfolds.
The book is very well written for a debut and I am thoroughly impressed with Mr. Lockwood’s storytelling ability. (Apart from now being an author, he is also an illustrator.) The reading was easy and entertaining and the mythology and history of this created world was fascinating and has left me wanting more. If I was nitpicking I would say that the ending was good and clearly leads into the next book, but it felt like something was missing. Perhaps I just wanted more. Otherwise I can find no fault at all and this one should definitely be on your TBR mountain.
Oh. Did I mention that the book has quite a few illustrations throughout done by the author himself?
Really? You need more than the title?
*subtracts 1 point from your fantasy street cred.
Dragons are auto-reads. Pfft. Everyone knows that.
I do find it hard to believe that you did not see that cover illustration.
Tough crowd….Fine.
Maia wants a dragon qit badly. She has wanted one ever since she could remember. She has high hopes for one as well, seeing as her family are of the few who own an aerie where dragons are raised for a living. They don’t really own the aerie though. It’s more of a concession by the government who takes most of the successfully raised dragons to be trained fighters for the Emperor’s army. Still, the aeries do sometimes get to keep qits as is needed for the breeding of the dragons and the latest litter of qits is larger than usual. Added to that, both Maia and her brother are of the right age to receive dragons and thus their high hopes are not unfounded. But when the aerie nearest to Maia and her family, and also the most productive aerie, is suddenly attacked and all but wiped out, the situation is thrown into precarious turmoil. The enemy is terrible and unforgiving and they ride on dark monsters, dragons that have somehow been turned into something that should not be, unspeakable abominations that are simple, yet perfectly named. Horrors. Read and find out. O_O
Then a chance and rare, yet magical encounter takes place and Maia and her brother see the Summer Dragon - a legendary dragon of great importance, but also one that heralds great change. While Maia and her family believe this to be an omen of very good luck for them, not everyone feels the same.
Some herald it as a dark and ominous sign of portentous disaster.
Some will turn this sighting into a reason to prevent Maia from getting her dragon.
Some will find Maia does not let anyone or anything stop her.
And so the adventure unfolds.
The book is very well written for a debut and I am thoroughly impressed with Mr. Lockwood’s storytelling ability. (Apart from now being an author, he is also an illustrator.) The reading was easy and entertaining and the mythology and history of this created world was fascinating and has left me wanting more. If I was nitpicking I would say that the ending was good and clearly leads into the next book, but it felt like something was missing. Perhaps I just wanted more. Otherwise I can find no fault at all and this one should definitely be on your TBR mountain.
Oh. Did I mention that the book has quite a few illustrations throughout done by the author himself?
May 8, 2016
4 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2016/05/08/...
Todd Lockwood is one talented guy. Not only is he a professional illustrator and a painter of beautiful dragons, with his art gracing a number of science fiction and fantasy covers, apparently he’s one hell of an author too. For years I’ve been an admirer of his work as an artist, so when it was announced that DAW was going to be publishing his debut novel my interest was immediately piqued, especially when I found out that his book is about—what else?—dragons!
And so we have The Summer Dragon, first book of the Evertide saga. In a world where dragons are used as mounts in war, Maia and her family are breeders who supply the army with young dragonlings. For as long as she can remember though, Maia has wanted a dragon of her own to love and train and ride, but as Brood Day draws nearer it seems once again the army will be demanding their entire stock this year. A new threat is emerging, and it has already destroyed another one of the Dragonry’s most productive aeries. To fight the enemy, the army is going to need every single dragon they can get their hands on.
That is why when the mythical Summer Dragon suddenly appears to her and her brother Darian in the woods one day, Maia believes with all her heart that this is a sign that her luck is going to change. She was correct, as it turns out…though perhaps not in the way she expected. Determined to prove to everyone—herself included—that the appearance of the Summer Dragon means something greater for her future, Maia decides to risk it all and take matters into her own hands. She will get her dragon, or die trying.
At its heart, The Summer Dragon displays many characteristics of your classic girl/boy with her/his loyal companion creature story, but nevertheless I was beyond impressed. Lockwood’s writing style feels very smooth and polished, making it wonderfully easy to get into. It’s hard to believe this is his first novel, since he takes to storytelling like he’s been doing it for years. The plot is balanced with lots of action, intrigue, and even some gut-wrenching family drama, and of course we mustn’t forget all the dragon-y goodness.
No doubt dragons are extremely valuable in this world, but while the some in the army may regard them as nothing more than useful mounts during times of war, others recognize the importance of these creatures in all other areas of life. Dragons are deeply ingrained in this culture, featuring prominently in the mythology and religion. For example, the Summer Dragon is seen as a manifestation of one of the great aspects, and the sighting of any of these High Dragons is said to be a sign of great changes to come. People form deep bonds with dragons, and for breeders, they’re more than just a livelihood; they are friends and family.
Clearly, Lockwood has shown he can write dragons as well as he draws them. And speaking of which, he has also included about a dozen illustrations in this novel, each one gorgeously rendered and insanely detailed. That’s already enough for me to recommend picking up the hardcover to admire the artwork in all its glory; for me, it’s like an extra bonus to an already fantastic story. The Summer Dragon has the added benefit of feeling like the perfect coming-of-age tale that I think will appeal to adults and young adults alike. The story hooked me immediately, with a conflict that is straightforward but intriguing. Themes like friendship and family are explored in unique ways, and the action and adventure keeps the story moving at a quick and absorbing pace. Maia is a great protagonist, supported by a vibrant cast of characters who each have their own motivations and secrets, so that you can never really know for sure what might happen. Plus, who can say no to the dragons? Their personalities are absolutely enchanting, and I see them as the stars of this novel in their own right.
The Evertide is now poised to become another one of my favorite fantasy series featuring dragons, putting it up there alongside Marie Brennan’s Memoir by Lady Trent. I’m looking forward to the next installment with great excitement! If you enjoy fantasy and adventure and dragons, you definitely won’t want to miss this.
Todd Lockwood is one talented guy. Not only is he a professional illustrator and a painter of beautiful dragons, with his art gracing a number of science fiction and fantasy covers, apparently he’s one hell of an author too. For years I’ve been an admirer of his work as an artist, so when it was announced that DAW was going to be publishing his debut novel my interest was immediately piqued, especially when I found out that his book is about—what else?—dragons!
And so we have The Summer Dragon, first book of the Evertide saga. In a world where dragons are used as mounts in war, Maia and her family are breeders who supply the army with young dragonlings. For as long as she can remember though, Maia has wanted a dragon of her own to love and train and ride, but as Brood Day draws nearer it seems once again the army will be demanding their entire stock this year. A new threat is emerging, and it has already destroyed another one of the Dragonry’s most productive aeries. To fight the enemy, the army is going to need every single dragon they can get their hands on.
That is why when the mythical Summer Dragon suddenly appears to her and her brother Darian in the woods one day, Maia believes with all her heart that this is a sign that her luck is going to change. She was correct, as it turns out…though perhaps not in the way she expected. Determined to prove to everyone—herself included—that the appearance of the Summer Dragon means something greater for her future, Maia decides to risk it all and take matters into her own hands. She will get her dragon, or die trying.
At its heart, The Summer Dragon displays many characteristics of your classic girl/boy with her/his loyal companion creature story, but nevertheless I was beyond impressed. Lockwood’s writing style feels very smooth and polished, making it wonderfully easy to get into. It’s hard to believe this is his first novel, since he takes to storytelling like he’s been doing it for years. The plot is balanced with lots of action, intrigue, and even some gut-wrenching family drama, and of course we mustn’t forget all the dragon-y goodness.
No doubt dragons are extremely valuable in this world, but while the some in the army may regard them as nothing more than useful mounts during times of war, others recognize the importance of these creatures in all other areas of life. Dragons are deeply ingrained in this culture, featuring prominently in the mythology and religion. For example, the Summer Dragon is seen as a manifestation of one of the great aspects, and the sighting of any of these High Dragons is said to be a sign of great changes to come. People form deep bonds with dragons, and for breeders, they’re more than just a livelihood; they are friends and family.
Clearly, Lockwood has shown he can write dragons as well as he draws them. And speaking of which, he has also included about a dozen illustrations in this novel, each one gorgeously rendered and insanely detailed. That’s already enough for me to recommend picking up the hardcover to admire the artwork in all its glory; for me, it’s like an extra bonus to an already fantastic story. The Summer Dragon has the added benefit of feeling like the perfect coming-of-age tale that I think will appeal to adults and young adults alike. The story hooked me immediately, with a conflict that is straightforward but intriguing. Themes like friendship and family are explored in unique ways, and the action and adventure keeps the story moving at a quick and absorbing pace. Maia is a great protagonist, supported by a vibrant cast of characters who each have their own motivations and secrets, so that you can never really know for sure what might happen. Plus, who can say no to the dragons? Their personalities are absolutely enchanting, and I see them as the stars of this novel in their own right.
The Evertide is now poised to become another one of my favorite fantasy series featuring dragons, putting it up there alongside Marie Brennan’s Memoir by Lady Trent. I’m looking forward to the next installment with great excitement! If you enjoy fantasy and adventure and dragons, you definitely won’t want to miss this.
September 18, 2016
Maia is the young daughter of a dragon-breeding family in an aerie far from the capitol of the Empire that her family provides dragons to. The Empire uses the dragons that this and other aeries produce in their war effort against a powerful supernatural invading force that uses undead Horrors as shock troops.
Maia's future falls under a shadow when she and her brother witness a powerful omen in the form of an appearance of Getig, the Summer Dragon. This once-in-a-generation sighting puts her at the center of political, religious, military and family conflict as different factions try to use or cover up her experiences.
This is a very standard coming-of-age story in a fantasy setting. The use of a female main character for such a story is becoming more common and is largely taken without comment in this book, other than the contrast with Maia's brother Darian who has a lot of problems being the "Unchosen One" in Maia's shadow. (His selfish, childish behavior throughout the book rings very solidly true in these days of entitled internet man-children).
Despite it being pretty normal fair in terms of a hero's journey narrative, there's a lot to recommend this. It's very aware of what people expect of a modern fantasy setting. There's religion and sectarian conflict. There's economics with a changing economy and consequences because of that. The aerie and its role is important to the military and economic interests of the Empire so the story gets political as well, but it's very much a provincial setting, so not so political that the politics are overwhelming. It's also well aware of the strengths of the fantasy genre, so you have deep history (including that this is actually a far future version of our world) and implacably evil bad guys. But even there we have nuance, with the main force of the bad guys, the Harodhim, looking like pawns of much greater supernatural forces. The stars of the book, the dragons, are also given plenty of world-building and description to flesh out, resulting in some very real-feeling sentient dragons with a good rationale for dragon-riders.
Also the book is a big win in terms of structure because it's a complete book. No cliff-hanger. It tells a story which is part of a larger epic, but crucially, it tells a story with all the three-act-play structure that you'd expect of a solid workmanlike effort.
It loses a little for me because of the limitations of the first person narrative. Some of the things that are happening around Maia are a bit sketched-in because that's not her focus of attention at the time. For instance, her sister-in-law is having a crisis-of-confidence in herself and her marriage, which is interesting and does gets resolved, but largely off-camera because Maia is really busy with her own problems. But even the commitment to focusing on the first-person narrative choice is a sign of a good writer.
Overall, I think 4.5 stars which I think is worth going to 5, not least because of the loving detail of the illustrations throughout the book as well as the excellent cover which he also did. I am so jealous of this guy's talent in both artistic forms.
Maia's future falls under a shadow when she and her brother witness a powerful omen in the form of an appearance of Getig, the Summer Dragon. This once-in-a-generation sighting puts her at the center of political, religious, military and family conflict as different factions try to use or cover up her experiences.
This is a very standard coming-of-age story in a fantasy setting. The use of a female main character for such a story is becoming more common and is largely taken without comment in this book, other than the contrast with Maia's brother Darian who has a lot of problems being the "Unchosen One" in Maia's shadow. (His selfish, childish behavior throughout the book rings very solidly true in these days of entitled internet man-children).
Despite it being pretty normal fair in terms of a hero's journey narrative, there's a lot to recommend this. It's very aware of what people expect of a modern fantasy setting. There's religion and sectarian conflict. There's economics with a changing economy and consequences because of that. The aerie and its role is important to the military and economic interests of the Empire so the story gets political as well, but it's very much a provincial setting, so not so political that the politics are overwhelming. It's also well aware of the strengths of the fantasy genre, so you have deep history (including that this is actually a far future version of our world) and implacably evil bad guys. But even there we have nuance, with the main force of the bad guys, the Harodhim, looking like pawns of much greater supernatural forces. The stars of the book, the dragons, are also given plenty of world-building and description to flesh out, resulting in some very real-feeling sentient dragons with a good rationale for dragon-riders.
Also the book is a big win in terms of structure because it's a complete book. No cliff-hanger. It tells a story which is part of a larger epic, but crucially, it tells a story with all the three-act-play structure that you'd expect of a solid workmanlike effort.
It loses a little for me because of the limitations of the first person narrative. Some of the things that are happening around Maia are a bit sketched-in because that's not her focus of attention at the time. For instance, her sister-in-law is having a crisis-of-confidence in herself and her marriage, which is interesting and does gets resolved, but largely off-camera because Maia is really busy with her own problems. But even the commitment to focusing on the first-person narrative choice is a sign of a good writer.
Overall, I think 4.5 stars which I think is worth going to 5, not least because of the loving detail of the illustrations throughout the book as well as the excellent cover which he also did. I am so jealous of this guy's talent in both artistic forms.
February 6, 2017
You know, I have serious issues with the way many authors handle teenage characters and their relationships with the adults surrounding them. I find it especially bad with teen girl protagonists, so when I saw this had a teen girl as a protagonist, then I found out it was first person narrative... lets just say I wasn't too excited.
It seems I had a good reason for it.
Maia's family lives out in the mountains in their little village, being the local dragon breeder clan, providing animals for the country's dragon division in the army. Right now some other country is trying to attack them, stealing their dragons and turning them into strange, sinister Horrors, just all around wrong, demonic dragons with equally horrible riders.
When Maia and her brother see the Summer Dragon, one of the figures of the local religion, she feels it is the sign she needs to claim her own dragon, but of course things go wrong and some religious messing around ensues, with Maia as the centre of it all.
I will be honest, the reason why this got 2 stars was that I absolutely loved the beginning that showed people dealing with dragons. Cleaning up after them, feeding them, just generally making you feel like we're talking about real animals. They didn't feel distant, magical things, but perfectly plausible animals like horses or dogs. Just... bigger. And with the ability of flight. And can speak a tiny bit. Okay, whatever, I get it, but as close to normal animals as we can get.
Something about the routine-like way of the people working with them was pretty nice and for some time I thought this was going to be awesome, no problem with it at all.
But we had Maia. Teen girl. Extra magical. Better than everyone. Gets in trouble all the time, but it's good, she is right, she is morally superior. More competent than anyone. Oh, she endangers people with her ridiculous wilfulness? It's all okay, Maia is the chosen one and being rational and ready to compromise is not how she should be, because things will all sort themselves out to make Maia right at the end.
Then of course her perfection doesn't stop in the face of any adult; adults are there to be either useless or evil, so Maia can shine and school everyone. The only exception is Jhem, her sister-in-law, who also fucks up a lot and at the same time she is so much better and such a little victim of everyone being angry when her weakness causes her dragon to harm people. Also, she has a fetish of squeezing Maia's hand every 2 minutes. Whatever happens, squeeze the hand and it's fine.
A conspiring government priest man called Bellua is the antagonist, who is such a shitstirrer and Maia is convinced he'll totally rape her because he looked at her boobs. I mean it's inappropriate, but we went from him glancing at her to "100% rape at any minute tho, #truth" at the speed of light.
The rest of the characters are so forgettable, it hurts.
Which is extra horrible, as there are parts of the book when everyone is at the same place, talking and doing things at the same time, with all the names in the span of a couple of sentences. If you have any issues with remembering fantasy names... I don't envy you. When dragon names AND official titles also mix in, I just wanted to headbutt someone.
We got some really sweet illustrations, though. Mr. Lockwood is a fantasy artist, so of course he put in some of his work and man, I appreciated it. They fit to what I imagined, which tells me the descriptions were successful.
Honestly, other than the name overload in places the prose was fine. I was okay with it and without other issues, I could have been fine with reading a whole series in this style. Even the first person would have been okay if it wasn't Miss Magical Perfection, but someone else. Even Total Actual Rapist I Swear Guy, I would have loved to see if his religious crazy was honest or just him trying to get power and influence.
The pacing, though... not to my liking. According to my estimation about a fifth of the story or so was spent on this one long sequence of events leading to something you KNEW was happening. The characters struggling in caves, enemies, running, OMG, dragon is coming, etc. It was a repetition of the same issues, drawn out, especially frustrating when it was just the road connecting between the beginning and an obviously inevitable thing.
(Can we talk about Maia being annoyed about her brother suffering life-threatening injuries and serious bloodloss not being as competent as she is towards getting the thing she wanted? Dude is bleeding out and he DARES to drink a lot of water, the jerk.)
I will be honest, this book is not for me. It's just way too YA and inhabited by characters I dislike for one reason or another. I loved the dragons, not so much the riders. A shame, as I was pretty excited about the story.
Good evening and for now I am content with just having a dog, thanks.
It seems I had a good reason for it.
Maia's family lives out in the mountains in their little village, being the local dragon breeder clan, providing animals for the country's dragon division in the army. Right now some other country is trying to attack them, stealing their dragons and turning them into strange, sinister Horrors, just all around wrong, demonic dragons with equally horrible riders.
When Maia and her brother see the Summer Dragon, one of the figures of the local religion, she feels it is the sign she needs to claim her own dragon, but of course things go wrong and some religious messing around ensues, with Maia as the centre of it all.
I will be honest, the reason why this got 2 stars was that I absolutely loved the beginning that showed people dealing with dragons. Cleaning up after them, feeding them, just generally making you feel like we're talking about real animals. They didn't feel distant, magical things, but perfectly plausible animals like horses or dogs. Just... bigger. And with the ability of flight. And can speak a tiny bit. Okay, whatever, I get it, but as close to normal animals as we can get.
Something about the routine-like way of the people working with them was pretty nice and for some time I thought this was going to be awesome, no problem with it at all.
But we had Maia. Teen girl. Extra magical. Better than everyone. Gets in trouble all the time, but it's good, she is right, she is morally superior. More competent than anyone. Oh, she endangers people with her ridiculous wilfulness? It's all okay, Maia is the chosen one and being rational and ready to compromise is not how she should be, because things will all sort themselves out to make Maia right at the end.
Then of course her perfection doesn't stop in the face of any adult; adults are there to be either useless or evil, so Maia can shine and school everyone. The only exception is Jhem, her sister-in-law, who also fucks up a lot and at the same time she is so much better and such a little victim of everyone being angry when her weakness causes her dragon to harm people. Also, she has a fetish of squeezing Maia's hand every 2 minutes. Whatever happens, squeeze the hand and it's fine.
A conspiring government priest man called Bellua is the antagonist, who is such a shitstirrer and Maia is convinced he'll totally rape her because he looked at her boobs. I mean it's inappropriate, but we went from him glancing at her to "100% rape at any minute tho, #truth" at the speed of light.
The rest of the characters are so forgettable, it hurts.
Which is extra horrible, as there are parts of the book when everyone is at the same place, talking and doing things at the same time, with all the names in the span of a couple of sentences. If you have any issues with remembering fantasy names... I don't envy you. When dragon names AND official titles also mix in, I just wanted to headbutt someone.
We got some really sweet illustrations, though. Mr. Lockwood is a fantasy artist, so of course he put in some of his work and man, I appreciated it. They fit to what I imagined, which tells me the descriptions were successful.
Honestly, other than the name overload in places the prose was fine. I was okay with it and without other issues, I could have been fine with reading a whole series in this style. Even the first person would have been okay if it wasn't Miss Magical Perfection, but someone else. Even Total Actual Rapist I Swear Guy, I would have loved to see if his religious crazy was honest or just him trying to get power and influence.
The pacing, though... not to my liking. According to my estimation about a fifth of the story or so was spent on this one long sequence of events leading to something you KNEW was happening. The characters struggling in caves, enemies, running, OMG, dragon is coming, etc. It was a repetition of the same issues, drawn out, especially frustrating when it was just the road connecting between the beginning and an obviously inevitable thing.
(Can we talk about Maia being annoyed about her brother suffering life-threatening injuries and serious bloodloss not being as competent as she is towards getting the thing she wanted? Dude is bleeding out and he DARES to drink a lot of water, the jerk.)
I will be honest, this book is not for me. It's just way too YA and inhabited by characters I dislike for one reason or another. I loved the dragons, not so much the riders. A shame, as I was pretty excited about the story.
Good evening and for now I am content with just having a dog, thanks.
December 3, 2016
A good simple straight forward fantasy story. I will definitely let my tween daughter read this one. The most interesting part of the story for me was the description of flying the dragons since I've got a lot of experience skydiving and also have hang gliding and pilot hours. The rush of tucking and driving or the grace of gently gliding, catching thermals and other sensations were enjoyably written.
February 15, 2018
You can find my review on my blog by clicking here.
Illustrator Todd Lockwood has decided to jump into the story-telling business with this debut novel featuring the one thing he’ll never fail to draw magnificently: dragons. Known for his artistic talent and his artwork in The Memoirs of Lady Trent series, The Summer Dragon is his first venture in the fantasy world. This novel is marketed as a a high fantasy novel with dragons and deadly politics but I’d rectify that and say it felt a lot more like a young adult fantasy novel with dragons and a discourse on the foundation of religion. There’s nothing wrong with that, as even adults can find this debut novel engrossing, but a warning beforehand would definitely have been highly welcome! Todd Lockwood delivers a very fluid, straight-forward and easy-to-picture story that puts Maia, a young women who will do anything for what she believes is right for her aerie, in the center stage. The plot develops very smoothly and never falters, diving here and then in questions of belief and faith with a unique dragon lore/mythology to envelop Todd Lockwood’s world.
The story is centered around Maia and her unquenchable thirst to receive her very own dragon. The day that she can finally keep a dragon and secure a magical bond with it grows closer, but things don’t go as smoothly as she would have wished. Maia and her family live in an aerie where they raise dragons and every year they deliver their flock of baby dragons to the Dragonry in hopes of contributing to the peace through a an increase in potential dragons for wars. This year the war has reached a dangerous status and a need for dragons has become so extravagant that the hopes of Maia in keeping a dragon seem slim. Things however become a lot more complicated when Maia and her brother suddenly run into a rare, mysterious and mythical High Dragon, known as the Summer Dragon. The encounter of this majestic creature propels everyone into rumors of its meaning for Maia, her brother and everyone in the community; similar to crossing paths with a God. This event immediately integrates a political and religious facet to the story and plunges the world into a battle of interpretations. Todd Lockwood hence makes readers ponder the ability of individuals to control the future through individual actions instead of leaving it to superstitions and uncontrollable forces. The idea is sleekly introduced and never felt overwhelming, making it hard to complain about.
The writing is beyond reproach. Todd Lockwood does a magnificent job at bringing life to his story and at delivering a vivid and tangible experience. His grasp on dragons is flawless and detailed. He goes deep into the purring, the rumbling and the growling of these creatures, you just can’t help but believe that dragons are real. He gives them a lifelike description and doesn’t ever flounder with giving them a strong and powerful presence. It’s the interaction with humans that makes them even more hypnotizing and convincing. The authors ability to play with emotions and to develop bonds between dragons and riders is impeccable. You quickly realize this when the first scenes that tackle the ability of dragons to fly is presented. This sends you feel chills and forces you to embrace with joy the experience that the characters go through. While the story unfolds at its own steady pace, a huge chunk of The Summer Dragon is focused on taking care of dragons and building the relationship between Maia and dragons, as well as Maia and her family. But you should note one thing. You will be learning a lot details about grooming and feeding dragons.
While Maia turns out to be the center of attention in this story and gets all the development you’d want in your hero, the same could not be said about the supporting cast. Unfortunately, there’s a strong chosen one trope that hovers over this tale. It’s not a bad thing since Todd Lockwood does a wonderful job in making Maia’s adventures and discoveries entertaining, but it does deprive us from being able to thoroughly enjoy the experience. The problem that arose is that every character around Maia ended up feeling like their existence only had one purpose and that it was inevitably related to Maia. Most of the characters rarely ever had the opportunity to show more of themselves and to construct more dimensions to their personalities and motivations. Maia’s brother does fight to prove that he isn’t a cardboard cutout character, but his struggle to succeed at that colossal task was apparent and ended up reinforcing this idea that Maia is the one that causes everything and everyone else to gravitate around her. It would have been nice if the first person narration didn’t take control and that the author took more time in building the rest of the characters.
The Summer Dragon is an excellent full-fledged and dragon-filled debut novel. It is a surprise that Todd Lockwood has only just released his first story. I suppose that it was only a question of time when you realize that each of his drawings conveyed a story of their own. Speaking of which, even if he decided to endeavor in story-telling, he does also integrate pictures at the beginning of chapters to help visualize his story; not to say that this was even needed though. It was always refreshing to see the artwork here and then. Anyhow, even if the tale that he unleashed upon us was forthright, it never wavered in uncharted and incomprehensible territories. Withal, the best part of this book is definitely the relationship between humans and dragons. It is genuine, natural and charming. You can’t help but connect with your own emotions and feel joyous or pained for these over-sized puppies with wings. Todd Lockwood definitely masters his understanding of pet companions and the immutable bond between riders and dragons. The Summer Dragon is a wonderful debut for Todd Lockwood first outing into the writing world. But fans of fantasy novels should be warned that there’s a slightly strong hint of young adult in this dish. The adventures, the characters and the protagonist-centered story heavily contribute to that vibe and I wish they’d have marketed it with that optic.
Thank you to Penguin Random House for sending me an Advance Copy for review!
Yours truly,
Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/
____________________________
Illustrator Todd Lockwood has decided to jump into the story-telling business with this debut novel featuring the one thing he'll never fail to draw magnificently: dragons. This is marketed as a a high fantasy novel with dragons and deadly politics. I'd rectify that and say it felt a lot more like a young adult fantasy novel with dragons and religion. There's nothing wrong with that, as even adults can find this entertaining, if they are warned beforehand! Todd Lockwood writes brilliantly and delivers a very fluid, straight-forward and easy-to-picture story that puts Maia, a young women who will do anything for what she believes is right for her aerie. The plot develops very smoothly and never falters, diving here and then in questions of belief and faith with a unique dragon lore/mythology to embrace in Todd Lockwood's world. The best part of this book is definitely the relationship between humans and dragons. It's genuine and you can't help but feel emotions you never thought existed for these over-sized puppies with wings. A nice debut for Todd Lockwood first outing into the writing world. I just wish they marketed it differently.
P.S. Full review to come.
Yours truly,
Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/
Illustrator Todd Lockwood has decided to jump into the story-telling business with this debut novel featuring the one thing he’ll never fail to draw magnificently: dragons. Known for his artistic talent and his artwork in The Memoirs of Lady Trent series, The Summer Dragon is his first venture in the fantasy world. This novel is marketed as a a high fantasy novel with dragons and deadly politics but I’d rectify that and say it felt a lot more like a young adult fantasy novel with dragons and a discourse on the foundation of religion. There’s nothing wrong with that, as even adults can find this debut novel engrossing, but a warning beforehand would definitely have been highly welcome! Todd Lockwood delivers a very fluid, straight-forward and easy-to-picture story that puts Maia, a young women who will do anything for what she believes is right for her aerie, in the center stage. The plot develops very smoothly and never falters, diving here and then in questions of belief and faith with a unique dragon lore/mythology to envelop Todd Lockwood’s world.
The story is centered around Maia and her unquenchable thirst to receive her very own dragon. The day that she can finally keep a dragon and secure a magical bond with it grows closer, but things don’t go as smoothly as she would have wished. Maia and her family live in an aerie where they raise dragons and every year they deliver their flock of baby dragons to the Dragonry in hopes of contributing to the peace through a an increase in potential dragons for wars. This year the war has reached a dangerous status and a need for dragons has become so extravagant that the hopes of Maia in keeping a dragon seem slim. Things however become a lot more complicated when Maia and her brother suddenly run into a rare, mysterious and mythical High Dragon, known as the Summer Dragon. The encounter of this majestic creature propels everyone into rumors of its meaning for Maia, her brother and everyone in the community; similar to crossing paths with a God. This event immediately integrates a political and religious facet to the story and plunges the world into a battle of interpretations. Todd Lockwood hence makes readers ponder the ability of individuals to control the future through individual actions instead of leaving it to superstitions and uncontrollable forces. The idea is sleekly introduced and never felt overwhelming, making it hard to complain about.
The writing is beyond reproach. Todd Lockwood does a magnificent job at bringing life to his story and at delivering a vivid and tangible experience. His grasp on dragons is flawless and detailed. He goes deep into the purring, the rumbling and the growling of these creatures, you just can’t help but believe that dragons are real. He gives them a lifelike description and doesn’t ever flounder with giving them a strong and powerful presence. It’s the interaction with humans that makes them even more hypnotizing and convincing. The authors ability to play with emotions and to develop bonds between dragons and riders is impeccable. You quickly realize this when the first scenes that tackle the ability of dragons to fly is presented. This sends you feel chills and forces you to embrace with joy the experience that the characters go through. While the story unfolds at its own steady pace, a huge chunk of The Summer Dragon is focused on taking care of dragons and building the relationship between Maia and dragons, as well as Maia and her family. But you should note one thing. You will be learning a lot details about grooming and feeding dragons.
While Maia turns out to be the center of attention in this story and gets all the development you’d want in your hero, the same could not be said about the supporting cast. Unfortunately, there’s a strong chosen one trope that hovers over this tale. It’s not a bad thing since Todd Lockwood does a wonderful job in making Maia’s adventures and discoveries entertaining, but it does deprive us from being able to thoroughly enjoy the experience. The problem that arose is that every character around Maia ended up feeling like their existence only had one purpose and that it was inevitably related to Maia. Most of the characters rarely ever had the opportunity to show more of themselves and to construct more dimensions to their personalities and motivations. Maia’s brother does fight to prove that he isn’t a cardboard cutout character, but his struggle to succeed at that colossal task was apparent and ended up reinforcing this idea that Maia is the one that causes everything and everyone else to gravitate around her. It would have been nice if the first person narration didn’t take control and that the author took more time in building the rest of the characters.
The Summer Dragon is an excellent full-fledged and dragon-filled debut novel. It is a surprise that Todd Lockwood has only just released his first story. I suppose that it was only a question of time when you realize that each of his drawings conveyed a story of their own. Speaking of which, even if he decided to endeavor in story-telling, he does also integrate pictures at the beginning of chapters to help visualize his story; not to say that this was even needed though. It was always refreshing to see the artwork here and then. Anyhow, even if the tale that he unleashed upon us was forthright, it never wavered in uncharted and incomprehensible territories. Withal, the best part of this book is definitely the relationship between humans and dragons. It is genuine, natural and charming. You can’t help but connect with your own emotions and feel joyous or pained for these over-sized puppies with wings. Todd Lockwood definitely masters his understanding of pet companions and the immutable bond between riders and dragons. The Summer Dragon is a wonderful debut for Todd Lockwood first outing into the writing world. But fans of fantasy novels should be warned that there’s a slightly strong hint of young adult in this dish. The adventures, the characters and the protagonist-centered story heavily contribute to that vibe and I wish they’d have marketed it with that optic.
Thank you to Penguin Random House for sending me an Advance Copy for review!
Yours truly,
Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/
____________________________
Illustrator Todd Lockwood has decided to jump into the story-telling business with this debut novel featuring the one thing he'll never fail to draw magnificently: dragons. This is marketed as a a high fantasy novel with dragons and deadly politics. I'd rectify that and say it felt a lot more like a young adult fantasy novel with dragons and religion. There's nothing wrong with that, as even adults can find this entertaining, if they are warned beforehand! Todd Lockwood writes brilliantly and delivers a very fluid, straight-forward and easy-to-picture story that puts Maia, a young women who will do anything for what she believes is right for her aerie. The plot develops very smoothly and never falters, diving here and then in questions of belief and faith with a unique dragon lore/mythology to embrace in Todd Lockwood's world. The best part of this book is definitely the relationship between humans and dragons. It's genuine and you can't help but feel emotions you never thought existed for these over-sized puppies with wings. A nice debut for Todd Lockwood first outing into the writing world. I just wish they marketed it differently.
P.S. Full review to come.
Yours truly,
Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/
May 19, 2016
Review from Tenacious Reader: Review: http://www.tenaciousreader.com/2016/0...
The Summer Dragon is a wonderful tale full of dragons and mystery. The author, Todd Lockwood, is an established illustrator, and it shows with all of the wonderful illustrations included through out the book. Not to mention the absolutely gorgeous cover. I was immediately quite taken with the protagonist, Maia. She is a determined young woman, set on getting a dragon of her own. Her family runs a dragonry, so she has been raised with dragons and understands them. The special thing about dragons is they form a unique bond with one human, their rider. This bond is developed when the dragons are still young (called qits). This year, their dragonry has more qits than normal and both Maia and her brother are hoping to get one each, so they can then raise a new breeding pair (the dragons also bond with their mate at a young age). It seems the perfect plan, they are both of a good age to bond with a dragon, and a new breeding pair will help ensure dragon production in the future.
Dragon raising is a political business. Most of the qits are reserved for the war, to be handed over to the military. It’s a sad thing really. To see these wonderful dragons hatched and grow to send them off to an atmosphere where they are used as weapons, and most likely will not survive. When the convoy shows to get the new qits, things start to get interesting. Maia and her brother spot The Summer Dragon. This is a dragon that they believed was more myth than something real. The size and majesty of it makes the most impressive dragons they’ve known seem small and ordinary.
From this sighting, everything changes for Maia. What follows is a story full of mystery, suspense and intrigue. Along the way, Maia encounters many adversaries, human and unnatural. Horrors are unnatural beings made from pieces of people and dragons and the resulting creatures are extemely hard to kill. Kind of like zombies in dragon and rider form, the riders are actually melded to the dragons. They are terrifying and vicious. There is also another unnatural foe. One that is able to enter Maia’s mind and wage a battle that is fueled by her own fears and nightmares. And when Maia is not worried about these, there is also an invading army near by as well as people that are trying to overtake her family’s dragonry. There is so much going on an Maia is constantly at the center of it. I love her attitude and personality, she is a strong person who is determined to fight for what she believes is right.
The powers of deceit are ancient and prosper in the shadow of ignorance
The book also features a religious struggle for some of the characters. The accepted religion does not seem to accommodate some of the facts they have recently observed. The church wants to quiet and reports that would be contradictory to their beliefs, but trying to make something quiet doesn’t mean it goes away.
Lockwood proves he is able to create a vivid picture as strong with words as he can with pencils and paints. His illustrations through out the novel are a wonderful addition to the story. I guess it should not be surprising that Lockwood’s style of story telling is also quite visual, proving he can use words to shape pictures as well. He also gave some of the dragons (one in particular) wonderful personalities. I loved how dragons were portrayed as intelligent and able to communicate with their riders.
Overall, this was definitely an impressive debut, one that puts the sequel firmly on my to read list. If you are a fan of dragons and strong female protagonists, you can’t miss this one.
The Summer Dragon is a wonderful tale full of dragons and mystery. The author, Todd Lockwood, is an established illustrator, and it shows with all of the wonderful illustrations included through out the book. Not to mention the absolutely gorgeous cover. I was immediately quite taken with the protagonist, Maia. She is a determined young woman, set on getting a dragon of her own. Her family runs a dragonry, so she has been raised with dragons and understands them. The special thing about dragons is they form a unique bond with one human, their rider. This bond is developed when the dragons are still young (called qits). This year, their dragonry has more qits than normal and both Maia and her brother are hoping to get one each, so they can then raise a new breeding pair (the dragons also bond with their mate at a young age). It seems the perfect plan, they are both of a good age to bond with a dragon, and a new breeding pair will help ensure dragon production in the future.
Dragon raising is a political business. Most of the qits are reserved for the war, to be handed over to the military. It’s a sad thing really. To see these wonderful dragons hatched and grow to send them off to an atmosphere where they are used as weapons, and most likely will not survive. When the convoy shows to get the new qits, things start to get interesting. Maia and her brother spot The Summer Dragon. This is a dragon that they believed was more myth than something real. The size and majesty of it makes the most impressive dragons they’ve known seem small and ordinary.
From this sighting, everything changes for Maia. What follows is a story full of mystery, suspense and intrigue. Along the way, Maia encounters many adversaries, human and unnatural. Horrors are unnatural beings made from pieces of people and dragons and the resulting creatures are extemely hard to kill. Kind of like zombies in dragon and rider form, the riders are actually melded to the dragons. They are terrifying and vicious. There is also another unnatural foe. One that is able to enter Maia’s mind and wage a battle that is fueled by her own fears and nightmares. And when Maia is not worried about these, there is also an invading army near by as well as people that are trying to overtake her family’s dragonry. There is so much going on an Maia is constantly at the center of it. I love her attitude and personality, she is a strong person who is determined to fight for what she believes is right.
The powers of deceit are ancient and prosper in the shadow of ignorance
The book also features a religious struggle for some of the characters. The accepted religion does not seem to accommodate some of the facts they have recently observed. The church wants to quiet and reports that would be contradictory to their beliefs, but trying to make something quiet doesn’t mean it goes away.
Lockwood proves he is able to create a vivid picture as strong with words as he can with pencils and paints. His illustrations through out the novel are a wonderful addition to the story. I guess it should not be surprising that Lockwood’s style of story telling is also quite visual, proving he can use words to shape pictures as well. He also gave some of the dragons (one in particular) wonderful personalities. I loved how dragons were portrayed as intelligent and able to communicate with their riders.
Overall, this was definitely an impressive debut, one that puts the sequel firmly on my to read list. If you are a fan of dragons and strong female protagonists, you can’t miss this one.
September 28, 2016
A wonderful coming of age fantasy, with dragons.
October 18, 2022
Check out my Booktube channel at: The Obsessive Bookseller
I wasn’t sure about the book at first. I started out on audio and had a hard time with the narrator (when she did adult male voices it came across like a kid making fun of her dad’s voice) so I switched to physical format and immediately things improved. It’s a switch I didn’t mind because the physical copy is gorgeous. Lockwood is an illustrator by profession and did all the work on this book himself. The images definitely added to the story, however all of them were placed a good dozen pages before the actual events, giving spoilers, which was annoying.
In any case, part 1 of this book was completely dragontastical. They played a huge role in the plot, most of the scenes involved them, and I loved how much the main character loved them. Although the plot was fairly simple and straight-forward, there were a lot of great action scenes and the villains introduced were compelling and unique. Had the book stopped after just part one, it would’ve been a solid 4-stars.
And then I got to part 2…
This section of the book just did not work for me. It went from dragon centric to this weird theological debate. Not my favorite topic for sure, but this one in particular lacked a lot of substance and depth. Add that to a bunch of retellings by the characters of what happened in Part 1, and I found my attention waning by the page. I pushed on for another 100 pages, hoping it would get good again, before finally getting fed up. From there I basically skimmed for major plot points through the end of the book. It’s not something I normally so, but I figured if something caught my interest again I’d jump back in fully. After getting the gyst of what the rest of the story had to offer, I’m glad I didn’t spend any more time on it.
I’d seen a few wary reviews for the book indicating it felt YA, and I can’t say I totally disagree. Especially if you caught the audiobook version. I think the simple plot was the reason for this. Granted, it was slightly more sophisticated that that, but overall when recommending this book I’d probably have more success handing it to a YA crowd than a SFF one. It was a bit darker and more violent than most YA, so in a way it would be a great transition novel between the genres. Note: it didn’t have any of the typical YA tropes, so my assessment is more from an overall presentation and “feel” standpoint.
Recommendations: if you love dragons and are in the mood for a pretty straightforward fantasy novel, this might fit the bill. Because I liked the illustrations and didn’t care for the narration, I’d suggest going the print route with this one.
Thank you to my Patrons: Filipe, Dave, Frank, Sonja, Staci, Kat, and Katrin! <3
Via The Obsessive Bookseller at www.NikiHawkes.com
Other books you might like:
I wasn’t sure about the book at first. I started out on audio and had a hard time with the narrator (when she did adult male voices it came across like a kid making fun of her dad’s voice) so I switched to physical format and immediately things improved. It’s a switch I didn’t mind because the physical copy is gorgeous. Lockwood is an illustrator by profession and did all the work on this book himself. The images definitely added to the story, however all of them were placed a good dozen pages before the actual events, giving spoilers, which was annoying.
In any case, part 1 of this book was completely dragontastical. They played a huge role in the plot, most of the scenes involved them, and I loved how much the main character loved them. Although the plot was fairly simple and straight-forward, there were a lot of great action scenes and the villains introduced were compelling and unique. Had the book stopped after just part one, it would’ve been a solid 4-stars.
And then I got to part 2…
This section of the book just did not work for me. It went from dragon centric to this weird theological debate. Not my favorite topic for sure, but this one in particular lacked a lot of substance and depth. Add that to a bunch of retellings by the characters of what happened in Part 1, and I found my attention waning by the page. I pushed on for another 100 pages, hoping it would get good again, before finally getting fed up. From there I basically skimmed for major plot points through the end of the book. It’s not something I normally so, but I figured if something caught my interest again I’d jump back in fully. After getting the gyst of what the rest of the story had to offer, I’m glad I didn’t spend any more time on it.
I’d seen a few wary reviews for the book indicating it felt YA, and I can’t say I totally disagree. Especially if you caught the audiobook version. I think the simple plot was the reason for this. Granted, it was slightly more sophisticated that that, but overall when recommending this book I’d probably have more success handing it to a YA crowd than a SFF one. It was a bit darker and more violent than most YA, so in a way it would be a great transition novel between the genres. Note: it didn’t have any of the typical YA tropes, so my assessment is more from an overall presentation and “feel” standpoint.
Recommendations: if you love dragons and are in the mood for a pretty straightforward fantasy novel, this might fit the bill. Because I liked the illustrations and didn’t care for the narration, I’d suggest going the print route with this one.
Thank you to my Patrons: Filipe, Dave, Frank, Sonja, Staci, Kat, and Katrin! <3
Via The Obsessive Bookseller at www.NikiHawkes.com
Other books you might like:
December 4, 2018
Odustajem nakon 2/3 knjige. Jednostavno mi nije jasno što je pisac želio da se događa u ovoj knjizi. Ok, zmajevi su tu, veliki i mali, pa zatim oni legendarni poput iz naslova 'Summer dragon' koji, kao nagovješćuje velike promjene u svijetu, cikluse uništenja civilizacija, tu su stare ruševine s prikazima elemenata drevnih religija, i sve to divno zvuči ali kao da pisac ne zna 'zapapriti' stvar i zapanjiti čitatelja s nekim 'Suprise, bitch!' iznanađenjem.
July 15, 2017
Pros: great characters, interesting plot, immersive storytelling
Cons:
Maia’s always wanted her own bonded dragon to raise, and this year’s larger than usual clutches have given her hope that her time has come. But a northern aerie has been decimated by the Harodh and their unnatural horrors, its qits killed or taken, and the Dragonry’s needs for new dragons to fight the menace trump a young woman’s.
The appearance of the fabled Summer Dragon, witnessed by Maia and her brother, puts them at the center of a power struggle between their aerie, the Dragonry, and the Temple. Because Maia’s getting her dragon this year, one way or another.
With the exception of two prequel scenes, the novel’s told from Maia’s point of view. Maia’s a fascinating character. She wants a lot from life but she’s willing to put the work and effort into earning things for herself. She courageous in the face of horrors, and determined to do what’s right. She’s a character who speaks her mind and tells truths the adults around her are too tactful, or scared, to say.
There are a fair number of twists to the plot, especially towards the end of the book. The pacing is great, with some time to get to know the principle characters followed by several tense chapters, then some down time to learn about new characters before things get tense and dangerous again.
The storytelling is descriptive enough to draw a picture of the location and action, but not so detailed so as to bog down the narrative. When the action is on, reading this is more like watching a film, incredibly immersive.
I loved learning about dragon raising and riding. Lockwood introduced the necessary terms along with their meanings so there’s no sense of feeling lost, unaware of what’s going on. There’s also no unnecessary exposition. We learn with Maia and the qits.
The focus of the book is on a fairly small area. There’s a map that shows the wider world, and a few times events happening elsewhere are recounted. People and dragons with various colourations are mentioned, along with which geographic area they come from. The religion is cribbed from aspects of Christianity, though it’s not a direct representation.
There’s an overwhelming sense of hope in this book - that hard work, courage, and determination can overcome all obstacles. This made it feel like the fantasy novels that came out in the 80s, rather than the grim dark currently popular. It’s got a freshness to it that I enjoyed. Having said that, there are some very dark moments and I could not believe some of the revelations.
Todd Lockwood is one of the best fantasy artists ever, so it should come as no surprise that he’s drawn his own cover, map, aerie schematic, and section illustrations. The interior artwork is all black and white sketches, but they are gorgeous.
The only negative I found, is that while I got to know the protagonists really well, I didn’t feel much connection to the supporting cast. One character in particular I would have liked to know more about, and events with them during the climax didn’t hit me with the emotional punch they might have, had that connection been deeper.
I’ve long admired Lockwood’s artwork and now I admire his impressive writing skills too. This is a fantastic debut, one that’s perfect as an introduction to the genre as well as for long time dragon lovers.
Cons:
Maia’s always wanted her own bonded dragon to raise, and this year’s larger than usual clutches have given her hope that her time has come. But a northern aerie has been decimated by the Harodh and their unnatural horrors, its qits killed or taken, and the Dragonry’s needs for new dragons to fight the menace trump a young woman’s.
The appearance of the fabled Summer Dragon, witnessed by Maia and her brother, puts them at the center of a power struggle between their aerie, the Dragonry, and the Temple. Because Maia’s getting her dragon this year, one way or another.
With the exception of two prequel scenes, the novel’s told from Maia’s point of view. Maia’s a fascinating character. She wants a lot from life but she’s willing to put the work and effort into earning things for herself. She courageous in the face of horrors, and determined to do what’s right. She’s a character who speaks her mind and tells truths the adults around her are too tactful, or scared, to say.
There are a fair number of twists to the plot, especially towards the end of the book. The pacing is great, with some time to get to know the principle characters followed by several tense chapters, then some down time to learn about new characters before things get tense and dangerous again.
The storytelling is descriptive enough to draw a picture of the location and action, but not so detailed so as to bog down the narrative. When the action is on, reading this is more like watching a film, incredibly immersive.
I loved learning about dragon raising and riding. Lockwood introduced the necessary terms along with their meanings so there’s no sense of feeling lost, unaware of what’s going on. There’s also no unnecessary exposition. We learn with Maia and the qits.
The focus of the book is on a fairly small area. There’s a map that shows the wider world, and a few times events happening elsewhere are recounted. People and dragons with various colourations are mentioned, along with which geographic area they come from. The religion is cribbed from aspects of Christianity, though it’s not a direct representation.
There’s an overwhelming sense of hope in this book - that hard work, courage, and determination can overcome all obstacles. This made it feel like the fantasy novels that came out in the 80s, rather than the grim dark currently popular. It’s got a freshness to it that I enjoyed. Having said that, there are some very dark moments and I could not believe some of the revelations.
Todd Lockwood is one of the best fantasy artists ever, so it should come as no surprise that he’s drawn his own cover, map, aerie schematic, and section illustrations. The interior artwork is all black and white sketches, but they are gorgeous.
The only negative I found, is that while I got to know the protagonists really well, I didn’t feel much connection to the supporting cast. One character in particular I would have liked to know more about, and events with them during the climax didn’t hit me with the emotional punch they might have, had that connection been deeper.
I’ve long admired Lockwood’s artwork and now I admire his impressive writing skills too. This is a fantastic debut, one that’s perfect as an introduction to the genre as well as for long time dragon lovers.
May 3, 2017
SOME SPOILERS AHEAD...
*These are mainly my own notes so that I don't forget about things unlike the last time I read this book a year ago but is most definitely a review too*
4.5 stars and rounded up because I thought it deserved it.
Maia is a headstrong main character whom I enjoyed journeying with in my second time of reading this book. Sometimes you get annoyed with her, but in the long run, you will always end up rooting for her.
I absolutely LOVE her baby, Keirr, who I wanted to hug throughout the whole story! Keirr is a magnificent baby dragon that is rescued by Maia from the Horrors who have come to terrorize the people of Riat. They have already conquered Cuuloda and are a huge threat. They are ugly. They are evil. They are not living. They are crossed between humans and dragons with some sort of wicked magic (I'm only guessing). They will stop at nothing.
Darian pissed me off quite a bit, but at the end, I could only sympathize with him as well. However, the circumstances under which he has fallen and got upset over were nothing but looking out for him.
I hated Bellua. He is a disgusting, ruthless, and very cunning pig. Yuck. However, he has a good side later to come in the story. Still doesn't mean that I like him very much though.
Magha is the Broodmaster who has lots of temper problems, but has a soft side.
Tauman is a jerk. End of question.
Jhem is a loving and caring wife of Tauman who doesn't deserve his bull crap. But whatever.
I really grew to appreciate Cairek and his feelings for Maia. I really hoped they could have hit it off. I was heartbroken...
Mabir is the temple priest and a very kind old man. He always knows what to do, even if he has so many conflicting inner demons.
Fren is a very kind friend of Maia's who has been there for her from the beginning. Their friendship made me a happy reader.
Addai needs to burn in hell.
Getig, the Summer Dragon, is obviously my best friend. I wish we could have seen more of him throughout the book, but unfortunately he only shows up once and then a second time right afterwards. Sad face.
I was also sad about the ending. I really wish that the second book would come out so I can see what happens next.
I would have enjoyed this book much more if there wasn't so much political and religious conflicts going on, which were very depressing. Which is why I gave it 4.5 stars. However, it fits really well within the story and made it a very enjoyable read nonetheless. I would have to say, you have to read it for yourself before you judge this book from my review. It is indeed a very good book.
I was so happy when I picked this book up! I went to the store, and I saw the beautiful cover and title and description and knew I had to have it. I bought it exactly one day after its release, I was very lucky.
*These are mainly my own notes so that I don't forget about things unlike the last time I read this book a year ago but is most definitely a review too*
4.5 stars and rounded up because I thought it deserved it.
Maia is a headstrong main character whom I enjoyed journeying with in my second time of reading this book. Sometimes you get annoyed with her, but in the long run, you will always end up rooting for her.
I absolutely LOVE her baby, Keirr, who I wanted to hug throughout the whole story! Keirr is a magnificent baby dragon that is rescued by Maia from the Horrors who have come to terrorize the people of Riat. They have already conquered Cuuloda and are a huge threat. They are ugly. They are evil. They are not living. They are crossed between humans and dragons with some sort of wicked magic (I'm only guessing). They will stop at nothing.
Darian pissed me off quite a bit, but at the end, I could only sympathize with him as well. However, the circumstances under which he has fallen and got upset over were nothing but looking out for him.
I hated Bellua. He is a disgusting, ruthless, and very cunning pig. Yuck. However, he has a good side later to come in the story. Still doesn't mean that I like him very much though.
Magha is the Broodmaster who has lots of temper problems, but has a soft side.
Tauman is a jerk. End of question.
Jhem is a loving and caring wife of Tauman who doesn't deserve his bull crap. But whatever.
I really grew to appreciate Cairek and his feelings for Maia. I really hoped they could have hit it off. I was heartbroken...
Mabir is the temple priest and a very kind old man. He always knows what to do, even if he has so many conflicting inner demons.
Fren is a very kind friend of Maia's who has been there for her from the beginning. Their friendship made me a happy reader.
Addai needs to burn in hell.
Getig, the Summer Dragon, is obviously my best friend. I wish we could have seen more of him throughout the book, but unfortunately he only shows up once and then a second time right afterwards. Sad face.
I was also sad about the ending. I really wish that the second book would come out so I can see what happens next.
I would have enjoyed this book much more if there wasn't so much political and religious conflicts going on, which were very depressing. Which is why I gave it 4.5 stars. However, it fits really well within the story and made it a very enjoyable read nonetheless. I would have to say, you have to read it for yourself before you judge this book from my review. It is indeed a very good book.
I was so happy when I picked this book up! I went to the store, and I saw the beautiful cover and title and description and knew I had to have it. I bought it exactly one day after its release, I was very lucky.
August 17, 2016
Dear Todd,
Cut it out, will you? You're already an incredible artist (award winning, in fact), and your art contains the very images that already populate the brains of fantasy readers when someone says "picture a dragon." Do you know how hard it is to walk into a bookstore and not see a cover by Todd Lockwood? Give us a break.
And then, if that's not enough, you're a nice guy. You actually talk to people at conventions, make friends, interact, and even get out there on the dance floor. Talk about being approachable. Jeez.
So now, you wrote a book. Well, actually, not just a book, but as the cover says "First Book of the Evertide", which got, because I'm a friend, and thought you should have the support of those of us who know and like you. But come on, Todd, the book is in its third printing already, and it just came out in May 2016! I picked up a first edition, (pre-ordered, in fact) and when I heard how many had sold, I figured it was because of the kick-ass cover art or the drawings by the artist/author included inside.
But damn it, Todd. You can write. You can build worlds as well as draw them. You can craft characters with ink, and not just in your art, but with your words. I don't even like coming of age tales, but got sucked right into Maia's world, hopes, conflicts, and determination. She's an amazing young woman. There's even a touch of the philosopher in you, too. It's just not fair.
Plus, you broke my heart, right in two, with one of the drawings. You know, that father-daughter drawing at the start of chapter 22. The tenderness and love in his eyes, as he gazes down at his little one; her joyful posture as she stands below him balanced on her back legs, looking adoringly up at him. I love the personalities you've given your dragons. There human fathers who yearn for what Malik had in that moment when his little qit gazed up at him in that drawing.
So anyhow, Todd, I'm kind of annoyed at you, because you've set a hard standard for us other artists to live up to. So, please put away your dreams of creating Dragon Symphony and Ballet, and give us a chance, okay? You don't want us to die of despair before the next Evertide book comes out, do you?
Thank you so much, and would you mind signing my copy?
Cut it out, will you? You're already an incredible artist (award winning, in fact), and your art contains the very images that already populate the brains of fantasy readers when someone says "picture a dragon." Do you know how hard it is to walk into a bookstore and not see a cover by Todd Lockwood? Give us a break.
And then, if that's not enough, you're a nice guy. You actually talk to people at conventions, make friends, interact, and even get out there on the dance floor. Talk about being approachable. Jeez.
So now, you wrote a book. Well, actually, not just a book, but as the cover says "First Book of the Evertide", which got, because I'm a friend, and thought you should have the support of those of us who know and like you. But come on, Todd, the book is in its third printing already, and it just came out in May 2016! I picked up a first edition, (pre-ordered, in fact) and when I heard how many had sold, I figured it was because of the kick-ass cover art or the drawings by the artist/author included inside.
But damn it, Todd. You can write. You can build worlds as well as draw them. You can craft characters with ink, and not just in your art, but with your words. I don't even like coming of age tales, but got sucked right into Maia's world, hopes, conflicts, and determination. She's an amazing young woman. There's even a touch of the philosopher in you, too. It's just not fair.
Plus, you broke my heart, right in two, with one of the drawings. You know, that father-daughter drawing at the start of chapter 22. The tenderness and love in his eyes, as he gazes down at his little one; her joyful posture as she stands below him balanced on her back legs, looking adoringly up at him. I love the personalities you've given your dragons. There human fathers who yearn for what Malik had in that moment when his little qit gazed up at him in that drawing.
So anyhow, Todd, I'm kind of annoyed at you, because you've set a hard standard for us other artists to live up to. So, please put away your dreams of creating Dragon Symphony and Ballet, and give us a chance, okay? You don't want us to die of despair before the next Evertide book comes out, do you?
Thank you so much, and would you mind signing my copy?
May 3, 2016
When I read that this book involved dragons, I knew I needed to read it ASAP. I am so glad that I picked up this book, because it was just as epic as I was hoping it would be.
From the first page, I thought this book was addicting. I really enjoyed Lockwood's writing style. I thought the dialogue and action flowed well. There were a some moments where I thought the book was a little slow, but the book was well paced overall. There was a lot of world development in this book, and I think Lockwood handled it well. The information flowed naturally with the story and I didn't find it confusing. I am excited to learn even more about the world Lockwood created in future books. The dragons in this book were epic and well thought out. I really enjoyed learning about the dragons.
There were a lot of characters in this book, and I came to care for all of them! I thought the relationships between the characters were developed nicely, and I hope to see them develop more through the series.
Overall, this was an engrossing and addicting book. I am excited to continue with this series and see what happens to the characters and their dragons.
4 / 5 Fangs
*This ebook was given to me in exchange for a honest review. *
MrsLeif's Two Fangs About It
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From the first page, I thought this book was addicting. I really enjoyed Lockwood's writing style. I thought the dialogue and action flowed well. There were a some moments where I thought the book was a little slow, but the book was well paced overall. There was a lot of world development in this book, and I think Lockwood handled it well. The information flowed naturally with the story and I didn't find it confusing. I am excited to learn even more about the world Lockwood created in future books. The dragons in this book were epic and well thought out. I really enjoyed learning about the dragons.
There were a lot of characters in this book, and I came to care for all of them! I thought the relationships between the characters were developed nicely, and I hope to see them develop more through the series.
Overall, this was an engrossing and addicting book. I am excited to continue with this series and see what happens to the characters and their dragons.
4 / 5 Fangs
*This ebook was given to me in exchange for a honest review. *
MrsLeif's Two Fangs About It
December 15, 2016
8.5/10
I had first met Todd Lockwood through his cover art illustrations from R.A. Salvatore’s books and since then I couldn’t help but love him for his, truly, magnificent painting talent. So, as I got my hands on his debut novel I must say that I started it with a bit more enthusiasm than usually to discover if has yet another great talent.
Fortunately, Lockwood proves in this book that he, indeed, poses that talent too as he takes us in a wonderful magical world full with dragons like only a few authors have done before in the past.
Maia and her family are dragon-breeders and since she was little her dream was to have her own, little, dragon (called qit). But the needs of the Dragonry, their military of dragon-riders, are this time much larger than they expected and they will be forced to give all their youth dragons to be trained in the military and thus also taking away her dream.
But when one day, while wandering through the wilds, falls onto Getig, the mythical Summer Dragon, her life will change for ever. Some will see it as a good sing, while others as a bad one considering it only as a part of her dreams, and along they will bring their distrust to her and her family.
However, Maia is not one of those that give up easily and, as she wants at all costs to discover the mystery of the Summer Dragon, she will start her own adventures in this unknown, and wild, world.
On the way though, she will discover that this world is not as easy as she had known and along she will have to face enemies and monsters that she had never encountered before, that can bring the destruction to the dragons and her own people; as also the discovery of a mystery that it has been long ago forgotten in the mists of the past.
The book is written in the first-person narrative and, while I personally prefer more the third-person, I must say that Lockwood handles it really well as he takes through this, new, magical world from the eyes of the protagonist, Maia. Of course, it has a bit more young-adult feel at the beginning than usual, but Lockwood manages, with all his mastery, to make a more special and unique story full with strong emotions in a, truly, wonderful world-building.
The story is split into two parts, and although Lockwood develops it a little slow in the end, I believe, it is fully rewarding with his writing flowing very beautiful and sweet, as he takes us to a highly wonderful adventure and showing us the importance of the dragons, religiously or simply emotionally, for the people of this world, but also the reverberations of their actions. While also, the monsters that he has created, the Horrors (magical creations from the flesh of the dead), bring too their own unique taste in the book.
Closing, I want only to add about the wonderful art that accompanies this book from Todd Lockwood and shows a completely different side of this world and of his imagination.
Overall, this a surprisingly well written, first, book without really showing that it is, indeed, his debut as Lockwood “draws” as in a painting his own world and it is definitely a book that I would recommend to anyone that loves fantasy and dragons.
I had first met Todd Lockwood through his cover art illustrations from R.A. Salvatore’s books and since then I couldn’t help but love him for his, truly, magnificent painting talent. So, as I got my hands on his debut novel I must say that I started it with a bit more enthusiasm than usually to discover if has yet another great talent.
Fortunately, Lockwood proves in this book that he, indeed, poses that talent too as he takes us in a wonderful magical world full with dragons like only a few authors have done before in the past.
Maia and her family are dragon-breeders and since she was little her dream was to have her own, little, dragon (called qit). But the needs of the Dragonry, their military of dragon-riders, are this time much larger than they expected and they will be forced to give all their youth dragons to be trained in the military and thus also taking away her dream.
But when one day, while wandering through the wilds, falls onto Getig, the mythical Summer Dragon, her life will change for ever. Some will see it as a good sing, while others as a bad one considering it only as a part of her dreams, and along they will bring their distrust to her and her family.
However, Maia is not one of those that give up easily and, as she wants at all costs to discover the mystery of the Summer Dragon, she will start her own adventures in this unknown, and wild, world.
On the way though, she will discover that this world is not as easy as she had known and along she will have to face enemies and monsters that she had never encountered before, that can bring the destruction to the dragons and her own people; as also the discovery of a mystery that it has been long ago forgotten in the mists of the past.
The book is written in the first-person narrative and, while I personally prefer more the third-person, I must say that Lockwood handles it really well as he takes through this, new, magical world from the eyes of the protagonist, Maia. Of course, it has a bit more young-adult feel at the beginning than usual, but Lockwood manages, with all his mastery, to make a more special and unique story full with strong emotions in a, truly, wonderful world-building.
The story is split into two parts, and although Lockwood develops it a little slow in the end, I believe, it is fully rewarding with his writing flowing very beautiful and sweet, as he takes us to a highly wonderful adventure and showing us the importance of the dragons, religiously or simply emotionally, for the people of this world, but also the reverberations of their actions. While also, the monsters that he has created, the Horrors (magical creations from the flesh of the dead), bring too their own unique taste in the book.
Closing, I want only to add about the wonderful art that accompanies this book from Todd Lockwood and shows a completely different side of this world and of his imagination.
Overall, this a surprisingly well written, first, book without really showing that it is, indeed, his debut as Lockwood “draws” as in a painting his own world and it is definitely a book that I would recommend to anyone that loves fantasy and dragons.
August 21, 2020
Dass der Autor hervorragend Drachen zeichnen kann, hat man ja in der Lady Trent-Reihe von Marie Brennan gesehen. Dass er zudem auch gut über sie schreiben kann, ist nun in diesem Buch zu entdecken. Die Beschreibungen sind so lebensnah, dass man sie direkt vor sich sieht, was besonders bei den vielen Actionszenen äußerst hilfreich war. Ich bin ja eigentlich kein großer Fan solcher Szenen, aber hier wird eine Rettungsmission aus einer Höhle so dermaßen gut beschrieben, dass ich wirklich atemlos über die Seiten geflogen bin. Für meinen Geschmack ist es dann später etwas zu viel Action, aber die Welt und ihre Mysterien sind allemal interessant genug, um hier abtauchen zu können. Besonders die Drachensprache, die wir mit der Protagonistin zu entschlüsseln versuchen, hat es mir angetan… naja und die Drachenbabys natürlich 😉
Es scheint ein Reihenauftakt zu sein, noch gibt es aber keine weiteren Bände. Die Geschichte ist aber in sich abgeschlossen und kann gut alleinstehend gelesen werden.
Es scheint ein Reihenauftakt zu sein, noch gibt es aber keine weiteren Bände. Die Geschichte ist aber in sich abgeschlossen und kann gut alleinstehend gelesen werden.
May 22, 2018
Das Buch hat mir wirklich unglaublich viel Freude bereitet. Zu Beginn wurde ich etwas mit Namen zugeworfen, aber das gab sich; hier hätte sich ein Glossar angeboten, denke ich. Darüber hinaus ist das Buch aber pure Freude. Maia ist ein ganz wunderbarer Charakter mit ihren Ecken und Kanten und wirklich tollen Seiten. Sie hat einen nicht leichten Packen zu tragen, der ihr zudem von höheren Mächten noch schwerer gemacht wird. Sie beißt sich aber trotz aller Schwierigkeiten durch und ist hilfsbereit und mutig.
Außerdem gibt es Drachen und oh mein Gott, sind die toll! Die kleinen Drachenbabys haben es mir einfach angetan, sie sind so zuckersüß! Man merkt, dass die Drachen dieser Welt keine tumben Tiere sind, sondern hochintelligente Wesen, die sogar eine eigene Kommunikation kennen. Diese zu entschlüsseln, ist noch niemandem gelungen, aber es bereitet wirklich sehr viel Freude beim Lesen, gemeinsam mit Maia zu versuchen, der Drachensprache auf die Spuren zu kommen.
Dazu gibt es noch eine übernatürliche Bedrohung, der alle versuchen auf die Schliche zu kommen, und einige eigentlich gute, aber doch nicht so gute Parteien, die versuchen, die Ereignisse nach ihrem jeweiligen Gusto zu deuten, um sich einen Vorteil zu verschaffen. Das ganze vor dem Hintergrund eines faszinierenden und facettenreichen Worldbuildings. In Lockwoods Welt gibt es viele Geheimnisse zu entdecken!
Natürlich ist das Buch auch ganz wunderbar vom Autor selbst illustriert worden; einige kennen Lockwood vielleicht schon vorher von seiner Tätigkeit als Illustrator. Ich schätze seine Werke sehr und freue mich daher riesig, dass seine Werke auch sein eigenes Buch schmücken.
Ich vergebe eine klare Leseempfehlung besonders für Leser, die Eragon und die Lady Trent Reihe mochten.
Außerdem gibt es Drachen und oh mein Gott, sind die toll! Die kleinen Drachenbabys haben es mir einfach angetan, sie sind so zuckersüß! Man merkt, dass die Drachen dieser Welt keine tumben Tiere sind, sondern hochintelligente Wesen, die sogar eine eigene Kommunikation kennen. Diese zu entschlüsseln, ist noch niemandem gelungen, aber es bereitet wirklich sehr viel Freude beim Lesen, gemeinsam mit Maia zu versuchen, der Drachensprache auf die Spuren zu kommen.
Dazu gibt es noch eine übernatürliche Bedrohung, der alle versuchen auf die Schliche zu kommen, und einige eigentlich gute, aber doch nicht so gute Parteien, die versuchen, die Ereignisse nach ihrem jeweiligen Gusto zu deuten, um sich einen Vorteil zu verschaffen. Das ganze vor dem Hintergrund eines faszinierenden und facettenreichen Worldbuildings. In Lockwoods Welt gibt es viele Geheimnisse zu entdecken!
Natürlich ist das Buch auch ganz wunderbar vom Autor selbst illustriert worden; einige kennen Lockwood vielleicht schon vorher von seiner Tätigkeit als Illustrator. Ich schätze seine Werke sehr und freue mich daher riesig, dass seine Werke auch sein eigenes Buch schmücken.
Ich vergebe eine klare Leseempfehlung besonders für Leser, die Eragon und die Lady Trent Reihe mochten.
February 17, 2019
Not a big fan of this one. The biggest problem for me - everything happens is a very defined place that almost never changes throughout the book. I think part of high and adventure fantasy is constant movement, change of places, adventures, new characters, new everything. Now it's almost the same characters in almost the same places in almost the same situations. It's not cardboard, but sometimes in depth (and I mean Adele "Rolling In The Deep" kind of depths) description kills all the fun.
Hated the brother character. He was such a nuisance. Always sulking how he is the lesser one, only to be acknowledge and praised. Maia, you are so much better without him. I am not sure if a character, who is a here just be be dragged around is worthy to have.
For me it felt like dragons were dumbed down. They were so smart, so perceptive, so intuitive and amazing, but somehow unable to master the human tongue. Only few misspelled and mispronounced words doesn't do the justice. Yes, they are animals, but I think normal speech or no speech at all is two ways to go.
I also haaaate when the whole book is just one long description and the grand finale is left for the very end aka the cliffhanger. I think it tricks the readers. You wait the whole book for something significant to happen, at the end you go "FINALLLY!" but well, you are almost forced to buy a new book, just to find another grand moment at the very end. Unfair.
December 6, 2017
This book starts off a bit too slow, but once things start to ramp up it's a lot more interesting of a read. It might best be described as Eragon, if Eragon were original, where a young woman finds a wild dragon and raises it, with plenty of creeping forces outside of their remote area starting to come into play.
There's very bad bad guys, which is a bit fine, but their motivations could use some work. There's much more interesting things going on politically, where it seems like almost no one can be taken at face value. There's also a fair bit of interesting family dynamics at work, where jealousy and expectations all start putting pressure on characters.
The protagonist is a bit too "special" for my taste, but she's not someone who is totally awful to read about or to experience her PoV, she just needs to do some growing up. And by the end she has grown up some, it's certainly going to be interesting to see how she continues to mature in the subsequent books.
The mythology is interesting, especially the impact it appears to be exerting on the plot. I generally like when ancient beliefs start to become relevant again, especially when there's a chance they could shake-up the status quo, as it appears to be hinting at in this book.
I'd definitely suggest this to anyone who wants a good dragon book. It's also good for people who want a story without much romance, folks who want epic fantasy with a tighter focus, and those who want mostly intact family units.
There's very bad bad guys, which is a bit fine, but their motivations could use some work. There's much more interesting things going on politically, where it seems like almost no one can be taken at face value. There's also a fair bit of interesting family dynamics at work, where jealousy and expectations all start putting pressure on characters.
The protagonist is a bit too "special" for my taste, but she's not someone who is totally awful to read about or to experience her PoV, she just needs to do some growing up. And by the end she has grown up some, it's certainly going to be interesting to see how she continues to mature in the subsequent books.
The mythology is interesting, especially the impact it appears to be exerting on the plot. I generally like when ancient beliefs start to become relevant again, especially when there's a chance they could shake-up the status quo, as it appears to be hinting at in this book.
I'd definitely suggest this to anyone who wants a good dragon book. It's also good for people who want a story without much romance, folks who want epic fantasy with a tighter focus, and those who want mostly intact family units.
May 3, 2016
Todd Lockwood is one of the top illustrators in our field and a tremendous guy. I was fortunate enough to be able to read The Summer Dragon in manuscript form, and I am happy to say that he is also a tremendous writer. This is a great book, richly conceived, beautifully executed, and copiously illustrated by Lockwood himself. Not to be missed.
May 17, 2016
Just so you know, i base my ratings on how much enjoyed reading a book.
Reading this was quite frustrating. A lot of the time the pace was just too fast and i had no idea what was happening, and another thing i didn't really enjoy was the characters; I didn't care for pretty much any of them (Except Jhem of course)
This book just wasn't for me.
Reading this was quite frustrating. A lot of the time the pace was just too fast and i had no idea what was happening, and another thing i didn't really enjoy was the characters; I didn't care for pretty much any of them (Except Jhem of course)
This book just wasn't for me.
June 5, 2016
This was an enjoyable debut novel and there was a lot to like about it. The main character – Maia – is interesting and showed some real character growth. The world building is interesting without overwhelming the reader with vast amounts of information too fast. I loved the way dragons were portrayed in the novel and this is one of the first novels that really used dragons to such a degree (they are in the book a lot) that I have read in a very long time. When aerial traveling and combat – people on the back of dragons – was described, it was engaging and exciting. The ending was compelling, with several dangling plot threads I would be very interested in seeing resolved. Very unusually among fantasy novels, there were illustrations – excellent ones at that – with the author/artist showing a tremendous skill at portraying both humans and dragons (and later, monsters). The main adversary proved to be interesting, especially in the final encounter, and the climatic battle at the end of the book was epic.
The novel centered on a teenage girl by the name of Maia, daughter of a man who operates on behalf of the Empire a dragon aerie, producing dragons for the Dragonry, the dragon-riding and using arm of the imperial military. Each year they produce dragon babies (qits) from the mated pairs that they possess and each year representatives of the military show up to claim qits to be raised for military use. Maia – and her brother Darian – hope at the beginning of the book to each have a qit of their own. Ostensibly to a degree to have more breeding pairs and thus producing more qits at their aerie, but really so each can become bonded with a qit and have a dragon of their own (dragon riders in this setting have magical tattoos of a sort placed upon them and their bonded dragon, which helps enable a closer connection between dragon and human).
Events intervene, both wider events – a war is taking place, with invaders using undead dragons and dragon riders (collectively called Horrors) striking at settlements and especially dragon aeries in the Empire – and events closer by, namely Maia and Darian spotting the titular Summer Dragon, a very rarely seen, unique individual dragon that even mentioning one has seen it has enormous religious connotations in the deeply religious (but we out later, religiously divided) Empire. As priests descend upon the idyllic valley that is Maia’s home and Maia deals with the enormous changes just having seen the Summer Dragon brings to her life, she finds out that the war is not as far from as home as she thought.
I did have a few complaints. Sometimes the pacing was a bit slow before Maia discovered the war had come to her home, though once I was reading that part of the book the pacing was excellent, even after combat and chase scenes were finished for the time being. A couple of the secondary characters could have been better fleshed out, though those that were detailed I think were vividly portrayed. There was one character I thought at first was there just to be hated and was almost stereotypical in his reactions to Maia and Darian (mostly Maia though) having seen the Summer Dragon, but later he showed real growth and became an interesting character. Some of the exposition about the import of the Summer Dragons and where that creature fits into the somewhat complex mythologies and doctrine of the dominant and hidden religions of the setting was clunky at first, with lots of proper names, but well before the end I understood how things would work (or theoretically work, as ongoing events in the novel were testing several deeply held tenets of faith). Though the final battle was excellently written, the first battle scene with Maia involved was a tiny bit tediously written at times (too many times dragons were described as roaring in pain I thought) but it was still interesting and the pacing was quite good and that is the extent of my complaints about it.
My complaints overall were minor though.
The novel had a lighter tone than some of the other fantasy novels I have read recently, despite the dire nature of the threat. By light I don’t mean irreverent or the like but hopeful, optimistic; that Maia and Darian especially for the most part always think that there is a positive way forward.
I thought female characters – chiefly Maia but she wasn’t the only one – were well handled and when they lost agency it seemed both culturally appropriate and/or due to something that would limit the agency of men too (namely arranged marriages or the threat thereof and of imperial decrees that don’t allow for any chance for dissent or discussion).
When Maia was riding a dragon through the air the descriptions were beautiful and really seemed to convey a sense of the joy of flying as well as portraying a realistic fantasy depiction of what flying would be like. When there were fights in the air they were exciting but didn’t ape fighter jet combat or the like, as not only does a rider make decisions but the dragon does as well and together they are greater than the sum of their parts.
The novel centered on a teenage girl by the name of Maia, daughter of a man who operates on behalf of the Empire a dragon aerie, producing dragons for the Dragonry, the dragon-riding and using arm of the imperial military. Each year they produce dragon babies (qits) from the mated pairs that they possess and each year representatives of the military show up to claim qits to be raised for military use. Maia – and her brother Darian – hope at the beginning of the book to each have a qit of their own. Ostensibly to a degree to have more breeding pairs and thus producing more qits at their aerie, but really so each can become bonded with a qit and have a dragon of their own (dragon riders in this setting have magical tattoos of a sort placed upon them and their bonded dragon, which helps enable a closer connection between dragon and human).
Events intervene, both wider events – a war is taking place, with invaders using undead dragons and dragon riders (collectively called Horrors) striking at settlements and especially dragon aeries in the Empire – and events closer by, namely Maia and Darian spotting the titular Summer Dragon, a very rarely seen, unique individual dragon that even mentioning one has seen it has enormous religious connotations in the deeply religious (but we out later, religiously divided) Empire. As priests descend upon the idyllic valley that is Maia’s home and Maia deals with the enormous changes just having seen the Summer Dragon brings to her life, she finds out that the war is not as far from as home as she thought.
I did have a few complaints. Sometimes the pacing was a bit slow before Maia discovered the war had come to her home, though once I was reading that part of the book the pacing was excellent, even after combat and chase scenes were finished for the time being. A couple of the secondary characters could have been better fleshed out, though those that were detailed I think were vividly portrayed. There was one character I thought at first was there just to be hated and was almost stereotypical in his reactions to Maia and Darian (mostly Maia though) having seen the Summer Dragon, but later he showed real growth and became an interesting character. Some of the exposition about the import of the Summer Dragons and where that creature fits into the somewhat complex mythologies and doctrine of the dominant and hidden religions of the setting was clunky at first, with lots of proper names, but well before the end I understood how things would work (or theoretically work, as ongoing events in the novel were testing several deeply held tenets of faith). Though the final battle was excellently written, the first battle scene with Maia involved was a tiny bit tediously written at times (too many times dragons were described as roaring in pain I thought) but it was still interesting and the pacing was quite good and that is the extent of my complaints about it.
My complaints overall were minor though.
The novel had a lighter tone than some of the other fantasy novels I have read recently, despite the dire nature of the threat. By light I don’t mean irreverent or the like but hopeful, optimistic; that Maia and Darian especially for the most part always think that there is a positive way forward.
I thought female characters – chiefly Maia but she wasn’t the only one – were well handled and when they lost agency it seemed both culturally appropriate and/or due to something that would limit the agency of men too (namely arranged marriages or the threat thereof and of imperial decrees that don’t allow for any chance for dissent or discussion).
When Maia was riding a dragon through the air the descriptions were beautiful and really seemed to convey a sense of the joy of flying as well as portraying a realistic fantasy depiction of what flying would be like. When there were fights in the air they were exciting but didn’t ape fighter jet combat or the like, as not only does a rider make decisions but the dragon does as well and together they are greater than the sum of their parts.
October 18, 2016
This is a fabulous read with...dragons!! Maia is an engaging protagonist who is the youngest in a dragon-rearing family. Her life is peaceful and nothing would compete it more than to have her own dragon, needless to say life takes a turn for the worse.
As an added bonus to the superb writing, Lockwood includes many works of art that are scattered throughout. What a talented dude!
As an added bonus to the superb writing, Lockwood includes many works of art that are scattered throughout. What a talented dude!
June 9, 2016
My Blog Hi Books! It's me Jethplain
"Curse or blessing, we contend with it. Neither arrives without the other close behind. It's all part of the Evertide "
I was excited to read this book. As I read the first few pages I thought this would just be like other books with dragons and a female lead in it, but there's more to it. Aside the from the usual, where the strong female lead slowly uncovers who she really is, and rising the from the challenges that're thrown at her, the story also deals with religion. How people react when their beliefs are challenged, how they struggle to get up and move on after struck with disaster. Which reflects our world today, we may not have dragons (for now? haha) but the conflict of religion and refugees are elements that we also face in our society.
The lead character Maia has been struggling since her mother passed away, who was upset with Maia before her death which she secretly blames herself for. Just before that happens her mother tell her that a "Dragon handler with her head in the clouds is cursed." This leads to Maia constantly blaming herself for every unfortunate event that has transpired since then and her trying to prove to herself that she's not cursed. This makes her relatable in the sense that everyone, at some point in their lives or even until today has experience self-doubt. We constantly try to prove or self-worth but at the same time, in some little space in the back of our head think that we are undeserving.
I recommend this book to those who like stories with Dragons,myths and a lead character. If you're someone who likes love stories, well aside from lingering looks here and there this book doesn't really have one, but it's still the first from this series so who knows.
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"Curse or blessing, we contend with it. Neither arrives without the other close behind. It's all part of the Evertide "
I was excited to read this book. As I read the first few pages I thought this would just be like other books with dragons and a female lead in it, but there's more to it. Aside the from the usual, where the strong female lead slowly uncovers who she really is, and rising the from the challenges that're thrown at her, the story also deals with religion. How people react when their beliefs are challenged, how they struggle to get up and move on after struck with disaster. Which reflects our world today, we may not have dragons (for now? haha) but the conflict of religion and refugees are elements that we also face in our society.
The lead character Maia has been struggling since her mother passed away, who was upset with Maia before her death which she secretly blames herself for. Just before that happens her mother tell her that a "Dragon handler with her head in the clouds is cursed." This leads to Maia constantly blaming herself for every unfortunate event that has transpired since then and her trying to prove to herself that she's not cursed. This makes her relatable in the sense that everyone, at some point in their lives or even until today has experience self-doubt. We constantly try to prove or self-worth but at the same time, in some little space in the back of our head think that we are undeserving.
I recommend this book to those who like stories with Dragons,myths and a lead character. If you're someone who likes love stories, well aside from lingering looks here and there this book doesn't really have one, but it's still the first from this series so who knows.
Find the books at
Amazon
Google Play
October 19, 2018
Wieder mal ein Buch, das mich sehr zwiegespalten zurück lässt.
Die Darstellung der Drachen fand ich wunderbar. Wie Menschen mit ihren Drachen verbunden werden; Die Beschreibung der Aerys, der Drachenzuchtstationen, in denen es unglaublich familiär zu geht. Wirklich toll.
Was mir leider nicht gefallen hat, waren zum einen die "bösen" Charaktere. Es wurde für mein Empfinden einfach nicht klar genug heraus gearbeitet warum Bellua sich verhält wie er sich verhält (Irgendwas mit Religion?) oder was nun eigentlich Rov's Ziele sind (Irgendwie keine guten Ziele?). Warum Addai völlig irre ist und was eigetlich die Harodhi (Krieger eines feindlichen Landes?) damit zu tun haben.
Hinzu kam, dass das ich das Konstrukt der Avar und Asha irgenwie nicht stimmig fand. Entweder es wurde schlecht erklärt oder ich war zu doof um es richtig zu verstehen.
Und letztendlich hat das Ende mich mit einem riesigen Fragezeichen über dem Kopf zurück gelassen. Ich habe weder eine Vorstellung davon, was Maia nun für Ziele verfolgt, noch wo die Geschehnisse als ganzes hingehen sollen. Dabei war das Ende noch nicht mal ein Cliffhanger. Man liest die letzte Seite und denkt sich nur: "Ok, fertig".
Ich bin mir unsicher, ob ich diese Reihe weiter verfolgen werde. Wahrscheinlich werde ich es davon abhängig machen, was andere Leute über den zweiten Teil sagen werden.
Die Darstellung der Drachen fand ich wunderbar. Wie Menschen mit ihren Drachen verbunden werden; Die Beschreibung der Aerys, der Drachenzuchtstationen, in denen es unglaublich familiär zu geht. Wirklich toll.
Was mir leider nicht gefallen hat, waren zum einen die "bösen" Charaktere. Es wurde für mein Empfinden einfach nicht klar genug heraus gearbeitet warum Bellua sich verhält wie er sich verhält (Irgendwas mit Religion?) oder was nun eigentlich Rov's Ziele sind (Irgendwie keine guten Ziele?). Warum Addai völlig irre ist und was eigetlich die Harodhi (Krieger eines feindlichen Landes?) damit zu tun haben.
Hinzu kam, dass das ich das Konstrukt der Avar und Asha irgenwie nicht stimmig fand. Entweder es wurde schlecht erklärt oder ich war zu doof um es richtig zu verstehen.
Und letztendlich hat das Ende mich mit einem riesigen Fragezeichen über dem Kopf zurück gelassen. Ich habe weder eine Vorstellung davon, was Maia nun für Ziele verfolgt, noch wo die Geschehnisse als ganzes hingehen sollen. Dabei war das Ende noch nicht mal ein Cliffhanger. Man liest die letzte Seite und denkt sich nur: "Ok, fertig".
Ich bin mir unsicher, ob ich diese Reihe weiter verfolgen werde. Wahrscheinlich werde ich es davon abhängig machen, was andere Leute über den zweiten Teil sagen werden.
November 29, 2016
DNF! It was my own fault...I ignored the signs. Maybe this one gets good (doubt it) but I made it about 25% through and it gave me a splitting headache. Maybe the headache was related to something else (probably) but that wont change my opinion. I believed the hype I suppose as the book was in many Best Fantasy of 2016 articles (i could be making that up). I think everyone knows i am no fan of YA but often like YA books. This was to YA'y (not a word). Dog shit is a strong term but if the shoe fits you know?
Want to read
July 10, 2019dragons and politics?? be still my beating heart
June 19, 2017
Overall I really enjoyed this book, which kind of surprised me. I'm not normally one that goes for books with lots of fictional religions or politics, but I didn't seem to mind much.
I really enjoyed the theme of the book as well about a family that trains dragons for the warriors of the empire. It's very different from anything I've read and I enjoyed the change of pace.
The book does start fairly slow. Most of that is simply learning names and places. Not only do the people have names but every dragon has a name and a history as well with relationships. In particular there is a 100 page span that just covers the main character earning her own dragon. It felt way too drawn out for me. I think that easily could have been halved and still been just as effective. During this time the main character really annoys me. Through most of the look I liked her. However for these 100 pages she is extremely selfish and just acts on so much stupidity. I know she is acting at times of desperation but come on.
The world is well built and there is a wonderful mix of politics, religion, mythology.
I can't wait to see what the next one has in store.
Also just an FYI: the author is a well know fantasy artist. Every 4 or 5 chapters there is a beautiful illustration to go along with the text. I really enjoyed the visual of the dragons themselves.
I really enjoyed the theme of the book as well about a family that trains dragons for the warriors of the empire. It's very different from anything I've read and I enjoyed the change of pace.
The book does start fairly slow. Most of that is simply learning names and places. Not only do the people have names but every dragon has a name and a history as well with relationships. In particular there is a 100 page span that just covers the main character earning her own dragon. It felt way too drawn out for me. I think that easily could have been halved and still been just as effective. During this time the main character really annoys me. Through most of the look I liked her. However for these 100 pages she is extremely selfish and just acts on so much stupidity. I know she is acting at times of desperation but come on.
The world is well built and there is a wonderful mix of politics, religion, mythology.
I can't wait to see what the next one has in store.
Also just an FYI: the author is a well know fantasy artist. Every 4 or 5 chapters there is a beautiful illustration to go along with the text. I really enjoyed the visual of the dragons themselves.
January 8, 2023
My scars give me strength.
3.5 stars
WHAT I LIKED:
1. Dragons (obviously)
I’m a sucker for detail and so naturally, I enjoyed the bits about dragon-rearing (I’m talking egg-to-adult kind of detail) and the depiction of the social infrastructure needed to support such an institution.
A very novel perspective in fantasy, at least to me.
2. Religious politics
I’m always game for religious politics BUT I do wish Lockwood had eased us into things because the lore’s pretty convoluted.
3. The illustrations!
Those were a nice touch.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE:
1. The writing style.
There was nothing off-putting or extraneous about it, it simply wasn’t for me.
2. The characterisation
There was a lot of back and forth and it was somewhat tedious to sit through.
And don’t get me started on Darian.
In conclusion: I started this with lots of enthusiasm, got a little run-around by the lore, and eventually had to force myself through the final 100 pages.
I doubt I’ll be reading the next entry any time soon.
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